Born in February 2000, G. W.’s Skippie was raced 17 times, earning over $123,000 for owner Glen Warren and trainer Andrew Leggio Jr. On September 26, 2004, he was injured in a race at Louisiana Downs. “Career” – at least on the track – over. Who Warren sold him to is unclear, but eventually he landed at Clear Creek Stud in 2005. And thus began Skippie’s second round of industry servitude, the breeding shed.
Clear Creek bred Skippie until 2016, whereupon they sold him to Randall and Jarett Wolfe. Flash forward to an article last month in the Thoroughbred Daily News. In relaying results from the “Ocala Breeders’ Breeze Show,” the TDN mentioned “the late Arkansas-based stallion G.W.’s Skippie” and quoted Randall Wolfe: “My son got G.W.’s Skippie from Clear Oak Stallions [sic] back in Fulsom [sic], Louisiana. G.W.’s Skippie hurt his knee in his last race and that finished him up. He is the only stallion we have had and, unfortunately, he passed about a week ago.” Wolfe added: “He was a very, very nice horse. He had a good mind and he put that into his babies too.”
To say that Skippie’s “passing” is among the worst we have presented on these pages would be an understatement. The “very, very nice horse” in the throes of death (warning: this video, which surfaced on social media, is extremely difficult to watch):
At death, Skippie was owned by Brittany Winans, who had acquired him directly from the Wolfes. Our Joy Aten was able to secure Randall Wolfe’s number from the Arkansas Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Horsemen’s Association (more on them in a moment). Joy spoke to Randall on July 14. He confirmed the handoff: “He was getting old so we gave him to this girl – she was going to breed him to a few of her mares.” Asked when, he replied, “two or three years ago.” Curiously, though, Skippie bred thrice in 2019 – and the Wolfes are the last recorded owners/breeders. So it appears the Wolfes had him through last year and probably “gave him” to Winans this spring.
In any event, the Wolfes were aware of at least some of the goings-on at Winans’. Wolfe told Joy: “[Skippie] got caught up in a fence and cut his leg up pretty bad.” Also: “He got into a pond and couldn’t get out by himself.”
When asked if he knew how emaciated Skippie was, how he could not even rise on his own, Wolfe said: “Some of these people don’t know how to feed TBs – you can’t just give them a handful of feed.” He then said he was told Skippie was in bad shape and was “put down” (“put down,” it turns out, by a shot to the head).
As for the Arkansas Horsemen’s Association, after first casting doubt that the horse in the video was Skippie (it is), they have decided to not press for Winans’ prosecution. A followup call (to ask the same) to Randall Wolfe has thus far gone unanswered.
Brittany Winans? I don’t imagine you’ll need much help from me conjuring adjectives. I’ll simply say this: What she did – torturing (or allowing the torturing of) another sentient being to death – is evil. Evil. In the final analysis, however, this is but another story of the racing-refuse pipeline: The Wolfes, instead of caring for Skippie for the remainder of his days after he had fattened their bank accounts, dumped him off to whomever; and dumping him off to whomever is no different than delivering him directly to the slaughterhouse gates. In other words, Mr. and Mr. Wolfe, Skippie’s withered insides are all over your greedy, little hands.
But as uncomfortable as this may be for some, there’s a larger truth at play here: We cannot protect horses (dogs, cats, etc.) from being tortured to death when anyone can acquire horses, and when there exists no serious deterrent to torturing them. Anyone can acquire horses because horses are things to acquire, and there is no serious deterrent because serious deterrents are reserved for violations of others’ rights. Horses are not “others”; they have no rights. Vicious circle defined.
What’s more, horses are chattel of the lowest order – manufactured, traded, used, and trashed purely on a human’s whim. There are no agencies regulating their titles, no safety nets monitoring their care. And if found abused, the victims of “animal cruelty” as defined by the law, there are no prosecutorial crusades initiated on their behalf or sentencing messages from the bench. There is no justice, not even a pretense to justice, because there is no will within society – not at the legislative level, not at the enforcement level, not at the judicial level, and most important, not at the public level – to (seriously) punish property owners for committing wrongs against their property. In the end, as long as we own them, there is nothing we can do to stop the cruelty, at least not in any meaningful way. Still, we can go a long way toward ending much of this horror (and make no mistake, there are thousands of Skippies out there) by ending the nation’s largest producer of equine products – horseracing.
