Everybody knows
That the world is full of stupid people
So meet me at the mission at midnight
We’ll divvy up there.
- Banditos by The Refreshments
I don’t know what’s up with the music kick today, but my two favorite things (music and sport) are intersecting in my mind. So get over it, and enjoy humming that song and telling people all day that your alias is Jean Luc Picard of the United Federation of Planets (’cause they won’t speak English anywayyyyyyys).
The stupid people I have in mind right now are the brain trusts that run PETA. They think that the jockey might have known of Eight Belle’s broken ankles before she crossed the finish line in yesterday’s Kentucky Derby, yet continued to run her hard to the finish line They also say that, regardless of that, he was “mercilessly whipping” her. The group wants the jockey suspended pending an investigation, a return of the prize money ($400,000) by that great horse’s owners, and among other things, a whipping ban, limits on number of races and age, and softer surfaces. They are also saying that the horses are raced too young, which is equally ludicrous because only three-year olds are allowed to run the Derby to begin with.
Can’t we just pretend that the horses are racing instead? That way no one gets hurt and no horses are ever out of their comfort zone. We could all pay money to go to the track, gather around making a big fanfare, and then bet on horses that don’t exist … then we can draw straws to see which one we are going to pretend won! YAY! Man, that sounds boring.
First, horses are animals, and trust me, I love horses more than most people. I was raised on a horse farm (not for thoroughbreds), riding and helping train them since I was small, and I find horses to be the most magnificent animals on the whole planet. They are incredible, and they are smarter than we think. I have seen horses showboat and crave attention, even basking in the thrill of victory over something as small as a horse show. I think that if these Derby horses could talk, they would have this going on in their heads. They aren’t stupid. Second, these horses are born to run. They were bred for it, and it is in their blood and ingrained on their DNA. It is all they know from the time they are old enough to begin their training. They get hurt, just like any other athlete and just like a horse can have an accident in a field. PETA needs to quit grandstanding and trying to take advantage of this misfortune for their own agenda. Their website says horse racing is “cruelty that masquerades as sport” and they are calling for the end of thoroughbred racing completely! Hilarious.
One commenter on a PETA blog post on the subject even said:
I know you’ll think I’m crazy but I love animals so much I feel this is a disgusting “sport” if you want to call it that. I think in cases where the horse dies (and let’s face it, it’s only for money) the jockey, trainer and owners should die also.
Eight Belles was a great horse, and it is a total shame she had to be put down. She was a filly, and running with the big boys in the Derby is not something for which they are known. She finished second. SECOND. To Big Freaking Brown, who any of you that watched the race know, was head and shoulders above all the other horses at Churchill Downs yesterday. She beat the other eighteen handily, and that amazing race she ran is what we should be celebrating.
People are outraged that she was euthanized over broken legs, but there really was nothing they could do. Those people from the owners, trainers, and jockeys down to the veterinarians LOVE horses, and they would do whatever is best for the horse, which would include saving it if they can. If a horse’s leg is broken, it only has a 50% chance of survival, and that is only after grueling surgeries. And EVEN THEN, the horse is going to have trouble. There are tons of complications that can arise: re-injury, infection, and trouble walking and distributing its weight. They are not like humans, as their bodies, especially their lower legs, are built completely different. It isn’t as simple as setting it, slapping on a cast, and handing it a couple crutches to limp around on for six weeks. And consider this: all that I just wrote is considering ONE leg. What are the odds of survival for a horse with two compound fractures? Eight Belles couldn’t even stand on one good front leg (like Barbaro) to get into the horse ambulance.
As their website indicates to me, maybe PETA should focus more on their fight against the use of live chimps in movies like Speed Racer. Leave the love of horses to those that actually love them.
Excellent post. I too love horse racing and horses in general. My father had a trophy named after him at the Germantown horse show and I went every year. I have a friend who has a stable on his property and another friend that has a horse his daughter rides in shows.
PETA is against any form of animal cruelty, or at least what they perceive as cruelty. If they really knew how well cared for most horses are, they’d keep their mouths shut.