As a spectator sport, the appeal of horse racing mystifies me. A race lasts just a few minutes and unless one is gambling on the outcome, it is not clear why one should care about which horse wins. There does not seem to be that much skill involved as far as I can tell, apart from the way that jockeys position and pace their horses during the race. It is the horses that do most of the work. The fact that jockeys beat the horses with a crop to make them go faster bothers me since it seems so cruel. But it is clear that horse racing has great appeal for many people who will go to considerable trouble and expense to attend events in person.
My ignorance of the appeal of horse racing is irrelevant since people find engaging all manner of activities that others find mystifying. What really bothers me are the deaths of horses at these events. I knew that horses sometimes fall during a race or during practice and injure their legs and then are euthanized. But I had not known how common that was until I saw this news item that said that seven horses had to be euthanized in the last few days during the lead up to the Kentucky Derby yesterday.
Two more horses died in the hours before Mage crossed the finish line first in the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, making it seven in all and casting a shadow over the 149th edition of the world’s most famous race.
…The string of horse deaths cast a pall for some Derby-goers on a mostly cloudy and warm day.
“It’s concerning, and I hope they’re quickly trying the best they can to correct whatever’s going on,” said Michael Freeze, who along with his friend dressed up as jockeys. “They need to do whatever is best for the horses, and the sport in general.”
Chloe’s Dream got hurt in the second race Saturday. The horse was taken off in an equine ambulance with a right front knee injury and was euthanized, trainer Jeff Hiles confirmed to The Associated Press.
…In 2019, over 30 horse deaths occurred at California’s Santa Anita racetrack, rattling the industry and leading to safety reforms. Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Rick Dutrow had his license revoked in 2011 for 10 years by New York officials. Regulators found syringes loaded with unauthorized medication in a desk in his barn. Dutrow re-opened his stable last month.
That such deaths are not rare can be seen by the fact that major racetracks have systems in place whereby if a horse falls, they immediately rush out and surround the horse with a curtain so that no spectator can see them being euthanized and taken off the track
It is common nowadays, thanks to the efforts of animal welfare groups, that makers of films and other entertainments that feature animals are obliged to take precautions against them being hurt during production and we see statements at the end that “no animal was harmed during the making of this film”. That is a very good thing. But if the number of deaths is any indication, the precautions taken for horse racing do not seem to be that effective in preventing harm.
Fans of horse racing seem to be willing to rationalize away these tragedies.
“It doesn’t make me happy to see a horse get euthanized,” said racegoer Joe Conforto, wearing jockey goggles and a stuffed horse on his head. “But I think a lot of it is bad luck. Most race horses are taken better care of than human beings.”
I can well believe that thoroughbred horses are looked after well in between races. It is what they are asked to do during races and practice runs that is the problem.
This also seems to be far more than just bad luck. Horses are magnificent animals and those that are bred for speed are likely to be delicate in other respects. Subjecting them to races in which there is a reasonable chance that they will suffer an injury that results in them being killed seems cruel to me. If we had that many deaths in any human sport, that sport would would have a good chance of being banned, even though with humans, they are making the decision to risk their own lives. Horses are not given that choice.
You didn’t even mention the whole concept of handicapping, whereby if a horse does well, they are penalized by having to carry more weight to make the outcome more a matter of chance. I remember as a child being horrified how unfair it was when I learned about handicapping.
https://horseracingsense.com/why-is-horse-race-called-a-handicap/
… if a horse falls, they immediately rush out and surround the horse with a curtain so that no spectator can see them being euthanized and taken off the track[.]
Uh, next year can we run political primaries the same way?
“It doesn’t make me happy to see a horse get euthanized,” said racegoer Joe Conforto, wearing jockey goggles and a stuffed horse on his head. “But I think a lot of it is bad luck. Most race horses are taken better care of than human beings.”
That’s true, but it says a lot more about how we treat humans than it does about how we treat horses.
My family had racehorses when I was growing up, although we had Standardbreds, not thoroughbreds. So we did not typically see the level of euthanasia that the thoroughbreds do, in part because Standardbreds are more durable by nature. In order to keep a horse in decent racing condition, they were usually jogged 2-3 miles daily, and races commonly consisted of two or more heats, meaning that in order to win, you have to win two all-out races in the same day, sometimes three. OTOH, the reason they’re called Standardbreds is that you need to meet a standard time in order to race or be bred. If you don’t, well the Amish are usually interested. Every standardbred auction is also attended by the “killers”, as they are known, who only buy horses for the meat.
I wonder how much this varies by country and competition. I went (or rather, was brought) to a lot of horse racing as a kid and I don’t remember a single incident where a horse couldn’t walk off the field on its own.
I suppose the Kentucky Derby is a pretty intense competition.
The UK has the Grand National at Aintree, AKA the Knacker’s Trophy…
Race horses are literally running for their lives. It costs a lot of money to breed and raise them and most trainers know that they really shouldn’t be working young horses as hard as they do but the owners want to start recouping their costs. Just remember that the horses start to race at the tender age of 2 which means that they have been started under saddle as yearlings. It is too much too soon for those babies and they pay the price with their lives. Racing is a cruel industry in so many ways and most people don’t look beyond the beautiful shining horses to ask how they got there.
The “work” in horse racing is training the horses -- which the jockeys don’t do. Its done by mostly anonymous workers.
Cruelty is deeper than hitting the horse with a crop. That’s more of a signal than a punishment. What hurts is that they start the horses running when they are not fully grown, and the cartilage in their legs gets torn up as it’s still developing. So their lifetimes are shortened and when they retire from running it’s to a shortened life of pain unless they are a rare superstar (e.g.: Secretariat) who are valuable breeding stock.
Some people adopt off the track horses but they often have psychological problems because most of what they know is “rocket out of the gate and go left” -- they are seldom suitable for pleasure riding.
Basically, they are disposable.
“Basically, they are disposable.”
Who isn’t under capitalism?
@ ^
“All lives matter”.
Horse racing is not a spectator sport as such.
For poor people, it’s something to gamble on.
For rich people, it’s something to use to show off. It’s in the same category as luxury watches, supercars and yachts. It’s something to spend your money on when you literally can’t think of anything to spend it on that you actually want, let alone need. People who have racehorses are, in my experience, not people who like horses -- they’re people who like owning horses. I’m not sure even they understand the difference.
They want what’s best for the horses, but also what’s best for the sport. Those are not compatible. What’s best for the horses is to eliminate the sport entirely.
“It doesn’t make me happy to see a horse get euthanized,” said racegoer Joe Conforto, wearing jockey goggles and a stuffed horse on his head. “But I think a lot of it is bad luck. Most race horses are taken better care of than human beings.”
What an absolute load of shite. I’m willing to bet lots of people said the same thing about migrant workers — and, before them, slaves — who died under horrific working conditions.
Yet another cruel area the British royal family have been involved in, Elizabeth II owned race horses and was a keen race goer.
Jazzlet@14,
Charles has made millions selling off his mother’s horses. Of course the pooor man is absolutely on his uppers -- down to his last £1.8 billion, rumour has it.
@ nomenexrecto #6
“The UK has the Grand National at Aintree, AKA the Knacker’s Trophy…”
I used to watch the Aintree Grand National every year, the only horse race I ever took an interest in. I was very naive, knew nothing at all about the sport. I just thought the Grand National was a grand race.
Then one year two horses fell and quickly got a bullet in the head. That’s when I stopped watching. I like horses and didn’t realize what the sport does to them.