Horse Racing...... ? Cruel or Not ?

Baggs I once accidentally ate horse meat on a holiday in Germany. It was revolting. We were driving back to the UK the next day and my Dh had to keep stopping the car so I could rush into the bushes at the side of the road. This was in the 70’s when motorway services were few and far between.

Spurs. Apparently very few jockeys wear spurs and I doubt if they are any use at all as jockeys ride with very short stirrup leathers and are out of the saddle when galloping. Basically, they are riding by balance alone. Any attempt to move the lower leg to use spurs would upset their balance and that of the horse (which would slow it down). The babies they are riding haven't developed enough balance themselves to be able to cope with much movement on the part of their riders. Apart from using their whip hand, jockeys stay very still.

Whips. Jockeys carry whips which have a long (8"+) 'end' made of 2 layers of fairly stiff, but soft, leather. It is impossible to get a 'whiplash' effect with them as the end isn't anywhere near as flexible as were the thin whips previously carried before regulations called for more humane ones. The end is also quite broad, so it won't have the 'cutting' effect that a thin whip would have.

So this aspect isn't as cruel as it appears. The use of immature animals (a tradition that goes back 100s of years, before its bad effects were understood), overbreeding, and the huge 'wastage' of horses are the real evils, IMO

I rode until RA stopped me in my late 50's. One of my favourites over several years was a retired racer, he was beautiful in looks and in nature. Big, kind, gentle creature. His racing career wasn't hugely successful and he was bought by the stable owner to join her jolly crew. He loved to race and that was one downside of riding him on the countryside 'canter' routes, it was impossible to hold him back in his place in the line, never have I travelled at such speed on any other horse.
I have mixed feelings about horse racing. I absolutely share the horror that these beautiful creatures will run till their hearts burst. I loathe the National and Cheltenham but I recognise that its an industry employing many people. Anyone visiting a racing stable, or staying in an area where there a number of these will see the majestic beasts going out early morning. They are loved, cared for and cosseted. Their lives may indeed end early because selling on a thoroughbred isn't the easiest thing to do. Thoroughbreds are going to be usually, even more expensive to keep than your average cheap riding pony.
I would definitely ban the use of the whip.

Article about spur use in dressage. Yesterday I was reading something from Australia about spur use.

Amazing where GN discussions lead one!

I've had very little experience of RSPCA, bluebelle. Practically none, in fact. Sorry you feel let down by them.

An underlying point that perhaos I'd better spell out is that race horses wouldn't exist at all if it weren't for human beings. One could regard that as a good thing but you've still got to get over thousands of years of human fighting-to-survive history. Working horses made a humungous difference to human lives until little over a century ago.

It's not such a big leap from working horses to pleasure horses. I don't think the basic idea of horse racing is cruel, nor am I convinced that breeders, trainers, and riders are cruel to the animals they interact with. Whips and spurs (which are not sharp like those in cowboy films) are not designed to hurt the horse, only to spur it on.

Or perhaps the RSPCA haven’t revised it because they are keeping a low profile on the case it’s a very Divisive subject and as they say the it’s the sport of the rich (look at Ascot) The RSPCA have let me down considerably a few times that I ve contacted them once over concerns for a dog once a cat and once a swan none of those these three incidents were handled well at all I have little confidence in them

I think the fundamental problem is that from very early on in human development, survival even, people have made use of various animals in an effort to make their own survival a tiny bit easier. Other animals do this too, as do plants and fungi —think symbiotic relationships. Over thousands and thousands of years, human uses of other animals have refined and extended and that's why, among other things, we have stuff like horse-racing. It has various attractions and excitements from betting to the whole industry of breeding and training.

Which is why we can't just shut it down quickly, even if it is cruel. I presume the horses that are euthanised are eaten — dog meat — though I wouldn't be averse to eating compassionately grown horse meat. People do in other countries.

If the RSPCA has not seen fit to revise its article since 2006, perhaps that's because they didn't think it needed revising. That, if it is the case, would be encouraging, meaning that things are not getting worse and increased care of race horses is being effective. On the other hand, RSPCA could be in the pay of race horse breeders. Take your pick.

But animal welfare charities are demanding that more money be spent to provide sanctuaries where horses can live in retirement

If the statistic in the Animal Aid article is right, some 7,000+ horses leave the industry every year. A horse lives to its late 20s, early 30s. Where on earth would all those thousands and thousands of horses go? And who would pay for their upkeep? Regular foot trimming (every 6 - 8 weeks) at £25 -£30 per horse; winter hay and feed? They are not cheap to keep, even when not in work.

Some racehorses are rehomed as pleasure horses. With a knowledgeable new owner they can have useful and happy lives. But they are very highly strung and not at all a ride for a novice. They could lead awful lives if they end up in the wrong 'home'.

I absolutely agree that breeding should be scaled back; but the money in the business is the driving force.

I think the RSPCA page is damning with faint praise.

I think it's cruel.

