The 1st at Laurel yesterday: “Aikenetta set the pace along the rail, dropped back through the stretch, was unsaddled, collapsed and perished walking back to the barn” (Equibase).
“was unsaddled, collapsed and perished walking back to the barn”
First things first: Aikenetta was just five years old, still growing – collapsed and died. That collapse, by the way, came after she was mercilessly whipped down the stretch.
Aikenetta is the 5 horse…
Second, Racing’s answer to its current media crisis (it’s a crisis only because they’re getting hammered in the press) is endless babble about what they’re doing to reduce “musculoskeletal breakdowns” – state-of-the-art surface testing, more vets, better screening (MRI machines coming soon!), etc. The clear implication, of course, is that these “sudden deaths” are freak things, that they don’t – or shouldn’t – count. Indeed, whenever a track or state touts its “improved safety” record, it’s almost always relayed as a “catastrophic injury” (musculoskeletal) ratio – the hundreds of prime-of-life, supposedly finely-tuned “athletes” just dropping dead every year be damned.
Finally, this was the first of nine races at Laurel yesterday. In other words, the rest of the day’s card – entertainment – continued with nary a moment of silence for the dead “athlete.” The obscenity of horseracing-as-sport laid bare, yet again.
This has got to stop. No one was even reprimanded for excessive whipping? No track officials questioned the death of this poor horse? Nothing???? Disgusting.
In any other setting in American this racehorse beater would be up on Felony Animal Cruelty charges.
Not only it’s it long overdue to shut this torture show down, but it’s long overdue to hold these racehorses abuser and killers accountable in a court of law.
The racing commissions and their stewards OWN and invest in racehorse syndicates.
Now just think about that for a moment.
Stewards have enormous power, control and implement any violations or investigations.
Now, many of them own the racehorses that are getting beaten, that are dying under mysterious circumstances so how in the hell can racehorses can any sort of justice under this dictator regime?
Add into the mix the fact that the state and local governments rarely stick their nose into horse racing business, don’t conduct any type of neutral oversight while continuing to give this vile business billions in taxpayers money and/or casino profits.
The “horseman” dictate the contracts and they, more or less, tell the government to send the money and then stay out of their business.
It’s long overdue for these contracts to be made public as most are cut in back room deals with little to no input from the communities.
In all of this corrupt mess are their voiceless victims, their disposable gambling chips because little to no money is set aside for racehorse safety or aftercare.
This business has been operating with total impunity and it’s time to hold them accountable on the way to shutting them down.
Closing this viper pit and the respective poisonous parasites down is the only solution.
Not only all the beating but if these poor horses don’t perform well (WIN MONEY) they ship them to Japan for an abusive slaughter & feed them to the Japanese people. SUCH A BUNCH OF BULLSHIT!!!!!!!😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡
What A horribly disgusting incident! These things should not be happening! I’d love to ride that jockey down the stretch and see what happens at the finish! Send them to some institution where he/she can learn to keep hands off!! GROSS!
Re the breeder cup when the venue hired all the extra vet staff and all the safety valves (right) Still Mongolian Groom who did not want to load forced instead of a late scratch . When the public hears these issues via media and other sources it raises the questions in peoples minds that the venues donot want asked because they have no viable excuses.
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Nancy, that whole corny bullshit….of that obscene amount of vets at Breeders cup,is like the old joke…how many Pollocks does it take to screw in a light bulb. All those vets,and they don’t even SEE what all of us saw..Mongolian Groom was lame in his hind left. Vets are corrupt and useless.
Bonnie. All the evidence points to he was hurting
Even he knew it with reluctance to load and he could not tell them . On a. Personal note hope you feel better from last weekend.
You beat the horse half to death and stress it so throughly it has no reserves. Where in the hell is this anything less then abuse. 5 years old! The wonder is how it survived that long with 2 year olds and younger dying on a regular basis. Are you proud of yourself? A defenseless animal. At least humans have the option not to do things. I am sickened.
