
This past January, Tyler Moore was walking up to the stall of pacer House Edge Hanover at his stable outside Cambridge, Ont. As he approached the horse, panic set in.
The four-year-old Betting Line - Hug A Dragoness gelding was standing there with his damaged left eye dangling from the socket.
Moore’s first thought was what just happened?
“It looked pretty bad," said Moore. "(He) wasn’t worked up but he looked like it just happened.”
He got ‘House Edge’ out of his stall and loaded him onto the trailer immediately and headed for the vet clinic, about 20 minutes away. The plans for an already scheduled routine maintenance vet visit had changed drastically.
The vet looked at the eye but didn’t have the means to handle it at the clinic. She quickly referred him to the Ontario Veterinary College, just 15 minutes away in Guelph. Prior to leaving the clinic, the vet warned Moore there was an 80 per cent chance that the eye would need to be removed.
Moore said it was a quick decision to remove it.
“That was quite an afternoon for me as a newer trainer,” noted Moore. “I’ve seen some eyes before, working around my father (Dr. Ian Moore) as a kid. I watched him put eyes back together like you wouldn’t believe. He was amazing at it, but this one was pretty damaged and from what I was told from the professionals, it wasn’t going to be saved.”
According to Moore, House Edge Hanover's owner, Dr. Everette Hanson, was probably one of the best owners he could have during such an ordeal.
“Everette was really good to work with, to help me get through it all. He made a big difference.”
Hanson recalled his initial conversation with Moore after the injury.
“I didn’t know he was going to lose it. (Tyler) said he was injured and he ran off to the veterinarian. Then he called me back and said it had to be (removed),” said Hanson.
The surgery took place on a Wednesday. Moore planned to pick up House Edge Hanover from the vet the following afternoon but the college offered to keep him for one more night under observation. Moore picked up the pacer on the Friday morning and received instructions on proper wound care.
“It’s amazing how quick and fast they can heal and what the horse can go through in the process,” said Moore.
According to a 2010 study published in the Equine Veterinary Journal, 70 per cent of racehorses that had an eye removed end up returning to racing. The average timeline before they return was not included in the study. For House Edge Hanover, it was less than 45 days.
“I had no idea that that was gonna be happening that quick," confessed Moore. "We didn’t push him but he showed me so much confidence.”
Hanson wasn’t too worried about if House Edge would return to racing.
“A lot of horses get the left eye covered up with a murphy blind anyway,” said Hanson.
Moore kept House Edge Hanover in his stall for a few days before supervised daily paddock time. He had him back in a harness and exercising lightly just two weeks after the incident.
“He was a little weird the first day or two,” said Moore. “But it did not take him long. It was a matter of just laps that it took to get him used to jogging.”
A few weeks later, Moore began race simulations at slower speeds and quickly had him ready to race. As the pacer approached a return to action, Moore appreciated his owner's trust and knowledge.
“Everette is a doctor himself, so he had lots to say over the phone to explain to me what’s going on and what I’m trying to deal with,” said Moore. “He explained to me what to be aware of and what to expect. He was asking questions on what I’m seeing and he had confidence in me and I had confidence in the horse.”
Hanson credited Moore's patient approach with the pacer.
“He took his time letting the horse get used to having one eye...a lot more than I would have, but he took his time and let the horse get used to everything: the way they put on the equipment, the way they jog, the way they turn him out. I probably would have been a lot more aggressive with it but he did it the right way,” said Hanson.
On Feb. 6, House Edge Hanover made his return to the racetrack at Flamboro Downs. Prior to the loss of the eye, Moore had listed catch drivers on House Edge Hanover but, out of precaution, Moore decided to drive House Edge himself and he’s glad he did. In his first race back, House Edge Hanover made a break in stride and finished ninth.
“I made a mistake with him his first start back. It was a mistake I had to learn from with what he was going through because he wasn’t normal to drive,” said Moore.
Three weeks later, House Edge Hanover and Moore were winners in just the horse's third race with one eye.
Moore recalls it fondly.
“It was quite a soft feeling. We got a headshot in the winner’s circle with him,” said Moore.
House Edge Hanover raced with Moore in Ontario for two more months before returning to Canada's east coast. He rested at Hanson’s farm for six weeks before he returned to action. The plan was to race him in Woodstock, N.B, but race cancellations forced him to be sent to trainer Ron Matheson in Charlottetown, P.E.I. Matheson was his trainer last summer when the three-year-old collected six wins in seven Atlantic Canadian starts before heading to Ontario.
Matheson hasn’t noticed any differences in the one-eyed version of House Edge Hanover from how he was last year with full vision. House Edge Hanover has also returned to his winning ways with Matheson tallying four victories — including a lifetime best effort of 1:52.3 at Red Shores Charlottetown in early July.
This Sunday (Oct. 12) he will be competing in the $50,000 Premier's Cup Final at Red Shores against the best older horses in Atlantic Canada. He has drawn the far outside post position eight with Kenny Murphy driving. Just two weeks ago, the duo teamed up to upset the top class in Charlottetown defeating co-track record holder, Bee Two Bee and last year’s local older pacer of the year, Twin B Tuffenuff.
It will be a tough race for House Edge Hanover, with Hanson and Matheson just hoping for a small piece of the lucrative prize. The Premier's Cup is slated for the final dash on Red Shores' 16-dash Sunday card, also featuring the 2025 Atlantic Breeders Crown finals and more than $313,000 in purse money. To view the entries, click the following link: Sunday Entries - Red Shores Charlottetown.
(A Trot Insider Exclusive by Grady Hachey)