The following horses were raceday casualties on American tracks last week:
Reported as died, euthanized, or “broke down” – racing-speak for dead
Soft Shoulders, Turf
Only Josie Knows, Santa Anita
Criminal Element, Sunland
Reported as “vanned off” – left via ambulance, a better-than-even chance of dead
Dancing Commander, Will Rogers
Jetrunaway, Louisiana
Lydgate’s Proof, Mountaineer
Jitterbug Shoes, Oaklawn
Morgans Corner, Penn
Macaffer, Tampa Bay
Rio Grey, Tampa Bay
Maleeh, Aqueduct
Complimenting, Laurel
I Forget, Penn
Believe Too, Santa Anita
Grand and Regal, Fonner
Cheers for Sidney, Gulfstream (later confirmed dead)
New Splash, Sam Houston
Go Trumpy Go, Santa Anita
Moldavite, Aqueduct
Bluffalatta, Fair Grounds
Hot Rock Hallie, Los Alamitos
Stolis Bud, Sunland
Undercover Kitten, Gulfstream
Movin a Legacy, Los Alamitos
Lisafinishline, Rillito
Other
Devil’s Silent, Aqueduct, “stumbled badly,” DNF
Can you find out anything about Mini Muffin? She’s a 7-year-old who has been raced 27 times, and never won, not a single time. Yet she gets put through claiming races with $25,000-40,000 prices. In her last race, 3/26/15 race #5 at Aqueduct, she was DNF. Chart says ” stopped approaching the quarter pole, got eased down the lane and was pulled up quickly after crossing the wire.”
I was just made the comment to some friends about hoping that California Chrome is retired before he experiences health problems. Wrath ensued! Are there any statistics in regards to the percentage of race horses that leave racing with/without disabling injuries or psychological problems?
None that I know of, Kaytee. But don’t shy from the debate – just refer them to this…http://horseracingwrongs.com/killed-in-action-2014/.
Believe Too, a chestnut colt 3 days shy of his third birthday…chart says; “chased the pace…could not make up the needed ground in the final furlong, then collapsed near the 7/8th pole, got up and was vanned off.”
Now to the racing apologists who claim these horses just LOVE to run, were BRED to run, and they CAN’T BE MADE to run if they didn’t want to…so you see horses in pastures and fields running until they COLLAPSE?
Racing apologists?….
New Splash – 2010 bay horse;
-first start, “no menace”
-second race, “no menace”
-third race, New Splash comes in first but was disqualified because he tested positive for Clenbuterol
-fourth race, came in first again, disqualified again
-fifth race, “broke slowly”, “no threat”
-sixth and final race, “injured” and “vanned off”
Living creatures being drugged in order to win races.
These magnificent noble horses are being exploited, abused and killed all in the name of gambling and “human entertainment”. Many of these racehorses are sent out there to race when they’re not up to the stressful task when suffering from pre-existing injuries/conditions, drugged, flogged by curs with whips in their hands when horse is fatigued and just cannot gallop any faster. And this is the year 2015! What sort of a society are we to stoop so low to inflict these voiceless, defenceless, innocent animals with such inexcusable cruelty?
AN UTTER DISGRACE!