This will never stop. Horses are so badly abused. Broke states are using horse racing to bring money in. It will get worse and worse. No regulations on abuse to horses. Disgusting. Industry filled with Greed. No more compassion for the animals. Very very sad.
In many places, horseracing is in decline as gamblers abandon it for casinos, thank God!
I do not watch a horse race either in person or virtually. I try not to support in any way the horse racing industry. And yet, horses continue to be “owned” by various people and groups of peoples. The horses are exploited continuously. Speciesism is apparently rampant in the horse industry. Humans who attend races, place bets, or show no interest in horses appear to be unmoved by the exploitation and the lack of care given to horses. And I do not know how to make things better for horses. The people who have to make the changes are not the ones who read these replies.
These people should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law! This is abominable!
Prosecute these low life trash heap slob horrific abusers, torturers, and killers to the fullest extent of the law now. No beautiful, innocent, voiceless, choiceless, defenseless animal deserves this, EVER. I say shoot the slobs for what they have done. JUSTICE FOR ALL INNOCENT, VOICELESS, CHOICELESS, DEFENSELESS ANIMALS !!!!!!! JUSTICE !!!!
This story breaks my heart but im confused on who the woman is in the video? Is she the owner?
It’s unclear who the woman is, Frances.
Brittanys FB page has been taken down. O:
I used to enjoy horse racing until years ago, when I worked on a horse farm that raised race horses. They did not physically abuse them as in beating them, but they did shoot them up with downers (before transport), uppers (before a race) and downers (after a race – before transport). I left shortly after I saw it with my own eyes and never looked back or watched a horse race after that. I could not imagine why they are so abusive towards these beautiful, intelligent beings. It’s a mentality that people have acquired, as if it’s satisfying to them ! It’s taught by parents to their young, and so on and so on…so, it’s up to parents to show children what is right and what is wrong..This is fucking sick and wrong ! Please Teach Your Kids Right from Wrong ..
There two sides to every story. Currently the person who started this post has a personal vendetta against against my daughter and is trying to destroy her life and reputation. She doesn’t not abuse animals or neglect them. We have proven this. We are in the process of preparing a case against this person and she will be served with legal documents very soon. This is cyber bullying and defamation of character. We plan to counter sue her and anyone else that participates.
Feel free to share your side.
GW Skippie was given to my daughter because we have a horse rescue and live down the street from the owners of GW Skippie. Our horses are fed and cared for anyone that drives by can see this. Another person wanted this horse at the time he was given to my daughter. Her name is Lacey G. She was hurt, I am sure and upset when the owners chose to give the horse to my daughter instead of her. After we had him for awhile a woman approached my daughter and told her GW Skippie had sired a baby from her mare in the past and unfortunately something had happed to it and she wanted another baby from him. She talked my daughter into dropping GW Skippie off at her place to breed the mare instead of the mare coming to him. (1st mistake) She was notified by phone that GW Skippie was injured but was told it wasn’t bad enough to call the vet. She immediately went to check on him. His foot was cut almost to the bone and the injury was already a couple of days old. She brought him home and contacted a vet. We were trying to nurse him back to health. We had contemplated letting him pass prior to this incident because he was not responding well. He was old and we were playing catch up on his injury but just when we were giving up he would perk up and show some improvement.
Here is where it starts to get complicated. A girl named Kristina, who was a friend of my daughters and has been allowed on and off our property over the last year and half had another friend, Samantha that needed an emergency place to keep her horses. I got a sob story of how she was mistreated at another boarding facility and was needing a temporary place until she could find somewhere else. We are not a boarding facility and do not want people coming on and off our property that we do not know. We told her she could keep her horses at our place for two weeks at no charge but she needed to find another place to stay asap. We were leaving town to go on vacation and thought it wouldn’t hurt to have an extra pair of eyes on the property. The house was locked and they were told to only be in the barn and the only horses they were allowed to touch were their own. My daughter was coming daily to feed our horses in the morning and at night and care for Skippie while were were out of town. Up to this point Skippie was walking around at leisure and had full access to a pond and pasture 24/7 with no history of any seizure activity.
We had not been gone a full day when my daughter received a phone call from these girls who said Skippie was having a seizures and needed to be “put down”. After thirty minutes of telling my daughter this was the right thing to do and her crying on the phone she gave consent for him to be shot. She called me crying, I was still driving on my way to Florida with the family. We made arrangements for him to be buried on the property.
