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).
Acclider, Oct 11, Fresno R
“[Multiple] complete, displaced, open [through the skin] fractures; multiple torn ligaments; [multiple] torn tendons; complete tear of joint capsule.” Also: “osteochondral disease [in both limbs that were examined].” They added: “Osteochondral disease in Thoroughbred racehorses is a very prevalent (67-80%) disease, and occurs in response to the biomechanics of high-speed exercise, cyclic load, and over-extension of the fetlock joint during training and racing.” Acclider was six years old.
Half Throttle, Nov 6, Pleasanton S
“Acute trauma to head: [multiple] skull fractures, multiple head wounds, regionally extensive hemorrhage.” Half Throttle was three years old.
Give Me the Lute, Dec 7, Los Alamitos R
“Catastrophic fetlock failure: [multiple] complete, displaced, comminuted fractures; complete tearing of several ligaments [at least four]; complete tear of joint capsule.” Also: osteochondral disease [in both limbs that were examined].” Give Me was eight years old.
Dolly May, Dec 15, Santa Anita S
“Epiploic foramen entrapment and large colon strangulation by small intestinal loop.” And this: “The cause of epiploic foramen incarceration is not known. Risk factors for the condition include being a Thoroughbred or Thoroughbred-cross, greater height, crib-biting or windsucking behavior…and prolonged periods of stall rest within 28 days before the entrapment.” Or in other words, just being a racehorse. Dolly was five years old.
The School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of California in Davis, California where these necropies are done would certainly have enough accumulated knowledge and experience to know exactly what causes Osteochondrial “Disease” after decades of doing these necropies on horses exploited for racing and gambling in California.
If the racing people were actually real horsemen, they would not need to keep abusing horses in the same way day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year for decades to have the necropsy reports to tell them the inevitable consequences of the abuse done to the horses.
The people at the School of Veterinary Medicine have enough knowledge and experience and records kept to calculate the PERCENTAGE of RACEHORSES that have been subjected to this daily routine mistreatment and end up with Osteochondrial Disease.
THIS so-called disease is NOT caused by a virus. It is NOT caused by a bacteria. It is NOT caused by any type of microscopic organism. It IS CAUSED BY the morally depraved humans who ABUSE horses on a daily routine basis for selfish greed, ego trips, gambling, purses won and money lost. This industry is toxic to horses.
The people in this inhumane so-called sport should be charged with Animal Cruelty and put in jail. There is so much evidence that these people who abuse horses daily should not be able to get away with making up some stupid lies and acting like it is all a big mystery and if they don’t know, nobody knows. That’s bullshit.
Poor 5 year old Dolly May! That stall confinement appears to have caused her death! Why isn’t this outlawed? It is clearly known that such confinement is extremely bad for horses.