Thread: Call to Action

"Eight Belles" Should Sound the End of Racetrack Betting"

Just after crossing the finish line in the Kentucky Derby on May 3, 2008, a young filly named Eight Belles collapsed when both of her front ankles snapped. She was euthanized in the dirt where she lay, the latest victim of the dirty business of thoroughbred racing.

Eight Belles' death is yet another reminder that these horses are raced when they are so young that their bones have not properly formed, and they are often raced on surfaces that are too hard for their bones—like the hard track at Churchill Downs. Eight Belles' jockey whipped her mercilessly as she came down the final stretch. This is no great surprise, since trainers, owners, and jockeys are all driven by the desire to make money, leaving the horses to suffer terribly.

PETA is calling on the racing industry to suspend the jockey and trainer, to bar the owner from racing at the track, and, at the very least, to stop using young horses who are so susceptible to these types of horrific injuries. We're also demanding that the industry stop racing horses on hard tracks and switch to softer, synthetic surfaces, which would spare horses' bones and joints, in addition to calling for a permanent ban on the use of whips. Help PETA call for an end to cruelty masquerading as sport by using the form below to take action today.

Although Eight Belles' death, like Barbaro's before hers, made headlines, countless lesser-known horses suffer similar fates—their broken legs and battered bodies are simply hidden from public view. Most racehorses end up broken down or cast off or are sent to Europe for slaughter.

Please use the form below to join PETA in demanding that the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority institute sweeping reforms that would stop needless, preventable suffering and cruelty in the racing industry.

http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/eight_belles

Eight Belles' Death Puts Horse Racing In Spotlight
Reporting
Kathryn Brown BALTIMORE (WJZ) ―

Horse racing is under an unflattering spotlight by critics after Eight Belles' fatal injury at the Kentucky Derby. Kathryn Brown has the latest from Pimlico, where the second jewel of the triple crown will be run in 12 days.

As one man said, the eyes of the country and the world will be watching the Preakness with different eyes, hoping and praying nothing happens, but still remembering what could happen and did happen to Eight Belles.

As the only filly racing the Kentucky Derby, Eight Belles showed magnificent speed and strength, striding across the finish line second, only to collapse on the track moments later, both front ankles shattered.

"She didn't have a front leg to stand on to be splinted and hauled off in the ambulance, so she was immediately euthanized," said Dr. Larry Bramlage.

It took spectators several moments to grasp the reality of what was happening and when they did, the response was swift and severe.

"These horses are really expendable commodities," said Rep. Ed Whitfield.

Animal rights groups are calling for the jockey's suspension and demanding stricter regulations be enforced within the horseracing industry.

It's not something those in the business want to hear.

"We've put everything into them that we have and they've given us everything they have. They've put their life on the damn line here," said Larry Jones.

Keith Dane is the director of equine protection for the Humane Society of the United States.

"The horses just don't hold up to the rigors of racing these days and we believe that they're being started too early, run too hard," he said.

Other factors Dane says are of grave concern to the Humane Society are steroids and pain-masking drugs used on racehorses, hard dirt tracks that don't offer the padding needed to brace their heavy frames and young horses being forced to run before their bones have fully formed.

"The public doesn't know much of what goes on in the racing industry. They see the three races a year that are typically televised and when horses are dying in that they know there is a problem but they don't know the extent of the problem and the racing industry really needs to address it and acknowledge it and own up to it and make changes," Dane said.

Horseracing experts estimate two horses per day either die or suffer career-ending injuries as a result of racing.

http://wjz.com/local/Eight.Belles.2.716748.html

Horse Racing Facts:

Horse racing takes place throughout the United States. Individual state governments have their own racing commission agencies. Ostensibly, those commissions exist for the regulation of the racing industry. According to state law, however, the racing industry must share revenue with states, and racing commissions function as umbrella organizations for the racing industry rather than regulatory agencies. State governments become hesitant to prosecute racing or animal rights abuses, because they share in animal racing funds.

Around 800 racehorses die each year from fatal injuries suffered on US racetracks. An additional number of approximately 3,566 sustain injuries so bad that they cannot finish their races. Several breeding and horse handling abuses contribute to the great risk of death and injury that horses face.