I wonder how many drugs were in this horses system, were full blood tests done on her? was a complete necropsy done on her determining the cause of death? including the amounts & what kinds of drugs she had on board causing her death? unless they stop the COPIOUS AMOUNTS OF DRUGS ALLOWED IN THESE POOR ANIMALS these deaths will continue DAILY- almost 100 racehorses die PER WEEK on tracks in the U.S, this amount of deaths is not caused by any whips, but is caused by the amounts of legal & illegal drugs being used on these animals, 10cc’s of LASIX, are you kidding me ( when 4 cc’s of lasix would be more than sufficient to protect any horse that bleeds & if they bleed bad enough to mainline 10 cc’s of lasix into their bodies 4 hours from post time, they shouldn’t be allowed to race, a horse with 10 cc’s of lasix has emptied every ounce of fluid from their bodies by post time ( hence were the saying “piss like a race horse ” comes from), it is no wonder they are dropping dead of heart attacks & all kinds of odd deaths for young athletes, when a human athlete HYDRATES their bodies in order to perform at their best we have INSANE humans DEHYDRATING these poor horses beyond anything that should be concidered normal, or no horse should be allowed to compete in ANY FASHION intentionally dehydrated. no human in sports history would be allowed to compete on this one extremely strong drug alone, & these horses compete on many others, drug cocktails to train & stronger drug cocktails to race, this MUST BE STOPPED. IT GOES BEYOND SICKENING, BUT IT IS MORE LIKE MASS HUMAN INSANITY amongst racing insiders, the trainers, the VETERINARIANS, the stewards ( racings 3 Gods), are all culpable in the injuries & deaths sustained to every jockey & every horse on the track.
I think the veterinarians must be brought up on CHARGES. Each day that goes by I HATE these scumbags more: veterinarians,trainers,owners,all of them, they are all MURDERERS!!!!!!!!
Absolutely agree with you!
Reblogged this on Armory of the Revolution.
The so-called trainers tell the veterinarians what to do from what I understand by having read an article written by a veterinarian. I’m sorry I can’t remember her name, but the title of the article online is: “Everyday I Almost Quit” or maybe the title was different and those words were a quote from the article. It’s so mind bogglingly wrong that a multi-billion dollar industry is legally allowed to operate in such a corrupt manner where animal abuse is routine and rampant!
And where does the veterinarian’s ethics come in as healer?
I don’t know how to answer that question except that I speculate what I think might be the answer and yet I still don’t know what is in the mind of any veterinarian or what kind of things are required as part of their education and work under the supervision of their instructors to receive their degrees and certification and license to practice veterinary medicine.
At the University of California Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, necropsies on dead racehorses are performed.
What ethics are involved I do not know. I can only shake my head in disbelief and disgust at the numbers of racehorses killed at or on racetracks only to what? Provide opportunities for veterinarians to learn their craft?
Al Khayl, if you’re interested in reading the article, you can Google it. I found it online: ‘Every Day I Almost Quit’: Confessions of a Racetrack Veterinarian By Anna Schecter dated May 15, 2014.
The veterinarian’s name is Kate Papp. (NBC NEWS)
Who is the jockey that ABUSED AIKENETTA TO DEATH????!!!!
The relief from sick mother F’er TORTURE cannot come soon ENOUGH,for these BEAUTIFUL,GENTLE HORSES. All you horse racing people go the F to hell,where y’all belong. Start looking for a REAL JOB…you stinkin’losers.
The jockey should be banned from racing for the rest of his life! These poor horses need stricter laws re: racing,meds, tracks they’re racing on…. whatever…. there is absolutely no sense is so many dying! Accidents happen but this was not accidental!
There should also be laws against overbreeding and there wouldn’t be so many going to slaughter! Insane and inhumane!
The whole world watched Abel Cedillo brutally whip Mongolian Groom in the microsecond before he broke down in the Bleeders’ Cup Classic, yet the fine “regulators” at the soon-to-be-dismantled CHRB still won’t address whip abuse.
Only one commissioner (the one with the fewest financial ties and conflicts of interest in racing; go figure) wanted to address the issue “immediately” in yesterday’s meeting. The others, in classic anti-regulatory fashion, dodged it by using the usual postponement strategy.
