Messara's Snitzel Tribute

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Snitzel with Arrowfield Stud manager Joe Hickey (Image: Joan Faras/Arrowfield Stud)Https://bitofayarn.com

Arrowfield Group Chairman John Messara has reflected on the career of Snitzel, following the news of his passing on Wednesday.

On the track, Snitzel's greatest achievement was his success in the 2006 Group 1 Oakleigh Plate. He also won five other Stakes races and was placed in races like the Gold Coast Magic Millions 2YO Classic, the Newmarket Handicap and the T.J. Smith Stakes.

Snitzel then joined the stallion roster at Arrowfield in 2006 and enjoyed a remarkable career at stud.

"He was a lovely horse with a wonderful temperament, a bit of a pocket rocket, he was not a big horse but by golly, he passed on his genes, those great Danehill genes, on through him to his produce," Messara told Andrew Bensley on RSN.

"A lot of people had a lot of success with him and we're just the lucky ones to stand him."

LISTEN: Messara pays tribute to Snitzel

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As a stallion, Snitzel produced horses that could perform over a range of distances and overcome different track conditions.

"He was a very, very versatile horse and could do anything, could handle the wet, could handle the dry," Messara said.

"They had great temperaments, his produce, very much like himself. He was like a big puppy dog, he was a lovely, lovely animal, loved being patted and a great favourite around the farm here.

"There are a lot of teary eyes today, I can tell you."

Messara then went on to explain Snitzel's recent health issues that ultimately led to him being humanely euthanised.

"He had a liver complaint for a few months, which we were able to deal with," Messara said.

"Over the last week or so, the liver virtually collapsed on us and the vets determined that there was nothing we could do. He is 23 years of age and it's a fair age for a stallion and they find ways and means of deteriorating around that time.

"He'd been wonderfully healthy for the previous 22-and-a-half years, as it turns out, it's just happened over the last six months."