Bleeder disqualified after trainer admits it bled

The issue of bleeding in harness racing is always a highly sensitive one due to the animal welfare issues involved and authorities on both sides of the Tasman tend to take a dim view of anyone breaking the rules around bleeding.

The recent case of the former New Zealand trotter Saratoga in Queensland is a great example of the pitfalls that await you if you are not fully conversant with all the rules and regulations

Saratoga was transferred to the care of Adam Sanderson in September 2015 after struggling to find his feet in Victoria with Brent Lilley.

On the 19th of September Adam informed the owners of Saratoga in New Zealand that he had bled from both nostrils during track work that day.

Saratoga had previously bled in New Zealand so it wasn't a complete surprise to the owners who race the horse under the goHarness Trotting For Fun syndicate banner.

With no further episodes in following weeks, Saratoga then had five starts between the 9th October and the 21st of November in which he won twice and was placed twice.

However Stewards in Queensland somehow got wind of the bleeding incident and held a hearing into what had happened on November 21st at which Mr Sanderson admitted that he failed to notify the authorities that Saratoga had bled from both nostrils during track work for which the stewards fined him five hundred dollars.

However worse was to come.

The stand down period in Australia for a horse bleeding from both nostrils is three months and Saratoga was therefore ineligible to race until December 19th after his September 19th bleed.

Therefore the stewards had no option but to disqualify Saratoga from the five starts he had had in October and November as he was ineligible to start, costing the horse's New Zealand owners A$10,314 in stake money.

It has been a steep learning curve for both Saratoga's young trainer Adam Sanderson and his Kiwi owners but they are both determined to put the matter behind them and move forward as the horse obviously has unfulfilled potential in Queensland.

Harnesslink Media