PETA should back off of horse racing
Twenty years ago, a filly named Winning Colors took the first jewel of the Triple Crown. This year, another young horse tried to do the same.
PETA should back off of horse racing
Twenty years ago, a filly named Winning Colors took the first jewel of the Triple Crown. This year, another young horse tried to do the same.
Eight Belles was the only girl racing in the Kentucky Derby against 19 other colts. All the racers were charging around the final bend, Big Brown in the lead. Not far behind was the tall gray filly Eight Belles. She was galloping hard to catch up with the colt in front, but it was obvious she wasn't going to pass him.
People cheered for Big Brown, but soon their attention was drawn to a horse far out on the track. Eight Belles was galloping strangely. After a few paces, she went down hard. The tragic news relayed back to the anxiously waiting crowd was dire. Eight Belles had broken both front ankles. She was euthanized a few minutes later there on the track, marring the previous celebratory feeling in the air.
After the incident, PETA had a field day. It was an opportune time to try to stop horse racing and convince everyone of their beliefs. They're hypocrites and so overboard with everything. They riot at races, protesting nonsense. It's frustrating that they apparently can't see the other side of things. Horses love to run. It's in their blood, ever since the first domestication.
People got riled up over how owners only race because they want money. It's true that there are some in the racing industry who feel that profits are what it's about.
But not everyone is like that. Most of the people who work at the track and with the horses can tell you how amazing it is to watch these beautiful animals gallop across the turf, the wind whipping their manes around wildly. Those who think it's all about the money need to actually attend a race and see those horses prance after the race, just happy to have run.
Many are blaming the jockey, Gabriel Saez, for Eight Belles' injury. How in any way was it his fault? That man knew the horse inside and out. PETA just wants to blame someone for the filly's death. They said that he used his whip too much. Every jockey used their whip! Horses' skin is thicker than ours, and their nerves are deeper. Saez would have had to used the whip harder and longer in order to do much damage.
Another argument people are using is that there are too many accidents in horse racing. Let's step back for a moment. Every sport, from a game of croquet with the family to rock climbing has a risk of injury. When a car crashes in NASCAR, do people rush to change the rules and try to figure out how to keep everyone safe?
No, they mourn and get on with it. Yes, it is horrible when an accident happens, but no matter how hard you try to change the rules, tragedy will happen. One good idea that has been proposed is a synthetic track. It's easier on the legs and gives the animals a bit of a boost.
Reading comments on many of the Eight Belles stories opened my eyes to how ignorant people can be. A lot of readers angrily replied about how inhumane it was to put Eight Belles to sleep. Medicines and the best doctors in the world couldn't have saved her. Horses are not the same as humans. I repeat, horses are not the same as humans. They are built different. We break two arms or two legs and it's fine. You get a cast put on, and you heal.
Equines are so prone to infection, and to put a cast on one and expect it to be stabled is asking for the impossible. Eight Belles couldn't stand. She had nothing to stand on. That filly would have been in pain for a very long time, and it would have been the most inhumane thing to do to her.
So for all of you out there who think horse racing is horrible and that everyone is cruel, please, do some research. Go out and learn something about the topic you feel so strongly about. Eight Belles ran her heart out in that race. She beat all those boys, and I'm sure would have gone on to bigger things.
It was a freak accident with no one to blame. PETA just wants attention.
R.I.P Eight Belles, Barbaro and all others who have been euthanized or injured. You ran hard, and will forever be remembered.
Way to go! I am so tired of Peta getting a free pass and endorsements from clueless celebrities who don't take the time to check out what kind of orginization that it is. This young woman has it together and actually checks things out, instead of following the crowd. Good job, good article!
Yeah! I'm a vegetarian and even I think PETA is insane. You should check out the show Penn and Teller: Bullsh**. They have an episode on how PETA is bullsh**. You'd enjoy that.
Great Article. I can't stand PETA either.
YOU GO GIRL!
I didn't know that a filly had ever won the Kentucky Derby. Thanks for that tidbit.
And I like that you've encouraged others to do their own research instead of relying on what others say. That's the path to knowledge!
Horses can live forty-odd years--when they are months old, they are not in their primes. If you consider every other horse-based sport (show jumping, dressage, eventing, hunter competitions, etc), these horses are young, but three/four years-and-above young, not one-to-two young. If race horses are in their prime, their feet certainly are not, and other demanding disciplines realize it. I understand humans can feel flies, but trust me: I have ridden horses since I was 8 and have owned them since I was 10. I'm not trying to sound snotty or nit-picky, and my experience combined with my knowledge tells me their skin is much more keen than ours is.