Maybe they’re hoping nobody notices blatant, felony animal cruelty anymore.
I don’t know the JOCKEY’S NAME but I do know by virtue of common logic that the jockey was only “one link in the chain” that caused the death of yet another young racing horse not fully matured.
Trevor McCarthy is the ASSHOLES name.
Bonnie you and i found it same time!!!
I looked up racing entries and results from yesterday. Jockey listed is Trevor McCarthy
Thank you Bonnie and Nancy and everyone else who commented here.
We should be reporting this information to SENATOR FEINSTEIN and anyone else that cares and has any authority to make a SUSPENSION OF HORSERACING become a reality! Also, I pray to God that some of our elected officials have some ethical integrity and have not “bludgeoned their conscience to death” especially when it comes to protecting the horses!
Horseracing as we know it is FUNDAMENTALLY WRONG from birth to death of Thoroughbred race horses.
That jockey ignored the change in her movenent and should gave eased her back as soon as she started paddling right after the hiccup when she started backing off the lead. This is obnoxious that the jockey did not pull her up. poor girl, She was beaten by an ignorant ass. He should be charge for over driving that is illegal in the animal cruelty laws
Absolutely Gina! It is beyond me why these people are not getting felony animal cruelty charges! I have been wondering why this has not happened for such a long time . That is so sad being whipped till it’s death, I just can’t bear it anymore it’s just so sad.
From birth they are denied the thing that brings them the most joy,being part of a pack or if you will a herd. Then they get the life beat out of them in their dying moments.If this EVIL bullshit doesn’t end soon…..
Bonnie, not all Thoroughbred foals but some foals as you know are taken away from their real mothers and put on nurse mares. Those nurse mares and their foals were separated and the nurse mares’ babies/foals are left to die unless SOMEONE THAT CARES AND HAS THE WHEREWITHAL TO SAVE THEM saves them. There’s more abuse yet to come…
Wow, what a powerful statement: “[T]his was the first of nine races at Laurel yesterday. In other words, the rest of the day’s card – entertainment – continued with nary a moment of silence for the dead ‘athlete’. The obscenity of horseracing-as-sport laid bare, yet again.”
Horseracing is NOT a sport, it’s entertainment. It’s not about “racing” horses but about “killing” them, with blood being an integral part of the thrill. And the horses are not beautiful “athletes” but merely disposable victims. They run, because their lives depend on it, and they run until they drop dead on the track.
Horse racing industry is corrupt. They don’t care about the horses. They are greedy evil humans & only care about themselves. Money come before even family. The poor horses are drugged, beaten & slaughtered. The has to end now. Make the little jockeys race. Any that get injured or don’t win can be slaughtered.
This is so sad. I’m also so sad that there is so much support for horse racing among individuals who own horses for pleasure. Every time I read these reports, I think of my horses being treated like these thoroughbreds, and it makes me sick. Just because you own horses doesn’t mean you have to support every equine activity. That is what I’m noticing and it is upsetting.
What a sad sad world we are all living in when every single day there is another report of another horse dead at these god damn race tracks. This abuse will never end until the governments do something to stop the horse racing. Unfortunately like so many other things – everyone seems to be in the pocket of someone else. The GREED factor is unbelievable. The loss of the lives of these poor horses just never matters to the people that they should – these assholes at the race tracks are all an ignorant bunch of bastards. This god damn jockey should have the f*cking whip used on him until he collapses and is pronounced DEAD – the sooner we get rid of these bunch of losers the better off the horses may actually be – the sad fact is that none of us can honestly see this happening and so we keep everyday reading and posting about the bullshit that goes on at the tracks and the numbers increase on the deaths of these gorgeous horses. Please will anyone with any type of authority step up to save the horses and take a stand against the whole industry – please just do it – the horses need your help NOW.
That bastard jockey should be beaten with a whip just as many times as he whipped that poor horse. The jockey should be fined and jailed to set an example for others.. how terribly cruel and inhumane for that poor horse.
