To those who profit from, bet on, watch, or otherwise support horseracing, the burden falls to justify the following in 21st Century America.
Some of the racehorses killed thus far this year (I have not included California and Maryland; those states provided the most detail and merit stand-alone views).
Raagheb, Jan 14
“[multiple leg] fractures, multiple skull fractures, severe tearing of ligament, severe soft tissue hemorrhage”
Fanci Lindor, Jan 14
“trauma [from collision]”
Tamarando’s Mine, Jan 17
“[multiple] fractures [both front limbs], acute hemorrhage” (again, both front limbs)
Adorable Brittany, Jan 17
“[multiple] open, comminuted fractures; [multiple] ruptures; torn tendon; full fetlock dislocation; soft tissue hemorrhage throughout limb”
Beat the Odds, Jan 22
“[broke] both front cannons” (two years old – broke both front legs)
Circus Ride, Jan 27
“became fractious, reared, hit head on gate: brain trauma, acute hemorrhage”
Charging Nellie, Jan 29
“sudden death” (two years old)
Kodiak King, Feb 16
“scapula fractured into four pieces”
Battletown, Feb 17
“fractured neck”
Harbour Town, Feb 17
“fractured neck”
Burning Blaze, Feb 19
“sudden collapse and death: copious amounts of frank blood and serosanguineous fluid drained from the nostrils and mouth, extensive muscle hemorrhages”
Tf Thrilling Runaway, Mar 1
“pulmonary hemorrhage, died”
Distinguished, Mar 11
“complete, comminuted neck fracture”
Black Drop, Mar 11
“horse collapsed [after race], died within few minutes”
Jersey Jim, Mar 22
“fractured cannon; due to open wound contaminated with dirt, cannon [in] multiple pieces, and intractable pain, euthanasia was recommended”
Chestnut, Mar 22
“flipped, fractured skull, blood from ears”
Guided Missile, Mar 22
“collapsed dead past wire”
Declared Best Card, Mar 24
“[multiple] vertebral fractures”
Upfront And Gone, Mar 26
“sudden death: pulmonary hemorrhage”
Ma Moos Warrior, Mar 28 (euthanized Mar 30)
“multiple displaced pelvic fractures” (he was made to suffer for two days)
All American Candy, Apr 6
“fell: traumatic blunt-force injury to head/neck”
Rum Chaser, Apr 6
“horse collapsed and died around the 3/8 pole”
Shez Ivory Hot, Apr 14
“found dead in morning” (two years old)
Bucket Betty, Apr 15
“found deceased” (two years old)
Sense of Music, Apr 23
“bled [from] both nostrils, died”
Beaver Creek, Apr 27
“collapsed after finish, sudden death”
Bellybutton Icon, Apr 28
“horse fell: [multiple] severely comminuted scapula fractures; severe complete metacarpus fracture – area of degloving with missing skin; large amount of hemorrhage and muscle tearing; acute intracranial hemorrhage; multiple lacerations; dirt and crusted blood on the face; fly eggs on the neck” (two years old)
Dtl Hot Wired, Apr 28
“found dead, appeared to have been in severe distress before death” (three years old)
Bp Heroofthedynasty, Apr 30
“found dead, abrasions around eye/head from rolling”
Tyler’s Admiral, May 3
“flipped, recumbent, blood from skull fracture”
Autism’s Ribbon, May 4
“horse fell: open, comminuted cannon fracture with multiple fragments penetrating skin – one measuring 3.5cmx2.5cm sticking through”
Antagonist, May 4
“slowed dramatically, dropped over dead”
Poppy’s Two Step, May 4
“sudden death post-race”
Relentlessly, May 24
“horse became ataxic, fell over, died”
Whiskey Allround, Jun 10
“collapsed at start, paralysis, euthanized”
Frontal Assault, Jun 17
“horse had history of sporadic epistaxis and would occasionally bleed in stall; on Jun 17, horse bled profusely – blood all over – was agonizing in shock…euthanized”
Bahamian Girl, Jun 23
“heatstroke, fractured pelvis, euthanized”
Chiquito Baby, Jun 26
“fell: open, complete, comminuted, displaced fracture – bone through skin; [multiple] torn ligaments and tendons, [one] ruptured; extensive soft tissue hemorrhage; severe necrosis/sclerosis at fracture site”
Cash Icon, Jun 27
“blunt-force trauma: compound fracture, exposed bone fragments; hemorrhage; extensive soft-tissue tearing”
Outlaw, Jun 27
“[multiple] fractures, tendon sheath fully torn, [multiple] ligaments ruptured or frayed, 10cm-deep puncture wound near the jugular oozing blood”
Dream Fever, Jun 27
“horse became distressed post-race, went down, deteriorated, died”
Horns For Three, Jul 7
“horse slowed down, proceeded to fall to the track, dead on arrival”
All of the carnage is covered up by the media. The governments rake in money from taxes and the owners/trainers/jockeys make a “killing” off the purses. Nobody cares about the horses. A disgrace!