A couple of days later my daughter drives up to our property to see one of these girls in the round pen with a horse that my daughter had just gotten the day before. She was a brood mare and perfectly healthy to the best of our knowledge. The horse was laying dead in the round pen. My daughter asked her, “What did you do?” and the girl, Kristina stated, “I just worked her for 30 minutes”. At that time both girls were told to get their horses and leave the property and never come back.
Since then those girls have teamed up with Lacey G and have sought to destroy my daughters life and reputation. One of the girls, Samantha has sent my daughter numerous text messages stating that if we give her the horses of her choice on our property they will leave us alone. They have called the Sheriff’s dept and we have had numerous visits to our farm. We have had every horse on our farm vet checked, body scored, vaccinated above and beyond what is required by law. We have proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that we care for our animals and love our animals that depend on us for their well being. I will die before I let one of our horses fall into the hands of these girls.
They took the pictures and yes Skippie looks horrible. He was old and sick and had been injured. No one feels as bad as we do that this happened to him. We vow to not ever let this happen again under our watch. My daughter’s life has been turned upside down because of these girls. She has spent her life loving horses. To ask her to live without horses is asking her not to breath. She doesn’t race them. She did work at Oaklawn as a pony rider but she can’t do that now because of what these girls have done and posted on social media. So please before you judge her know that there is two sides to the story. Thank you for the opportunity to post on her behalf.
First of All,
I am Lacy G. Learn to spell my name correctly! Second of all, I personally dealt w Brittney and you on proper feeding of horses, stalls so forth. Your daughter screw my child out of money for cleaning up your nasty barn at the time. You all didn’t want to listen how to properly feed an over grazed pasture and starving horses. You have a colt by Skippie that has been STARVED thru his life now being a 2 yr old. I personally seen him last yr the size of a 9 month old Arabian baby. My TAPIT grandson that was born at the Wolfe’s property with that colt you and it already 16 hands that receives the best care possible as I am a single mother of 3 kids and animals that are all vetted and premium feed. My 20 yr old horse is fat and sassy along with my THOROUGHBRED mare given too me that has her feet properly trimmed, teeth floated along with her now 2 yr old.
Brittney was warned BY ME, that if she ever ever screwed with the Wolfes or their horses being missed treated that I would become your personal nightmare and ruin you. I have that screenshot still saved too.
Brittney has killed babies (well documented) along with falsifying paperwork, shipping horses to slaughter by lying to their previous owners.
There is NOTHING poor me about this situation at all. You all need to take account for what happen to Skippie. Also, Animal control PERSONALLY told that the horses were body score of 2-5 and are under veterinary care.
You all are a bunch of lying, cheating, selfish people that make me sick that you all can go on “vacation” while horses are starving in your pastures. That is lower than dirt.
Lacy I have never met you! Riki Rudder
Also, to say I was jealous of Brittney getting Skippie is a line of bullshit! Especially when I was given my own mare in foal to a Tapit son! In fact, I personally believed Brittney doesn’t deserve any horses.
Skippie WAS NOT sick at all because I have pictures of him prior to leaving the Wolfe’s before getting into Brittney care. I also didn’t know any of those girls but I did warn Brittney more than once that she wasn’t feeding the horses properly time after time.
I warned Brittney if she hurt any of the Wolfe’s men that it would be the last things she ever does period regarding any of her horses. As an advocate, I will do it again to expose and destroy her being given any horses. Keep on doing Brittney because you will find charges against you for animal cruelty 😡
I read your story. The horse, G.W.’s Skippie, was starved to death and that would be your responsibility as well as your daughter’s responsibility. You cannot blame someone else for the fact that you did not put feeding the horse as a top priority.
Excuses, excuses!! Why is it always someone else’s fault! Something is very wrong here.
The suffering of that horse is inexcusable. His age had nothing to do with his condition but starvation and neglect sure did. And then he was shot. Despicable.
Sorry to say your story does not add up.
Thank you, Rose. No, her sorry-ass story does NOT add up. What the hell is all this “counter sue/defamation of character/cyber bullying” nonsense? How I wish all these grown women would behave as such; just take care of yourselves, take care of your animals, and leave the infantile drama out of the courts and far away from the good people who support this site.
