The Aintree meeting thread

[kippax_blueboy]

what's the height difference between the National and Gold Cup fences, if any?

Horses die in Cheltenham

If Horse Racing didn't exist people would still bet and win money but on other pastimes / sports.

 

[ultimateharold]

What injuries to they kill them for?

Broken leg.

Why not let it heal?

 

[bluealf]

I hate this that people bet on horses winning, celebrate but horses have died.

The whole industry stinks. If these owners loved these horses they would'nt destroy them because they broke a leg. They would look after them.

If you can be arsed to read it.


Certainly some fractures are repairable, using modern developments such as bone plates and bone screws. But many are not. The explanation is complex and relates to unique aspects of the horse.

The principles of bone or fracture repair are the same across all species. In repairing a broken bone, the broken pieces need to be stabilised, held together, a healthy blood supply is needed and any infection needs to be controlled.

If this is achieved, then the break can heal and the bone will repair and regain its structural strength. In the past, a "plaster cast" was used to stabilise the break and more recently metal plates, pins and screws have been used.

These implants can restore strength to the broken bone and allow horses to move about and, to some degree, use a broken limb during the healing process.

In most circumstances, a broken bone will heal and regain its strength in 12-16 weeks, but other variables such as infection or movement can slow or delay healing.

In human surgery, the stability of the repaired fracture can be helped by keeping the patient confined to a bed and non-weight bearing during the 12-16 weeks’ healing period.

This is vital as uncontrolled weight bearing and movement to a fracture, before it has healed, can delay recovery and prevent a bone from healing.

This is one area where equine surgery is unique. Horses are big animals that do not tolerate long anaesthetic periods. They have an absolute requirement to be able to stand on all four legs.

This means, in practical terms, the surgery or operating time should not exceed three to four hours and that immediately after surgery, the horse must wake up from the anaesthetic and be able to use the repaired broken leg to stand and walk.

This requirement puts extraordinary demands on the repair and the implants and all equine surgeons have experienced the frustration and disappointment when, after hours of intricate surgery, the horse smashes its broken leg again and bends the metal implants when struggling to stand after the anaesthetic.

To try to prevent this, strong fibreglass casts are often used to help horses waking up from an anaesthetic. Nonetheless, everyone breathes a sigh of relief when it stands, as one hurdle has been passed.

A good blood supply to the broken bones is as important as stability and controlling infection in healing a broken leg. This blood supply comes from the actual feeder to the broken bone and is supplemented by the supply to surrounding tissues, such as skin and muscle.

This is another area where the horse is unique. Below the knee or hock, the leg is composed of bone, ligament and skin. Thus the blood supply to this area is already marginal as there are no muscles and therefore no associated supply.

This lack of an adequate blood supply is important as in some severe broken legs that occur during a gallop, that supply is also damaged beyond repair, which means even with metal implants and surgical repairs to the bone, it will still not heal.

That is why some high-speed catastrophic fractures in a galloping horse still cannot be repaired.

 

[kippax_blueboy]

I feel really sad for the horses, (and their connections), that died pursuing a sport that they LOVE and are bred for, but will not enter into a debate about with the uninformed and ignorant

and btw politics, or political views have nothing to do with this

How on earth can you call someone a imbecile and say others are uniformed and ignorant without knowing them.

Two horses die in a Horse race, these are facts.

700 horses dead in the last 4 years in races are facts.

yes 1000's of people are employed, horses enjoy racing but the fact 100's of horses die a year in the name of a sport that exists because people gamble on horses winning.
When these horses break a leg or come to the end of their useful life to their owners they are destroyed.

I am happy to debate this subject but without the name calling and misconceptions.

 

[ErlingHaaland]

Never liked horse racing due to what the horses have to go though . Give me the greyhounds any day !! ;-)

 

[Bradleymcfc]

I feel really sad for the horses, (and their connections), that died pursuing a sport that they LOVE and are bred for, but will not enter into a debate about with the uninformed and ignorant

and btw politics, or political views have nothing to do with this

How on earth can you call someone a imbecile and say others are uniformed and ignorant without knowing them.

Two horses die in a Horse race, these are facts.

700 horses dead in the last 4 years in races are facts.

yes 1000's of people are employed, horses enjoy racing but the fact 100's of horses die a year in the name of a sport that exists because people gamble on horses winning.
When these horses break a leg or come to the end of their useful life to their owners they are destroyed.

I am happy to debate this subject but without the name calling and misconceptions.

they are not destroyed at the end of there racing life you need to get your facts right.

 

[plongo]

kippax_blueboy

Just stop before you make even more of an arse of yourself

 

[kippax_blueboy]

I feel really sad for the horses, (and their connections), that died pursuing a sport that they LOVE and are bred for, but will not enter into a debate about with the uninformed and ignorant

and btw politics, or political views have nothing to do with this

How on earth can you call someone a imbecile and say others are uniformed and ignorant without knowing them.

Two horses die in a Horse race, these are facts.

700 horses dead in the last 4 years in races are facts.

yes 1000's of people are employed, horses enjoy racing but the fact 100's of horses die a year in the name of a sport that exists because people gamble on horses winning.
When these horses break a leg or come to the end of their useful life to their owners they are destroyed.

I am happy to debate this subject but without the name calling and misconceptions.

they are not destroyed at the end of there racing life you need to get your facts right.

Breeders often race horses as young as two. These horses lack fully developed bone structure, and are more likely to suffer injury.

Due to selective genetic pairing and breeding, many racehorses are born with fragile bodies to begin with. Selective breeding does not provide the gene pool with diverse enough genetic material to avoid genetic defects that arise largely as a result of inbreeding. Because jockeys race horses year round on hard tracks, which give less and are therefor harder on a horse’s joints and bones, horses incur greater injury risk. Large corporate breeders race their "investments" too often in pursuit of profit.

To keep horses racing through pain, handlers administer Lasix and Bute. These pain relievers numb pain, but do not treat the injuries that cause pain. Consequently, these injuries get worse. Horses that suffer severe injuries as a result of drug induced racing get sold to slaughterhouses, a more profitable venture for breeders than euthanization. These horses suffer long cramped rides to the slaughterhouse without painkillers, in unfit trailers. Handlers also use Lasix to mask the presence of illegal substances such as steroids.

A horse that fails to win also faces death in a slaughterhouse, where operators sell the horse's flesh overseas for human consumption, or provide horsemeat to glue factories.

 

[nijinsky's fetlocks]

I'm not an animal lover by any stretch of the imagination but I do find horse racing incredibly cruel. The horses are whipped to run within an inch of their lives and if one is unlucky enough to fall and hurt itself it's put down.

Don't talk out of your fuckin arse you clown.

He has a point...to a point...

Jumping is not cruel but it should be banned. I know of no other "sport" that regularly has to kill it's participants. Utter madness. Keep the flat racing though as the horses seem to enjoy it. Without the whipping would be nice.

Bob,you know I like you.
But you haven't got a fucking clue about National Hunt racing,so leave it to those of us who do,rather than jumping on the emotive bandwagon of ignorance.

 

[Mad Eyed Screamer]

Another 2 horses 'destroyed'.

Still, as long as nijinsky's fetlocks day wasn't ruined, then that's alright.

Edit
Ha ha ha!!! FATE! we both posted at 6.06pm!! It must be love ;)