Re: Horse racing

Jacie · ‎01-09-2011

From 1985 to 1990 I had a PT summer job at the MN track then known as Canterbury Downs. My husband and I owned pleasure and show horses at that time too.

In my experience at the track, horses were treated as the royalty they are, track vets abound, owners protect their investments. Every track has a HBPA rep in residence as well..

Accidents happen on the racetrack as well in our own horses paddock, and they did.

At that time many retired race horses then when to work for the police departments or were purchased as pleasure horses, I owned a retired race horse at one point. He was pure joy to ride.

To those who think betting is rigged, that hasn't happened for a long time. Pari-Mutuel betting is heavily regulated, the State government always gets their take first. Then Purse percentages and the rest divided up between winning ticket holders.

Edited to add:

I am not saying that racing is "clean" by any means, I never understood people who brought children to a track with drinking and gambling. It really is an adults only environment.

Things may have changed depending on your state, but in MN it is rigidly enforced.

"Cats are poetry in motion. Dogs are gibberish in neutral." -Garfield

CrazyDaisy · ‎03-20-2010

I find it interesting that those who have first hand knowledge of horses and the racing industry have a very different opinion than other posters.

Someday, when scientists discover the center of the Universe....some people will be disappointed it is not them.

goldensrbest · ‎03-10-2010

@CrazyDaisy wrote:
I find it interesting that those who have first hand knowledge of horses and the racing industry have a very different opinion than other posters.

That could be because no matter what is mentioned on here,you get all kinds of opinions.

When you lose some one you L~O~V~E, that Memory of them, becomes a TREASURE.

Caligurll · ‎07-20-2014

Horses are not athletes. Greyhound dogs are not athletes. Elephants, lions, tigers, whales, dolphins, and so many other animals are not entertainers. They are animals that are exploited by man for money.

Noel7 · ‎03-09-2010

@CrazyDaisy wrote:
I find it interesting that those who have first hand knowledge of horses and the racing industry have a very different opinion than other posters.

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@CrazyDaisy

You are incorrect. I have first hand knowledge of horses and dogs, and I have made it clear that I stand with the majority here against mistreatment which includes horse racing and dog racing or dog fighting.

pigletsmom · ‎11-21-2011

I have been a horse racing fan for my entire life since I live near Saratoga. Watching a race can be the most thrilling thing you've ever seen. And I mean that even in the winter at Aqueduct in Queensm which is not even remotely similar to Saratoga.

I also cry like a baby when a tragedy happens at the track. I can tell you that some of the loudest voices for the horses and jockey safety are the fans and bettors. Obviously this isn't a main stream sport anymore so you would need to follow it closely to know that.

We all know who the bad actors are in this sport and I wish we could get rid of them all. It seems to be happening slowly. In the mean time I monetarily support places so these beauties can have the great retirements they deserve. Hopefully if we can get enough of these places these old timers can get retired earlier, and they can enjoy all the carrots and mints they want.

Noel7 · ‎03-09-2010

@pigletsmom wrote:
I have been a horse racing fan for my entire life since I live near Saratoga. Watching a race can be the most thrilling thing you've ever seen. And I mean that even in the winter at Aqueduct in Queensm which is not even remotely similar to Saratoga.

I also cry like a baby when a tragedy happens at the track. I can tell you that some of the loudest voices for the horses and jockey safety are the fans and bettors. Obviously this isn't a main stream sport anymore so you would need to follow it closely to know that.

We all know who the bad actors are in this sport and I wish we could get rid of them all. It seems to be happening slowly. In the mean time I monetarily support places so these beauties can have the great retirements they deserve. Hopefully if we can get enough of these places these old timers can get retired earlier, and they can enjoy all the carrots and mints they want.

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@pigletsmom

I think the problem is that there's been so much abuse in horse racing, but definitely not by everyone.

There've been reports over the years of drugging horses to push them, sometimes abuse when forcing their behavior.

And then there are the tragic consequences that happen but which are not the fault of the horse, like the other day. One fall can mean imposed and immediate death.

Jacie · ‎01-09-2011

The key to some arguments in this forum is that there has been, as in past tense, much abuse in horse racing.

"Drugging" a horse can mean a number of different things. In some cases it's the human version of an aspirin such as phenylbutazone (or bute), which is legal. There are many drugs that are banned from racing and reputable owners would never risk losing their racing license for these violations. Nor would they race an over drugged horse, very counter productive. Drug violations are rare, vets regularly take samples and are legally required to do so..

At most tracks these days, everyone is finger printed, licensed and bonded. At some you have to drug test. When I was at the track the INS regularly came in and removed most of the workers on the backside due to immigration violations. Now days everyone is pretty much documented or you don't work there. Again, owners will not risk losing license. You could suffer a lifetime ban.

Perhaps some scrub tracks, if there are even any left, have big issues but not your mainstream big racing operations. They want a cleanly run operation, or else again they lose.

Like anything else, pick your battle, but horse racing is a huge sport, in the elite leagues as big as the NFL. If you don't enjoy it, don't attend.

"Cats are poetry in motion. Dogs are gibberish in neutral." -Garfield

Noel7 · ‎03-09-2010

There are numerous reports from last year online about horses drugged for speed, testing positive for banned drugs, and painkillers used so they will perform in spite of injuries.

I'm not going to show them here because they could be upsetting for some people.

For anyone interested, just google "drugging in horse racing".

Noel7 · ‎03-09-2010

@Jacie wrote:
The key to some arguments in this forum is that there has been, as in past tense, much abuse in horse racing.

"Drugging" a horse can mean a number of different things. In some cases it's the human version of an aspirin such as phenylbutazone (or bute), which is legal. There are many drugs that are banned from racing and reputable owners would never risk losing their racing license for these violations. Nor would they race an over drugged horse, very counter productive. Drug violations are rare, vets regularly take samples and are legally required to do so..

At most tracks these days, everyone is finger printed, licensed and bonded. At some you have to drug test. When I was at the track the INS regularly came in and removed most of the workers on the backside due to immigration violations. Now days everyone is pretty much documented or you don't work there. Again, owners will not risk losing license. You could suffer a lifetime ban.

Perhaps some scrub tracks, if there are even any left, have big issues but not your mainstream big racing operations. They want a cleanly run operation, or else again they lose.

Like anything else, pick your battle, but horse racing is a huge sport, in the elite leagues as big as the NFL. If you don't enjoy it, don't attend.

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I don't think most people care about attending, they care about the health, safety, and ethical treatment of horses.