WELL SAID, Diane! It has been far too easy for FAR too long to brush the old platers aside with a casual "I have no idea what happened to that old nag". We know, though, that's far from true. Every trainer should know where every horse in his barn is at any given moment, and horses seldom de-materialize from barn to slaughter house without the complicity of those responsible for its' care. If the tracks hit 'em in the pocketbooks for participation in this travesty, they WILL come around. If you fine 'em they will come 'round.......badly paraphrased, but you have the idea already.

THANK YOU AGAIN, and WELL DONE!

Great article - I do what I can to help, but we need to continue to make people aware of what goes on with our horses when they are no longer able to earn their way at the racetrack. Stories of the well known slaughterhouse victims such as Exceller and Ferdinand are no more heartbreaking than this story about Falcon Fury, had it not beem for the intervention of the caring people involved. Horseracing, a sport I love dearly, should be embarassed and humiliated by these stories and continue to mandate changes like those outlined above.

This article touched a nerve and brought a tear to my eye. Its a sad reality of what many racehorses face unbeknownst to many horseracing enthusiats and horse lovers. What can we do as private citizens who are not in the horse racing business or have the facilities to care for these magnificent animals other than making donations to horse retirement farms?

Thank you Diane for helping this horse out of a dire situation.

Since Suffolk announced their zero tolerance policy for anyone sending their horses to slaughter, I think, other tracks need to follow suit immediately, in order to prevent the industry from having to deal with more negative headlines.

I hope Delaware will set an example that will send a strong message.

Thank you for sharing this info as I was not aware these things were going on.  I am furious too, this treatment must NOT be tolerated.  These horses give us their ALL, we owe it to them to find them loving, caring homes, when they leave the tracks.

Sincerely,

SKW

Thank you, and well said!

An owner, a trainer, and an assistant trainer proved to me last week that there are enough good horsemen left to make a difference. If all racetracks would adopt a policy to help horsemen handle “unwanted” horses, they would be supporting the kind of horsemen needed to secure the future of our sport. If all tracks would adopt zero-tolerance for shedrow-to-slaughter practices, they would be moving toward eliminating the participants that do not belong in our industry

Thank you Diane!  Good article!

Thank you so much for this article. We have known for quite some time that this pipeline exists, but we really need to get the word out!

Please call your US congressman and ask them to cosponsor HR 6598 to end transport to slaughter and all the cruelty it involves!

A huge "IT'S ABOUT TIME!!" as well as a bigger "THANK YOU!!" to the tracks, trainers, owners and others who are stepping up and doing the right thing.

As the proud owner of very well-bred, winning TB gelding who is now my wonderful show hunter, I cannot tell you how happy it makes me to see tracks FINALLY taking action on this dirty not-so-little secret.

Obviously, a non-winning horse doesn't pay the bills and is a financial drain to its connections. But it shouldn't have to pay for its sin of slowness or injury with its life. Sending a horse down the road for a few bucks is NOT the answer, particularly when non-racing homes can and will pay more for horses who can go on to other careers. All that is needed is an outlet.

Wonderful groups such as CANTER, RE-RUN, FLTAP and others have already shown the way. The rest of the racing industry needs to pull up their big boy pants and STEP UP. It should not fall to volunteers -- who often have no connection to racing other than a love of the Thoroughbred -- to take care of your cast-offs.

As every one of us who owns an OTTB knows, they may not be stakes winners, but they don't deserve to be steaks.

Thank you for printing Diane Mc Clures article.  It is heartwarming to see long overdue attention being paid to the dark side of racing.

In the 1980's I had a farm in Maryland and was breeding Thoroughbreds for the track.  After getting an insiders view of the Thoroughbred industry and seeing killer buyers taking yearlings and aged broodmares that had produced 6 to 10 foals for their owners at the breeders sales, I decided to pull out.  I kept my last 3 foals who are now in their 20's who have been terrific pleasure horses and are helping in a riding program for the handicapped.  But, I still dispair of the ones I let go and have lost track of.

I am now living in a border town in West Texas and watch truckloads of slaughter horses come through every day on their way to Mexico.  I have visited the border pens and seen young healthy fat horses in the slaughter pens.  Why are we breeding more than we need?  Greed can be the only awnser.

