Racecourse vet should have called me about No No Tonic says vet to Mark Gillard

The vet usually relied upon by Dorset trainer Mark Gillard said on Thursday he felt he should have been contacted directly by a racecourse vet in light of the injuries sustained by No No Tonic at Wincanton last year.

Paul Legerton was giving evidence on day three of a disciplinary hearing, considering whether Gillard took sufficient care of the mare in the weeks after she sustained an eight-inch gash while breaking out of her horsebox in an apparent fit of panic.

Under cross-examination by the BHA's barrister Charlotte Davison, Legerton was asked to read through a report by the racecourse vet, which he described as "sensible and thorough".

He added the report's assertion that Gillard should get a vet to look at No No Tonic the following day struck him as "good advice" in the circumstances, although in fact Gillard treated the horse himself for the next four days.

Legerton went further and expressed surprise the vet had not contacted him. Davison said that was because "very clear instructions" had been given to Gillard to call out his vet.

'Best practice'

"You don't think a responsible person who is provided with a form with clear instructions to call out their vet can be trusted to do so?" she asked.

It was "best practice" for a vet to contact their fellow professional in such circumstances, Legerton said.

Davison pointed out that, had Gillard called him out the following day, Legerton could then have phoned the racecourse vet himself for further details – as he did on March 8 after being called to the yard.

Legerton confirmed he had advised No No Tonic should go to a specialist hospital, advice Gillard did not take for weeks, but he also spoke highly of the treatment she was given at the yard and suggested she was already on the road to recovery before her hospital visit.

The panel also heard from Pippa Gillard, wife of the trainer and a former England polo international. She echoed her husband in saying another vet had only advised them to take No No Tonic to hospital because of BHA pressure.

"He did not believe taking the horse to hospital was the right advice," she said. "He wanted to tell us as friends that was the right course of action for us, not the horse."

An incredulous Davison asked if she was really claiming a vet would give such advice while believing it was against the horse's best interests. "That's how it seemed to be," she replied.

Closing submissions will be heard on September 20.

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