In this morning’s post, I reported Carolina Reaper as “vanned off” after the 5th at Mountaineer Tuesday; the full Equibase note read: “Carolina Reaper pressed the pace dueling through the turn, extending three deep down the lane would clip heels falling shortly after the wire, returned to feet being vanned off as a precautionary measure.”
“as a precautionary measure”
According to a source at Mountaineer, the filly was close to being euthanized on the track – tarp up, solution drawn. But she arose, “breathing hard,” and was “vanned” to her stall. The next morning Carolina Reaper was found dead either outside of or in front of her stall. Found dead. This is horseracing.
GOD BLESS THAT BEAUTIFUL HORSE. HORSE RACING NEEDS TO END ALL OVER THE WORLD!!
RIP precious angel. This is utmost, disgusting cruelty. She must have been suffering, and now her suffering is over. I agree totally that Horse Racing needs to end forever all over the world!!!!!
Oh how she must have suffered before she died. The veterinarian didn’t find anything wrong? The owner and trainer didn’t see anything wrong? Back in my youth, trainers from the local track would temporarily board horses at the facility where I kept my horse when they needed a rest. One man brought his mare whose knee was swollen the size of a honeydew melon. The track vet told him she was probably crippled and should be put down. He thought he could fix her. She was in incredible pain. One of the boarders called her own vet who examined the horse and said euthanasia was the only option. He could feel a piece of bone broken off in the mare’s knee. Her owner again refused. The vet called the humane officer and a court order was threatened until the owner finally agreed. You see, she was a considerable financial investment that he couldn’t afford to lose.
Was this horse counted in the number of horses who die on a particular track? Are those numbers just of the horses who died right there on the track? I assume the latter.
I know that many horses die hours or days later, off the track, in a stall, after being under the whip.
Her owners couldn’t put her down while there was still a chance she could hobble back to the track and make a bit more blood money for them. Honestly, why do you parasites in horse racing even bother to pretend anymore? At least have the shred of decency to admit what is painfully obvious: that you don’t give a shit for these horses beyond what money you can run out of them.
Another equine angel we couldn’t save. But we will not forget her. RIP little one.
I so hate the saying -“this is horse racing.” This is not what horse racing should be about – it should NEVER be about deaths daily. OMG the abuse is to terrible and how this poor filly must have suffered throughout the night all alone before passing away. It is too bad it was not the owner and trainer instead of her. The word “filly” tells me she was probably another 2 of 3 year old that should have never ever been near a race track at that young age. You bastards involved in all of this should be doing hard time. Shut down these f*in race tracks once and for all – we don’t need to have the daily report of horse deaths every single day. This will never stop as the human greed just does not ever stop. What a sad sad day and just one of many. Horses never should be treated in this manner – they were not put on this god damn earth to be slaves to humans.
Cathy, may I suggest something… Yes, we do need to know the truth. But, we cannot be inundated with negativity constantly. So, go off of the page for awhile and focus on positive things for a little while. Its self care that is necessary when dealing with the especially sad, emotional turmoil of animal abuse.
I know that if I didn’t focus on the positive things from time to time all of this would pummel me psychologically.
Cathy, Carolina Reaper had just turned 4 years old in May. Racing owner/trainer Luis Jurado bought her at the Keeneland 2016 yearling sale for $3500 – and he raced her 8 times before she reached her 3rd birthday.
He raced her 29 times – she made nearly $34K for Jurado, including $710 in her last race where she fell to the dirt after crossing the wire.
The fact she was dead less than 12 hours later is telling that something was horribly wrong – yet she still got to her feet. Horses are vulnerable when they’re down, so even physically compromised or injured, they’ll do whatever they can to get themselves upright, standing.
The incompetence. The callousness. The utter disregard. But yet, THIS is horse racing.
Just to be clear, Carolina Reaper is a racing fatality even though she didn’t die on the track. However, it took an inside contact to divulge her death the next day. Without this individual, no one would have known about this poor filly’s death and that is EXACTLY the way horseracing likes it.
Is this fatality counted by HRW as one animal killed in racing, do you know, Mary?
Martha, yes, she is counted by HW as one of the horses racing has killed. She is on the following list – American racehorses confirmed killed/dead thus far in 2019.
https://horseracingwrongs.org/killed-2019/
This is KILLING my heart! There are more and more laws, about harsh penalties/jail time, for animal abuse! Why isn’t horse racing considered animal abuse? Rest peacefully, little girl!
Another baby who suffered and died a lonely death in her stall. Horseracing is hell on earth for these horses. I am so happy Horseracing Wrongs is following all these deaths daily, it shows what a vile, heinous so called sport this is. These poor babies have to run when they don’t feel like, whipped the hell out, forced into those gates, STOP HORSERACING FOREVER, CLOSE DOWN THOSE GATE/TRACKS. SIC, SIC, SICKENING PEOPLE. THE WHOLE LOT OF THEM, OWNERS, TRAINERS, VETS AND JOCKEYS.
I am so sick of this rich man’s game. Killing these beautiful animals. Someone has to stop this..
Vicki, the sad part is, the rich are a small part of this industry. If you go to the backside of many of the low level claiming tracks, you will see poor desperation, and rampant substance abuse issues in the humans, and the horses are sore, tired, patched together. Sometimes the people barely have money to feed them, and they are on 2 or 3 day old bedding. My friend was able to buy a beautiful 9yo gelding stratight off the backside for $300 because the owner didn’t have enough money to feed himself much less his horse. Another friend of mine was shocked when I took her on the backside of our track – she said she felt she was in the worst inner city ghetto. I was shocked the first time I was on the backside- I was expecting the beauty and glitz of the Kentucky derby. I had an eye opening day. You can tell who the winning trainers are, but the ones who barely, if ever, win, are a rag tag lot.
A couple of things.
Yes, HRW counts any fatality on the racetrack.
However, Patrick can only count what he knows about.
As previously stated, there are a ton of private training centers most of which rent out stalls that have absolutely no oversight or no reporting of deaths.
Further to this, are the many private training centers owned by the ultra-wealthy and are exclusive to the owners racehorse’s.
Again, no accountability or reporting.
Then there are the racehorses who are forced to load with painful, and serious injuries only to be brought back to the farm and killed there.
So the Death Lists stated herein are MINIMUM at best if you can imagine that!!
Rich racehorse vs poor racehorse.
90%, according to Jockey Club statistics, will end up on the “B” tracks in the claiming ranks.
Only 10% of racehorses actually race in the upper ranks – the stakes races such as the Derby, Breeders Cup, or black type stake races.
Many of the 90% started at the upper ranks, could either not perform at that level or get maimed by the trainer negating a reduction in their competition.
Most all get some sort of physical issue(s), but many also get mental issues and either one of these affects their ability to perform.
They are dumped with the owners full consent knowing full well what they are doing to that horse and they even ensure that the medical/doping records don’t follow the horse so that they, essentially, deliberately cover-up/mask any issues that they are aware of.
They also know that the issues means ongoing pain, suffering, and increased possibility of death with every single step that racehorse makes.
The racing commissions coupled with the HBPA, racetrack CEO’s are only too happy to run a crippled horse or permit dope to mask it so that they can fill races and increase their wagering profits.
The racehorse loses every step of the way and their policies clearly shows a bunch of leeches and parasites that care nothing about the plight of racehorses.