CHRB: Trainer Dan Blacker Suspended 90 Days, Fined $15,000

The California Horse Racing Board has issued trainer Dan Blacker a 90-day suspension and $15,000 fine for failing to comply with its pre-work veterinary exam regulations, reports the Thoroughbred Daily News. 

Blacker's suspension is scheduled to run from Feb. 26 through May 25.

CHRB rule 1878 requires horses to be examined by a trainer’s attending veterinarian within 72 hours of a workout to determine whether the runner is fit for such exercise. The rule was launched on Jan. 1, 2022, and requires the attending vet to determine "that the horse is fit to workout" via a "close inspection of the eyes, examination of the legs, and observation of the horse at rest and while in motion."

The CHRB investigation was launched following the fatality of unraced Blacker trainee Animae after a workout at Santa Anita on July 1, 2023. The 2-year-old filly suffered a fatal musculoskeletal injury to her pelvis and vertebrae, according to CHRB records.

An investigation into the filly's fatality found that she did not have an examination by Blacker's attending veterinarian entered into the Equitaps database during the seventy-two (72) hours immediately preceding that July 1 official workout. In fact, three of the four official works for Animae did not have a vet exam listed.

As a result, an audit was conducted on all horses trained by Blacker from Jan. 1, 2022, through July 1, 2023. Of the 789 official workouts listed for Blacker's trainees, 527 did not have a veterinary exam completed during the 72 hours preceding the work.

In a statement last October, Blacker took full responsibility for the violations.