OK, about the water at Vaal - let's put it into perspective and give you the facts-
1)Two yards have filters . These were installed before Phumelela went and paid R1,5M for a supply of Municipal water from Water Board, last year. The problem in the past has been that whenever the river floods, the old pipeline is washed away, resulting in us having to use the borehole. The borehole was tested as being fit for human consumption, 2 years ago.
2)The water at Vaal has been perfect, up until the flood of 4 weeks ago. The new pipeline which "guarantees" 35000 l/min, suddenly now only gave 2500l/min. The reason for PGL spending R1,5M on this new pipeline, was because the route was no longer over the river, but instead, from outside the entrance to Vaal, thus eliminating the risk of flood damage. The problem now is that water board are not meeting their quota. PGL are fighting them through a host of lawyers, as they are not getting what they have paid for. In essence, a flood is an act of God. PGL and RA have really gone to great lengths to rectify the matter. But, is this the first time that we have ever had a problem with service delivery in SA ? Want Cholera ? Simply go and lick a Golf ball which has touched a fairway at one of the golf courses next to the Jukskei River. Then , do not tee off - go straight to hospital....
3)The municipality has been pumping hundreds of thousands of tons of sewerage into the Vaal river, over here during the last 3 years. This is constantly being reported on in the local newspapers, but, like the recent floods(worst in 27 years), these dont seem newsworthy enough, on a National basis and the TV channels dont even bother anymore, including Carte Blanche. It's a sign of the times and a reflection on Government.
4)PGL had only two options when the proper , contracted, clean water was no longer being received. 1)Let the horses die, get no water 2) Activate the borehole. They activated the borehole, which had been fine previously, but now had a very high faecal content due to the floods, the high water table and the unchecked and shocking practices of Municipality. It is important to note that activating the borehole was an unplanned for, emergency measure. Only last week did tests reveal that there was very high faecal content in the borehole water.
5)PGL management are having their 3rd emergency meet with these idiots who supply the water again today.
SOLUTION
Firstly, my efforts must always be on behalf of and for my own hoses and their owners. Secondly, but very important, it is my chosen duty as chairman of the Vaal Trainers Representative Committee, to also act on behalf of all Vaal Trainers. Here's the story -
1) In my yard, I immediately installed water filters on friday. However, the water filters are not enough to kill bacteria. I have added UV lights, to sterilise the water. These only arrived this morning and I am busy installing right now.
2)PGL have urgently requested a quote for the same filters at the borehole, so that all borehole water is also filtered. The UV light is also on order. Just bear in mind that this problem is not attended to by one supplier. There's the filter company, the plumber, the electrician and the UV light supplier. Efforts are FLAT OUT !
SYMPTOMS
On this one I speak for myself, from my findings. At LGRS we have our own blood machine, so we can do as many bloods as we want and we dont have to charge our owners at R300 per blood. During last week , I picked up elevated white cell counts and low PCV's. This is a sign of infection. By thursday, we had 7 grooms on immodium. Earlier in the week, the first 5 horses showing the low PCV's were isolated, as a first precaution. Thereafter we started them on a course of oral sulphamethoxazole/trimethoprim anti biotics. This would be the normal course for a typical infection , this time of year. At this point, we never suspected a bacterial infection. Now, we are treating the horses on a 5 day course of Oxytetracycline Hydrochloride, as this is a better drug, in these situations. The horses stay in training, but are not stressed. After 10 days, we go on as normal. Some of my horses already have almost perfect bloods this morning.
SCRATCHINGS
The problem with a low grade infection, is that it is very difficult to pick up. The bloods arent that bad, but arent "right". Many horses run "OK" on these bloods. They work very well going into a race. but work is not the same as a race and they are then found out at the business end of the race. Only ONE of my runners last night had a VERY low blood count, that was Renegade. The other 3 were not good, but not shocking - they were borderline. My fear was that the race could knock them, which is why I scratched. They have all been on treatment for 2 days already and will be OK to go, next week again.
MAGICO
What an excellent win by a top horse for an absolute gentleman of a Trainer ! As I said, some horses wont be infected, some will, some more than others. The first signs were only starting on tuesday last week. Only by thursday night, did we know for sure, that it was the borehole water. Some of my horses are already over this infection and some dont seem infected. We were the first yard at Vaal to define the problem. We all know that colts are always more resilient than fillies and geldings. Also, Paul fitted his water filters on friday, like myself. It's just the UV lights now.
Ultimately, the flood and the infiltration into the boreholes has caused this. I dont believe that the filters are enough, without the UV lights. The yards with only filters will probably see the same symptoms very soon. But, the Water Board are promising full flow of normal, clean water by tomorrow, then all will be back to normal and filters and UV lights wont be necessary. Me ? No, I am not taking chances. I am keeping the filters and the UV lights.....And YES , Oscar, I AM giving the special electrolytes as prescribed by yourself. I might add that for a speedy recovery, it is essential to administer some Tioctic acid (Tioctan) and also some B vits, to speed up liver recovery after the course of Oxytet. Also, after a course of anti biotics, a few days of probiotics is also good, eg live yeast or yoghurt or even some organic liver probiotic. All will be hunky dory in 10 days.
Hope this answers your queries
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