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Uncle Mo is being touted as the horse to beat in the upcoming Kentucky Derby on May 7. In fact, the undefeated two-year-old champion that ran away with the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile by more than four lengths is renewing serious talk of a potential Triple Crown winner this year, an accomplishment not seen since Affirmed’s sweep in 1978. The pundits will surely be watching as Uncle Mo makes his three-year-old debut this Saturday, March 12, in the Timely Writer Stakes at Gulfstream. So will his owner, Mike Repole, 42, who has the distinction of having a second horse—Stay Thirsty—in the Derby by virtue of that horse’s win in the Gotham Grade III race at Aqueduct last Saturday, March 5. Uncle Mo and Stay Thirsty are both trained by Todd Pletcher, who has another Derby entry, Brethren. Posted March 8, 2011 All previously published FHL News reports are available by clicking on News/News.

Tragedy struck Saturday, February 28 at Belle Meade Hunt in Thomson, Georgia, according to a press release from Epp Wilson, MFH and huntsman. Dr. Lewis McCurdy, a visiting huntsman from Tuscumbia, Alabama, fell from his horse when it missed a turn while hunting. Dr. McCurdy, a large animal veterinarian, was visiting along with several other members of the Full Cry Hunt from Tuscumbia. He has been a passionate polo player and fox and coyote hunter for over twenty years. He has been a staff member and has hunted the hounds for his home hunt in Alabama. Dr. McCurdy was immediately assessed and cared for by an emergency medicine physician and two other physicians and a nurse who were riding directly in front of and behind him. They all witnessed the accident. He was wearing an ASTM safety approved equestrian helmet which Belle Meade Hunt members are required to wear. Ground ambulance and air ambulance were instantly called, and he was transported by helicopter to MCG Trauma Center in critical condition. He had sustained neck injuries and died at the hospital Monday afternoon. His wife Nancy McCurdy and their two grown children were at his side when he passed away. Dr. and Mrs. McCurdy are well-loved by family and a large circle of friends. Dr. McCurdy is known for his spirit of adventure and passion for foxhunting and polo. He is also known for his generosity and kindness and has advanced many youths’ lives through college scholarships. He and Mrs. McCurdy have two children and five grandchildren. “The McCurdy family, community and hunt family are in our thoughts and prayers at this difficult time. We all appreciate the rapid response and professionalism of the local Fire Fighters, Ambulance and Flight Paramedics. Their team effort assured that Dr. McCurdy received the best care as quickly as possible,” said Epp Wilson. In another report, The Huntsville Times said that Dr. McCurdy was chosen by the Alabama Veterinary Medical Association as Vet of the Year in 2007. “We lost a great veterinarian and friend today,” said Dr. Angela Concannon, president of the Madison County Veterinary Medical Association. “He never met a stranger and was very, very passionate about veterinary medicine. It was one of his great loves and it showed through everything he did. Please keep praying for his wife and family.” McCurdy was a 1974 graduate of the Auburn University School of Veterinary Medicine. Posted March 1, 2011

A determined fox in Belarus turned the tables by accidentally pulling the trigger on his assailant’s rifle and shooting the foxhunter in the leg. The hunter had approached the fox after wounding it, with the intention of finishing the job with his rifle butt. The fox resisted strenuously and in the ensuing scuffle managed to get its paw on the trigger. The foxhunter was hospitalized with his leg wound, and, according to the media, the fox escaped. Foxhunting is said to be popular in Belarus, which borders Russia and Poland. The story was filed from Moscow by Reuters. Posted February 24, 2011

Fernie huntsman Derek Hopkins will appeal his conviction under the Hunting Act and Badgers Act, according to the Countryside Alliance. Hopkins and countryman Kevin Allen were convicted following a seven-day trial that had been scheduled for only four days. The accused men argue that key evidence, including questions about their intent, was not even addressed before the magistrates ruled. The Badgers Act is said to rival the Hunting Act for its complexity, and lawyers for the defendants believe there is a good chance for success on appeal. An earlier contested case against Exmoor huntsman Tony Wright, convicted in Magistrates’ Court, was overturned in Crown Court. More details of the case can be seen in the Harborough Mail.February 1, 2011

A coalition of local government and a private trust will help the abandoned horses at Dunsink, a common grazing ground near Dublin. The Fingal County Council and the Irish Horse Welfare Trust drew up the plans jointly. According to Sharon Newsome, spokeswoman for the trust, there are approximately sixty horses on the 160-acre site at Dunsink. “There is limited grazing and water supplies, and there are a lot of dangers for horses on the site,” she said. The plan will start by providing temporary feeding and watering stations and monitoring the welfare of the horses there. Then in the weeks to come, local horse owners will bring their horses to vet checks for microchipping and the issuance of passports. Unclaimed horses will be taken into care by the Irish Horse Welfare Trust to be rehomed. Horse Sport Ireland, a government-established agency, is sponsoring the passports and microchipping of all the horses. It has been reported that as many as one hundred thousand horses across Ireland are being abandoned as a result of the financial crisis there. Read more details in Sean MacConnell’s article in The Irish Times.January 25, 2011

There are movements stirring to re-open horse processing plants in the U.S. The last remaining processing facility, which was located in Illinois, was closed in 2007 by a federal judge. Although horse processing was not outlawed, Congress, in 2006, curtailed the US Department of Agriculture’s inspection of such plants. Just recently, a Summit of the Horse conference was held in Las Vegas in which strategies for reviving the horse processing industry were presented and discussed. Proponents say it would revive an industry, stabilize prices at the bottom of the horse market, and be a more humane way of dealing with abused and abandoned horses, which are now transported thousands of miles to Canada or Mexico. “Once they’re across the border, we don’t know how they’re being treated. If we process them here, we will do it humanely and the meat will be properly inspected,” says Nebraska Senator Tyson Larson. Larsen spoke at the Las Vegas conference and introduced a bill in his state last week that, if passed, would create a state meat inspection program that could eventually allow Nebraska to ship horsemeat across it’s borders. In the past, some U.S.-processed horsemeat was sold to zoos, but most of it was shipped overseas to markets and restaurants. Read more in Heather Johnson’s article in the North Platte Telegraph.January 16, 2011

England’s Hunting Act will go unchallenged in 2011, despite Prime Minister David Cameron’s earlier pledge for a free vote in Parliament and despite former Prime Minister Tony Blair’s admission this year that passage of the Act was a mistake. Although the government claims there are more pressing issues requiring Parliament’s attention, there is doubt now that the ban could be repealed even if a vote were held in this session. While most Conservatives (Tories) in the last Parliament were pro-hunting, many of the newly elected Conservatives are not. A recently formed campaign group, Conservatives Against Fox Hunting, claims that two- thirds of Conservatives oppose repeal of the ban. Read more in Rosa Prince’s article in The Telegraph.December 27, 2010