This article was written in 2006 and things may have changed since then but I doubt there has been that much improvement:

www.theguardian.com/uk/2006/oct/01/horseracing.sport

An extract:

"For thousands of British thoroughbreds that are too old, too slow or not good enough jumpers, the end is brutal: a bullet through the temple or a metal bolt into the side of the brain. Then their carcasses are loaded on to freezer lorries and driven to France, where their flesh is sold as gourmet meat.

"This mass disposal of thoroughbreds is the side of the multi-billion-pound British racing industry that is rarely mentioned and even more rarely seen. It is not illegal. But animal welfare charities are demanding that more money be spent to provide sanctuaries where horses can live in retirement, and that the massive breeding programme that provides the sport with its horses be scaled back. Most of the animals, which could live on average more than 30 years, are killed before their fifth birthday." [my emphasis].

If you are interested in the subject of animal welfare, read the whole - fairly lengthy - article and it may make you consider whether the "sport of kings" is an admirable one.

The fundamental cruelty of horse racing is that the horses are raced at a far too early age. They are not mature and the stress on their developing bodies can cause all sorts of physical and developmental problems. You would not dream of breaking in a 'normal' horse until it was at least age 3 and then it would be only lightly ridden away (or even turned away for a long period) and introduced to more strenuous work over a period of years, racehorses are raced as 2yr olds. As far as I know, flat racers don't have a very long career. Jump racers are trained and run at a later age, I think. Jumping places huge stresses on developing bones and joints.

I don't think the actual racing is cruel to the horse. They're running with the herd. I'm not sure about the 'whipping', jockeys can be fined or banned for misuse of the whip. I believe it's more a ritual than beating a tired horse home...
Oh, and they are very fit.. It's not like dragging it out of a field, shoving a saddle on and making it gallop for miles. Racehorses are very, very fit..

I could say more about the fate of unsuccessful racehorses etc..

I also dislike racing because few of the punters have any interest in the horses themselves, only in how much money they might win by betting on them. At least in every other branch of horse sports the owners, riders and spectators are knowledgeable and care about the horses..

Of course skill is involved Baggs but surely just as much skill ...or even more would be needed if the whip was withdrawn. I'm not against horse racing at all. In fact I think it would be quite interesting to see which horses/trainers/jockeys were the most successful under new rules which forbid the whip. Might even be the same ones. There is no doubt thought that some jockeys go beyond what the current laws allow. A complete ban would surely be both better for the horses and give an equal playing field to all jockeys and trainers.

No, you’re right, Baggs choice wasn’t the correct word to use. I was trying to convey that when a horse in the wild galloped, it would be for a reason, be it escaping a predator or simply for fun. In racing, it’s being caused unnaturally to gallop, whether by training or by inflicting pain.

RSPCA page about racehorse welfare is interesting.

I believe it's all cruel. What other 'sport' uses mouth bits, whips and spurs?

Why should a jockey and owner end up in the winning enclosure just because they were more ruthless with the whip.

This is an interesting question. It had never occurred to me that it was all about the whipping rider encouragement. And the fitness/athleticism of the horse. Being sarcastic there.

I wish some horse racing supporters would join in this discussion, just to get points of view from the other side, you understand?

I'm not suggesting every wild horse gallop is about escape. I think much of it may well be about instinctively keeping in training, so to speak, for when escape is the only option.

Horses in the wild may well gallop for long distances but that’s their own choice.

I guess escaping from predators is a choice in a way. You could just stand there and get eaten. But somehow I don't think choice is the right word here. There has been a need to gallop. A need that, if it didn't work, would be curtains for the species.

I think it would be a huge improvement to the sport if none of the jockeys were allowed to use a whip. That way it would also be a fairer race. Why should a jockey and owner end up in the winning enclosure just because they were more ruthless with the whip. If no rider was allowed to carry one they would all have the same chance of winning with less stress to the horses. If the horses are natural runners and jumpers there shouldn't be a problem. I am guessing that racing in the flat would be able to continue but not sure about jumps in a race.

Cruel !!

Forgot the link. www.plantbasednews.org/opinion/should-vegans-have-companion-animals

Horses in the wild may well gallop for long distances but that’s their own choice. Afaik they wouldn’t normally race against each other, I can’t think of any creature that does that.

It is the use of racing as entertainment that raises questions for me. We no longer have animals in circuses and many zoos have repositioned themselves as conservation centres. Some vegans believe we should not even have domestic pets (companion animals) because we are exploiting them and repressing their natural instinct.

Regarding my own cats, the last thing they’d want is to catch their own food or sleep outside but I do see the vegan argument.

I woul n ever bet on horses - or greyhounds for that matter - as both sports are cruel and dismissive of the suffering of the animals. Pam Ayres wrote a lovely very sad poem about a horse that died during one of the big races - one of several, who was whipped and forced to race on the hottest day of the year, and unsurprisingly collapsed and died. This is never mentioned by commentators, who always rattle on about the 'jockeys and owners' winning; never the poor animal pushed beyond endurance and then discarded.

To be a true ‘Sport’ the horses should be ridden bareback with just a halter, no bits, reins and certainly no whips.
Then, if the horse wants to run or jump for miles with someone on its back it would be more of a sport.

Until then, it’s cruel as are all animal ‘sports’