44/ JUNE 2022 THE RIDER Helios Stakes Claim on 2022 Leaderboard Team spirit goes a long


way in inspiring good per- formance in the ring, and Helios has it in spades. The League officially kicked off at the stunning Thunderbird Show Park with the first of its 10 Team Competitions where eight teams do battle for a spot at the top of the season rankings. A new team with some


familiar faces proved to be the ones to watch when Ash- lee Bond (ISR), Eugenio Garza (MEX), and Bliss Heers (USA) climbed to the top of the podium. Garza and Victer Finn DH Z (2008 Zangersheide gelding Va Vite) led the team with a clear performance in the opening round. Consistent trips by Bond riding Do- natello 141 (2022 West- phalian gelding by Diarado) ultimately sent Heers and Goodbye (2001 KWPN mare by Eldorado VD Zeshoeck) to the final head- to-head round. She faced off against Jordan Coyle (IRL) of Spy Coast Spies. MLSJ at Thunderbird


is the first of 10 stops on the 2022 MLSJ season and was championed by President and Operations Director Chris Pack. The League was scheduled to kick-off its in- augural season at tbird last year, but was sidelined due to COVID-19 restrictions. “Everyone at tbird had


a Major League envy last year,” he said. “We were just fans of it last year. Cheers to Keean [White] and Matt [Morrissey]. They


Photo © Atalya Boytner / MLSJ


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amount of blood was spot- ted on Picador’s side by the FEI ground jury. ”Unfortunately, when


Jordan Coyle came out of Bliss Heers and Goodbye.


have an innovative product that brings not only great horsepower but also a lot of excitement to the fans. We’re trying to build a fan base here and this is some- thing that they can grasp and understand. We’re very proud to be part of it.” The silver medal was


claimed by another new team with seasoned MLSJ athletes; team manager Shane Sweetnam, Jordan Coyle and Lacey Gilbert-


son. Continuing the trend of new team names being the good luck charm in 2022, The Trailblazers capped the podium in the bronze-medal position with Daniel Bluman, Nicky Galligan and Emma Marlowe in the tack.


The leaderboard


shifted at the conclusion of the class when the Spy Coast Spies were eliminated from the final round post- competition after a small


the ring, his horse had a small nick. The FEI rules are in place to protect the welfare of the horse. The [ground jury’s] decision was made with a lot of thought, and they took their time on it,” said MLSJ co-founder Keean White. “The horses always come first and we all play on a level playing field. We all know that’s the rule and when it happens, it hap- pens. It doesn’t happen often.” Looking ahead to the rest of the season, White contin- ued, “I think we’re going to have quite a battle this year between Spy Coast and He- lios, and I don’t think Eye Candy is going anywhere.” The final day of MLSJ


competition at Thunderbird Show Park features the CSI5* 1.50m Winning Round and the coveted CSI5* MLSJ Grand Prix on Sunday.


A Word From The Win- ners


“I think what Keean


[White] and everyone at Major League has done has been really amazing. I think it’s a format that works, a format that keeps it interest- ing. It’s not too hard on the horses and it just makes for a great class. We as riders, have been looking forward to this class the whole week. To cap it off with a win is pretty good.” ~ Eugenio Garza


“Eugenio and I were


on a team last year together and I felt like we had a re- ally good vibe and we pulled off a lot of wins to- gether. Bliss and I have


Eugenio Garza & Victer Finn DH Z. Photo © Atalya Boytner / MLSJ


Ashley Bond & Donatello 141. Photo © Atalya Boytner / MLSJ


known each other for a long time and she’s a fighter with a lot of nice horses. We found the strongest people with great horses and hoped for the best. It’s a really fun team.” ~ Ashlee Bond


“I was very happy to


be picked up by this team. Today was very special for me in particular. This is the essence of the team compe- tition; where one falls short,


the others come back and carry the weak link. Unfor- tunately, today I was the weak link. We are all fight- ers and we want to do our best. Today, team spirit put us on top.” ~ Bliss Heers


Veterinary industry is at near crisis levels


Edmonton, Alberta: The veterinary industry has been facing a shortage of registered veterinary pro- fessionals throughout the province of Alberta. There are more than 840 current vacancies in Alberta alone. In June 2020, the Alberta Veterinary Medical Asso- ciation (ABVMA) and the Alberta Veterinary Tech- nologist Association (ABVTA) together with the Government of Al- berta, partnered to com- mission a workforce study. The 2020 workforce study revealed growing concern around industry workforce shortages. If left unad- dressed, these shortages can pose a risk to animal welfare, agricultural pro- duction, food security and public health


Pressure on Veterinary Teams increased during the pandemic. Pet ownership and


adoptions have increased in Alberta. With an esti-


mated ratio of approxi- mately 3700 pets for every one veterinary team in the province, many veterinary practices and emergency hospitals are short staffed and teams are working longer hours. The increase in demand for veterinary services threatens to ex- tend the long hours teams are already working, and could increase industry burnout and attrition rates, further threatening the supply of qualified, pas- sionate veterinary profes- sionals. Thankfully there is


some relief on the horizon, as the Alberta Government has recently announced fi- nancial support to increase capacity at the University of Calgary, Faculty of Vet- erinary Medicine (UCVM)


which aims to double the number of graduating vet- erinarians over the next 3 years. The Alberta Gov- ernment also announced support to grow enrolment at other post secondary schools the offer animal health technology pro- grams and veterinary tech- nologists (RVTs) training including NAIT, Lakeland College and Olds College. These solutions will take time to alleviate the pres- sures of today on the de- mand of veterinary services. The ABVMA has


launched a public aware- ness campaign to educate the animal owning public about the situation veteri- nary teams in Alberta face. This campaign, called: Every Name Deserves


Care has been created to inform the public about the reality many veterinary teams face today. In- creased wait times at your neighbourhood veterinary practice are to be expected and having a relationship with your veterinarian, and planning visits are critical to ensuring you and your pet have access to veteri- nary care when required. This campaign also re- minds the public that vet- erinary teams need empathy as much as the pets they care for. Officially launched


province wide on May 18th, the campaign fea- tures a mix of traditional and digital campaign ma- terials including bill- boards, print ads, video assets and a digital cam-


paign which directs the au- dience to an informative new website, every- namedeservescare.ca. Darrell Dalton, Reg-


istrar, CEO of the Alberta Veterinary Medical Asso- ciation states, “Veterinary professionals are animal lovers too. That’s part of why they work long hours doing what they love. We know customers love their pets as much as our vet teams do, and showing them a little bit of patience or kindness can go a long way towards making visits a more positive experi- ence. The goal of the Every Name Deserves Care campaign is to build appreciation, greater re- spect and affinity towards the veterinary profession by the public here in Al- berta. The campaign offers pet owners practical solu- tions to help their pets and continue to make veteri- nary visits positive experi- ences across Alberta.”


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