41.1. An association shall conclude, for the entire term of its racing licence, a contract with a laboratory to carry out analyses of the blood plasma of an annual average of 2 horses participating in each race on the racing programs that it holds in order to determine the concentration of free carbon dioxide (TCO2).
The contract must provide that the laboratory has the qualified personnel and the equipment needed to determine the concentration of free carbon dioxide (TCO2) in the blood plasma. The contract must also provide that the owners and employees of the laboratory, their spouses or their dependants are not owners or operators of a race track or owners or trainers of a racehorse.
In addition, the contract must provide that the laboratory undertakes to:(1) take blood samples from the jugular vein of each designated horse within 20 minutes preceding the race or at least 90 minutes after the end of the race;
(2) collect the blood samples in at least 2 separator tubes for each horse designated;
(3) centrifuge the blood samples within 20 minutes from their withdrawal and preserve them in a refrigerator until they are shipped to the laboratory;
(4) send the centrifuged blood samples to the laboratory in an insulated container;
(5) communicate the results of the analysis to the board;
(6) take security measures to ensure the integrity of the chain of possession of the samples.
Decision 2000-11-08, s. 11; Decision 2002-06-12, s. 1.