Nina
Advanced Poster
A Woman's place is on a horse!!!
Posts: 460
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Post by Nina on Dec 30, 2007 22:10:00 GMT 1
no arguments please I turned channels on TV over Christmas and there was some on, the last horse fell at a fence and it rolled over at least twice :(it really turned my stomach and i have to say in all honesty I hate racing. what is everyones thoughts on this subject?
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big e
Grand Prix Poster
Posts: 2,055
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Post by big e on Dec 30, 2007 22:27:05 GMT 1
i like watching it and i love tb's I hate seeing horses fall and think the industry overbreeds and doesn't take the welfare of the horse seriously enough. Saying that you do get some fantastic athletic horses, with exception stamina, that leave the racing world and go off to have excellent careers in other spheres So more for, than against
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Post by Kitty McSpeilberg McGormley on Dec 30, 2007 22:30:37 GMT 1
i went to the races today at taunton, and ive been loads before and it always makes me feel really weird, cos horses are so cute, bless them for running their hearts out for us! and their faces when they jump the fences are SOOOO cute. The jockeys were a bit whiptastic which was quite annoying, esp when one kepy hitting his horse on the neck before the race when i couldnt see it doing anything wrong, but i think the racing part of the racehorses life is fine, its just the welfare issues of how they are kept and what happens to them after the racing days which is a prob that needs to be addressed
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Post by sarahfox on Dec 30, 2007 22:33:43 GMT 1
I hate it,flat racing starts them way too young and has a high mortality rate,also a high proportion of flat racers have ulcers having such an unnatural lifestyle. jump racing isnt so bad imo,but I dont like to see any horses used as machines and I feel that is the case,there are also a high number of casualties on/off the course. I think the biggest thing for me though is that horses should be treated as living beings and with respect and most sports dont do that at high levels.
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Post by indibindi on Dec 30, 2007 22:36:55 GMT 1
I'm not keen on the attitudes of the commentators of racing - they talk as if the horses are machines. I went right off racing when I saw a horse break a leg on the flat at Beverley, on the track and run around panicking with its leg flapping - until the screens came up and it was put down. Never again.
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naria
Grand Prix Poster
yet when all books have been read it boils down to the horse, his human & what goes on between them
Posts: 1,455
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Post by naria on Dec 30, 2007 22:52:35 GMT 1
I don't like it.
I don't like the age at which they're broken & how hard they work while so immature.
I don't like the high wastage rate of horses that aren't fast enough or can't stand the intensive training. Sadly they don't all find homes outside racing.
I don't like the number that die on track or in training.
I don't particularly like the lifestyle a lot of them lead, although that isn't one of my bigger objections as lots of horses have a less than ideal lifestyle.
And I live in a racing village!
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Post by maggiesmum on Dec 31, 2007 0:38:50 GMT 1
I hate that they're mass produced. I hate that they're pumped full of feed to make them grow. I hate the age at which they're started. I hate the pressure that they're put under at such a young age. I hate the very unnatural lifestyle they lead. I hate the fatality rate. I hate that the ones that aren't fast or good enough get sent to the meat man. I hate that a horse thats won in excess of £70,000 can be reduced to being sold for meat money because it broke down (and he's fine now by the way)
I know a couple of trainers that do care and do try to make their horses lives happier and try to get them good homes after racing but they're the exception rather than the norm.
During this year i've had - Pecan who broke down and is now sound and riding out, Dan who broke down and is now sound and hopefully starting some schooling soon with his new mum, Lucy who you guessed it broke down and is now recovering in a great new home and I turned down a slow one that was perfectly sound simply because I didn't have the time or money for another, as it happened my vet bought him and he's now a polo pony. Thats me, one person and i've had 3 this year and there are millions that we can't help, it breaks my heart everytime, its about time the racing industry started taking care of its own instead of looking the other way all the time!!! Ok, count to 10 - rant over!
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Post by Susan on Dec 31, 2007 0:41:38 GMT 1
I also hate it for all the reasons above from the many many ..above...
nothing can I say good except Jack who I loaned out of hurdling not flat racing..
