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Extreme Measures The Tragic 2009 deaTh of 21 polo ponies leads To sTricTer guidelines and heighTened awareness relaTing To The aniMals' healTh and safeTy—on and off The field. By Lauren Carelli For anyone closely associated with the polo industry, the tragedy that happened in the spring of 2009 in Wellington, Florida, like- ly still rings fresh in their minds. To revisit, 21 ponies from the Lechuza Caracas polo team collapsed, many in front of spectators, due to a selenium overdose. The scene was grisly and shocking, the tragic and fright- ening result of an avoidable oversight. Two years later, we take a look to find out what changes have been made to prevent a simi- lar situation from happening again. "Before the 2009 tragedy, USPA had additional safety measures in place, includ- ing the designation of Equine Welfare Rep- resentatives at all USPA sanctioned events," said Peter Rizzo, USPA Executive Director. "These representatives are steadfast advo- cates for the horses and are responsible for observing and investigating any apparent health issues of horses playing in USPA tournaments." In addition, the Pony Welfare Hotline was used to report any abuse directly to Rizzo. However, more needed to be done. Rizzo has been working closely with the Equine Welfare Committee since the 2009 event and has also worked with the Polo Pony Welfare Committee to research and examine safeguards for the horses. Then, in 2010, the USPA Board of Governors established a committee to look at existing and additional safeguards for polo horses, including the development of a prohibited-substance policy, which is now called the USPA Equine Drugs and Medi- cations Program. The Board also approved a by-law change that requires individual 60 Myopia polo 2011 members of the USPA to submit his or her horses for random blood and/or urine test- ing. The random testing will be conducted fieldside after the game by an appointed veterinarian and technician who will be bearing the USPA badges seen below. If the horses fail such tests, the owner and/ or the player who competed with the horse may be charged with a conduct violation and will face serious consequences, such as disqualification, fines, and temporary suspension. The USPA has also made it mandatory for each club to have an Equine Welfare Committee Representative and strongly recommends that one be at each and every event. However, with so many horses on and off the field, keeping track of each one in a timely manner is difficult to say the least. So, to stay on top of the health issues the USPA has made it mandatory for each club to report any horse injury caused by polo-related activity. This will ensure the safety of the horses and the players as well. Bryan Parrott, a vet- erinarian and the owner of Parrott Equine Associ- ates in Hamilton, works with many of the horses at Myopia. Parrott has seen the changes take place at the club since the 2009 incident, but like many other profes- sionals in the industry, he knows there is more work to be done. "There needs to be further evolution and there needs to be the highest standards for everyone involved, animals included," said Parrott. "It's not a season-to-season thing. We know the problems and issues that are out there, but it can't be done overnight. We've made huge steps and are continuing to make large strides not only for polo but for horse activity all over." The USPA is confident that the organi- zation is heading in the right direction to ensure the safety of the horses. They have made it their mission to work with other organizations, such as the American Horse Council, to come up with new ways to protect the animals. Insiders say research efforts will continue, as well, as there is always room for improvement. "Horses are the lifeblood of our sport," said Rizzo, "and the USPA has a number of programs in place to look out for their health and safety." More information can be found at us-polo.org.