Close it down. Brutality of whipping n other abuses must be against the law. Morally n ethically wrong. Necropsy of each dead horse must be revealed to the public. Shane on the excessive whippers n may justice be done. Fund humane treatment training n jobs.
There are no words to such a heartless industry. Such cruelty to one of the most majestic, soulful and intelligent being as the horses. One has to be void of all humanity, void of love and oozed with evil.
I don’t know if I have it in me to watch the video – just the comments above and the post tell me yet another sentient, and gentle soul is gone. Horseracing is such a useless, disturbing pastime. I can hardly wait for the day this site declares it’s own win – and we will all know not another horse will be abused in this manner. Keep going, all of you here fighting for their fragile lives.
WHIPS NEED TO BE BANNED ENTIRELY THIS IS CRUELTY !! IF THE HORSE IS DONE THE HORSE IS DONE WHY BEAT THE CRAP OUT OF IT DONT THEY GIVE ENOUGH !!!
Horses are great and strong, but fragile creatures, too. They can go suddenly lame, misstep and break an ankle, like snapping a toothpick…just walking.
It isn’t just horse racing people!!! It’s regular everyday horses, too. The main problem is that Thoroughbreds are getting too inbred…and I believe their pedigrees are what is dooming them, more than anything else
Ummm…where did you come up with that gem? No, horses don’t just snap limbs while walking.
Really, Pamala? I have NEVER seen a horse, who was “just walking,” break an ankle like a toothpick. Nope….with over 50 years of experience, I have NEVER seen that happen.
If the problem is TB inbreeding, please gather up your colleagues and get that problem fixed! I’m sure the breeders, who rake in the big bucks, will be happy to listen to you.
Just disgusting! Close the tracks or STOP racing BABIES! ALL these people are disgusting!
Of course it has nothing to do with the fact that these horses are put into training while still developing, or given cocktails of drugs on a daily basis, or beaten to force them to run at breakneck speed, right? If racing could just get the damn breeding right these horses would stop breaking down and us crazy animal activists would stop picking on them for a few measly thousand horse deaths a year. And it happens all the time to regular horse owners – leading their horse back to the barn and poof! Just drops dead. Or the horse is meandering around the paddock and his leg just snaps off at a right angle. Yep, happens all the time. By the thousands. Every year. And we all have tacos and a live band to celebrate what great horse owners we are.
Give me a freakin’ break already.
This is sick! Someone with power needs to ban this!! We can not stand back and allow this!!
Laurel, where Aikenetta died, is a Maryland track, so I’ll just leave this here…
From the pro-racing PR, this; “Less than a month after announcing the approval of a number of ‘house rules’ and commission policies aimed at improving racehorse safety and welfare, the Maryland Racing Commission is walking things back. According to a report by The Racing Biz, the proposed measures — which included pushing back administration of several medications, veterinary record transfers, added veterinary scrutiny to horses pulling up, lame, or flagged — produced an outcry from many of the state’s horsemen.”
Pushback from the “HORSEMEN” regarding their racehorses’ welfare and safety?!?
the “horseman” = “trainers” – will be the ones fighting to their deaths to make sure the DRUG RULES ARE KEPT AS LENIENT & CAREFREE AS POSSIBLE, these so-called “trainers” can not train these horses off of all kinds of dope & injections , how in the world would they get one to the starting gate without the massive amounts of drugs they are allowed? these are the people that can’t understand their careers are OVER unless they start being reined in, but they CAN”T get a horse to the races without many kinds of drugs in those horses systems, so yup, they will fight until the end to stop any limitations. but lets not forget, “these horses are like our families to us” ya right!
The cruel greedy jockey should be named shamed and jailed I hope all involved have no peace or luck in their hopefully short lives
Thank you for the reality check; thank you for relating factual information which is quite revealing as to how the people that routinely mistreat their horses and don’t want to stop abusing their horses for whatever reason will continue to abuse horses for the sake of winning at all costs including the horses’ lives. There is no glory in abusing horses and cheating to win. BOB BAFFERT is a known “trainer” of racehorses that had a drug violation against him but, for whatever reason, this particular drug violation was not enforced or made public until several months after JUSTIFY had won the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes which, of course, makes JUSTIFY, THE TRIPLE CROWN WINNER FOR THE YEAR OF 2019! WHOA! Is that NOT FABULOUS?????????
