Four dead horses in six days at Churchill Downs shows racing’s reality problem

It is the racing industry that should be in mourning, because its death seems imminent. Opinion | Yahoo! News | by Kathy Guillermo | 3rd May 2023 The first Saturday in May has been a day of mourning since 2008 when Eight Belles broke both front ankles after crossing the finish line in the Kentucky…

Five Kentucky Derby winners: Where are they now?

We came across a Paulick Report article that has a “where are they now and what are they doing” list of Kentucky Derby winners. We chose five. Funny Cide (2003) When Funny Cide (Distorted Humor) won the 2003 Kentucky Derby, he was the first gelding to do so since Clyde Van Dusen (Man o' War)…

Remember Barbaro

BARBARO, the 2006 Kentucky Derby winner, answered the starting bell at the Preakness Stakes, moments before jockey Edgar Prado pulled him up with a broken hind leg. Eight months later, he would die of the complications from that injury. Nothing has changed since the death of Barbaro and the tragic Eight Belles. More horses are…

Barbaro died 10 years ago today. What’s changed?

Barbaro died 10 years ago today. Barbaro's public breakdown, numerous treatments and eventual death should have galvanized horse racing into dealing with its equine athletes in a more ethical and compassionate manner. What's changed? Nothing. As a matter of fact, racehorse breakdowns and deaths are arguably worse. Cheating and drugging, fueled by greed and ego,…

Dynaformer, sire of Barbaro, dies at 27

Perhaps not coincidentally, Dynaforma, who sired Barbaro, died April 23rd, the date Barbaro was foaled. The Daily Racing Form reports: Dynaformer -- sire of 2006 Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro, multi-million-dollar earner Perfect Drift, and three-time steeplechase champion McDynamo -- has died two weeks after an aortic valve rupture prompted Three Chimneys Farm to pension him.…

Synchronised and According to Pete killed in the Grand National

Last update 8:33 pm The Daily Telegraph reports: It is the second time in two years that two horses have died in the Grand National. The deaths will reignite the controversy surrounding the sport. Millions of television viewers saw Gold Cup winner Synchronised and According to Pete fall at the sixth fence – Becher’s Brook.…

Thoroughbred aftercare: a new legacy for Barbaro

Ray Paulick writes the following in a post for the Paulick Report: On Friday, I suggested that time is running out for the industry to act on the long-neglected issue of Thoroughbred aftercare. On almost a weekly basis, our industry is being smeared, deservedly or not, by heartless cruelty to horses by what I can…

Fans of Barbaro help save his relation Dyna King

Cross-posted from Philly.com Sports Written by NATALIE POMPILIO The horse was scrawny and matted and so sick, he could stand for only minutes at a time. When Arizona animal-control officers found the thoroughbred wandering the desert last December, they considered immediately euthanizing the animal. But someone suggested they bring the horse to Judy Glore at…

Horse Racing: Breeding for Trouble

By JANE ALLINResearch Analyst, Int'l Fund for Horses “As the 20 horses were being loaded into the starting gate for the (2008) Kentucky Derby, with Eight Belles — standing in post position five— poised to make her bid to become only the fourth filly in history to win America's most important race, Ellen Parker, a…

In Memoriam: Caroline Jaffe

Written and submitted by Barbara Beck Caroline Jaffe Horse Warrior January 16, 1942 ~ October 25, 2009 Explaining what Caroline Jaffe meant to us is like explaining why you can’t have powdered water. What would you add? What can you add to somebody who has dedicated her entire life to giving? CJ, or Potlucky, as…