Last week in U.S. horseracing (not including training and harness casualties).
Silk Spinner “appeared in distress, vanned off” at Finger Lakes
Trekas “bad steps, vanned off” at Sam Houston
Postor “vanned off” at Sunray
A.P. Brannigan “pulled up in distress” at Will Rogers
Tempestaire “vanned off, bled” at Mountaineer
Finding Candy “died on the track” at Parx
Ruth “broke down” at Will Rogers
Omega Blake “fell, DNF” at Will Rogers
Sky Changer “broke down” at Charles Town
Bullet Proof B “vanned off” at Delta
To B Discreet “vanned off” at Gulfstream
TG Julio “vanned off” at Delta
Shez Fast N Easy “bled, vanned off” at Delta
Frankie’s Touch “vanned off” at Evangeline
Amazin Secret “fell, vanned off” at Evangeline
Steamroller “broke down” at Prairie
Mr Wine Opener “broke down” at Arapahoe
Red Atlantic “broke down” at Belterra
Songfortheofficer “vanned off” at Evangeline
Cowboy Prince “vanned off” at Prairie
Bred to Boss “vanned off” at Belmont
Secret Jackpot “went bad, vanned off” at Belterra
Mr Coco Pilota “bled, vanned off” at Delta
Olympic Royale “vanned off” at Los Alamitos
Chicks Sweet Jess “vanned off” at Los Alamitos
Kings Apollo “fell, DNF” at Malvern
Signature Look “fell, DNF” at Malvern
Jess a Bug “vanned off” at Remington
Rio Special Jr “bled, vanned off” at Sam Houston
A Salty Corona “vanned off” at Sam Houston
Contour “broke down” at Arapahoe
Preacher’s Bluff “vanned off” at Golden Gate
Longing to Travel “fell, DNF” at Lexington
In Giants’ Boots “vanned off” at Mountaineer
“Broke Down” – racing-speak for dead
“Vanned Off” – many, if not most, will be on my year-end FOIA kill-reports
“Bled” – usually indicates pulmonary hemorrhage
(source: Equibase)
Yet another extensive list of innocent horses sacrificed by the horseracing industry……for what?
$2 bets and ‘entertainment’.
We are living in the 21st century not in the gladiatorial dark times.
Those who have the power to stop this outrageous animal cruelty, do NOTHING!
Thank you, Patrick for your tenacity and dedication in exposing the inexcusable sufferings and deaths of these intelligent, sensitive, noble horses who don’t have a mean bone in their bodies, unlike the people in racing.
SHAME on the racing industry for its shocking mistreatment of these helpless horses who have no voice.
I want to know what REALLY happened at Arapahoe Park yesterday(5-21-17) with Contour. I was there and was horrified. It appeared that the horse had just unseated his jockey and kept going. He did not appear to be in any distress, and was trotting along when the race ended. All of a sudden, they rounded him up, put up a big screen, and must have euthanized him, dragging his body onto a flatbed truck with a blanket over it. What happened???Why was this 7 year old gelding euthanized?? I can’t stop thinking about this and I am still very upset. Please research this.
Michele, I will ascertain the exact cause – probably a leg fracture – when I submit my FOIA requests at year end. But in the meantime, I implore: Please don’t go back; tell all friends and acquaintances of your experience. The killing ends when – and only when – the buying-public says no more.
There was no leg fracture: they didn’t even examine his leg from what I saw. If they say it is a leg fracture, that would be an excuse to kill the horse. Thanks for your response, Patrick. As you can see, I am still very upset.
What sends me into even deeper grief, are the exceptional photographs. Exceptionally well-taken and exceptionally graphic. I had to put my beloved Weimaraner, Cooper< to sleep this week, after seeing all these articles and pictures, I am numb. So unnecessary.
Gaynor, so sorry for your loss Cooper, but I celebrate the nice life he had with you.
As for graphic photos?
If you think photos are bad try being there and actually hear the leg snap like a twig, and see the bone fragments/blood blow out all over the track – and then watch them struggle to get up on a broken bone.
Horrific blood bath not unlike roman times.
Yet, these participants/supporters of horse racing watch that happen to their horse and STILL support it!
They will still send out another horse to risk their life yet again!
Demented, delusional, and heartless.
Gaynor, it’s so very hard when you lose a beloved pet but the beautiful life you gave him must be a comfort to you. Couldn’t agree more with Gina – the photos are bad enough but when you’re actually there on the track, that’s when you witness what these horses go through. The worst one for me was a training incident at a racetrack club, no vets on duty for training sessions and it took a vet nearly an hour to get there. To watch this horse in absolute agony when i could do nothing for her was very difficult and i lost it when a bloke sat on the mare to stop her from getting up – she wouldn’t have been able to get up anyway! There were a few relatively new owners watching their horses in training that morning and for this mare to get up dragging a broken limb around looking for her ‘herd’ and help was a risk they weren’t going to take because it would be too sickening for these owners to see and likely to put them off racehorse ownership….!
These blokes are callous, they’re so used to this and shrug it off with “that’s racing luv, get used to it”. And of course the death was never reported – what happens on the track (in training) stays on the track…..
the code of silence.