Last summer I purchased a mare and foal from the local sheriff's sale that were headed for slaughter.  With  help reading her tatoo from Jim Gowen of the Thoroughbred Racing Protective Bureau, we were able to identify her as Melody, a Kentucky bred mare, by Slew City Slew out of Jot and a $15,000 Keenland yearling.  She started twice, with 2 seconds and winings of $17,000.  Her next appearance is at a Fasig-Tipton sale in Grand Prarie, TX where she sold in foal for $1500.  She has no registered foals but the vet says whe has had more than one foal.  

This suggests she was taken to the border where there are illegal match races.  Her last owners were convicted drug dealers who ran horses at the match races.

When I got her, she and the foal were emanciated and in such poor condition she had no milk.  She is now a beautiful, kind and very well mannered horse that we are getting ready for the handicapped program.  She is finally starting to trust again and has quit waiting for the other shoe to drop when she is handled.

I often ask.  where were her breeders?  How did they let this happen to such a wonderful gentle animal?  

Please, keep after the irresponsible people in racing that see the horse only as a way to make a buck and do not value them for the beautiful kind and giving animals they really are.  The Thoroughbred has been bred for years for his great heart....where is ours?

I'm proud of Suffolk in their efforts. Up here in New Hampshire, a greyhound track actually built a rescue close to the track (funded by owners, trainers and the track) to house dogs when they retire while homes are found for them. Maybe each track should think it over...a sport that depends on animals to run their business is also responsible for their welfare.

That HBO documentary really hit home with me, as well. The filly featured in the video had absolutely no physical ailments; she just didn't run fast enough,and no one made any effort to place her in a new home.She ended up in a slaughterhouse. If racing wants to attract the families to their sport, the way Las Vegas has, it is going to have to address this problem, and the medication problems. Money can be filtered from many different areas of the sport in order to provide for the unwanted horse. And owners and trainers need to have due diligence when selling or placing their retired stock so that situations like the one with the 46 horses from Warrens Thoroughbreds in Hemet, CA do not take place. Mr. Warren swears that the man he sold them to  said they would go to good homes, but there they are, at an auction in Arizona. It is sickening that these animals, who provide a damn good living to a lot of humans are just discarded like yesterday's wet newspaper. Please keep the pressure on the powers that be do be diligent about the plight of the former racers. And yes, I own one from the track, retired with a broken hock. He is a delight and a joy and I'd take in more if I could afford to.

Thank you for exposing what really goes on on the backside! There is absolutely no excuse for sending racehorses (or any other type of horse) to slaughter.

A huge thank you to Suffolk Downs for looking out for the horses. It's now time for all other tracks to follow Suffolk Downs' lead and ban the killers. Our horses deserve better than a one way trailer ride to the nearest slaughter plant.

I remember the day my dear gelding bowed a tendon in a race and while I stood by his side waiting for the trailer to come to take us back to the barn I saw the face of the well-known killer buyer at our track watching us, like a vulture.  Using some language, not suitable for this blog, I told my partner to tell him to stay away from our barn.  

My point is that they are everywhere.  Everyone knows who they are and they are not run from the backside.  They park their rigs and they wait.  I applaud the tracks that are sending them down the road, but not all tracks are like that.  "Killer buyers" are accepted.  Everyone knows them, even track officials, yet no one where I race does anything about them.  It sickens me to know they are crawling through the barns, paying $150 and going on their merry way.  

By the way, my big boy now lives the life of luxury as a yard ornament.  He occasionally goes for a trail ride, but mostly he sits, fat and happy, being loved by his owner.

Diane, how do officials know these horses won't be euthanized if returned to their original owners?  

Of those you checked and found tattoos, could you find their breeders? Do you call them and tell them to come buy their horse back?

Seems like there needs to be more infrastructure. Dollars automatically allocated from all purses. Those drug laws enforced for all athlete horses and in all races. Dedicated rescues with paid staff who are affiliated with each track so no one is left guessing what happens when a horse is injured or too slow. Like the one horse who had a guarantee on his registry papers, but people didn't know or ignored them and the horse ended up in a livestock auction.

Surely horsemen can see when an animal is crippled in all legs and know he can't race? Outlawing performance and pain drugs will help that too.

Maybe instead of only the breeder being responsible, everyone who profited or made money on the horse should be. Like those collective owners groups, and brokers and dealers. People will know now that if they have any dealings with a race horse, they will be responsible for it at some point in its life.

What happened to Fury?

