Intersex conditions similar to that of Caster Semanya can occur in species other than humans. I have read reports of its occurrence in domestic cats. Todays issue of the New York Times indicates that it occurs in horses as well. I would expect that it should occur elsewhere, just that no ones specifically looking for it (or I havent read the reports).
Another Sex Dispute,
but This Athlete Has Four Legs
By BILL FINLEY
The New York Times
September 18, 2009
Martha Maxine might seem like an ill-fitting name for a 5-year-old male horse, but there is an explanation. He used to be a she.
Martha Maxine will be among the favorites Saturday in the $125,000 Tony Maurello Stakes at Balmoral Park outside Chicago, the same harness racing track where he won the filly division of the same race a year ago. He will make his fourth start since tests determined the horse was intersex, with male sex chromosomes.
Complicated questions about possible intersex athletes have come up in human sports, including one recently in track and field, but those athletes typically have an opportunity to challenge any findings. In the case of Martha Maxine, the harness racing authorities took conclusive action. In June, the horse was reclassified as a male by the United States Trotting Association and barred from female-only races.
The trainer and co-owner Erv Miller never suspected there was anything different about Martha Maxine; the horse had an uneventful but productive 2008 campaign. Still officially a female, Martha Maxine won 13 races last year, earning $193,891.
The only thing I ever noticed was that she was a very muscular mare, Miller said. She carried a lot of muscle tone, like a male does. Other than that, there was nothing different about her. When you think youve seen everything in this business, something else comes along. Thats what happened here.
The problems began when Martha Maxine finished second in the Betsy Ross final April 26 at Harrahs Chester in Pennsylvania. In a mandatory postrace test for steroids, the horse showed an elevated level of testosterone. With Miller adamant that Martha Maxine had not been treated with steroids, further tests revealed the unusual situation. According to Miller, the horse has normal female genitalia, but also has testicles inside his abdomen.
A comparable situation arose late last year when a horse named Arizona Helen also racing at Chester, also registered as a filly showed an elevated testosterone level after a steroid test. Arizona Helen was subsequently reclassified as a male.
Im certain that this sort of thing would give a horse an advantage over other females, said Dr. Sue McDonnell, a veterinarian at the University of Pennsylvanias New Bolton Center, where Martha Maxine was evaluated after the steroid test. Thats why people were giving steroids to mares in the first place. Steroids build muscle mass. In cases like this one, an animal that had this since birth and went through puberty as a male would be a larger horse with male characteristics, including the male drive to run.
Had it not been for steroid tests, it is unlikely that the unique condition of either horse ever would have been revealed. Steroids were banned only recently in North American racing.
If not for those tests, you never would have known this with this mare, Miller said. We paid a lot of attention to her because shes a good horse and we didnt have a clue.
Miller still refers to Martha Maxine as she or her. He says its a habit he cant break.
I tried it the other way for a bit, calling her he, Miller said. It just got me mixed up.
McDonnell said little research had been done in the area of intersex equines, but she said that somewhere between 1 in 1,000 and 1 in 10,000 horses have some versions of the condition.
After the Betsy Ross, it took nearly two months for Martha Maxines situation to be resolved. Still officially a she, the 5-year-old continued to race against females. In June, Martha Maxine was declared a male, which Miller worried might derail what had become a lucrative year. As a female, she had won five times in 2009, earning more than $200,000.
I didnt know how shed do against males, Miller said. The males are stronger, and theyre faster.
Martha Maxine lost his first three starts against males but rebounded to win a prep race for the Tony Maurello Stakes last week at Balmoral, covering the mile in a career-best 1:49 2/5. Miller was encouraged by the effort and is hopeful that Martha Maxine can continue to have a successful season. He sees Saturdays race as an important test.
Thats what were about to find out, whether she can compete at a top level against males, he said, adding that she was eligible to run an open race in Lexington, Ky., against some top males. A lot will depend on how it goes Saturday night. She won the filly division last year. Now, shes in the colt division. Well have to see what she can do. Its a strange situation.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/19/sport ... ale&st=cse
