Comments on: On Horse Racing, “Break Downs,” and Our Humanity

By: ziggiepop

ziggiepop — Sun, 21 Jul 2013 18:29:00 +0000

You are absolutely correct. And you should hear what the Spaniards do to their racing dogs!

By: ziggiepop

ziggiepop — Sun, 21 Jul 2013 18:28:00 +0000

unless the carnage is shown, no one will do anything about it. Your reasoning of not showing was also debated during the Vietnam War, BTW. Until we saw the carnage, it was out of sight, out of mind.

By: Fritz

Fritz — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 20:24:00 +0000

I’m an adult powerlifter who has no problem subjecting myself to heavy weight. But what is being discussed is the age of the horse–it would be like suggesting a child with an underdeveloped central nervous system to lift 300lbs. It will end badly!

By: Fritz

Fritz — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 20:22:00 +0000

Now, please do an expose on greyhounds and racing dogs. 22,000 dogs are whelped each year, and most of them destroyed in their 2nd year of life. The industry uses similar tactics as the horse-racing one; in fact, racing dogs rarely have the ‘honor’ of euthanasia. Most are starved, shot, gassed, or given to science labs for vivisection, etc. Disgusting.

By: c. fox

c. fox — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 15:27:00 +0000

I find it disgusting that anyone would post actual pictures of injured and dead horses to go along with a story that is meant to be educational. I am a groom ay a training stable, and if I ever have the misfortune of one of the horses in my care breaking down and being euthanized, no one had better post pictures of it online.
I know the industry is rough and corrupt, but I love the horses that I care for. I never want to see a one of their dead bodies or their terrified final moments immortalized in a picture and speed around the internet. It’s absolutely disgusting.

By: Joey

Joey — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 01:11:00 +0000

What I don’t understand is why do people become outraged over dog or cat abuse but will accept the abuse of certain animals, or why different kinds of abuse are okay while others aren’t. Like for example most people oppose cock fights but will gladly eat fried chicken. Why is horse meat a no-no but cow meat is perfectly fine?

I just don’t get the double standards.

By: Jenny_Axe

Jenny_Axe — Sun, 09 Jun 2013 18:06:00 +0000

My personal argument against racing (or jumping, or showing in dressage) a horse that’s on bute is that bute works as designed. It makes it so the horse does not feel (or feels less) pain from an injury, and the horse does not have the capability to judge itself whether it’s well enough to race. If we hide the evidence of its pain from us, we are limiting our ability to make the best decision for the horse.

This applies even when bute (or other pain medication) is used for a specific, non-dangerous, non-impairing pain. The medication will also hide the pain from any other injury.

By: Ian

Ian — Sun, 09 Jun 2013 16:16:00 +0000

So just because it isn’t a thesis or dissertation, its ok that two of its bigger points and arguments are markedly inaccurate? Its ok that its spreading misinformation?

The whole argument of this ENTIRE ARTICLE is that people treat horses like machines, not animals, and argues that us saying they “break down,” like a machine, is indicative of that. However, its been pointed out that this is absolutely incorrect. Rather than applying the language of machines to horses, we applied the language of horses to machines. After all, horses are some old timey technology, are they not? Thus, the whole basis for this article is flawed from the get-go.

Secondly, another large point in the article is about how horses are essentially doped up with bute for days before they race so they don’t feel pain when they overexert themselves on the track. The graphic in this article implies that there is some sort of three-day bute regiment. Maybe some people do that, there are plenty of shady characters on a race track, but I’ve never known the regiment to be more than a single dose 24 hours before the race. Not to mention that it isn’t some dark, untested chemical that horses are being given to increase performance. Its essentially ibuprofen. It’s equine Tylenol. Hense the snippet about how its been linked to ulcers. You can argue that horses, or any other living creature, shouldn’t be medicated without their consent but the argument does lose some steam if the medication is an OTC drugs that literally millions of American consumer every day.

By: Ozy111

Ozy111 — Sun, 09 Jun 2013 07:26:00 +0000

If the ends don’t justify the means, then what in the world does? Point of fact, there are ends that are worth using human experimentation for, and we do in fact use humans in those experiments. Impose certain ethical guidelines and most people don’t even have a problem with it.

A better translation of “the ends justify the means” from its original usage would be “the means must be selected with regards to the ends being pursued,” or simply “the ends must justify the means.” It’s a lot like the original intent of “an eye for an eye.” It is a limit to what is permissible, not a blank check.

By: Ozy111

Ozy111 — Sun, 09 Jun 2013 04:06:00 +0000

Or consider the case of bare-knuckle boxing vs boxing w/ gloves.

Bare-knuckle boxing puts a harsh limit on how hard a fighter can be punched in the head because skulls are more durable than metacarpals and the attacker must make their strikes w/ due regard to not breaking their own hand. Gloves remove this limit.

However, bare-knuckle boxing produces more blood. So it is that an aversion to blood has replaced a sport with few brain injuries with one in which concussions can be assumed to happen in every match, because blood in the ring is visible and immediate while cumulative brain damage is invisible and gradual.

By: Felonious Grammar

Felonious Grammar — Sat, 08 Jun 2013 20:55:00 +0000

Interesting information, Ian, but a sociology blog written for a popular audience should NOT be a thesis or dissertation.

By: Sheena Leversedge Wood

Sheena Leversedge Wood — Sat, 08 Jun 2013 10:24:00 +0000

interesting to note that usually a two year old is just starting to be lightly broken in as a riding horse. getting used to wearing tack, having a person lie across the saddle to show them the feel of weight on them.
that’s always horrified me with racing, that at two they’re running full pelt, when they should only just be starting out as riding horses.

By: Ian

Ian — Sat, 08 Jun 2013 08:17:00 +0000

I feel compelled to point out the following two things. First, the entire point of how we treat horses like cars being exemplified by saying they “break down” was disproven the first time this was posted. Rather, the term originated with horses and was later used to describe vehicles and appliances as well. Secondly, as someone who comes from a long line of race trackers, including my father who was a veterinarian at the track, I can tell you that this schedule for bute regiments is outrageously inaccurate.

Also, is this really academic sociology or a fluff piece?

By: Felonious Grammar

Felonious Grammar — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 19:14:00 +0000

Yes, I was just thinking about football and brain damage. Many of their head injuries result in violence. Like the race horses, professional football players are commodities. And like horses, professional football players are doped so that they can play through the pain. Money uber alles is a problem that leaves all kinds of living things dead or destroyed in its wake. This seems especially true when gambling is involved.

By: The inhumanity of horse racing… | The Prime Directive

The inhumanity of horse racing… | The Prime Directive — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 03:18:09 +0000

[…] racing is truly an inhuman, degraded “sport.” Sociological Images gives you the entire picture. There’s also a video at the […]