Another Death at Aintree

I hate the Grand National. It's barbaric and cruel, and there's no way I would watch it, let alone go to a race meeting.

The only people at Aintree that wanted a fatality yesterday were the protesters which is why they’re looking on yesterday as a victory.

What a very silly thing to say.

The only people at Aintree that wanted a fatality yesterday were the protesters which is why they’re looking on yesterday as a victory . I totally respect their right to protest and the racing authorities will look at the points they raise but they did it in a way that had an adverse effect on the very horses they were supposedly protecting.

ginny

I don’t watch it either, horrible specifically.

A regular race goer once told me that the horses love it and naturally jump the fences. My reply was “ so why don’t they naturally jump out of their fields ?”

They’re not going to jump out of a field unless they don’t have enough to eat.

Different situation.

Barbaric, I think it should be banned, along with the greyhound races. Much was made of the women trying to stop it in the media, as if they were in the wrong, but if there was a go fund me to help with their legal costs I’d donate to it. Hate unnecessary violence to animals.

ginny

I don’t watch it either, horrible specifically.

A regular race goer once told me that the horses love it and naturally jump the fences. My reply was “ so why don’t they naturally jump out of their fields ?”

They do regularly, which is why most stables have electric fences to prevent horses escaping.

One of ours was an excellent escapee, could leap out of her field and open her stable door, we had to add an extra bolt lower down.

I think Brits do love to bet and gamble and there seems to be a very relaxed attitude towards all forms of this activity.

Where’s the petitions ?
Anyone come across one ?

I hate the Grand National.Should be stopped.

I'm angry every time it comes around - and can't imagine how people can enjoy watching the cruelty.

Some years ago, we took our 15 year old nephew to the races. He was suffering from leukaemia at the time (and subsequently died) and we wanted to treat him to a day out.
A horse was injured and they put it down, there, in front of us, putting a tarpaulin up to shield it from the people in the 'posh' enclosures but not from us. It was horrendous.

I don’t watch it either, horrible specifically.

A regular race goer once told me that the horses love it and naturally jump the fences. My reply was “ so why don’t they naturally jump out of their fields ?”

I can't bear to watch it and would never bet on it.

I used to be mocked at work for refusing to take part in the sweepstake

That’s a good point Blondiescot.. I haven’t googled but I wonder with which political party the betting industry invests.
Gambling causes heart ache in many lives. I was banning the GNational and greyhound racing earlier. Why didn’t I get real and ban gambling

The death toll continues to rise each year, claiming more lives. Since 2010, 36 horses have died at the #GrandNational

If you go on to the Race Horse Death Watch website, it gives you the figures for all deaths at racecourses, and it's shocking reading. Can you imagine the outcry there would be if it was jockeys dying in those numbers? But it'll never stop - not while people are making millions from betting on horse racing (by that, I mean the companies, rather than the punters).

I’d ban the GN
I’d ban greyhound Racing

Dreadful. Should be banned.

Totally agree Smileless it's shamefull

Horses are such beautiful animals Sassanach and should be valued, not exploited for money.

The jumps used to be even worse than they are now and still beautiful horses die. It is barbaric Smileless

It's barbaric, never watch it and can't understand why anyone would put their horse at risk just for money.

It’s so sad that this cruel race still takes place and that people bet on it and pay to watch it. And many other races in which horses die. There is so much cruelty in horse racing. An abominable ‘sport’.

Dreadful. In the future- not too distant, I hope, commentators will look back with appalled amazement at what we do to animals in the name of ‘sport’.

It’s all about the money, racehorse owners from the rich Arab states, the stud farms and of course the connection to royalty. The whole thing is barbaric. Quite apart from the unnecessary deaths, they are supposed to be limiting the use of whips, not that you’d have known that from the way some of those jockeys were lashing their mounts today.