Frankly, I think everyone involved in this disgusting tale deserves horse racing. And horse racing deserves all of them. The whole industry is fraught with silly humans doing stupid things. But, it’s invariably the abused horses that bear the brunt of their greedy, selfish stunts. “She wanted another baby of his, because something happened to IT.” What, are all these narcissists, like, seven years old? And they run a “rescue?” So, who’s gonna rescue all these animals from their rescuers?
THAT POOR HORSE SUFFERED AND WAS STARVED TO DEATH.YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE, PLAIN AND SIMPLE JUST ONE OF MANY ABUSERS
Riki Rudder…what a disgusting attempt at passing the buck for the tortuous death of G.W.’s Skippie – you make me sick. He was OLD?!? – he was only 20!
Your daughter gets a call he was injured at the place she “dropped him off at” – the injury was “a couple days old” but she “immediately went to check on him”. You say “she brought him home and contacted the vet” – now one EXPECTS she did that immediately, as well, correct? – so the “catch up” in trying to “nurse him back to health”? – a COUPLE OF DAYS isn’t much to “catch up” and certainly isn’t going to be the reason he was in such an emaciated state!
That poor horse SUFFERED – on YOUR property – he was skeletal with at least one large pressure sore and he didn’t get that way overnight. To claim his horrific condition was because of his age (“he was old”) shows you are either incredibly incompetent regarding equines and their care (as is your adult daughter) or so stupid to not realize readers here KNOW a horse of only 20 years old will only look like Skippie if he had not been taken care of! – personally, I think you are both.
Your daughter was given Skippie – she was responsible to make sure he was being cared for regardless of where she allowed him to live – on some other property or on your property. And since she chose NOT to, how YOU could let that poor creature suffer and languish in front of your own eyes is beyond appalling. The fact you even dare to come here, with your ridiculous blah-blah-blah about the asinine comings-and-goings at your place that have nothing to do with your daughter’s and your complete failure in caring for Skippie, speaks volumes – neither of you should be left to care for a pet rock. You BOTH make me sick.
Amen, Joy. She lost me at, “We had contemplated letting him pass prior to this incident because he was not responding well…”
Letting him pass? Does she mean, rather than shooting him? I can’t believe she thought she and her daughter could come out of this horror story looking any better than they initially appeared when it was first published. That poor horse. He never had a chance.
Riki Rudder, I just read your moronic post again – you state your “daughter’s life has been turned upside down because of these girls” – oh really? – too damn bad – your daughter belongs in jail for the torture she put G.W.’s Skippie through…and you bear a share of that responsibility, as well. Photos don’t lie. The videos don’t lie. This is some of the worst abuse I’ve ever seen. And you claim to RESCUE?!? – that makes me shudder.
Rikki Rudder/rrudder1,
You cannot “drama queen” your way out of starving a horse to death. You (and your daughter) are guilty as charged of starving a horse to death. Take responsibility for your own actions.
Lots of luck with making people believe it’s all someone else’s fault and that you run a rescue or that a veterinarian was called and did body scores, and according to you, everything was fine. Where was the veterinarian when someone shot him??? That is NOT how a licensed veterinarian would put a horse (or any animal) to sleep.
In July, 2020 Lacy Guyton started a petition to Garland County Sheriff Dept., Arkansas, entitled “Justice for G.W. Skippie.”
https://www.change.org/p/garland-county-sheriff-department-arkansas-justice-for-g-w-skippie
I am the one who personally made the post about GW’S Skippie. No where is the Wolfe’s are to be blamed because it was a clear give away to Brittany with the understanding he would be taken care of properly. Upon my original post about his death, I had several inboxes about Brittney lying and stealing horses saying she will give them a “forever” home in fact she would send them off to slaughter so forth.
This stallion had a good life with the Wolfes and well taken care of too. In fact, he was going to stay on the farm until Brittney fabricated story to the Wolfe’s. So, blaming the Wolfe’s is out rages period! They are good hearted men and they love their horses.
Also, the Garland County Human Society didn’t have the fund to exhumed the body of Skippie. I had the money at the time, I could have proven starvation and neglect of Skippie so charges could have been pressed against Brittany and her parents.
They are still under watch with animal control the last I heard but I pass by EVERY DAY to make the horses are maintained properly.