Two Roses, an unraced 3-year-old filly, snapped her right front leg while “breezing” at Belmont yesterday and was euthanized on-track. This is Belmont’s third dead horse-in-training in the past week; to date, 32 Thoroughbreds have been killed racing or training there this year (and 5 others from “non-racing” causes). Dead athletes. This is horseracing.
Still a baby and sacrificed to the “sport” of greed and cheating for the gambler. Now nobody can hurt Two Roses and all the others killed in the name of racing.
Yes, Rose, so true! As a lover of all horses, I will continue to shine a light on racing’s dirty secrets!
It is November 29, 2013 at Penn National, and a three year old filly, Lucky Guess, does not finish in the 9th race. She is vanned off the track and it is discovered that she has a fractured sesamoid. She is humanely euthanized and I’m sure is quickly forgotten. It is interesting to note that Lucky Guess was on the vet’s list prior to her last race. It is also interesting to note that this sweet filly only ran 4 times and didn’t earn a cent in her short career. Her third race in June of this year, was also a DNF according to Equibase. I also heard, from one of my contacts, that her owner was told numerous times that Lucky shouldn’t have been running and wasn’t even holding her leads but was switching back and forth during training sessions. However, the call of “blood money” was simply too strong and her owner decided to take a chance on the remote possibility that Lucky might hit the board. Lucky ended up losing both races – the 9th race at Penn and the race to continue living. I am mentioning this horse because, even though a horse doesn’t die in the dirt, there is the possibility that the horse died in a stall on the backside of the track. For some reason, Lucky’s story has touched me. All of them do but her story more than others tugged at my heart strings. So young and yet damaged beyond repair. RIP sweet girl….I will NEVER forget you!
everything about lucky guess, and her death screams “insurance fraud” we might be surprised at how many horses die for the insurance money
Is it any wonder that the FBI issued four indictments in PA — three against trainers and one on an official clocker of morning times works with these stories? We need the FBI to investigate the other 37 racing jurisdictions.
Racing will always hide the number of their dead. The Jockey Club Injury Database which is suppose to let us know how many horses die each year still does not have all tracks participating in race day death counts, far less reported are track training deaths, training deaths at off track facilities are not counted at all and neither are deaths of the youngsters doing deadly works for the sales. Of course, completely ignored are the racehorses who give their lives for this sport when they are euthanized by rescues that will take in any horse no matter what its physical condition rather than rescues that will only take in a horse capable of moving onto a new career and leave the horses suffering the most to suffer the worse of fates — slaughter. And no where does the Jockey Club Injury Database provide a count of the number of Thoroughbreds that go to slaughter yet Thoroughbreds make up the second largest breed send to slaughter? Aren’t all of these “missing dead horses” they just as dead as those that die on the track?
Yes, Jo Anne, it was great news that the FBI went after the druggies at Penn recently. We can only hope and pray that the perpetrators will be permanently thrown out of racing. However, this is the tip of the iceberg. It happens at every track throughout the country. What a sad state of affairs for this so called “sport”.
Thank you for changing the picture. karen
Horses cross state lines all the time to compete, yet each state has its own rules. Some states are worse than others in regard to “tolerating” abuse of horses and the people who cheat and drug the horses. For instance Kentucky, a state that makes around 4 billion a year from the Thoroughbred industry, has about the weakest laws concerning animal cruelty. Is that by design ? Further, why is the racing “business” outside the laws that apply to most business as well as anticruelty laws. The state racing boards appear to be responsible for policing the industry, yet the “rules” are arbitrarily applied and even if a license is suspended another state may allow that person to train. This is wrong. The business is corrupt from top to bottom and ridiculously fragmented. It is a sick “industry” and it is not getting better, but it continues on life support from casinos etc. It has to be all about $$$ and it is.
At least the FBI is somewhat involved in PA but only because of how outrageous it is there. Why only now considering the horrible history ?
Maybe they should just start them right out of the womb! Horses are still growing at the age of 4,5,and 6…..so lets take a early teen and let them give you all you are asking for…horses will try to please you and will kill themselves for you. Obviously. The industry should be ashamed of themselves, and should at least regulate themselves……but I guess the government will have to do it……..running a horse of this age is is asking for trouble…and inhumane to say the least. These men are no different than the “Big Lick” in Tennessee putting acid on feet to get a exaggerated gait….they are only thinking of themselves and have no compassion for the animals. Its just a business to them and they have no problem killing one or two, because they have ten more to try in the barn.Hateful, ugly people…..
I could not agree more, Lynn…they are no different. Abuse is abuse is abuse. And all for fortune and fame – and the horses be damned. SICKENING.