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 (previous installments here).
Goodbye Kai, Jul 7, Pleasanton R
“Clipped heels, fell, and expired within a couple of minutes – [multiple] neck fractures with multiple bone fragments and complete transection of the spinal cord.” Also: “multiple stomach ulcers.” The necropsy added: “Complete vertebral fractures typically occur as a consequence of trauma, like in this case.” Goodbye Kai was three years old.
Sammy, Sep 3, Del Mar S
“Horse was covered in full body sweat and aggressively trying to lay down. [After meds] became actively painful again. Euthanized.” Cause: “Intestinal incarceration/strangulation associated with mesenteric rent.” Sammy was five years old.
Wine Me Up, Oct 4, Los Alamitos T
“Catastrophic – complete, displaced, comminuted – fracture of the humerus.” Also: “osteochondral disease [in leg that broke]; stomach ulcers [listed as ‘incidental finding’].” Wine Me Up was three years old.
Here in Oregon we have seen pin firing done as late as the 1990`s by older racing vets. We have ridden those poor, mistreated for ever marked by the scarring of those horses legs on the track. Even the track vets of today acknowledge that pin firing has no effect on horses legs healing after injuries.
Wanda, thank you for your update on the status of pin firing. The one I witnessed 40 years ago is still a horrible memory that one can never un-see.
Ramona, I saw a Thoroughbred horse standing in a stall that had been pin-fired back in 1969 but I had never seen it done.
It looks like pin-firing is being somewhat restricted in its use as far as regulated racing goes.
There is this article in the ‘BloodHorse’ by Deirdre B. Biles dated September 19, 2000: “Pin Firing Acceptable Form of Therapy” which is obviously before the formation of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act/Authority. HISA has some rules against pin-firing. It also looks like the veterinary community in Canada and Australia have recognized pin-firing as painful to the horse, cruel and ineffective.
It’s sickening, and also very agitating, that any human being would use the word “therapy” in the place of the word “abuse” in any form of cruelty and domination that enables one group to profit off of those in disempowered situations whether human or animal.
Speaking of cruelty disguised as “ignorance”; anyone know what pin-firing is? My favorite analogies include: like a pediatrician using a soldering iron on a baby’s behind to treat diaper rash; a Little League physician using lit cigarettes to burn a child’s legs to treat tendonitis; an abusive husband giving his wifey two black eyes to keep her from leaving the house. Pin firing is a deliberate barbaric act of cruelty, disguised as a legitimate veterinary procedure to treat unsound racehorses. Ban horseracing now and forever.
RIP
Cornball ICE is raiding Louisiana taking away the horse owners SLAVE labor 🤣….good,take away all the grooms and stall cleaners. Not, because I’m for anything dip**** is doing… I just want this EVIL industry to die😏
Race #1 at the Royal Ascot today. Harry’s Girl horse 9 horrid injury and euthanized. A civilized country in front of many spectators. Sad sad sad
The daily routine mistreatment of horses for racing causes unimaginable suffering to the horses. Only the people who I think are psychotic could knowingly and deliberately continue to cause this suffering to horses. I feel certain they would claim ignorance as if ignorance is an excuse to continue doing the same thing but ignorance is no excuse.
How can a person who attempts to pass himself or herself off as a genius and a horseman or horsewoman be so ignorant? It doesn’t add up.
Horseracing is Animal Cruelty and must be penalized not subsidized.
The types of injuries these poor horses endure is stomach turning.