Justify checkup finds rash gone, heel treated
LOUISVILLE – Kentucky Derby 2018 winner Justify has responded well after the race and does not have scratches on his left hind leg after further examination.
Dr. Mary Scollay, equine medical director at the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, checked on Justify on Tuesday and spoke with Kevin Dunlavy, the practicing veterinarian at Churchill Downs, and the doctors found that the horse’s condition has improved.
“The horse does not have scratches,” Scollay said. “There’s no evidence of skin (disease) on either hind pastern.”
She added that the horse did not show any signs of lameness Tuesday.
After Justify developed a skin rash on his left hind foot Sunday, there was concern that he had scratches, a condition that develops when moisture or debris gathers in a horse’s feathers and causes inflammation.
Instead, Justify has a bruised heel on his left hind foot. Doctors have begun treatment, and Scollay said the horse has responded favorably.
Jimmy Barnes, the assistant to Justify’s trainer, Bob Baffert, said the plan is for Justify to walk again Wednesday before returning to the track.
Scollay could not speculate on whether Justify would be healthy for the Preakness Stakes on May 19, but she said she “wouldn’t have any reservations” about the trainer’s plan.
Earlier Monday, Baffert said in a news release that he was not concerned.
“It was sensitive there,” Baffert said. “It’s like a diaper rash, what he’s got. He looked great today.”
Scollay did say the commission observed the horse leading up to the Derby and did not notice any cause for concern.
Reports surfaced Sunday that Justify was favoring his left hind leg around the barn the morning after his win.
“He’s had it before,” Baffert said then. “You get it from wet (tracks), and you have to soften it up. It can be irritating. When he stepped on those rocks (outside the barn), it bit him. That’s why he did that. Because he was fine in the morning, and (Monday) he was fine.”
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals released a statement Monday calling for “an immediate and independent veterinary examination of Justify” and asking if the horse is suffering from a chronic condition that has led to lameness or is injured.