What do you think about Barbaro?

Question

Who here misses Barbaro? Well i miss him soo much that I almost start crying when ever I just see a picture of him winning the Derby or at the Preakness.
But me myself think Barbaro is the real winner. Because from my eye's he's more then just the Derby winner or even if he won the triple crown... he's more than that because Barbaro has won so much more then that and has wont he greastest challange of all. He's tought me so much and how much he fought and how everyone loved him as much as me. I don't care if i sound like I'm three because I don't because I KNOW that there is millions of others out there right now that agree with me. And if you do then please respond to me with an answer.

Now I hope I made you think or even cry, because Barbaro deserves it. I'll miss you soo much big guy, LOVE YOU!!!!! <3

Answer 1

I do miss Barbaro... although not as much as I did last week. Barbaro's death hit me hard. The worst thing about it was how suddenly it happened. In the month leading up to his death we got steady, consistent news that his leg had healed and he could be going home within the month... then suddenly the next news we get is that he's dead. It was really a shock. I responded to a question like this before so I'm copying and pasting what I said there because there's nothing I can do to improve it... it's exactly how I felt then and how I feel now...


"I was shocked to hear the news on Monday and I've cried every day since. I'm so thankful to all the people who did everything in their power to save him (Gretchen and Roy Jackson, Dean Richardson, Edgar Prado). I spent the last 8 months checking the internet for Barbaro's condition at least once a day. I watched as Edgar pulled up during the Preakness and I anxiously awaited the results of his surgery the next day. I was sorry to hear he had developed laminitis in July, but I knew he'd pull through it.

By the end of the year I was celebrating. Dean said Barbaro could be going home within a month. I think that's what made his death such a sickly surprise. I spent a few evenings last week watching fan tribute videos of Barbaro's races, injury, and recovery. By the end of those, I was crying, but they were tears of joy. Last week, I was sure that Barbaro had made it... he would survive. Dean reported a setback including that they cut away more of Barbaro's left foot, but I was unaffected. Laminitis isn't something that goes away... once the swelling forces the coffin bone to rotate, there's no going back. So when I heard reports last week of more cutting away of that hoof, it wasn't news to me. Barbaro was strong enough to survive the shattered leg, so I was sure he could deal with the laminitis: a much more common injury that ordinary horses face every day.

I didn't learn of Saturday's surgery until Monday. I was at a horse show last weekend, so I didn't have my computer. I went about my busy life, oblivious to the fact that Barbaro had a painful abcess deep within his right hoof. Oblivious to the fact that while I was horse showing, Dean was performing yet another surgery, this one riskier than the others.

I came back from the show on Sunday night and went to classes Monday. I didn't learn of any of these horrible developments until that afternoon. I turned on the computer to browse my usual websites, check my e-mail, and of course check on Barbaro.

I always knew that so long as Barbaro was deep within the sports section of Yahoo, he was safe. I knew that if he appeared on the main page, it would be nothing but bad news. So when the Yahoo page loaded and that beautiful colt was staring back at me, I knew what had happened.

I spent the following days reading and watching all of the news stories. I learned of Barbaro's abcess and how that, coupled with his left leg, resulted in the laminitis of both of his front feet. I watched Gretchen, Roy, and Dean give a sorrowful press conference. I read about Michael Matz's reaction and the thoughts of all of the people involved in thoroughbred racing.

Yes, I've cried. I cry reading the reports on the internet and when watching the news. I compiled a group of Barbaro pictures and saved it as the background for my computer, so when I get bored with note-taking during class I've stared at those pictures and cried then too. I've cried as I've written this reply."


Since then I've come to realize how much the news affected me. At first I was shocked, sad, and disappointed, but I thought I could continue my normal life. As it turns out my life has been anything but normal since then. I seem to have lost my will to succeed in law school... not once was I completely prepared for class this week. Rather than reading my homework I spend large portions of my time reading/watching stuff about Barbaro on the internet, researching other race horses, answering questions about horseracing, and stuff like that. Even now I ought to be either reading or in bed because I'm spending all weekend at a horse show. I've been pretty sad and depressed all around.