NO, IT IS NOT FABULOUS!!!!!!!!!
IT IS ANIMAL ABUSE!!!!!!!!! BESIDES DISGUSTING WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE WHOLE PICTURE.
Thank you for caring,
Wanda Diamond
Lewiston, Idaho 83501
The abuse just keeps happening! Maybe if the jockey’s, trainers and owners were fined a huge amount for whipping a horse, a lot more of those great athletes would live to race another day! A win is so important to all, what they all seem to miss is the fact that the horse is the one who wins all that money for them!
The fact that there is such a thing as “an INSURANCE policy” on horses makes it even more corrupt and evil. Why? If a horse is insured for “$XXXX?????” (so much money) the owners of the horses can, under whatever circumstances, recoup their losses, so having a horse die or be euthanized can still mean some revenue coming in for those people who own race horses. I would honestly like to see a serious expose (ex-spo-zay) on THE INSURANCE COMPANIES THAT INSURE THAT THE NEED FOR SPEED AND GREED will be financially rewarded regardless of the safety and well-being of the horses.
Makes me sick to my stomach!
This is ANIMAL ABUSE!!! It needs to stop NOW.😡😡😡😡😡😡
Ban the jockey. No need for this. 99% of jockeys hit the wrong anyway. Ban the jockey! Fine the trainer. Sanction the owner.
I believe that the owner pressured the trainer and the trainer instructed the jockey and the jockey did what he was told. It has been said that the owners pay the bills. So what happens when the person that signs your paycheck tells you to do this or that, and you don’t want to lose your paycheck, and as long as there is an INSURANCE policy to fall back on should the owner’s horse die/drop dead? I think when people are indoctrinated into this toxic, dysfunctional life of exploiting horses, they basically do what they are told by the person that signs their paycheck.
Is there a right way to hit a horse?
This man should & must be charged for the Death of this poor Horse, He should be instant Dismissal of being a Jockey & he must attend Anger Management o & see a Doctor on a Regular Basis .. RIP horse 🐎 .. Another unnecessary Death
Disgraceful… those greedy bloody owner, trainers and jockeys all need to be horse whipped unmercifully… their greed knows no bounds and it is always the animal who pays the price for these disgusting apologies for human beings… I would like to round them all up and shoot the bastards.
I Australia the jockey is fined for excessive whipping and may also be suspended.
This “sport should be banned.
When I was a little child in the middle/late 1960s, my Dad used to dry me off after my evening bath, usually in the lounge while he watched the horse racing on TV. First he would dry my front while I was facing him – I would watch his face while he stared at the TV. Then he would turn me around to dry off my back, and I would see the horse racing on the TV. It would always upset me, seeing the jockeys hit the horses. I perceived it as cruelty and have been opposed to horse racing since then.
What was the jockey’s comment on this? Was it worth it? Or does the jockey just move on to ride another horse? It makes me sick to the point of crying.
This is animal abuse pure and simple😡😡😡 the jockey owner and trainer should all hang their heads in shame and be banned for life
I think Horse racing should be outlawed!! Any animal that is used to profit man, is simply cruel & disgusting. This is no different than bull fighting, dog fighting, killing animals for a trophy. I grew up in Saratoa, enjoyed going to the track, until I learned about these animals being drugged & whipped into submission. No matter how you want to put it, this is ANIMAL ABUSE!! The owners, the jockeys and even the vets that are involved in making these animals run faster, should be ashamed of themselves! When the horses are no longer any good, they are shipped off to be slaughtered! How dare anyone can justify this. Most of these race horses are babies, they never get to be that, they are treated so poorly. I feel sick to my stomach, knowing this is still going on!!!