Breeders often race horses as young as two. These horses lack fully developed bone structure, and are more likely to suffer injury.

Due to selective genetic pairing and breeding, many racehorses are born with fragile bodies to begin with. Selective breeding does not provide the gene pool with diverse enough genetic material to avoid genetic defects that arise largely as a result of inbreeding. Because jockeys race horses year round on hard tracks, which give less and are therefor harder on a horse’s joints and bones, horses incur greater injury risk. Large corporate breeders race their "investments" too often in pursuit of profit.

To keep horses racing through pain, handlers administer Lasix and Bute. These pain relievers numb pain, but do not treat the injuries that cause pain. Consequently, these injuries get worse. Horses that suffer severe injuries as a result of drug induced racing get sold to slaughterhouses, a more profitable venture for breeders than euthanization. These horses suffer long cramped rides to the slaughterhouse without painkillers, in unfit trailers. Handlers also use Lasix to mask the presence of illegal substances such as steroids.

A horse that fails to win also faces death in a slaughterhouse, where operators sell the horse's flesh overseas for human consumption, or provide horsemeat to glue factories.

While horse racing is no longer legal in Belgium, it is a sanctioned event in many other places in the world. Work to end horse racing by: Refusing to patronize tracks and by encouraging others to do the same. Lobbying against the construction of new tracks. Educating the public about horse racing industry’s cruelty to horses.

http://www.idausa.org/facts/racing.html

Eight Belles' death may be wakeup call

May 6, 2008

The suitability of dirt tracks scratches only the surface. To find the root cause of Eight Belles' Kentucky Derby death, you should start in the breeding shed and look at the ledgers and retrace a path fraught with peril at every turn.

The abrupt end of the filly's life Saturday at Churchill Downs could be attributable to something as simple as a bad step, but racing's risks are numerous, systemic and complex.

“Every year it becomes tougher and tougher to justify what we're seeing out there on these race tracks,â€

Another petition site to take action on!

http://tinyurl.com/5o82t4

I am not a member of PETA but I do support them in their effort to reform horse racing. Here is a chance to make our voices heard.


http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/eigh ... s_congress

An Appalling Number of Horses Are Dying


The racing industry has claimed that the death of Eight Belles at the Kentucky Derby was a "freak accident," but a new investigation by the Associated Press found that an average of three horses suffer catastrophic injuries and are destroyed on racetracks every day—and more than 5,000 horses have died since 2003. That number may be even higher, the AP report says, as many deaths may not even be reported.

PETA pushed for congressional hearings into the deaths, injuries, and mistreatment of racehorses just hours after Eight Belles died. Congress has agreed that misuse of drugs, racing surfaces, breeding, and other issues must be examined and has scheduled hearings for Thursday, June 19, on Capitol Hill. This is an unprecedented opportunity for meaningful change in the racing industry. Please use the form below to let Congress know that you care about Eight Belles and all the less famous horses who face death on the track. Also, if you work in the horseracing industry and witness or know about any cruelty or illegal practices or incidents, click here to report cruelty.


Take Action on This Issue

http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/cong ... se_racing1

Congressional Hearings Show Horse Racing Is the Sport of Drug Pushers


Just weeks after PETA called for congressional hearings on horseracing cruelty, the Congress' Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection questioned thoroughbred trainers, owners, veterinarians, and trade groups and unanimously accepted for consideration PETA's written testimony recommending immediate reforms. The overall message: Drugs of all kinds are killing horses. Echoing PETA, most of the racing insiders called for a "zero-tolerance" drug policy that would ban steroids and all other drugs in racing—and not just on race-day. Experts testified that racetrack veterinarians, at the request of trainers and owners, are injecting horses with performance enhancing drugs and drugs that mask their pain—leading to fractured bones and death.

The subcommittee members are considering introducing legislation that would create a federal racing commission to enact and enforce racing rules instead of leaving it to each state, as is currently the case. Please join us in asking the subcommittee to include PETA's recommendations, outlined in our written congressional testimony, in any proposed legislation. Also, if you work in the horseracing industry and witness or know about any cruelty or illegal practices or incidents, click here to report cruelty.

http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/cong ... se_racing1