The Dark Side of Horse Racing
Horses race in a sport that’s rich with tradition, spectacle and high drama. But behind the curtain of organized racing is a dark reality that includes drug abuse, gruesome injuries and slaughter. The sport has lost many fans and races over concerns about animal welfare. This is partly because, as an industry, it is dominated by a small group of wealthy and powerful owners who profit greatly from a skewed system that encourages the over-training and mistreatment of horses.
In most Thoroughbred races (except steeplechases), horses are required to have a pedigree that proves they are pure of breed. This is important to ensure that the horses compete fairly with one another by having the same basic makeup. The horses are then grouped into classes based on their ability. The best racehorses are placed in the most prestigious races, which carry the largest purses. These are called stakes races. The next highest-level races are allowance races, which offer larger prize money than the stakes races but not as much as the top-class stakes. There are also optional claiming races, which allow horse that have already run in the conditions or other qualifying races to take part in the same race by paying a small fee to do so.
The horses are trained to run in a series of short races that are arranged into a race card, or “condition book,” for a specific period of time, usually a few weeks or a month. The schedule allows trainers to develop training regimens for the specific race in which they are entered, and it also provides a framework for handicappers to evaluate the horses’ chances of winning. A horse’s chance of victory can be influenced by a number of factors, such as its position in the starting gate (the first place it lines up) and the weight assigned to it for the race. A horse’s weight can be based on its age, gender, the number of previous wins and losses, its veterinary records, and training techniques.
It is a myth that a horse must be injured to be put down, and the truth is that horses are routinely pushed beyond their physical limits by trainers who seek to maximize profits. The physical stresses of racing are especially dangerous for young horses, who can suffer from a variety of injuries and illnesses including broken limbs and heart attacks.
Horses are forced to train and race at a very early age, when their skeletal systems are still growing and they are unprepared for the demands of running around a hard track at breakneck speeds. In the wild, horses understand self-preservation and will often stop if they are injured or sick. But on a racetrack, human handlers perched on their backs compel them to keep going with whips, and they are often given cocktails of legal and illegal drugs designed to mask injuries and artificially boost performance.
Once they are no longer profitable, few racehorses are retired to pastures, and most end their careers in slaughterhouses, where they are turned into glue and dog food. This is the cruel fate that awaits the descendants of Eight Belles, Medina Spirit, Keepthename, Creative Plan and Laoban – and the thousands of unknown horses who will follow them.