Kentucky Derby Blues

Just came from a fab-o derby party... in the illustrious hills in these parts. I saw more plastic in heels, than in ppls hands holding juleps....

Great race, although you always pull for the upset... Big Brown rolls in I thinK a $1.20:2.00 payout....

But then at the end, what I saw... just bad... and heartbreaking....

Eight Belles was attempting to become the fourth filly to win the Derby. However, as the horses galloped out around the first turn, the filly fell to the ground and jockey Gabriel Saez jumped off.
An equine ambulance came onto the track, but the filly could not be saved, said Dr. Larry Bramlage, the Derby's on-call veterinarian.



Like... right then on the spot, the horse's life is over (from a break I assume).




Ouch... I know/am told these horses live to run and race... but a breakdown=death, just seems so sad and awful.

Horses living to race? Bred to perhaps, but that's not the same thing at all. Such incidents used to happen 'regularly' at the national.

Yes it was quite horrifying. That is why I was so thrilled the Barbaro's owners went to such lengths to try to save him year before last.

It was very sad. I had the moment of elation as they announced Eight Bellles was second-a very good place to be if not in first-and then the downfall as they said she had been injured and then the sadness as they told that she had been euthanized there on the track after breaking both front legs.




Second place Eight Belles euthanized after breaking both front legs | courier-

Gadzooks... I'm always amazed, that the horse needs to put down.. given the millions that go into these farms.... can't modern medicine retire them and keep them alive?

Eight Belles loss was surprising and sad.
But what wasn't sad is that three hours before the race I called # 20 as the winner. I was ridiculed. We know who won. Next year I will be at the Barnstable/Brown party and will report back.

It was pretty quick and tragic. The race was only minutes old and that horse was put down. By the time the NBC cameras were focused at a distance on that horse laid out on the track, there wasn't a motion from it at all, indicating it was in fact quite dead. Track/race vet said it broke both ankles, was unsavable and in terrible pain, so the did it immediately. Must be an awful job to be the guy who is prepared to get out on that track and do that within a moments notice.

To me, horse racing is pointless for the very reason the horse was killed, there are any number of ways to gamble. What we see with horse racing is no more acceptable than 2 dogs fighting in Michael Vick's former business. Imagine putting down a human being that way after losing an Olympic relay or any other foot race ?

Why not just bet on NASCAR just the same ? The loser's in those races that are damaged, they send to the garage and they repair & replace the broken parts.

And given how "big time" of an athlete the horse was... not to quantify it... but like Peyton Manning getting tackled from the (or Steven Garrard, for the mates on the left side of the pond).... and just.. boom, done... leave him there... everyone knowing he's dead.

How "both ankles"? Stress fracture???!!!

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Originally Posted by dong20 Horses living to race? Bred to perhaps, but that's not the same thing at all. Such incidents used to happen 'regularly' at the national.

You are correct these horses are bred to race; and therein lies the problem. They are given so many vitamins and supplements in utero and after birth to create a winning machine that they create weak animals. Thoroughbred race horses are notorious for having porous or just weak or bones. They are bred to have a lighter bone structure and more lean muscle so they will run faster, win races; and make money. Thus any fracture or break becomes a fatal injury.

Quote:

Originally Posted by naughty Yes it was quite horrifying. That is why I was so thrilled the Barbaro's owners went to such lengths to try to save him year before last.

I wasn't happy that they went to extreme measures to save Barbaro, but I was surprised. That poor horse went through hell for many months because the owners were too selfish to let him go.

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Originally Posted by faceking Gadzooks... I'm always amazed, that the horse needs to put down.. given the millions that go into these farms.... can't modern medicine retire them and keep them alive?

Nope, 'modern medicine' is the reason they have to be put down.

well look at it from a business point of view. it's probably MUCH cheaper to put the horse down than it is to save it, rehabilitate it, and then support it for the rest of its life. it's pretty much just another nonvalue added cost to the farm. that doesn't make it right, but i see the logic in it

I don't think I will watch anymore horse races. It's just to sad to see these poor animals suffer for human thrills and greed.

I have been riding horses since I was 10, and a healthy horse is not a race horse. A dual compound fracture can technically be healed, but the animal will live with significant pain for the rest of it's life.

Churchill Downs is about an hour from my home. I went one year. Sometimes I'll visit the local track and burn about $20, but you really only go to those things to check out what everyone is wearing. (Even then, I'm an anomaly; I don't get dressed up for the track, and you certainly couldn't talk me into drinking a julep. Blech!)

Might just be what I see about the race track they run on. But after the first pass thru by the entire group of horses it probably has divots and potholes in it, not to mention it's not the smoothest surface to begin with. To run a horse like that and put even 100 lb jockey on it who is whipping it to go faster. I have to believe the theory on weak bones is a myth. There's simply pushing an animal too hard and putting it on a surface that is hardly ideal.

Not too long ago, the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles closed Veteran's Stadium. The field was a liability for player's health. Case in point:

"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wendell_Davis"

"He is infamous for injuring both of his patella tendons simultaneously while simply running a pass route on the notoriously bad Astroturf at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. The injury was effectively career-ending."

I'd have to think any horse breaking it's ankle/leg is similar to any human athlete hitting a bad spot on the field just the same while running at 100% speed. The best you could hope for in that case is a twisted ankle, but expectations are realistically to break an ankle.