Now that BARBARO has been destroyed,do you think public opinion can change the barbaric sport of horse racing?

Question

...such as calling for the end of racing them so young on underdeveloped bones? These horses are all born in April, and the next Jan. 1 are called a year old - so on their REAL 1st birthday, they are raced as 2 yr olds. Equivalant to making a 10 year old human run marathons repeatedly! Small wonder these tragedies happen as regularly as they do. Would you like to see this stopped & other changes made to actually make this sport made safer?

More info: http://www.all-creatures.org/adow/cam-hr-fact.html

Should this be any more acceptable than dog fighting, just because it is surrounded by the rich & famous?

People: please READ throughly before you answer: I am not calling for the end of racing - just saying CHANGES need to be made to make it safer & more humane.

To those who are defending the racing industry & think I am over-reacting: read the statistics in the link I have posted. If you are still unmoved by these facts, I have one thing to ask: in denial much?

How could you be against making improvements?

To those who are assuming I know nothing about horses: I practically grew up in a saddle, and lived in Cincinnati - right across the Ohio River from Kentucky. I know people who have owned 2nd hand racehorses (generally chronically lame with leg & hoof problems, not to mention the behavior problems) and foals rescued from slaughter born to the 'nurse mares' used to nurse Thouroghbred foals. I know about this subject, obviously more than many of you who believe horses are treated well in this sport - the way it's run now is about money, not the horses best interest.

Answer 1

As a perosn who has been a horsewoman for over 30 yrs, I have to say, the big issue here is not the racing, but the true fact that these horses are being ran at to early an age and their bones are in fact under developed, soft and easily broken. this is the main reason that these innocent young fillys and colts die.
broken bones in horses are quite complicated, the infections come quickly and lethaly even with the best care. gangrene is a serious risk that almost always rears its ugly head, and the expense and round the clock care needed to keep the animal calm,and off its broken limb is a nightmare.

horses love to run, they are runners by nature, so putting them in a herd, opening a gate and letting them run around a track for a mile or less is no hardship for them. IF they are fully developed and mature horses. any horse under 2 should not be raced. if more people became aware of that, and boycotted these events until changes were made, we would have those changes. the racing industry is built on money and only money, take away the profit and you take away the blood of racing. boycott, boycott, boycott!

Answer 2

I don't have a particlar side I'm on but I think youre over reacting. Horse racing could potentially be barbaric I guess and I don't think the horses should be whipped, that I find cruel. But what I dont think you understand is some horses love the lifestyle! They love to run and love the thrill of a race. Barbaro was simply an accident and I'm sure he's happier he left doing what he loved rather than a lame injury. I know this sounds kinda stupid but just listen. Horse racing isn't all that bad and some horses love the feeling it gives them. I agree some things could be changed but your being a bit extreme to try and abolish the activity all together. Honestly I love horses and wouldnt ever want the to get hurt, I'm a horseaholic and I wouldnt ever do anything to harm a horse, but maybe we should improve the sport vs. abolishing it.

Answer 3

After looking at the website that you suggested, I could see how you would get upset. Horse racing does need to change the age at which they start racing young horses. But even then the injuries will not cease altogether. Anytime you run horses, there is a chance that one will get hurt. The only difference is that the racing industries statistics are more public. But for every bad trainer there are many many more good ones. You can't generalize like that. Before you judge, I would suggest you go find out for yourself. Those horses are cared for far better than anyone's pet you'll ever find. Sure they are confined to a stall, but they are exercised daily, they have a groom that hot walks them to cool them down,brushes them and washes them down after that work out. That stall is usually a 12' x 12' and is probably cleaner than any barn you've ever been in. We're not talking run of the mill facilities here, we're talking about the top of the line everything. That website was taking the exception and making it look like the rule, not what it actually is. Barbaro being destroyed was a sad thing, but it's a fact of life when it comes to horses. It could happen to my 3 year old which I haven't even started yet, and I wouldn't even have to be around. One wrong step and that's the end of her. That wouldn't make me a bad trainer, it would only make it a bad accident. With any thing you have the good and the bad, you just have to make sure that the good far outweighs the bad.

Answer 4

No sweet heart- it's mandatory that the horse be age two or more. I'm with the paint horse racing association and we work Thoroughbred and quarter horse races as well. They aren't raced as 1 year olds! You should really log onto jockeyclub.com and check out rules and regulations before you rant.
thoroughbreds were bred to run these distances and trained to do so. They aren't any more susceptible to injuries than any other horse. There have been far more horses racing that are healthy and sound than horses that get injured.
and I really don't see how they can make this sport any safer than lets say polo or a kids soccer league. In what ever you plan to do- there are risks.