Once again tears are falling as I try too read... This is a post that needs to be seen, thank you Diane. The pressure must not let up, the owners must be made to, whether by rules or Federal Law,  never be able to let these horses go to slaughter. And the Bill to stop the transport of equines over our borders for slaughter must be passed. My big mouth and I have worked long & hard to get the plants in the US shut down. But it's not over yet. Thanks to all the tracks that have supported the welfare of the horse above the $$. Everyone must keep the pressure on so all tracks will follow the same path. Media pressure creating and stirring public awareness is the best way. Another thing would be to put a name to the Owners, trainers etc. that sell to these horrific kill buyers. Name them, let the fans know where these poor horses came from and how and where they ended up.... That would surely be a huge step.

Thank you for a piece that speaks the truth, and the comments that followed.

We keep hearing from a wide demographic of Americans that horse slaughter is a disgrace, that dumping Thoroughbred race horses at kill auctions is an embarassment that needs to stop.

A lot of rescue work is funded outside the industry, and there are a thousand wonderful stories of rescued horses with big hearts thriving in second careers. Inside the industry there is some positive change, but there is also an eerie silence punctuated by good news about favorable changes to Federal depreciation laws for race horse, to shorten their "useful lives;" a poignant phrase in light of the high % that go "from stable to table in 7 days."

I'd like to hear from the racing horsemen, the majority of whom are decent folks who truly love the Thoroughbred.

Evidence is overwhelming that the transport and slaughter of horses inflicts pain. After Eight Belles, anabolic steroids, and breeding for precocious speed without keying into soundness, now we hear the industry routinely slaughters maybe 37% of its equine athletes.

What is the industry doing - in 2008 - to fix the loss of fans and public relationss problem  slaughter has created? What's the industry doing to make the racing business more about the horse, as 2008 Hall of Fame trainer Carl Nafzger asked for yesterday in Saratoga?

 if ferdinand could go to the killer, then we should be aware of the fact that any horse could go.

fifteen years ago, the blood horse printed a letter of mine where i spelled out exactly what is being discussed today.

my response was prompted by an article dealing with raising reserves at auctions in california to make it more difficult for thoroughbreds to be bought by the killers.

now, as then,i would say that was putting the cart before the horse, because nobody was discussing the issue of the reasons why a race horse had to go to the auction in the first place.

all of us have witnessed the familiar scenario of a once productive horse tailing off in production due to the infirmities of age and or injury. the game of musical stalls is played with their lives until the last drop of blood is squeezed from them. then they go to the slaughterhouse. if that is the case for once productive race horses, what chance does a horse with little or no ability have?

i have experienced first hand the callous attitude by "horsemen" toward animals in their care. as an example, i was at a training facility when a mare was brought in off the track with an injury to a hind leg. i inquired as to the extent of the injury and was told that surgery would cost $1,000.00

my wife and i discussed it and we offered to pay for half of the surgery, but were told to wait to see what kind of breeding this mare had in order that she may have usefullness as a broodmare. the next day she was gone and i still remember what she looked like. she and others that i have known in similar situations are still painfully etched in my memory.

another point that i would like to make that is seldom mentioned in conjunction with the issue of horses going to the slaughterhouse

from the track is where it all starts.

i have written quite a few letters over the years to various horse racing publications regarding indiscriminate practices and never had one published, because it is a touchy issue and the powers that be are unwilling to bring it to the forefront.

i remember writing about one broodmare who had 16 or 17 foals and she was barren a couple of years. if my memory serves me well enough, i remember that ten of them earned a total of $200,000 collectively. ask the breeder where they went?

also, i would like to know why it is acceptable to breed 25 year old mares when they are chronologically as old as your great grandmother. every spring, numerous mares die as a result of complications of foaling. i would like to see somes statistics in regard to that fact.

in closing, i would like to make one more statement. i addressed this previously, but nobody wanted to listen. years ago,a horse won a prestigious race in this country and earned well over a half million dollars in his racing career. he broke down as $5,000.00 claimer and had to be euthanized, but his breeder had a 300 acre farm.

in the whole scheme of things, should not the two have come together with a happy ending for the horse?

Diane, great article, and if horses could thank you, they would for what you have done in this instance...it might be just enough to get the ball rolling.  In particular, tracks like Charles Town, Mountaineer and Penn National represent the "end of the line" for many horses, and I know of at least one adoption group that has worked in the mid-Atlantic area, with representatives at Charles Town. Maybe it's time for the tracks to consider helping these rescues/adoption groups get on firmer financial footing as they perform their vital mission of being a clearing house to move horses from the track to other endeavors.  A small percentage of the purse would go a long way.  And with the increased scrutiny on racing today, I'm not sure how they can avoid moving in that direction.  

