'Anita Stewards Order DQ in O'Neill Case

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Santa Anita stewards have disqualified a horse trained by Doug O'Neill from a first-place finish and ordered redistribution of the purse as a result of a test sample that showed the horse had raced with an excess of total carbon dioxide.

According to a California Horse Racing Board statement issued March 28, the horse, Chicks Rule exceeded the regulatory threshold of 37.0mml/l in a post-race analysis done at the Ken Maddy equine testing facility at the University of California-Davis. The testing following the horse's victory in the third race at Santa Anita on Jan. 17. It is a class 3 violation.

A CHRB complaint is pending against O’Neill, who previously had a TCO2 violation at Hollywood Park in 2006. A high level of carbon dioxide in a horse's bloodstream indicates the presence of alkalizing agents, commonly known as milkshaking.

In a separate case, stewards at Bay Meadows issued a $3,000 fine to trainer Albert Michael Lenzini, the trainer of Lady Woodman, for a TCO2 violation. Lady Woodman finished fifth in the third race at Golden Gate Fields on Sept. 17, 2006. The stewards also disqualified Lady Woodman and ordered a redistribution of the purse.

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