Brutal ESPN Mag article

[FantasticDan]

"The Final Furlong".. just in time for Derby week. Tough stuff. :(

http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/horse/news/story?id=4104868

[Hajck Hillstrom]

...yet poignant.

[FantasticDan]

Indeed.

[46zilzal]

Sadly, I have accompanied the vet with assistant starters to more euthanasia challenges than I care to recall, but it is usually for the best. If there is the slightest chance of saving an animal (bad bow or a check ligament goes) they talk to the owner/trainer before doing anything. Poor animals are often out of their mind with fear and on occasion are very very vocal about it.

The major compound and comminuted fractures are simply done on the spot. Our vets blame the breeding more than our track (which, being a bull ring is at part the fault).

I have attended the Canadian Department of Agriculture lab in Abbotsford BC where the necropsy take place and have sat in on many pathology reviews with the Vet staff where joint pathologies were compared. It is amazing as to how much cartilaginous grooving takes place on what should be pristine joint surfaces both at the site of fracture or adjacent to it.

Knees and sesamoids are the most common fractures I have seen in two years working the gate.

[MickJ26]

"The Final Furlong".. just in time for Derby week. Tough stuff. :(

http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/horse/news/story?id=4104868


I am thoroughly depressed.
The section on Heelbolt is gut-wrenching.

[Cangamble]

The timing of that article is brutal if you ask me. I guess it was a tossup for ESPN between that one or an article on gambling related suicide.

[onefast99]

The timing of that article is brutal if you ask me. I guess it was a tossup for ESPN between that one or an article on gambling related suicide.
The timing was brutal to say the least.

[kenwoodallpromos]

I think it was a well-written article that did not slam racing, just gave many details.
With injuries close to the Ky Derby like Charismatic, Barbaro, Pine Island, Eigth Belles, I am not surprised a story of horse's deaths is put out.
It is to racing's discredit if it does not get pre-Derby stories out. With no undefeateds (a wide-open race), a near rookie in Talamo, near TC winners Borel, Elliot, Lukas, and Baffert; son of a vet and highly regarded Mott, and Funny Cide still on a track, there are a number of potential good stories to be told involving connections who are around much longer than Derby runners.

[dvlander]

I love watching horses run and I honestly believe that they love to run. Nonetheless, this article is gut-wrenching. I've always wondered why animals with such an otherwise beautiful physiology have such spindly legs that are subject to catastrophic breakdowns. Perhaps it is the breeding for speed that has left them so vulnerable.

Depressing for sure.

Dale

[strapper]

I do believe commercial breeding has been the culprit for our production of unsound horses. Too much inbreeding and doubling up on horses who didn't stand the test of time. Has anyone ever seen an Arabian runner break down? They don't run very fast but might hold up longer.

[46zilzal]

. Perhaps it is the breeding for speed that has left them so vulnerable.

\
Just observe the thick pasterns and fetlocks of an ARABIAN and you have guessed the answer.

[point given]

Just thinking outloud here, but I can't recall seeing horses breakdown in euro or aussie races. What is the injury rate over there vs here ? Is it the turf vs dirt and a harder surface that causes most of the injuries here ?

[stu]

It happens everywhere.

The Aussies may have a lower percentage. Appearances are dampened when you compare the number of races that we watch from here versus there.

Anecdotally, I remember seeing a horrific breakdown on the undercard of the Melbourne Cup (I think in 2007).

[WinterTriangle]

I love watching horses run and I honestly believe that they love to run. Dale

Running around pastures in KY is very different than running in races, haltered, led around, spending most of your time in a stall, schooling, etc.

Add all this breeding for speed and the drugs and all that isn't exactly adding to the production "the natural thoroughbred" is it? "They love to run" sounds like more of a natural kinda statement, is why I mention it.

[beertapper]

"The starting salary for a regulatory vet is about $55,000, with 10-hour days the norm. ""

i'm surprised the pay is that low... where's the incentive for that gig when you could open your own practice ??