A recent ruling from Hoosier Park, a harness track in Indiana: “While driving No. 7 Fashion Baby in race 8 on Apr 1, driver Jordan Ross did cause welts while whipping the horse. Mr. Ross is fined $200.” Then this:…
A recently-posted ruling from Ohio: “On March 7, a hearing was held for Jockey Angel Diaz for an alleged violation for misuse of the whip on his mount Colombard during the 7th race at Mahoning March 5. The horse, winner…
In the 5th race at Zia Nov 20, says the New Mexico Racing Commission, jockey Luis Flores-Garcia whipped his horse, 3-year-old American Skandal, “in excess of 15 times.” This being his “third offense within a year,” Flores-Garcia was levied a…
A few notes from the Stewards Minutes for Del Mar’s opening weekend… Nov 11: “We posted the inquiry sign to review the start of the 1st race involving the #6 Infinite Empire, who stumbled leaving the starting gate. In a…
Paul McGreevy is a veterinarian and ethologist, and Professor of Animal Behaviour and Welfare at the University of New England in Australia. A few years back, Dr. McGreevy wrote the following in The Conversation: “Given there is no evidence to…
To anyone with even a modicum of common sense, whipping a horse is a clear, unequivocal form of animal abuse. While mostly the industry tries its damnedest to convince us that the “riding crop” – their euphemism of choice –…
The stewards at Ruidoso have fined jockey Juan Rivas (amount not important; he still gets to keep his job) for “excessive use of the whip” on Rigged Right Saturday. It was excessive, the stewards say, because the 3-year-old was “a…
A ruling over the weekend by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission: “Charles Conrad used the whip in a brutal and excessive manner while driving ‘Sandcastle’ in the 2nd race on May 28 at Oak Grove, causing a cut inside the…
It is, of course, not hard to find instances of the horse people embarrassing themselves. Take Monmouth Park for example. Last year, the New Jersey track made headlines for being the first in the nation to “ban” the use of…
Back in March, I posted this video of 8-year-old Rated R Superstar being mercilessly beaten by jockey Ramon Vazquez in a half-million-dollar race at Oaklawn: Almost a year later, Rated, soon to turn nine, is still being whipped for cash.…
By now, I’m sure most of you have heard about New Jersey’s new (this year) “stringent” whip restrictions – to be used “only for safety reasons.” It is, the Racing Commission boasts, the first of its kind in the nation.…
A ruling handed down yesterday from the Prairie Meadows Board of Stewards: “Jockey Daniel Ruiz Amaya was duly notified on September 24 for an alleged violation of excessive whipping of his horse ‘Sassalitical’ during the running of the 4th race.…