We actually met about 14 years ago when I had a runner named Blue Scholar competing with your horse Newcometax (that lovely chestnut horse) in a few races at Charles Town.  Blue Scholar is now 19 years old and a happy camper on my farm just outside Ocala...its nice to hear about what you are doing to save horses.  Best of luck in your future endeavors!

All I can say it, that is about time!! Someone has to step up to the plate and save these wonderful animals.  I hope all tracks follow suite.  Thank you Diane.

The number of slaughter Tbreds would be reduced if not for: overbreeding cheap stock; trying to run cripples for some return, like The Green Monkey; too many horses at too many tracks; too many running on hard base tracks without vacation breaks on softer pastures.

Fortunately, this is all starting to gain national attention, everyone needs to keep speaking up.  People ran an article about it this week. As long as there are groups out there keeping this in the publics eye, things will have to change.  Kudos to Delaware and Suffolk.  All the tracks need to establish these policies.  Every little step will lead to a big change.

  One other thing.  the industry is concerned with a fan base.  Who wants to go to watch races when they know that more than 50% are going to killed for foreign plates.  It is a black eye for the sport and people need to speak up.

Amen!

Great article.  I find it more and more difficult to believe any owner, trainer, jockey, etc. when they stand up and say they love horses and yet have allowed horses to be slaughtered.  This is why racing is losing its fanbase - it is difficult to watch these beautiful animals and worry the whole time for the ones hurt or aren't "fast enough."  I donate money for rescues and do everything to support the passing of the anti-horse slaughter bills but I am so heartbroken that the very people breeding, training and racing horses, do not take responsibility for them - just the money they earn them.

I don't think there are any slaughter houses left in the United States. They have been closed.So unfortunately many horses will starve in empty fields because there are no buyers at the sales and people can not afford the cost of hay. I know of some people who walked away from the sales and just left the horses they brought. I think slow starvation and total lack of care are a worse fate than the slaughter house.

Diane,

Your piece is well conceived and well timed.  It raises larger questions too that must be addressed if this sport we all love is to survive.  I too favor some scaffolding within the system to fund and perpetuate a comprehensive plan to care for all horses throughout their careers and most importantly after their days on the track are over.  You are right to label this a core value.  If the industry does not take swift measures to eliminate those who would profit from the quick buck to be made from a suffering animal, it has no future.  The leadership void this issue represents must be filled, and it must be filled before it is too late to undo the damage.  How many more documentaries, more revealing lip tattoos, more seedy auctions do we need?

Many say they know who the killer buyers are or they know the trainers that send them there.  Writing articles and comments are nice, but if you really want it to stop step up and start naming names!

Are you part of the problem or part of the solution?

Joan R

Yes all the horse slaughter plants are closed in the USA; the states stopped horse slaughter. And we have laws to stop starvation. Pick up the phone and report it! The ones who walk away didn't care for the horse and should have never owned it in the first place. Would you care too see how they slaughter horses. Have a video would love to share it with you!

There is something about the out side of the horse, that’s good for the inside or sole of a man.

Winston Churchill

In response to JoanR ~ Humane euthanasia is the only way to go for some people. When they have exhausted all options, Humane Euthanasia is a viable option. Horse Slaughter is by no means Humane, just watch one horse slaughter video, you'll never be the same. Now while I think if one can afford a horse while it's healthy etc. ~ then one should be held liable for that horse having a dignified and content retirement ~ sometimes that isn't possible. But, slaughter is not the way. It is a living nightmare for these horses from the start til the end. If the horse must be put down, a vet will be much more humane. And God help me, don't say, what if they can't afford it? Then they should'nt have them in the first place.  

And TrackBum, that's what I say!! Name, names. I want to know these people. They wouldn't like seeing their names in print related to horse slaughter, would they? It is racings dirtiest little secret. Not so secret anymore, and more does need to be printed. Someone should start taking pictures on the backtrack, putting their faces out there for people to see.

What about the jockeys who are making millions of dollars, thanks to these horses? I don't know of one who has mentioned donating to retired TBs, although (as a previous poster mentioned) they all proclaim to love the horses.

There are plenty that donate to injured and retired jockeys funds. Nice of them to donate to their own, but how about they take some responsibility for giving to the injured and retired horses? And why doesn't anyone ever confront them on this issue?

