IMPORTANT NOTICES http :// www . nhra . co . za / notices . php
Completion of the Vet Treatment Register by trainers
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Completion of the Vet Treatment Register by trainers There is a misconception amongst trainers that the Vet Treatment Register ( VTR ) only has to be filled in by vets . Please note that this is NOT true . The VTR has to be completed whenever a horse receives ANY treatment . For example , if a vet dispenses a bottle of penicillin for the trainer to administer over the next 3 days , then the TRAINER must enter this administration in the VTR each time he treats the horse . The same would apply for ANY dispensed medication . Please note that a vet may only prescribe medication for 30 days . Any medication found in a trainers possession that was prescribed more than a month previously , shall be confiscated and the trainer fined .
The same applies to expired medication . Please note that the use of dispensed medication does NOT apply to the 48 hour period before a race day . Only a vet may administer treatment 48 hours prior to a race day . According to the protocol published , any administration of Lasix must be also be entered into the VTR by the Trainer as soon as it is administered . This becomes very important , should a horse get selected for Out of Competition sampling . If the Lasix treatment is not in the VTR at time of sampling , it will be considered not prescribed . The other treatment that has to be recorded is any Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy . The vet has to prescribe a programme for the horse ( also entered in the VTR ) and each time the horse is subsequently treated , this must be recorded by the trainer . Trainers must also insist that the vet writes the VTR sequence number on the label of any drug that he dispenses . This will enable the NHA to link any medication found in a trainer ’ s possession to the correct VTR entry , which must detail all the dosage , route etc requirements . Any dispensed medication not utilised , should be returned to the prescribing vet for disposal . Any chronic medication ( i . e . treatment longer than two weeks for e . g . Ventipulmin dispensed for IAD in a horse ), does not need to be recorded every day , with the proviso that the original dispensing instructions are clearly recorded in the VTR on the day corresponding to the sequence number on the label of the medication . Chronic medication must be renewed every 30 days and re-entered into the VTR with a new label and corresponding sequence number on the medication .
Please note that the old 24 hour rule has been changed and no longer applies . It is the trainer ’ s responsibility to ensure that his / her vet completes the VTR legibly as and when he treats the horse . Should the vet utilise his own VTR , then the trainer must file the copy that the vet leaves behind . This becomes very important when Out of Competition testing is done . The trainer MUST have available at all times , proof of any and all treatment administered to his horses . The discharge form from a hospital is also considered a treatment record in terms of the rules , to cover horses returning from surgery or hospitalization . It is not necessary to record all administrations of cobalt containing preparations ( for e , g , Vit B12 ) for Out of Competition testing , as co-
• Volume 19 no 1 • February 2017 • 9