In the 9th at Ruidoso yesterday, three horses had to be carted away by ambulance: Lethal Fast Man, El Cruz de Marzo, and Famous King. Again, that’s three injured/ambulanced (dead?) horses in the same race. What’s more, a few races earlier Outlawking was also “transported off via equine ambulance.” Quite a day at the old racetrack, huh?
Then these from the HISA “Rulings Portal” for breeder/owner Donald McCrosky, both posted on Jun 12, both still pending:
Date: Oct 29, 2024
Alleged Violation: “Use or Attempted Use of a Banned Substance”
Substance: Testosterone
Horse: 3-year-old Tigger Attack
Date: Apr 22, 2025
Alleged Violation: “Possession of a Banned Substance”
Alleged Violation: “Tampering or Attempted Tampering With Any Part of Doping Control”
Substances: Levothyroxine, Ammonium Chloride, Clodronic Acid, Ammonium Sulphate
You can look up these drugs if you so wish, but all you need to know is that all are banned, making this man – and his wife, Lois, who was Tigger’s last owner of record – a (alleged) doper. And this man, you see, is also a veterinarian. A veterinarian. How, good doctor, do you sleep at night? Tigger’s final race, by the way, was at Fair Grounds in Nov: last, 52+ lengths back. He was last seen “For Sale” on the “OTTB Market” back in April.
The McCroskys:
The assumption that most, if not all, young veterinary students have only good reasons/intentions would have to be proven. One thing is they have to be able to cope with euthanizing animals. Not all young people who love animals are okay with that. But I know there are times when it must be done.
It’s just that in horseracing, the daily routine mistreatment, abuse, brutality, cruelty is generally not an accident. People subject horses to this routine cruelty on purpose. The whole Thoroughbred racing industry evolves around starting young and immature yearlings under saddle for the Futurities and Derbies, especially the Kentucky Derby. People who participate in horse racing have made the decision to sacrifice the LONGEVITY of the horse for a possible win in a race whether it is a futurity or a derby or not. Yearlings and two-year-olds are sacrificed by the racing industry every day somewhere.
When the Jockey Club comes out with their official Annual Foal Crop numbers, it is anybody’s guess as to how many of these foals were already killed in training or in their first race. It takes up to two years for the Annual Foal Crop numbers to be official.
The economics of horse racing benefit trainers more than anyone.
A trainer with one hundred horses grosses 4-5 million a year just in day money!
So on one circuit there could be more than 100 million a year in day money up for grabs.
They then pay as little as possible to migrant labor who are at the mercy of their employer.
Thats a pretty sweet deal considering the only real requirements are that they can shmooze, tell their help to follow a cookie cutter training plan, and hire a questionable vet.
If you are an American tax payer you are involved in the horse racing business.
Every expense and initial investment cost(horses which can cost millions) is a write off.
Essentially, your money is given away to the horse racing business.
This is in addition to vast amounts of state subsidies(giving away your money paid in state tax).
Horse racing insiders(owners, trainers, vets, etc) also make millions of dollars a year on wagers based on information(doping) not available to the general public, and if the betting odds are less than 300-1(aka most bets) those profits don’t need to be reported.
Which is why they will do anything and say anything to keep this gravy train going.
The total amount of purse money(revenue) available is far less than the total amount of expenses and initial investment costs incurred by all owners so this should never have been treated as a legitimate business.
This scam is bad for the American tax payer as well as for horses.
Hear, hear, Marie.
I used to know one of the main shady vets in so cal who worked for some of the biggest name trainers.
He would brag with a big smile that he’d inject them with everything but the kitchen sink.
I tend to believe that most if not all kids enter Vet school for good not nefarious reasons.
It would make an interesting study to see why they go bad like this.
Evil, vile, morally depraved, corrupt, greedy, cruel, abusive, deplorable, detestable, despicable are some of the words that describe the people who participate in horse racing.
This man/wife team should be working on a chain gang doing hard labor but that will never happen.
If the good doctor (written with sarcasm) is willing to do this to a horse he created, one he watched develop and grow into adulthood, I can only imagine what he was willing to do to animals that weren’t his.
What a pathetic, disgusting human.
Patrick, you lead a ferocious herd of horse-Loving warriors. Thank you for being.