Through a FOIA request to the California Horse Racing Board, I have obtained the following details on some of that state’s kills last year (more can be found here).
My Patate, Jun 28, Santa Anita S
“Gelding had diarrhea Jun 27, displayed signs of colic overnight, died spontaneously during early morning Jun 28.” My Patate was ten years old.
Flying Cowgirl 321, Aug 12, Los Alamitos R (euth Aug 14)
“Ran Aug 12, came back ‘tied up’ per trainer. Aug 14, found down in stall unable to rise: complete, displaced, comminuted fractures of the 5th and 6th lumbar vertebrae with subsequent compression of the adjacent spinal cord.” Flying, just two years old, had broken her back – and wasn’t euthanized for two days.
Thundering Eagle, Sep 10, Los Alamitos R
“[Multiple] open, displaced, comminuted fractures; [multiple] torn ligaments and tendons; complete rupture of fetlock joint capsule; severe hemorrhage; severe laceration.” Thundering was but two years old.
Hangin At Haven, Oct 4, Golden Gate T
“Horse fell while galloping: complete fracture of the humerus.” Also: “cartilage erosion [both front limbs]; multiple stomach ulcers.” Hangin was just two years old.
Geaux Rocket Ride, Oct 28, Santa Anita T (euth Nov 1)
“Open [through the skin], displaced, comminuted fracture with rupture of several [I counted at least five] tendons and ligaments.” With this obvious catastrophic injury, they still tried to operate. Of course: Geaux was an intact (could still be used for stud), $1M, Grade 1 horse. The surgery involved, among other things, a compression plate, 15 screws, and a tension-band wire. After that surgery on the 29th, “horse could not stand and was treated for bilateral muscle myopathy and bilateral nerve paralysis.” Still unable to stand (“even with sling support”) on the 1st, Geaux, three, was finally euthanized. Evil.
The Horseracing industry definitely needs an independent organisation to assess the justification of cruelty they inflict on racehorses. They are living sentient beings, not machines.
Every one of these horses were victims of sadistic people who have to be incapable of the slightest degree of empathy for the horses. Of course, these vile people are in it for the money but to cause so much pain and suffering to horses, it’s the fact that they can dominate these animals and have no scruples.
The horses are the prey and these vile people are the predators. These vile people are like a pack of undisciplined domestic dogs running at large and left to do what they will. When certain types of dogs run in packs, they can and sometimes do attack an animal that makes an easy target.
They might kill the animal or they might let it suffer for a long time until the injured animal dies from the injuries inflicted by the attack.
When these vile people misbehave in the same basic way, The Jockey Club calls this the “Sport of Kings”… How vile is that!
Geaux Rocket Ride – trained by Richard Mandella – formerlythe trainer for Rick Porter/Victoria Keith- of Fox Hill Farms (NTWO – National Thoroughbred Welfare Organization) – ironic isn’t it?
Money, money, money.
As I have stated many times in this forum, that’s all these people think about. Horses, to them, are simply personal property, to do with as they please/. Racing insiders DO NOT, at any point, consider these animals as the sentient, living, breathing beings they are. Nope. Their prime objective is, as always, to maximize their investment, or, like a poor performing stock, a run down car, or a bad real estate investment, they simply dispose of them.
It takes a certain type of individual to conduct themselves in this manner, AND consistently, and while there are enough adjectives to fill a dictionary to describe the actions and behavior of these people, suffice to say “thoroughly disgusting” would only be the tip of the iceberg.
-Joe