Through a FOIA request to the Kentucky Racing Commission, I have confirmed the following kills at that state’s tracks last year (this is part 2; previous posts here). (Due to the high number of dead horses, I will be posting in installments.)
Off We Go, Jan 4, Turfway T
“Horse was galloping out after half-mile breeze, pulled itself up, went down, and died. Severe epistaxis [bleeding] from both nostrils.” Off We Go was four years old.
Secretly Canadian, Jan 12, Keeneland T
“Filly collapsed and expired on track. Exercise-associated sudden death.” Also: “stomach ulceration.” Secretly was three years old and being prepped for her first race.
Same Ole Mo, Mar 12, Churchill T
“Markedly comminuted shoulder fracture, extensive tearing of surrounding muscles.” Also: “stomach ulceration.” Same was three years old and being prepped for his first race.
Rio Moon, May 14, Churchill R
“Horse suffered catastrophic injury near finish line: open [through the skin], severely comminuted MCIII fracture – large fragments embedded within the suspensory ligament.” Also: “stomach ulceration.” Rio was three years old.
Quick Tap, Jun 30, Churchill T
“Horse became weak, collapsed on track, and passed away.” Also: “stomach ulceration.” Quick Tap was three years old and being prepped for his first race.
Ohoka Chopper N, Jul 2, Oak Grove R
“Severed superficial and deep digital flexor tendons.” Ohoka was eight years old.
Pitagore, Aug 11, Turfway T (euth Aug 14)
“Horse returned from a half-mile breeze lame. [Three days later], trainer found the horse cast with an open, displaced, comminuted cannon fracture.” Pitagore was four years old.
Pharaohs Bride, Sep 23, Keeneland T
“Was galloping out from a four-furlong work when she collapsed. When the Ambulance Team arrived, the filly had expired. A cause of the acute collapse and death of this filly could not be determined.” Also: “ulceration of the stomach.” Pharaohs was two years old and being prepped for her first race.
Pink Tea, Sep 25, Churchill T
“Horse flipped on the track: complete basisphenoid [skull] fracture with marked hemorrhage extending into the cranial vault.” Pink Tea was two years old and being prepped for her first race.
Quality Minister, Nov 13, HighPointe Training Center T
“Horse was in early stages of its training and breaking process when it spooked, lost the rider, ran through a safety rail, and flipped over. Severe trauma to left forelimb: skin extensively lacerated; massive muscle tearing and transection; multiple blood vessels exposed; tissues of the axilla, including all vessels and nerves, severely torn.” Oh, and this: “An approximately 7cm x 3cm fragment of white PVC is embedded deep within the wound.” Quality was just 20 months old. A baby. Now, go back and re-read what befell him so that some men may gamble and others chase pots of gold.
It “is most definitely” actually detrimental (to the horses): the confinement to a stall for longer than TEN hours a day is both physically and mentally detrimental to the horse; the denial of free-roaming exercise and normal grazing on/in a well-kept pasture with safe fencing and no trash or rubbish half-buried in the ground; the denial of the normal interaction with their herd members; forcing young and underdeveloped colts and fillies to do what humans want them to do instead of allowing normal growth and development. Also, putting their hay at a level higher than ground level is very bad for digestion in horses because horses naturally eat off the ground. It’s how they are designed by God, or nature, or if one prefers, nature.
The feeding of excess amounts of grain causes digestive issues (colic), laminitis and excitability.
Anybody who can, and will, read can learn these basic fundamentals of horse husbandry without learning everything the hard way by actually physically causing the hideous and deadly consequences to the horses.
But, the horse racing industry people do not concern themselves about what is best for the horses in horse racing.
This has something to do with why some people will say things like “the horse was pulled off the track and allowed to be a horse”.
So it isn’t necessarily all a matter of ignorance on behalf of the owners, trainers, veterinarians and anyone else connected to this pre-programmed and abusive exploitation of horses for racing and as gambling chips. It’s about the moral depravity of these people.
I also wonder what sort of twisted logic leads “trainers” to think that horses cooped up all day will have strong and limber tendons and ligaments. Getting out for an hour each day and running around the track is hardly enough, and may actually be detrimental. How can they expect them to run and not injure themselves?
Yes! And without the ability to move around, as horses are meant to do, their digestion slows down, and blockages are common–perfect recipe for colic.
Yes, high energy grains and what else is found in their water buckets and meal pails.We can only imagine.
This contributes to the high number of laminitis and colic cases, I’m sure, and all that grain has to be murder of these horses’ ulcers.
Feeding that amount of grain to any young and underdeveloped colt or filly locked up in a stall for 23 hours a day, 7 days a week is shocking, Fred and Joan. There are just so so so many things wrong with this “picture”. Thank you for sharing this.
They are also way overfed with high energy concentrated feeds as well. Even us humans can become a little crazy with too much energy if we eat too much sugar laden foods! The horses are kept locked up for the better part of 24 hours. We have seen the horses fed as much as 5 coffee cans of grain a day! At approximately 4.5 # of grain per can that`s a lot of energy that has to go somewhere. That is what we saw & were told to feed when we were active participants in racing many years ago.
The fact that so many babies will spook and bolt to the point of running into buildings and through railings demonstrates how brutal the methods are that the industry uses in their rush to get them ready for their first race. These horses are overwhelmed, underdeveloped, and without any kind of proper foundation of logical, knowledgeable training. From terror, to agony, to death – at 20 months old.
This is horse racing. Every. Damn. Day.
There should be much more serious consequences for this egregious cruelty to horses.
#EndHorseracingNOW