The entire Veterinary Committee shall participate in establishing procedures for the drug testing program. The AERC executive director, upon notification by an approved laboratory showing the presence in a test sample of a substance which may be a Prohibited Substance under this rule, shall simultaneously transmit by email or telecopy copies of the laboratory report to the Veterinary Committee and the Legal Committee. A subcommittee consisting of the Chair of the Veterinary Committee, Chair of the Drug Testing Sub Committee and two members of the veterinary committee shall handle all matters involving detected substances. This subcommittee shall submit its comments on the laboratory report and any other matters which bear on the laboratory report to the Executive Director, the Legal Committee and Veterinary Committee within 15 days of receipt of the laboratory report. Upon advice by the Veterinary Committee and Legal Committee that the laboratory report shows the presence of a Prohibited Substance within the meaning of this rule, the Executive Director shall immediately file a protest with the Protest and Grievance Committee and forward the Veterinary CommittteeÕs comments on the laboratory report and related matters to the Protest and Grievance Committee. The veterinary committee shall not communicate with the accused or any member of AERC not on the Legal or Protest and Grievance Committee.

A minimum of twenty-three rides will be tested annually with the testing distributed proportionately amongst the regions. AERC will not provide testing in California where there is a state testing program in place. AERC will test only in the USA and will employ the Canadian drug testing agency to test in Canada.

The AERC drug testing subcommittee will recruit, select and train testing veterinarians. There will be approximately four testing veterinarians per region outside of California. Only these veterinarians will perform drug testing for AERC. AERC will pay each testing veterinarian $300.00 per ride tested. If the ride is to be longer than 75 miles in length, the testing veterinarian will be paid $400.00. Travel to the ride site will be reimbursed at 30 cents/mile with a maximum travel allowance of $150.00.

The testing veterinarians will be instructed in a letter how to select horses to be tested and how to properly handle the samples.

The testing veterinarian will test the winning horse in the longest distance ride for the event and will randomly select a minimum of four additional horses to be tested. Horses standing for AERC best condition judging will be considered to still be competing and may be selected for testing.

The testing will cost approximately $725.00.00 per ride for a budget of $16,675.00 for 23 rides tested annually.

The rides to be tested shall be selected by the chair of the drug testing subcommittee working in conjunction with the executive director.

Testing kits will be mailed to the testing veterinarian as close to the ride time as possible.

The testing veterinarian will be instructed to keep control over the kit at all times and to mail the samples as soon as possible to the laboratory, no later than two days post ride.

The testing laboratory will be instructed to keep the split sample as a referee sample in all positive cases until instructed by AERC to destroy the sample.

Drug testing results shall be printed in Endurance News.

The AERC website shall be updated as needed to reflect changes in this policy.

Submitted by the AERC Veterinary Committee

November, 2007