Of course I too was sickend when I watched the HBO documentary and I'm truely glad that something is finally starting to be done about this horrific epidemic.  

But, I do have to ask the down the road question that we all do know "Will" happen.  

And that is...

What happens in 10-15 years from now we've got some 300,000 rescued horses to take care of because we couldn't find good homes for all of them ???

And then of course...Where do you house 300,000 horses ???

I mean...I know that we have to start somewhere and I'm glad that we finally are, but what then ???

Maybe at this same time we should also be addressing the flip side of the coin which is the over and excessive breeding that's causing all of this in the first place !!!

Maybe instead of 300,000 we'll only have to worry about 30,000 ???

Just a thought that our Industry will have to deal with eventually !!!

Kudos to Diane McClure and to the position taken by the leadership at Suffolk Downs!  I encourage everyone here to contact your Congressperson to ask for co-sponsorship fo HR 6598, the Conyers-Burton Bill (known as the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2008).

Part of this problem comes from stallions covering 200 mares a year.  The Jockey Club should start limiting books, but money talks and it talks LOUD!

If the Jockey Club set limits there would be less foals and  higher demand for foals of the top stallions.  This would make the sales more profitable and the foals more valuable, thus less likely to end up in the meat wagons.    A win win.  Not too many babies which turn in to "unwanted" horses and higher sale prices.  We also clean up our breed and get back to the Iron Horse by not producing genetically flawed horses that will have short careers.  "Breed the best to the best" and all that happy stuff.

We can cry all we want, but nothing will be done until the powers that be set limits for stallions.  A pipe dream?  You bet, but it's a start.  

No one wants to see any horses being slaughtered. But how are we going to find lifetime homes for the 25,000 or so Thoroughbreds not good enough for the breeding shed?

The Jockey Club, if they can mandate no A I then they can mandate a minimum standard for allowing a breeder to place a mare or Stallion in production.Should Stallions and mares who could not win a race be allowed to breed on? Or have been able to start a minimum number of races?  This one step alone would eliminate 30% or more of foals being born, and solve this huge issue of Thoroughbred horse slaughter.  

Diane,

Not to sound flip, but you just "recently" became aware of this pipeline?  How involved are you in the racing world?  This is not a dirty little secret.  Being a "Killer Buyer" is a profession!  They sit in the track kitchen and drink coffee every day!  They wander the grounds openly.  Everyone and I mean EVERYONE knows the Killer at the track.  

I, in no way, condone what they do, but you would have to be completely naive to have just recently become aware of the practice.  Come on, are you serious?  I know what the tracks are saying, but I find it hard to believe that once in awhile someone doesn't just turn a blind eye.  Am I bitter?  You bet I am.  I am a responsible owner, trainer, breeder and it pisses me off when I see the "Silver Bullet" completely loaded at our track and there is absolutely NOTHING I can do.  There aren't enough homes for these horses.  You can hardly give them away.  I breed what I can keep and hope they can run.  If they can't, they have homes for life because I don't get carried away.  Am I a millionaire or will I ever be one?  Not ever, but my horses run well enough and those that don't, well, it doesn't matter because I keep them anyway,  but I am the rare breed.  I actually care what happens to my horses.  

Track Bum, you want names?  Sorry, these blogs don't allow names.  The list is long and well known.  Once again, money talks and it talks LOUD!

Well said.  As an owner of THREE OTTBs, I can certainly vouch for their "retrainability."  In fact, I have one of each personality type, "crazy," "middle of the road" and "very quiet" - all have done well in the show ring and are great around the barn.  If I had the means I'd get a few more!  It's about time the industry does something even with Congress outlaw slaughter...still, what becomes of the unwanted?

I was raised in chicago and with exception of the last twenty years or so, chicago was considered to be a great horse racing town.

The daily newspapers always had something of interest to write about major races, jockeys, etc and race results from the tracks back east were always in the paper.

Some papers even had a daily horse racing columnist, but over time, the interest in racing diminished to the point that a beautiful race track like arlington park cannot get 5,000 people to attend on a saturday program out of a population of millions. That is a sad commentary about the state of racing in our country.

Those "in the know" state that this situation has taken place, because americans have so many other choices available to them. i could not disagree more.

Horse racing is my passion, but i love the horse more than i love racing. It was not easy for any of us to see shaker knit and mr. nickerson lay on the track for almost an hour and then a few races later, to see go for wand break down right in front of us and fall, only to get up and run again. those are very stark images that are not soon to be forgotten.

