A ruling handed down yesterday from the Prairie Meadows Board of Stewards:
“Jockey Daniel Ruiz Amaya was duly notified on September 24 for an alleged violation of excessive whipping of his horse ‘Sassalitical’ during the running of the 4th race. Amaya did not appear for his hearing on September 25. The Board finds Amaya’s use of the whip excessive and in violation of 491 IAC 10.5(2)(J)(4). Therefore, the Board hereby suspends Amaya from riding races for three race days.”
All fairly mundane, but then this:
“The Board notes this is Amaya’s fourth offense for whipping during the 2021 Prairie Meadows race meet.”
This wretch is found guilty of animal abuse – for what else to call “excessive whipping”? – four times at one track just since May, and is only suspended, and for but three days at that. The lie of “Racing Cares” exposed, again.
All the times we galloped horses on tracks both public & private we never used or carried a whip! We still achieved the fastest timed workout of the day.When handling or riding horses everything is about the relationship with the horse you`re with, earned not through force or fear but through mutual trust & respect.We saw little of that while we were participants in the racing industry.
So, in addition to the cruelty inflicted on race horses throughout their life spans by trainers, jockeys, owners, legislators who will not change laws, and others, with stockholder’s greedy silent approval, the Board of Stewards is also complicit–a major, corrupt player that condones this gambling racket. Maybe class action lawsuits across the country should be explored. Witnessing such barbaric whipping is traumatizing to many people. There may be legal precedence.
Now You’re talking, Marilyn!!! This could be a viable option. Taking their bankroll ends this cruelty.
He didn’t even show up for his “hearing” which just proves how seriously these animal abusers in the racing industry take the whip violations.
I blame the people who attend this cruel, barbaric, so called”sport” . Watching a beautiful creature being flogged is not a good way to spend a day out.
Sadly, most people who are supporting this, either by going to the casino or paying taxes, don’t even know they support it.
Oh the poor little jockey suspended for 3 races, he should have been suspended for a whole year or for life!! I would call his actions animal abuse, I don’t think that word exists in the horseracing world! Those whips should be outlawed, I believe there are other ways of urging a horse to go faster without whips! Disgusting people!
Horse racing should be outlawed.
This incident of one jockey whipping one horse excessively in one race and getting penalized for it — supposedly, allegedly, hypothetically — is just “a spit in the ocean” of all the different things that are wrong with racing and all of the dirty rotten people that participate in the abuse. Horseracing is everyday abuse all day, everyday! Horseracing itself needs to be banned. This industry is so vile and corrupt that if the stewards could somehow whip the horses during a race, they would.
Animal Cruelty is a felony here in the U.S! Unfortunately, laws don’t change people’s hearts and attitudes.
For it being a felony there sure are a lot of people who get away with it, and not just in racing.