Steroid Testing

The early results from anabolic steroid testing at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s 2-year-old in training sales have been both interesting and encouraging. They're interesting because, based on the low numbers of horses tested at the request of their buyers, there's not an overwhelming concern among shoppers about steroids. But they're also encouraging because among the horses tested, so far, there haven't been any positives.

Does a low level of concern mean the steroid testing option isn't needed? No, because anything you can do to make buyers more confident is good for integrity. No, because if this testing weren't in place, we don't know how many sellers would use steroids and I suspect, because of the number of very mature-looking juveniles I've seen in the past, that it has happened.

OBS has shown that steroid testing can be conducted smoothly with little delay in the time between the sale of a horse and a final test result. Based on the early experiences, there doesn't seem to be any excuse for not implementing steroid testing of 2-year-olds elsewhere.

And, based on the solid results of the OBS sales, such testing sure hasn't seemed to hurt business.