But in the end the world will move on, and we'll be forced to go forward with it. There'll be more champions and more tragedy... and more advances so that horses like Barbaro may not succumb to laminitis... we've lost far too many horses to the disease already. Perhaps they'll find a way to stop horses from breaking their legs in the first place. 100 years ago, Barbaro would have been euthanized on the track without a second thought. Even 30 years ago he probably would have survived 8 months. Maybe in 30 years horses will never face death at the racetrack because we'll have the knowledge and advancement at least to start healing every sort of injury. And in 100 years, the majority of injured horses might recover completely and spend the rest of their days being happy in a pasture. We have to learn from Barbaro and think about future horses as we progress forward through time... we owe that duty to every horse.

Personally, I hope that Barbaro's brothers succeed as well has he did. After doing all they could for Barbaro, the Jacksons deserve another champion. Perhaps Barbaro's brother will be a Triple Crown, Horse of the Year winner... wouldn't that be a great Hollywood ending? The Jacksons overcome the worst experience that horse racing has to offer (losing a horse), to rise to the pinnacle.

Until then, we have Barbaro's memory to carry us through.

Answer 2

I had heard that he was fully recovered on the news. The only announcement of it I could find is on Wikipedia. The Penn Veterinary Medicine (Where Barbaro is recieving his medical treatment) site has made no announcement of it so there is the chance it just a rumour. Unlike most I support the owners decision to try ans save Barbaro's life. I feel that as long as an animal can accept the treatment to help save it's life then it should be allowed to recieve the treatent. That said, I do also support their decision to have Barbaro put down. It has be many months since his innitial injury and there has been set back after set back and I feel that he never would have fullied healed and when you carry 2000+ lbs on 4 thin legs... well it's just not something that can be done long term.

Answer 3

Barbaro was one of the greatest racehorses that ever raced. Although his death was sad, I love his story even more because he didn't come out on top. People these days look to stories all the time, we watch movie success stories, read books, listen on the news, but no one ever watches a movie about an underdog who failed. I've also found that whenever I have a problem, I keep searching for a storybook ending. Yeah, sometimes I get it, but often times I don't and for some stupid reason, I am disappointed. Barbaro's story showed that no matter how hard you work or how good anything might be, don't put your whole live on it, a disaster might strike and leave you with nothing. No matter how strong a relationship is with anyone, whether it be with your mom, a friend or a b/gf, it may not always be strong, and when you separate, you're not always going to come back together. I know this is sad, but it's life. Life can be as sad of happy as you want it to be. You can literally awaken and decide to be happy.

Answer 4

To the idiot who says that there is no point in keeping a mare alive if she's been injured because she can only have 9 foals in her lifetime- That's the biggest bunch of BS I've ever heard. One of the horses I worked with for years was a mare who had 19 ( yes, 19 !) foals before she was retired from breeding at the age of 26. Mares can continue to have foals well into their 20's and even their 30's if they get proper care and good nutrition. It's not the quanitity that counts, it's the quality. They should not have tried to save Ruffian all those years ago ( 32 of them to be exact) because the technology to help her didn't exist then. New Bolton was in its infancy then, and there were no other facilities like it at that time. Ruffian's owners DID NOT get a huge pay off after she died- where the Hell did you get an idea like that? Mr and Mrs Janey were a lot like the Jacksons are now. They loved the filly, and they were hurt badly by what happened, as was just about everyone connected with that tragedy. ( Ruffian's groom, Dan Williams, died of acute alcoholic poisoning a few years after the filly was destroyed. He drank himself to death. Her trainer, Frank Whitley, never knew any peace after that- or so I'm told. He never could forgive himself for making the what he later said was the biggest mistake of his life- agreeing to the match race.) Ruffian died a horrible death, make no mistake- I was only eleven years old when I saw her break down on TV. I've never forgotten that day. July 6, 1975, will always stand out in my memories. I suppose that you are going to say that Barbaro's owners got a huge payout too once he died. NO !!!! That is NOT TRUE, and never will be !!!! Sometimes, I can't believe the idiotic things I've seen people write in this column.