I have seen a lot of horses break down and one of my horses was the only of five in a group that did not go down one day. as much of my heart that i have given to horses and being aware of the fact that there are a lot of people out there who feel as i do, it is almost impossible to convince the average person that horse racing is other than how they perceive it. cruel and crooked.

And why not? Newspapers sensationalize the negatives such as horrible spills, but i have not seen anyone in my local newspapers use their journalistic skills to publicize the plight of the thoroughbred and the vast numbers of them whose last van ride is to the slaughterhouse.

In contrast, these same "journalists" will spend days and numerous paragraphs in regard to dog fighting rings.

In closing, i saw a picture in the sport's section of the chicago sun times last year and it showed a picture of a horse in a steeplechase race going over a jump. the horse didn't make the jump and he became airborne with his nose almost touching the ground and his whole body perpendicular to it.

I would like to know what chance a half ton animal has, to survive such a fall, with the major impact area being it's head and neck?

The picture said it all. If a major newspaper could show such a photo, then that paper is not even worth putting on the floor to housebreak a puppy.

If it was, it would have become involved in the issue that the subject of this blog page is all about.

I am hearing many comments that continue to identify the problem, which is what to do with unwanted race horses, but very few that offer viable solutions. The people posting on this board are responsible horse lovers. In a perfect world, that would be the only people who would own horses. Unfortunately, we don't live in a perfect world. We live in a world where there will always be people who exploit horses, other animals, and even people, as a means to an end, for financial gain, or for their own enjoyment. We also live in a world where free trade is a right, and we cannot legislate who can and cannot breed their horse. Not everyone is educated or responsible about whether or not their mare or stallion should be bred.

The solution needs to come from the top levels ( a central organization) and mandate that each track hold back a small percentage of it's winnings to go into a retirement fund for these unwanted horses. Then, each state that has a track or tracks (Ideally each track) will have a retirement facility that will be funded by the tracks themselves. Owners who no longer want their horses after they race will have to pay a donation fee for their horses to be admitted to the retirement facility. At the facility, it can then be determined whether the horse can be rehabilitated, needs to be humanely destroyed, or should be permanently pensioned.

This has to be made simple and easy.  There MUST be a place for these horses to go to make room for more horses if racing is going to continue, particularly with the current state of the economy and the price of feed and fuel.

Racing Fan I need to disagree just a little here. There are very few Jockeys that make the kind of money your talking about. Very few. And those Jocks have to pay out to their manager, etc. The biggest percentage of any winnings goes to the Owners. And that is where the lifetime care of these horses and the responsibility should be. They bought the horse, sometimes for ungodly amounts of money, they reap the largest percent of the winnings, therefore should be ultimately responsible. I believe it is at least 60% goes to the Owners. The rest is Trainers, who need to pay their assistants, hotwalkers etc. then the Jocks. If I'm wrong here, please tell me. The bottom line is, the Owners should be held accountable......

Great article! What the racetracks really need to do is voluntarily donate 1% of purse money to people who rescue racehorses. Woodbine is the only racetrack in North America to do this and lots of racehorses are being saved.

Thank you for bringing this out into the open. I recently bought an emanciated mare and her foal from a slaughter buyer here in Cortez, Colorado.  I am aware of the BLM's plan to indiscrimately sell off excess mustangs to potential slaughter buyers but was not aware that the same thing is going on in the racing industry.

Honestly, I can't believe any fan of racing does not already know that horses sometimes go straight from the track to auction.  However, I am encouraged that there are continuing, and significant efforts being made to place these horses in suitable situations after their racing days are over.  I watched this type of evolution occur with racing Greyhounds, which used to be shot and dumped after their racing days.  Many are now placed in loving homes upon their retirement thanks to several organizations and alot of education.  Certainly due to the fact that horses are.. well... HORSES, it's much more difficult.  I rescued 4 horses from a local auction here about 2 years ago.  The time, money and emotional investment it required to get them rehomed was huge, though ultimately rewarding. I will continue to support the tracks, trainers, owners and individuals involved in saving these horses in any way I can.

