Barbaro’s Fifth Birthday

Today marks what would have been Barbaro’s fifth birthday. Fans of Barbaro (FOBs) celebrated Barbaro’s fourth birthday in style, attending racetracks across the country to honor their champion. At Delaware Park, where many of Barbaro’s connections were in attendance, including his owners Roy and Gretchen Jackson, more than 700 people celebrated Barbaro’s life. During the festivities about $20,000 was raised for Throughbred Charities of America and awareness was further raised about the need to rescue horses from slaughter.

Barbaro’s short life and his passing have shone a bright light on horse racing issues.

Gretchen Jackson made it clear she wanted to continue to help end horse slaughter during the press conference held at New Bolton Center on Jan. 29, 2007. FOBs have now been engaged in this issue for more than a year and a half. They participate in daily phone calls to leaders in Washington and have gone to lobby in Washington, most recently as part of Americans Against Horse Slaughter this March. Domestic slaughter plants have been closed, but horses are being shipped to Canada and Mexico for slaughter.

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