Answer 5

I was a fan of Barbaro's from the very first time he set foot on the track at Del Park. I followed his career closely and told everyone who would listen that he was "the real deal". Yes he started out on the turf, but I knew he was talented enough to carry his speed over to the dirt.

When I saw him run at Gulfstream last year I just knew I was seeing a Triple Crown winner, not just a contender but THE winner. Sadly it wasn't meant to be...

I had never seen such an out pouring of love for a horse until after the Preakness. I lit a candle for him daily, and I do mourn his loss. I can't bring myself to remove him as my wallpaper on my computer, and I keep all his pictures close where I can see them. So if some of the hard hearted people here want to make fun of me so be it!

You can email me thru here and I will forward the most beautiful painting of Barbaro if you are interested. I have it on jpeg, and it comes thru great!

Answer 6

I think that everyone in this whole world should look at Barbaro as an Inspiration. Because if we would apply ourselves to everyday life and it's obsticles, as Barbaro did then this world would probably be a better place. Rest In Peace Barbaro! You'll be Missed!

Answer 7

Judi Rathbun...please shut up. You make judgements and false statements based on opinion and not fact. When they operated on Ruffian immediately after her breakdown, they did not know that it was better to wait until the adrenaline subsided. Barbaro was treated at the University of Pennsylvania, NOT Penn State. Mares may have more than 9 foals in their lifetime, it depends on her age when she's started breeding. And stallions stand to many more than 40 mares a year; some, like Alydar, are bred 70 - 100 or more times a year. I understand you have feelings but dear God, know what you're talking about BEFORE you speak.
Barbaro was a champion for his fight and for what he's done for racing. I miss him and always will.

Answer 8

It was very sad, -- and real credit goes to the brilliant surgeons and staff at Penn State who put him back together, and to the owners who were willing to spend the money to try.... that ankle was like a sack of crushed ice... and those of us who know horses knew in the end that abscesses, founder, or a second injury would undoubtedly do him in. If you are interested in catastrophic injuries like that, google the match race between Ruffian and Foolish Pleasure --- sometime during the 70 or 80's. Ruffian fractured her sesamoid bone in that one (You'll have to do some research to find it) and it was a fixable injury. But she was a mare, and of course, insured.. The vets chose to operate on her immediately (wrong!) and after they got it fixed, she woke up thrashing, broke it and everything else, she was euthanized, and the owners collected the $$. The far better plan would have been to simply tranquilize her, put her in a sling, and wait 24 until the adrenaline was out of her system, then do the surgery.... Some of these guys really make many of us in the know, very angry. (But there is no $$ in keeping a mare alive --- she can have 9 babies in her life time... A stallion stands to 40 mares a year for the rest of his life!!!!--financially, a no brainer.)

These two horses were the top two horses in the country that year, and everyone wanted to see a match race --- rather like Seabisquit and War Admiral in the 1930's.

Track surfaces are now being changed at tremendous costs to be more forgiving... the times will be slower, but the horses will not so commonly get injured. And hundreds of horses are fatally injured every year racing.

Answer 9

I really felt that he was a very special horse, a lot better than Smarty Jones ,not putting Jones down but Barbaro was a
very superior horse.. .Sad ...we were not able to see his full potential..

Answer 10

I too cry at the sight of his breakdown.............I firmly believe that prior to the race when he broke through the starting gate, he was trying to tell us that something was not right with him................Barbaro was undefeated, a champion among champions............his will to live after his injury was and will be legendary,,,,,,,,his recovery process will be used to help all injured horses in the future...Please support the New Bolton Clinic with donations, they were magnificent.......BLESS YOU BARBARO.....you are in a better place now...JOHN MADONNA