We've heard it all, time and again. Every racehorse was intentionally bred to exist. The problem starts with too much breeding - or "product" - as the business owners call them. Today businesses and their owners are in it to make $$ only. Racing was called "The Sport of Kings" because it was a hobby for the wealthiest who enjoyed the prestige and competition of the sport among their peers. HR is losing its identity as a sport - replacing it with an image of cheats, greed, and cruelty. Horsemen and women need to step up to reclaim responsibility and ownership to regulate this industry. Before owning or reaping profit, the first requirement of all horsemen is the welfare and life-long care of the creatures they have created.  

Everyone is making good points.  Being a life long TB owner, rider, trainer and breeder I am all to familiar with the process of trying to find homes for horses that need to move on.  The biggest problem is finding people that can handle a TB.

I have given many away and about 50% came back because the new owner was "over horsed".  TB's are very emotional and sensitive and can be too much for the average person to handle. Performance trainers won't take them (even for free) because of the time investment in putting enough miles on them to be suitable for the average rider.  

When I was showing hunters, everyone rode a TB and people were really good riders.  Now they all want "Dumb bloods".

We now out of the business have 2 retired race horses that we trail ride and I wouldn't throw my leg over anything else.

The only way this "industry" will change is by exposing what really is going on. Exposure,exposure and more exposure will be the only thing that will shame them in doing the right thing for this beautiful animals.

Everyone, please read this Bloodhorse article. This sets a great precedent, hopfully just the beginning of a great partial solution. This is simply fabulous and something the NTRA could get behind and sanction as well....

news.bloodhorse.com/.../46476.htm

I'm very glad to hear  about this documentary, what Diane had to say, and what racetracks are helping their horses.  But, I would be much more happier if she told the name of the Del Park trainer.  The people that sell at the lower end auctions,and don't care if their horses go to a killer buyer need to be exposed!  Horse slaughter is about greed.  Squeezing the last $ out of the hide of the poor horse.  Don't let anyone say it's about neglect or abuse (Bother were alive and well  while slaughterhouses were operating!)The thoroughbred industry must begin to expose the people that support slaughter, the race tracks that don't take care of their own, and the tracks that don't adopt the new rules being put forth by the NTRA!  Thank you.

I agree with track bum completely.  I have been associated with Maryland tracks for many years, I don't know who the killers are or the trainers involved.  If people truly know then names need to be out in the public, then perhaps at least the trainers can be shown a different avenue.  I doubt much can be done to change the minds of the shippers and buyers involved though.

Thank you for bringing this to light.  We need more PR on this matter.  Sadly, it's a difficult situation to deal with, as horses are not like cats and dogs, more expensive....harder to find homes for.  As with all animals, responsiblity lies with owners/breeders who need to realize this is a life, not just a "buck".

This sordid business is not new. We need to finally get down to brass tacks and really do something. We need to become active in pressuring the horse industry to become responsible breeders by limiting the numbers of new foals and by making sure that horses from their operations are followed over their lifetime, are treated humanely and are provided for throughout their lives.

Give to any horse welfare organisations you can. It doesn't have to be a lot. Every bit counts.

For a real look at the day to day struggle for horse welfare, go to www.tbfriends.com and read Joe Shelton's daily journal. This guy has one of the largest horse rescue facilities in California if not in the United States. He talks the talk and walks the walk. He is not supported by any of the traditional horse support charities because he prefers to have the freedom to make the choice to save whatever breed or horse he wishes to and to be critical in print if need be. It's all about the horses with him. If Joe can't take them himself, he goes to extreme lengths to place horses. A great place to put your money! Every penny goes to horse welfare at TBFriends.

We can do this. One horse at a time. Let's get busy.

I have heard from farriers for years that this goes on.

I adopted an ex-race horse with the idea that he was a pet and I would have him until one of us died.  He foundered and I had to put him down when he was twenty.  But we had many great years together.

Many of you have hit on the origin of the problem...Overbreeding. I am not one to tell anyone that they can't buy a couple of horses and try their luck, however stallion books should be limited. When I got into this business 60-65 mares a year was about the max for each stallion. Demand was high and so were the prices, there should be a limit each year on stallion books, money funded from SOMEwhere in these horses lives, and follow through at the end of their careers. But we must start at the begining..As always it's the money that stands in the way of change. We need to lower our prices if thats the case, have a cap or something, or enforce logical laws in amount of horses bred.

Rhonda in Saskatchewan. thanks for the tbfriends link.  UNBELIEVABLE what one man can do!!! Imagine if this farms in KY did as much.  We wouldn't have horse rescue to complain about!  I'll be sending money to him asap.  Talk about being on the frontlines of this issue!  How many millions is the TRF sitting on?  Joe Shelton sure could put it to use!

