The following, unless otherwise noted, were “vanned off” American tracks this week. Tuesday: 2-year-old Dirty Lil Secret, Mountaineer, race 3 (broke down) 2-year-old Tiz a Jungle, Parx, race 6 (“in apparent distress,” vanned off) Wednesday: 3-year-old Miss McKeown, Aqueduct, race…
Paul McCartney once famously said, “If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian.” Not everyone, of course, but you get the point. For the record, all animal slaughter is horrific. All of it. And the animals we routinely…
Miss McKeown, a 3-year-old filly making her 5th career start, broke down and died yesterday in the 9th race at Aqueduct. The kill occurred on-track. This single death, in a $20,000 claiming race a world away from sunny Santa Anita,…
With the Lasix ban for juveniles ending with this past weekend’s Breeders’ Cup and a trend toward keeping the drug raceday legal in the U.S., I thought it appropriate to revisit these words written by equine veterinarian Sid Gustafson in…
In its Breeders’ Cup wrap-up (11/3/13), The New York Times used words like “awe-inspiring,” “breathtaking,” “beautiful,” and “thrilling” to describe the action. But, as indicated by the article’s title (“Moving Moments Send Shivers, Both Good and Bad”), there was a…
The following, unless otherwise noted, were “vanned off” American tracks this weekend. Friday: 2-year-old Kela Flatts, Charles Town, race 1 2-year-old Petite Chat, Delta Downs, race 5 (not vanned off but “broke through the rail,” DNF) 2-year-old Like a Deputy,…
In dismissing a lawsuit brought by the HSUS et al. on Friday, U.S. District Judge Christina Armijo opened the door for equine slaughterhouses to resume bloodletting in the U.S. (closed here since 2007). Plants in New Mexico and Missouri are…
2-year-old Secret Compass broke down during the running of the Breeders’ Cup $2 million Juvenile Fillies Saturday afternoon, suffering, in the words of the on-call vet (The Washington Post, 11/2/13), “the worst type of injury we get,” a lateral condylar…
5-year-old Centralinteligence (shown below), a Seattle Slew progeny, was vanned off after the $1 million Dirt Mile Grade 1 at Santa Anita. The video, which can be viewed here, shows no ambulance, of course; it’s all smiles and jubilation in…
The following, unless otherwise noted, were “vanned off” American tracks this week. Monday: 2-year-old Mr Rabbits (1st career start), Finger Lakes, race 4 (confirmed dead) 4-year-old Bb Mine, Zia, race 1 Tuesday: 5-year-old In God’s Country, Parx, race 8 (broke…
Because NY is the only state to publicly disclose its breakdowns as they happen, we have to draw inferences on the rest of the nation’s “vanned off.” But consider this: Today, the Gaming Commission announced the death of a 3rd…
Meet Todd Pletcher, Thoroughbred trainer. 5-time Eclipse winner, 10-time top guy at Saratoga, 7-time highest American earner (over $250 million lifetime), Mr. Pletcher also owns a Kentucky Derby and a pair of Belmont Stakes trophies. Raised around tracks and tutored…