It is a tragedy what happened to Barbaro- just like Secretariat and many other horses. And it will likely happen to other horses too- that's life.
But you should also know that horse racing takes in more money than PBR and any other horse orginization- their profits help keep our federal taxes lower and benefit our economy.

It doesn't matter if your racing or trail riding- a horse can get injured. So unless you plan on banning horseback riding, then find something else to rant about.

Answer 5

In my opinion the sport of horse racing is a great sport. I used to even gallop Thouroughbreds back when I was a little lighter, lol...
To answer your question, I think they should wait until the horse is 3 to before he is allowed to race.
I was raised in the hunter/jumper circuit and we wouldn't even break our horses until they were 4 years old, to minimize injuries on their soft bones.
I would like to see some changes being implement to stop actual babies to be raced

I was really sad when I heard about Barbaro, I am glad they didn't destroy him right away and gave him a chance, but that should never have happened.

Answer 6

Really think about your questions and let me ask you some. Should we stopp or change football or hokey or even baseball because players get hurt? What do you think horses did in the wild, walk gingerly everywhere they went? They were born and made to run from within hours of their birth it is natural for them and most of those horses love to do just that...RUN. I believe that the Jockey club needs to consider actual birthday as opposed to Jan 1st as a standard because if you have a foal born in Nov of 2006 it is already considered a year old and is prob not even weaned yet so yes I agree with you on that aspect. I agree that noone should ride a horse before it has officially turned 2 some horses even 3 BUT unfortunately this is not the case and since there arent significantly higher numbers of animals seriously injured yearly these things will never change. Horse racing is enjoyable (I am an exercise rider and groom) and it is dangerous more for the jockeys than for the horses. It is a risk people choose to take. But also consider the amount of money a racehorse owner spends on training conditioning vet, teeth feet food and bedding. These arent animals that just hang around scrounging for food with over grown feet teeth that are so sharp they have sores in their mouths they are well cared for and some are worth millions of dollars and look it. Yes some owners care only about the bottom line but most care for the horses. Its an individuals sport some like it others dont and still others dont care one way or the other. All I can say is those who dont like it dont watch it just like with anything else in life.

Answer 7

What we would like to happen, isn't necessarily going to happen. Is public going to change their opinions on racing strategies? No. Unfortunately, Barbaro, as loved as he was, was one horse and many people will say that. If the injuries happened to most or all of the horses, then people would start changing their ideas and opinions.

Answer 8

Overreacting much?

You have to remember that the racing breeds are extremely energetic and spirited... born to run. If you've ever ridden a young thoroughbred or even arabian, you know what I'm talking about. For many of them, racing is an outlet for all that energy.

They do hurt themselves sometimes. And when they do it is usually bad. Horses of any kind don't do well with the solitary confinement of their stall as they heal. They usually never recover from breaks.

As for racing, it isn't inhumane. They've been running since not long after their first breath! I don't deny that they should be a little older, but you have to remember that they aren't little one hour old babies being plopped onto the track and expected to run.

Answer 9

OK for a comment made before me, there was no reason to keep him alive long enough to collect sperm for more race horses because the t-bred registry wont allow any t-bred to be artificially inseminated(AI). its against the rules. they would not allow the foals to be registered. therefore could not race. so it was stupid to try to save him in the first place. my opinion of racing is that they race too young. fact that horses are born and breed to run but start them too young u have more risk of injury. the sport of horse racing is much safer today then it was 50 years ago. i do agree with u. something should be done bout racing so young. I DONT THINK IT WILL CHANGE ANYTHING BECAUSE IT HAPPENS ALL THE TIME, U JUST DONT HEAR BOUT IT.

Answer 10

although it is sad after reading an article on him. i feel it was best, he had laminitis in 3 of his legs, an abcess on his right leg, and his healing leg, wasn't doing real well either..... with these problems he would have never recovered and would have suffered.i praise his owners for trying to save him, most owners would have killed him right away. i think there desion to put him down was a good one, but i'm sure it was a hard one. I'm not a fan of horse racing, but you need to remember horses used to be used in wars, and for hunting animals. they were like vehicles.......racing is bad yes but what they were used for years ago was owrse. i think some of the rules should change in horse racing, but nothing is perfect, and no one will ever be totally happy. RIP barbaro