I am telling you that horse racing is going to continue to seriously fade from the racing public if owners and trainers are not held responsible for their horses.

That slaugher documentary was a giant wake-up call for all of horse racing.

What happens next?

Believe me, that video made a tremendous negative impact.

There needs to be a registry for horses that are not racing. Once they are off the track they are not traceable.

It would be a simple thing to tranfer their records to a (for example) Thoroughbred sporthorse registry.

There is no registry for these horses after they leave the track. If they survive, their names are most likely changed many times.

It's a small detail but one more brick in a wall to help these great horses live out a full life.

Why don't people start addressing some of the problems that beget the slaughter problem? First: over breeding. State incentive programs encourage the creation of far more horses then the market can bear, and what do you expect to happen to all these horses that no one can care for? It's always the 'little guy' at the end that gets the bad rap, but how about speaking to large breeding farms about the number of horses they're breeding? O - I forgot, because they run the industry and make all their money over-breeding.

 Secondly, instead of focusing on steroids, why don't people focus on the practice of "veterinarians" injecting joints, so that by the time a horse hits the bottom ranks they're too crippled to be anything else. I abhor slaughter in all forms (I'm a vegan) but lets start making real, tough changes from the top down that will help eliminate the problem of mass quantities of unwanted horses at the bottom.

Thanks for saving Fury I looked up his pedigree and he is a descedant of the great Secretariat. It is a shame that these beautiful animals end up in these bad situations. People have to take better care of these horses. Thanks so much for saving him; where did he go? Also, there were 15 other horses mentioned in the article that were at the Sugarcreek auction; what happened to them? 

I am so glad the computer wouldn't let my first post through. I was so livid, I was almost incomprehensible.

Because of this article, I am now a contributor to Thoroughbred Charities. Something good off the bat! And will check out TBfriends as well.

I can remember, when I first started following racing, in the early sixties, that I thought the foal crop number was immensely huge (the number I remember was 20,000 per year). Now, it is 40,000. Why?

I think a cap is a good idea. Why 60 mares a year, why not 20? I was raised with the idea of "breed the best to the best". With that many mares a year, how can you figure out the best?! And, yes, it is greed, one hundred percent!

I also wish to offer kudos to Suffolk Downs.

I knew that horses ended up in slaughterhouses, for dog food I was told, but, until the last decade or so, thought purebreds were immune. I never liked it, but knew that I couldn't change it. It was an acceptable practice that just wasn't talked about. So little girls like me wouldn't get upset.

The slaughterhouses are not closed, most are also for cattle, sheep, etc., and the amount of horses would not force a closure. My state, Colorado, looks to be ready to pass a bill that will stop horse slaughter for "overseas shipment for human consumption". The legislator, however, informed me that this would not stop the slaughter completely because of the dog food business. So, it will still go on. And the shipment of horses for slaughter going over the border to Mexico or Canada, though they may be bought in the U.S., will not stop. It's still a case of greed. This can only stop when the owners, purebred or not, take responsibility and stop over-breeding. It is a problem and always has been. Greed is, unfortunately, not something that the human race seems to be able to breed out of themselves.

This can, however, be changed by people who are dedicated and willing to do the work necessary to get it done. It won't be easy and it won't be overnight, but it can be done. Let's go, troops!

when did HBO air Running for Their Lives? I missed it.

Thank you Ms.Diane McClure for writing about the dark and cruel side of horse racing.

Hopefully more and more concerned horse racing fans and the general public will become aware of the terrible end many of these horses face when their racing days are over and demand that something be done to save these animals from slaughter and becoming somebody's dinner.

A horse is not a "thing" that one simply disposes of when one no longer has use for it.

Money maker or not, unwanted horses should be able to retire to a safe place where they are cared for and can live out their lives.

Let's find a good solution quickly for this sad situation and put a end to the brutal killing of these horses.

Thank you all for your comments and support. I am happy to report that Falcon Fury is slowly recovering, he is now able to hand walk and graze daily. He still has several months of stall rest ahead of him, but he is happy and doing well. We will provide him with a forever home and make sure he never suffers abuse again. It is very rewarding to know that Delaware Park has installed a new policy whereby trainers are aware that horses signed out of the track had better not "disappear" with out risking serious repercussions threatening their privileges at the track. If every track would "step up" we would be make huge progress!