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bio-security part of it all so that we can properly identify the horse and house all their health records on there in real time.
“The intention was always accessibility,” Bolen continued. “You cannot easily access
a horse in a trailer with the other microchip placements, but with ours and our extended read range with our proprietary readers that we have, you can go right up and scan a horse in a trailer and have entry into a racetrack
in about three minutes for six horses. The response has been overwhelmingly positive. We’re really excited. We’re close to launching, and we’ve been receiving call after call.”
According to Bolen, it isn’t just the rac- ing industry warming up to the Lip Chip technology. Streamlining paperwork is also being welcomed by equine enthusiasts in other disciplines.
“Working with the AQHA has been a big component of getting the word out,” Bolen said, “but we’re also doing a lot of rodeo horses, barrel horses, a lot of reining horses. It has been very well received everywhere
we go. In racing, a lot of trainers and own- ers were tired of seeing some people try to take advantage of situations in the game right now, and we want to put integrity and transparency back in the sport. Different people would try to check in different types of horses, and it created problems for venues and horsemen.
“I’m very fortunate,” Bolen added. “I have a lot of horses in training. You can pretty much figure for every horse you have in training you have two to three pieces
of paper to keep up with and you have to make copies for assistant trainers. I have two assistant trainers. Right there, by itself, it’s already nine pieces of paper per horse. And you need copies in the truck and in the trail- ers. With the Lip Chip Hoof Link System, you have everything, including health certificates. Everything is at the touch of
the reader. You scan the nose of the horse, and all the information will pop up and give
Jeff Williams
you everything. You can also go in and take temperatures every day, and it stores them, categorizes them, and even gives you graphs. We also have the first test barn application where the state’s or racing commissions can scan the horse in the test barn, so that every- one is treated fairly and equally with no loss of control over samples.”
ARAPAHOE PARK’S SUCCESSFUL PILOT PROJECT
Jeff Williams, a steward, and director of racing at Arapahoe Park, is supportive of the transition to microchipping. After initiating
a pilot project of the Lip Chip at the most recent meet near Aurora, Colorado, Williams is clearly on board.
“Last summer we initiated a pilot project for Lip Chip. We initially did it to try to help with security at the stable gate to keep better track of who was coming in and going out,” Williams shared. “We did it to shut down the Quarter Horse match racing in our area.
“The convenience of the chip in their lip is just amazing,” Williams continued. “It is set up where it integrates with the racing office. You can track health certificates, Coggins, all of it. A horse comes through the stable gate with a Lip Chip, you scan it, and it automatically pulls up on a screen to show you that their Coggins is good, and if their health papers are in order. It is all right there. It saves a lot of paperwork and a lot of confusion. It’s all right there.”
Williams indicated that the track ran the Lip Chip pilot project for the entire 39-day meet.
“We ran it for the entire meet, and we had zero issues in identifying Quarter Horses in
the paddock,” Williams said. “When chips are in the neck, you often have to search for them. Sometimes, they migrate. Every race card, we had issues with Thoroughbred horses trying to find the chips. It was nothing like that with the Lip Chip. It was right there where it was sup- posed to be every time.
“Even the old routine of looking at the lip to read the tattoo is more of an issue,”
Lip Chip’s method of implementation allows for less than one percent migration and is less painful for the horse when compared to chips in the nuchal ligament.
Williams added. “With the Lip Chip, you just get the reader up there and the horse doesn’t even know you are identifying them. That is opposed to wrestling with them to get the lip and have them hold still long enough for the identifier to read it. That is an old, archaic nightmare. This way with the Lip Chip, it is time efficient and idiot-proof. After day one, our identifier said, ‘This is the way to go.’”
The era of microchipped identification is dawning, and the AQHA is leading the charge towards a more efficient, accurate, and humane approach to identifying American Quarter Horses. For more information on the transi- tion to microchips and the Jan. 1, rollout, visit AQHA.com.
“Anybody that has questions just needs
to ask,” VanBebber said. “My team and I are prepared to answer questions and address any- one’s concerns. Once we get through the initial rollout, there will be a much greater comfort level with the whole process.”
Janet VanBebber
SPEEDHORSE December 2023 113
© Susan Bachelor, Speedhorse
© Provided by Lip Chip LLC
“My team and I are prepared to answer questions and address anyone’s concerns. Once we get through the initial rollout, there will be a much greater comfort level with the whole process.”– Janet VanBebber,
AQHA Chief Racing Officer
© Susan Bachelor, Speedhorse