Another Perspective: The Legendary Sport
Published by GHC • May 25th, 2007 • Category: Guest Bloggers, Showing and Sportby Melissa Whitaker
Very good post, Madelaina. You did a great job describing the pros and cons of horse racing. It’s important to remember that flat racing is like any sport — if done safely and smartly with the horse’s best interests at heart, it is not cruel. And that same logic applies to other horse sports, including show jumping, dressage and endurance riding. If the trainers and riders push their horses beyond what is safe for their bodies, serious injuries will result. I’ve witnessed that first hand at show jumping competitions, where some trainers drug their horses with pain killers (bute) before a class just so the judges won’t see them limping. That is just as bad as a what some race trainers do. There are also a lot of injuries that result from these other competitions. Eventing is an especially dangerous sport. So the bottom line is; whenever we use a horse as an athlete, we have to be very careful not to lose sight of their health and well-being.
I work with a charity that helps find new homes for racehorses from the track. So I meet a lot of horse trainers. Some are how you describe, Madelaina, only concerned about money and winning. But just as many others are very kind and treat their horses like spoiled pets.
And your point about horses — Thoroughbreds especially — loving to run is spot on. I took in a rescue racehorse from the track — Danny. He was not cared for properly by his trainer and owner. He was drugged to feel no pain even though his body was breaking down and raced hard anyway. So when he came to me, he was very bony and full of arthritis and infection. He could barely walk down the trailer’s ramp. I used to let him graze along my driveway, with no lead rope or fence around him, because he was in too much pain to wander off.
Well, that was the old Danny. With a little TLC, Danny gained weight and his arthritis got better. Now, I can’t stop that horse from galloping! When I turn him out in the big field, he takes off at a gallop you only see at the racetrack. I can’t slow him down! But I learned from this experience that many Thoroughbreds love to run…it’s what they’ve been bred for and it’s in their hearts.
If a Thoroughbred doesn’t like to run, he’s usually sold off the track pretty quickly. Whipping only goes so far, and won’t make a slow horse suddenly become Secretariat. It is hard to watch a horse get whipped, but we have to keep in mind that they have much thicker skin and muscle than we do, so it doesn’t hurt them as bad as we might imagine. Plus, if you watch horses in the wild, they bite, kick and are generally very rough and cruel to each other. That’s part of their animal language. One time, I witnessed a horse try to buck his rider off (just because sometimes they’re grumpy too) and so the rider smacked him with his whip as punishment. Well, the horse still didn’t listen, so the rider smacked him some more, and eventually, the whip broke. Yet the horse was still misbehaving. If the whip hurt so bad, the horse would have listened, but apparently it’s a level of pain that they can tolerate because they are huge, strong animals.
One last point about racing — if it wasn’t for flat racing, we wouldn’t have all the medical advances and technology that we do for horses. Racing brings in a lot of money from the public (how many people will turn on their TV to watch the Kentucky Derby? But how many will turn it on to watch a dressage competition?) That public interest generates money that can be used for research. Our jumpers, trail horses and pet horses benefit from the vaccinations and treatment programs that are discovered because of the racing industry.
It is just as you said, Madelaina — there are many pros and cons about racing!
About the Author: Melissa Whitaker is a freelance writer and editor. She has written for On the Bit Magazine and other equestrian publications. She also retrains ex-racehorses and works with charities such as CANTER to find them good homes. Like many horse people, she has held a variety of jobs in order to be around horses, including riding instructor, racehorse exercise rider and polo groom. She has two ex-racehorses of her own.
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I like the sound of your horse. is it really true about people giving their horse bute when it’s in pain ? cuz if it is that person should be disqualified!
I guess you r right Melissa, it’s okay to whip a horse but not a lot and people shouldn’t push their horses too hard.
Very true. I agree with what you say. Drugging is common in not just horses, but humans too. And the whip can be harsh, but horses are very strong and probably can tolerate the pain.
I totally agree! People should NOT do that to horses! It is just totally unexeptable!
leadmare:isn’t this blog supposed to be for 10 through 14-year-olds???
anna: All ages are welcome in this herd, as long as they can get along with the rest of the herd and contribute something meaningful and/or positive to discussions.
i guess a whip wouldn’t hurt a horse too bad…
Yes Marisa, as long as it does the horse no harm. Sometimes the whip can be used as an encouragement, sometimes as punishment and sometimes as a faster way of getting your horse to listen to you. I have seen the movie Black Beauty before, and after Ginger’s steeplechase race she has had scars all over. It probably isn’t what happens in real life, but sometimes careless riders harm their horses with whips.
Yes, Animalsrkool, its sad but true that people drug their horses and compete with them when they should be giving them rest or treatment. That’s why its so important that people who love horses like you and the other posters get involved in the horse community and speak up, like with this web site, so we drown out the other, not-so-good people.
I agree with Madelaina and Melissa. Horses won’t really get hurt by whips and yes, horses don’t deserve to have drugs being put in them carlessly just so they could win a race!
its terrible that some people would give horses drugs so they could win a race. i bet after the race the jockeys dont even care about the horses and just care about the money they won!