I take issue with not only this being called a “sport” (seriously?), but that these horses are referred to as “athletes” by the horse racing industry. Let’s be crystal clear: ATHLETES are WILLING PARTICIPANTS in the sports that they DECIDE to undertake. There is NO option for these horses to opt out and decline to run … unless you count flogging them the length of the track as something that they enjoy and welcome as part of the bargain (which I assure you, they do NOT). Oh yes, and BTW, last time I checked, most “athletes” who “participate” in “sports” don’t end up DYING as a result of having been a part of said activity. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY OUTRAGEOUS. 😡😡😡
Thank You K S, NEEDED to be SAID. So much bad shit is going on right now,at times I find myself literally shaking with rage. Some humans are so g.d. stupid. 🤬🤬🤬🤬
Absolutely disgusting and heartbreaking!!! This has to STOP!!!
Never forget, “Horseracing Wrongs” is a wildly radical, deeply extremist group bent on the forced extinction of **ALL HORSES**. Forever. Extinct.
They must be fought in every corner of every slimy hole they crawl into. Fought back out of the lives of horse people everywhere. Our lives, and our beloved horse’s lives, are on the line!!
Thought I’d start the week with some sorely needed comic relief.
I don’t consider myself radical or extreme.
I do, however, consider people who enslave racehorses for profit, beat/whip them to perform, dope them to mask injuries and/or to perform, drain them for every red cent they can, dump them when they are no longer flipping a buck either into the claiming ranks or at the nearest kill auction etc etc.
While these racehorses are churning billions in sales and wagering profits, the industry whom you defend, has no problem sending them to slaughter even though they have the funds to provide aftercare for every single one of them not for the chosen few that become their public relations stunt.
There isn’t a slimy hole deep enough for you parasites, and to claim that you “love” them?
Laughable indeed.
Ummm…have your meds adjusted.
Dear miskaffon:
Your comment is proof that when people who are sickened by the exploitation and everyday routine abuse of horses for racing to the point of running them literally to their death (only to be replaced by the next year’s foal crop) comment on this site, we are not “preaching to the choir” as the saying goes! Thank you for your input no matter how much I disagree with you!
Remember the deceased horses and who caused their death and how the horses died, and why they died.
You’re goose stepping around the room while you write this, aren’t you? And I thought you guys only shot the horses up with those weird ass drugs………….
How can that jockey be so heartless and cruel!! And not a moment of silence and sympathy for the poor horse. How horrible and cruel and inhumane!! Shame on everyone involved!!
This should be banned! I hope and expect that jockey will be tried and jailed for animal abuse.
How about banning whipping the horse ?
It is all about fame and fortune with no concerns for the horses’ welfare! Disgusting lowlifes!
I’ve never bet a dime on horse/dog races, but I use to watch horse races on tv (all the while yelling at the jockeys every time they laid a hand on those beautiful creatures. Now, because of Patrick I haven’t watched any races for at least 6 months. So, thank you, again, Patrick for everything you do to educate us on the plight of so many horses….
Why are these barbaric events still permitted in this day and age? If humans want to exploit themselves at their own expense they should do that instead of abusing and exploiting innocent animals that have no voice and no choice in the matter. LEAVE INNOCENT ANIMALS ALONE!!!
The excessive and torturous whipping of these precious and innocent horses must be stopped and banned immediately. After winning thousands of dollars for their uncaring greedy owners – instead of becoming Retired Horses and to live out their precious life with respect and compassion shown, many of these precious Retired Horses are sent to the vile and evil animal torturing Abattoirs of hell and terror where they are heinously tortured to death. This is their reward for making these lowlife money hungry Racing Horse Owners rich.
Absolutely sickening and unforgivable.
The human species never ceases to disgust and sicken me with the level of depravity they can sink too, when the innocent and precious animals are involved.
As long as money is involved thevoweners or much less trainer could care less about these animals they are slaves to the dollar
I am speechless! And I am almost never speechless. I have to admit, I could not watch the video. I simply could not. This cruelty and odious treatment of beautiful horses has to STOP!!!!
I wish i could save them all and get them off the hands of these bastards! These guys should all rot in jail. All I can hope for is a dark, horrible place for them in hell where they will end up. Until then though, we need to have horse abuse and cruelty eradicated.