All you have to do is read Jane Allin's article Gene Doping in the Equine Athlete: The New Normal in the “Art of Cheating”? to see what today's horse racing is the U.S. is all about — doping and cheating. Cheating and doping are of course only two of today's horse racing's multitude of sins.… Continue reading Should today’s horse racing worry about its digital counterpart?
Tag: racehorse welfare
Horse racing off and on
Horse racing is continuing in many parts of the world despite the Coronavirus threat. However, more race venues are beginning to cease racing. While these track closures continue, there is great concern about what racehorse owners will do with horses who are not racing. It is a costly enterprise maintaining a racehorse, and no one… Continue reading Horse racing off and on
‘Making some changes’; Horseplayers association to re-engage
PRESS RELEASE (Nov 26, 2019) The Horseplayers Association of North America, a group that has tackled issues affecting bettors such as takeout rates and signal availability, is in a “fluid situation” as far as its future, says HANA President Jeff Platt. The group, which had annually released horseplayer-centric track ratings since 2009, never updated for… Continue reading ‘Making some changes’; Horseplayers association to re-engage
Horse racing quote from days gone by about Bute holds up equally today
While most of the debate on drugs in horse racing is currently focused on Lasix / Salix, the anti-bleeder medication given to every single horse who races in the US with very few exceptions, little is being said about Bute. Bute is the drug most identified when discussing injury-masking drugs and racehorses. In a previous… Continue reading Horse racing quote from days gone by about Bute holds up equally today
Former jockey Stevens takes zero-tolerance stand on raceday medication
“I did whatever I had to do to show up, whether is was injections in my knees or whatever,” Stevens said. “My career ended much earlier than it should have had I given myself the proper amount of time to heal up every time I was hurt. I didn’t know how bad I was hurting… Continue reading Former jockey Stevens takes zero-tolerance stand on raceday medication
Witness list for congressional hearing on raceday medications
A subcommittee of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce will conduct a hearing on health and safety issues in horse racing April 30. The hearing is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. The last congressional hearing on horse racing was held in June 2008 and dealt with similar issues, including equine medication. WITNESS LIST… Continue reading Witness list for congressional hearing on raceday medications
Kentucky Derby: Racing with 22,000 pounds of trouble
"The 20-horse Derby field lets in owners who should be eating hot dogs at Beulah Park in Ohio. Few of the half-dozen or more undeserving horses racing in the Derby are ever heard from again. You say you had a horse in the Derby? So did around 200 others last decade. So writes Jay Cronley… Continue reading Kentucky Derby: Racing with 22,000 pounds of trouble
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… Continue reading Thoroughbred aftercare: a new legacy for Barbaro
AAEP White Paper: Putting the horse first in racing (US)
Cross-posted from The Thoroughbred Times -- Article entitled "Veterinarians make safety, welfare recommendations" AS INDUSTRY LEADERS continue to emphasize equine safety and welfare, the American Association of Equine Practitioners has issued guidelines. The AAEP on Monday released a white paper, “Putting the Horse First: Veterinary Recommendations for the Safety and Welfare of the Thoroughbred Racehorse.”… Continue reading AAEP White Paper: Putting the horse first in racing (US)
Racehorse welfare spotlighted in Commons (UK)
Race horse welfare has been put under the political spotlight with a series of hard-hitting Parliamentary Questions by Lib Dem MP, Mike Hancock. Cross-posted from Horsemart, UK (19 Dec 08) The Member for Portsmouth South has this week also tabled a Commons Motion (see Notes below) demanding that the government press the racing industry to… Continue reading Racehorse welfare spotlighted in Commons (UK)