Hustler’s OK! MRI shows only bruising and vets say he can go straight back into work

“It’s good news.”

And it’s news trainer Al Barnes admits he wasn’t expecting when he took Northview Hustler to the University Of Queensland’s Gatton Equine Specialist Hospital a couple of days ago.

With prolonged bleeding in his off front fetlock Barnes suspected Lincoln Farms’ flag bearer might have a bone chip but an MRI and bone scan has revealed only bruising.

“The vets say he can go straight back into work,” says Barnes who has had the horse on box rest for the best part of the last month.

“That means he should be back at the trials in six weeks and racing in eight as he doesn’t get grossly overweight or lose much fitness.”

Barnes says the experts likened Hustler’s injury to that of a typist getting a sore wrist from RSI (repetitive strain injury).

“As soon as you stop typing the wrist starts to get better.

“They say this kind of injury happens a lot with older horses. It’s wear and tear from running fast times regularly, hitting the ground harder and faster.”

Al Barnes … relieved.While Hustler’s joint shows signs of degeneration that was normal at the age of six.

Now it was just a matter of observing good maintenance with the horse, icing his legs daily and injecting cortisone regularly to help with any bruising.

“I have injected that leg before, but only once, not regularly.”

Barnes has also been advised to regularly change the type of shoes that Hustler wears.

“They want to make him pick his feet up in different ways so he doesn’t get bruising in the same spot every time.

“We’re lucky he’s clean gaited which means we can use a lot of different shoes.

“I used to race him in concussion plates but I changed because I thought he was bruising his feet.”

Barnes says he was very pleased to hear the vet advise it was better to put Hustler straight back into work rather than rest him.

“He said you could spell him but he’d have the same thing when he came back.”

Barnes says he’s relieved to be able to start work again on Northview Hustler who has won five of his 19 starts in Queensland and now boasts a career tally of 13 wins and $183,857.

And even though the Queensland winter carnival has been canned because of COVID-19, it is still planned to hold a few feature races, without interstate visitors.