Marylou Whitney's horse suffers condylar fracture in first race - NEWS10 ABC: Albany, New York News, Weather, Sports

Marylou Whitney's horse suffers condylar fracture in first race

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – A race horse owned by Marylou Whitney ran its first and last race at the Saratoga Race Course on Monday.

Afleet Bird, is a young female horse, owned by Whitney and trained by Nick Zito.

Whitney's husband Jon Hendrickson says Afleet Bird suffered a condylar fracture during the first race.

Hendrickson says it appears to be a freak accident.  He says Afleet Bird never showed any signs of injury, nor has she "ever taken a bad step." He says that all of Whitney's horses are x-rayed and examined often.

Afleet Bird will eventually be taken to a veterinarian and operated on in Schuyler.

The goal right now, according to Hendrickson, is to make sure Afleet Bird can have a comfortable life. However even if the operation goes perfectly, Hendrickson says he would never let her race again.

Hendrickson says if all goes well, the horse will enjoy a quiet life in his backyard.

Afleet Bird was sired by Afleet Alex and her mother was Bird Harbor.