Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Big Brown has developed a “slight” quarter-crack on the inside of his front left hoof, but trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. said he was confident the horse will be “100 percent” when he goes for the Triple Crown in the 140th running of Belmont Stakes on June 7.

“We didn’t know until Saturday that it was a quarter-crack,” said Dutrow, who said he first noticed an issue with the colt’s hoof Friday afternoon. “It scares us this happened, but this has nothing to do with his ability to finish what he started.

“It’s bad it happened, but it’s good it happened now. He’s going to be OK.”

Big Brown remained in his barn Saturday and Sunday under the care of hoof specialist Ian McKinlay.

“This is a very, very minor crack,” said McKinlay, who said the crack was about five-eighths of an inch long. “We will put a set of wires in and patch it up.”

Big Brown has suffered from foot problems before, but Dutrow said it was the first time he has developed a quarter-crack, which is a vertical crack in the hoof wall between the toe and heel of the hoof. Big Brown’s hoof is currently being treated with a solution of iodine and alcohol and will be patched Monday with a set of wires and mesh, said McKinlay.

“The horse is doing fine, he’s eating up, he’s walking the shedrow two times a day,” said Dutrow. “If the race was today, or yesterday, or tomorrow, it would not be an issue. Because we have the time we’ve addressed the issue the right way.”

Dutrow said plans were going forward for Big Brown to breeze Saturday as he prepares for the 1 ½-mile Belmont Stakes, in which he is attempting to become just the 12th horse and the first in 30 years to win the Triple Crown.

“Ian keeps telling me it’s nothing and he’ll be fine in a couple of days, that he will be able to fix it up by Thursday,” said Dutrow. “I am sure he will be 100 percent, yes. If we get to breeze him Tuesday or Belmont week, or even Wednesday, we can live with that. Monday would be great, as long as Ian can get it done the right way.”

Dutrow said the horse was perfectly comfortable and in fact was “bossing people around” in the barn.

“He’s been as aggressive as I’ve seen him,” said Dutrow of Big Brown, who has been walking the shedrow twice a day for thirty minutes at a time. “He’s really been rank in the afternoon.”

蹄甲裂左?

有傷都緊係照跑架啦..三冠馬王寶座..點會咁易放棄:fff: :fff:

咁貝蒙佢一定輸梗:eee:

Same case as Viva:fff:

一個仲有兩星期跑..........一個仲有5日到傷:ddd:

佢話無野lo

About 25 minutes after Casino Drive’s tour of the main track at Belmont Park, Triple Crown hopeful Big Brown, with exercise rider Michelle Nevin aboard, had his first gallop since developing a slight quarter crack in his left foot

“Today the foot has cooled out and he’s getting pretty antsy, as you can see, in the barn so the best thing for him is to get him to the track and let him do what he wants to do,” said hoof specialist Ian McKinlay, who on Monday repaired the five-eighths inch-long crack by lacing it together with stainless steel wires.

Tuesday morning, after having remained in the barn over the Memorial Day weekend, the Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner had a jog around the track.

“The first thing we looked at this morning, you can go around the hairline and where there was an abscess it drained, so you have a pocket and physically you can feel a little hole,” said McKinlay Wednesday. “It’s definitely improving. Both feet are the same temperature. When one foot is warmer than the other is when you have a problem. The skin is drying right out and the horse seems fabulous.”

McKinlay said Nevin reported the colt “felt great” and appeared very “comfortable.”

Looking ahead, McKinlay said a patch of an acrylic adhesive, along with some fiberglass mesh, would be applied to the hoof, probably within two days.

“As far as patching now we’ll come back Friday,” he said. “We’re just trying to stay out of the way and let nature take its course.”

McKinlay said the colt will not breeze until the patch is in place.:yyy:

做唔做到三冠馬王睇呢舖。:kkk: