Triple Group 1-winning mare Jameka (Aus) (Myboycharlie {Ire}) will miss the chance to defend her G1 Caulfield Cup title in the spring after trainer Ciaron Maher revealed to Racing.com that she is finished for the year. The 4-year-old contracted a bout of travel sickness when returning by float to Melbourne from Sydney after winning the G1 The BMW on Mar. 25, from which she is still recovering.
“She was very sick,” Maher said. “She's recovering and improving every day but she'll need an extended break to recover from it.”
Maher told Racing.com he was unsure what the longterm damage could be.
“It depends. There can be scarring to lungs and things like that but it's a bit early to tell if or to what extent there is any on-going issues because of that,” he explained. “Travel sickness is when they get fluid on the lungs and they have to get fluid out and there is not a lot of blood flow to the lungs, and then it can get bacteria in there and it can be quite hard to manage. I've never had a horse with travel sickness before and it's very unfortunate that Jameka has to be the first one.”
“She's been very consistent and improved every year so it'll be a big shame not to have her racing in the spring, but the horse's health and well-being is the first thing you worry about,” he added.
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