Horse racing - they killed the horse

[ludothedog]

On Saturday I attended a day at the races. Great day but... one of the horses and rider fell. The horse was hurt. They killed it. There and then. On the race course. No trip to the vet to see if it could be saved, no second chance.

WTF!

I had no idea it was so ruthless. Everyone carried on with their day out like it was no big deal, like it happens all the time. It just felt so wrong but it seems like no one else was bothered.

Any horse owners out there - is this normal?

Out of interest, why did you actually go to the races? - Hen Do

Scotland agriculture (or whatever they're called How very vague of you.

Thanks, I wear a badge.

It's illegal not to deal with your ragwort infestation - therefore there are various agencies who are responsible for enforcing it. I temporarily forget the name of the agency in question - but the men wear black. HTH.

A neighbour recently had to put down a yearling that had jumped out of its field and broke a leg. A broken leg is nearly always a death sentance in a horse, be he champion racehorse or glorified lawnmower.

people only breed race horses and go to the races for the money and because they think it's a prestigous thing to do

This is bollocks. Hth.

I'm a horse owner. I'd shoot my own horse myself before I kept him alive with a broken leg. It's inhumane to force a horse to stay alive with a broken leg. We almost had to put my horse down, but thankfully he didn't have a fracture. It sucks but you can't repair broken bones in a horse as easily as people or some small animals. You can't explain it to them, and they want to move around.

As others have pointed out, horses are quite injury prone and fragile. All it takes is for them to get their leg caught in a fence or something to cause a life ending injury.

Horses are incredibly fragile. My friend and i have owned 5 horses between us, 1 we still have, 2 were sold on, 2 were pts (1 had colic, 1 a leg ligament injury).

While this cartoon has an element of humour- it is very close to the truth. So much so i think most vets i have known own a copy!

I agree, it’s terribly sad. Usually it’s because the horse has no hope of recovery - generally because of a broken neck or back. In those situations nothing can be done and being pts ends the suffering. Sometimes it’s a less serious injury like a broken leg where it could possibly be rehabilitated but it would be difficult and expensive and the horse wouldn’t race again. Then they might be pts for financial reasons.

It’s why I struggle to support racing even though I adore horses and think it’s a wonderful sport. Was it over hurdles? Flat racing usually involves fewer casualties.

As others have pointed out, horses are quite injury prone and fragile

Yes!

My daughters horse trod on a nail. We were very lucky as it missed the sensitive pad by millimetres. If it had gone into the ‘frog’ then we may have had to have her put to sleep.

That was simply from a slow mooch along the lane back to the yard.

reallyanotherone Sheep are very similar in that they find thousands of ways to die.

Injury prone is an understatement for some horses. Mine managed to slice into his leg just above the coronet band. We never found out how. No materials in the fencing or field could have done it.

I won't go back to the races. I don't need a horse to die for my entertainment.

Let's put every racehorse down tomorrow shall we? Go to the fields and euthanise every brood mare, stallion and foal. However old they are and safely grazing. While we are at it let's smash the pheasant's eggs. Let's not have them hatch eh in case they get gunned down. While we are at it, let's inject and burn every cow, sheep and pig. Let's pile them high and set fire to their carcasses. Or as sure as the sun will rise they will be bolted before being strung up and their throats cut. And the chickens......the chickens......1,585 at least killed every second worldwide to feed us all. But let's get it into perspective and start with horse racing and perhaps a bit of carp fishing shall we?

derxa i worked for a lady, B, who (owned race horses incidentally) and was a neighbor to a woman who kept a big flock of sheep.

B was often asked to keep an eye on the flock when the owner went away for a few days and she told me she hated doing it and hated sheep. ''I go down there in the morning and in the evening and every time i have brace myself for them all to have either had bloody heart attacks or escaped all over the village''!

twist

If not for money what do they do it for?

It’s awful isn’t it. I hate horse racing and won’t watch it or bet on it.

Yep. Horse racing is disgusting and so is supporting it in any way.

If not for money what do they do it for? My DF bought a racehorse in his eighties. He 'lost' a lot of money. I still have the original mare bought in 2000. She costs me money now and she spends her days grazing in a paddock. It's not about money at all.

This is why I will never go to the races or even bet on the Grand National.

Leaving racing aside, it is possible to save a horse with a broken leg - we did it with ours. The elements in his favour were that it was a foreleg, he was young and fit (eventing accident), it was operable, he was of equable temperament and the vets were reasonably confident of success. However, he had the op to pin it and then stood in his stable for 9 months. In the stable. Couldn't lie down, could eat nothing but hay. We are a professional horse home and followed the care plan to the letter. Ultimately he had a second operation and then was allowed short walks in hand for weeks. When eventually he could go into the small paddock loose, he sized up the gate, took three canter strides and jumped out. That was when we knew he'd recovered . He went on to have a long career up to Grand Prix dressage wit nothing worse than a bit of arthritis in the knee. The vets bills were more than £10k. That's why mostly you wouldn't bother.

If a horse has a broken leg it's common practice to shoot them as soon as possible to prevent further distress It's done by a vet (at a race track they have them there). It's not because of money. It's because usually they can't do anything broken legs on horses don't heal it is humane (although it looks awful)

My DF bought a racehorse in his eighties. He 'lost' a lot of money. I still have the original mare bought in 2000. She costs me money now and she spends her days grazing in a paddock. It's not about money at all.

What is it about then? Which was the question i asked to someone else

Whenever he was written about in the competition trade press, they always mentioned his broken leg because it's so unusual to come back from an injury like that. Nobody cared when DH broke his leg however .

*Yes they exist to make money. They were bred to make money.

But that has nothing to do with the decision to kill them on the course. If a leisure horse that makes no money had the same accident they would do the same, you can’t put a plaster cast on a horse and stick it on the sofa with Netflix for 3 months.

Now, is the horse more likely to end up in this situation through horse racing? Then yes. But let’s not pretend that euthanising horses to avoid suffering is unique to horse racing*

I agree with this. The horses are not euthanised because they can't be arsed to offer or pay for veterinary treatment. They will be offered Most horses with broken legs or vertebrae do not recover, or are unlikely to recover enough to live a pain free life/be mobile. In those circumstances I would euthanise my very much loved horses because it is not fair to have them cooped up on box rest for months on end (hugely stressful for most horses), possibly after surgery, with little prospect of being pain free and mobile at the end of it.

There's an argument to be had about the age racehorses are started and the standards of care etc in some yards. But this particular instance was probably not as simple as OP thinks.

Some people just like horses, and racing them. That's what it's about. Same with most people who have horses. They like it.