For every $1.00 that horse racing generates, it costs the people, the government, the taxpayers $10.00 so it doesn’t make any sense to continue this criminal enterprise for monetary reasons. Horseracing is a losing proposition all the way around from the abuse and killing of the horses to the gambling addicts’ propensity to drain other people dry from their addiction, as well as the whole industry draining the taxpayers of the money that is needed for the basic necessities. Education is one of those necessities.
Abusing young, underdeveloped colts and fillies for racing is a crime against horses and humanity.
In an attempt to defend racing “Honest Truth” made the profound statement “life kills”!! (The Cruelty of Bits, Again, August 26th)
I would like to know if the horrific suffering and premature deaths of these horses fits with his/her philosophy?
Racing is built on cruelty and carnage. It is fundamental to the business. There is no escaping that simple truth. Any denial of this is just foolish and irrational.
P.S. I wonder if “Honest Truth” sees any irony in that choice of pseudonym?!
That was a lame attempt to be profound.
Maliciously exploiting horses for racing and wagering kills horses and thousands of them at premature ages. This premeditated, willful and malicious torture of horses for racing and wagering is not the essence of “life” but it is the essence of sin.
Honest Truth is a false front for “deceptive falsehoods” because anyone who attempts to defend the indefensible is lying.
In general, there is not malice, per se, toward the horse. His suffering and death is the result of greed, lack of compassion and nefarious activity. The win at any cost mentality.
Maliciously targeting the horse would be self defeating.
The horse is the primary target in horseracing. They’re abused routinely and the abuse and inhumane treatment of the horses causes the death of these horses. It is well known within the horseracing community what kinds of injuries and diseases horses suffer from and what causes these injuries and diseases to horses purposely exploited for racing and wagering. People like Burton Sipp as well as any Hall of Fame trainer is malicious in that they know what they are doing, they know that what they do to the horses will cause harm to the horses and they love doing it. These people love it and knowing what to tell the vet to do to reduce pain in the horses knees or any other part of the horses’ bodies so that these people can squeeze everything possible out of the horses is malicious torture of horses.
These people cause harm to horses and they love causing harm to horses.
I’m with you on this Wanda. They are pure evil in how they look upon these horses. They torture and kill them with every action they do to them. And SCUMBAG new york is bragging on their nyra twitter that they broke record with handle and how much of those ill gotten gains do you suppose will go to the HORSES? Go ROT in hell ny.
All you have to do is watch horses being punched in the head, kneed in the belly, or hit with buckets and pitchforks by stable staff to see there IS malice toward these horses, even if it is displayed on the spur of the moment. People involved in this industry are not in it for the love of horses.
I’m sorry ….but,we had a laughing fit while eating dinner tonight. Rob,and Maureen, criticizing me for not letting my kitten to be an ‘outdoor’ cat. We live in a very upper middle class neighborhood, my kitten is mega star of neighborhood,because she can usually be found in big bay window with gigantic holly bush with tons of birds in it,to keep her occupied. We have lots of older couples doing their walking, like in those memory helping commercials 🤣. To a person they all look for my kitten to be at her “post”, #neighborhoodceleb 🙌we should all be so popular.
The hypocrisy of calling it immoral to keep an animal smaller than a breadbox in an enclosure the size of an entire house but finding nothing wrong with keeping a 1200-lb animal in a 12 x 12 box for 23 hours a day.
PB uses his journalistic prowess once again. “Industry” should replace the word “sport” and should follow “horse racing” always.