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Post by gypsycob on Dec 31, 2007 8:54:58 GMT 1
I also hate it for all the reasons above
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hkvevans
Grand Prix Poster
Grand Prix Poster
Lucy Grace Antonia Evans 30-07-07
Posts: 2,418
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Post by hkvevans on Dec 31, 2007 9:05:53 GMT 1
Love it, sorry!
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Post by DonnieDarco on Dec 31, 2007 9:36:49 GMT 1
Tin HAt out
Sorry I love it. Watching Kauto Star on Boxing Day just cruise away from his rivals and not even stretch himself, he even jumped the last like a stag (and he normally fluffs the last) We see these old warriors come back year after year and give us their all.
Yes I really really hate the shite side of it, the fatalities, but then in some ways I'd rather they went happy than come out of racing and be left in a field neglected. Sorry, my opinion.
As a horse mad kid and teenager, horse racing was the only horse sport on tv whilst I grew up. I like watching horses! If showjumping encouraged betting like racing does, maybe I'd be a SJ fan??
I know that racing is like marmite - you either love it or hate it - but I love it and have booked my annual tickets to cheltenham in march
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pip
Grand Prix Poster
Posts: 3,797
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Post by pip on Dec 31, 2007 13:25:20 GMT 1
I love it too. I hate the injuries and the falls, but I wonder how the eventers, polo and even dressage horses would compare at the top levels. (OK dressage horses don't fall at a fence and have fatal injuries, but they do always seem to be going lame).
Kauto Star was a real star.
There are too many being bred, but after all, every foal is a potential winner and how do you know which one it is going to be?
There is a philisophical argument that the racing horse is just a tool for the glory of the human - but that could be extended to every single horse owner.
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Post by Francis Burton on Dec 31, 2007 13:41:08 GMT 1
There is a philisophical argument that the racing horse is just a tool for the glory of the human - but that could be extended to every single horse owner. Glory - are you sure, Pip? Glory's an interesting word, and is maybe appropriate in racing, but I don't think it describes any of the relationships I've had with horses. P.S. I used to love racing, and was seriously "into" it in the 1980s, watching all the races that came on telly (even if it meant taping the other channel.. sad, I know!). Despite the accidents, some utterly horrific like Percase breaking a leg on the flat and it flapping about as he kept on running (which gave me heart palpitations), I still loved it. I used to come over sentimental and teary-eyed when Never So Bold ran so "bravely" even though he would go lame after winning because of bleeding into the knee joint (I think, it was a few years ago). Then, at some point, I started to acknowledge the ugly "industry" side of racing a bit more. I always knew it was there, of course, but my blinkered view stopped me really thinking about it. I also came to appreciate the toll that racing can take on some horses, both physically and psychologically. For example, why is the prevalence of stereotypies like crib-biting and weaving higher in racing TBs compared to other horses? Having owned a non-racing thoroughbred, I know that not all of the high-strung behaviour one sees in racehorses is genetic in origin; upbringing, training and environment play a role too. I am not convinced that a "highly-strung" state is natural or benign for a horse. I think it may be harmful. So, helped by e.g. a documentary showing a Jockey Club official shamefacedly admitting they didn't contribute a penny towards TB rehabilitation (they probably do now!), I "went off" racing. Last time I went racing, a few years ago, I watched three horses in the stable block weaving in perfect synchrony.
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Post by gypsycob on Dec 31, 2007 13:53:26 GMT 1
not sure how to do the quote thing but DD you said.. **Yes I really really hate the shite side of it, the fatalities, but then in some ways I'd rather they went happy than come out of racing and be left in a field neglected. Sorry, my opinion.**
Seems like a lose lose situtaion, almost as if you are saying the best they can hope for is to die on the job (breaking a leg or their neck).
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Vicky&Beenie
Olympic Poster
Advanced Poster
"The wind of heaven is that which blows between a horse's ears..."
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Post by Vicky&Beenie on Dec 31, 2007 13:55:49 GMT 1
I think that horse racing is a horrible sport. More horses are killed in horse racing than any other equestrian sport. I have watched TB's race at the top of their speed and their legs will suddenly just snap in half. I know there are lots of other equestrian sports that are at high risk but horse racing is what most people associate horses with and i dont agree.
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