Two-year-old gelding Jays All That could legitimately be called a miracle trotter. He’s had so many setbacks, he shouldn’t even be racing much less winning a sales classic.
Trainer Tyrone Abela was told the gelding’s dam Peggyhall would not be able to have a foal after she broke her pelvis as a youngster. But she bucked the odds and has produced two winners from her first two foals.
Jays All That got pneumonia as a weanling and Abela thought he wouldn’t make it to Christmas. But after two weeks in intensive care, he pulled through. Three months later, he dislocated his nearside front fetlock and vets suggested they put the feisty little colt down.
But Abela said the youngster was very special to the family and they never considered it as an option.
“He was born one week after dad died and we named him Jay Jay, which was dad’s nickname,” he said.
“When he got pneumonia, I put him on the float to take him to the vets and he was so sick, I didn’t think he was going to make it back home. But he bounced back.”
“When he dislocated his fetlock, the vet said it was the worst he had seen. He wasn’t confident but he said we could put it in a cast for three months to see if it would heal.
“There was a strong chance the ligaments wouldn’t tighten up or the joint would fuse and give him no movement. But he beat the odds again. Fortunately, we have a rehab facility here at the property and were able to give him nine months of rehab after the cast came off.”
The son of Elite Stride won second-up at Bendigo in May and returned from a spell with a thrilling win in the $50,000 APG 2YO trotters colts and geldings graduate final at Melton last Friday night.
“It was our biggest win and it was special. Everything we did with him was aimed at the APG final and it came off,” Abela said.
“We paid the no sale entry option into the race when he was a foal but after all that happened as a weanling, I would have gladly taken a refund.
“Even the build-up was stressful. He ran an outstanding trial at Melton about a month ago and we thought he was spot on but he got a cold and we had to nurse him through to the race. He will return to rehab for the next few weeks and then start a preparation for the Tatlow and the Redwood later in the year.”
Abela, 49, was born into the sport and has eight trotters in work at his Balliang property. But he said 80 percent of the work comes from pre-training and rehabilitation.
“Dad was involved for about 50 years. He started dabbling but we got more serious in the 90s,” he said.
“About three years ago, we developed the property into a rehab facility. We put in a water walker, dry walker, swimming pool and treadmills and the operation has grown from there.
“The plan was to make it a commercial operation and it is working quite well. We have been fortunate enough to have some of the superstars of the sport benefit from our water walker including the last two Interdominion trotting final winners Arcee Phoenix and The Locomotive, The Great Southern Star winner Callmethebreeze and the Hunter Cup winner Swayzee.”
From APG Media
