Kentucky Derby Time ... and I hate it

[FlyersFan]

It's Kentucky Derby time again.
And I hate it.   I hate horse racing.
It's cruel and horseracing is a slaughter.  
800 or so race horses are killed every year because of the races.
The people dressing up in funny hats and drinking cool drinks are clueless.

A shout out to Eight Belles (RIP) who broke both her front ankles after crossing the finish line in the 2008 Kentucky Derby.  I havent' forgotten.  But apparently those at the Derby now don't care.

That's my rant.

(and I feel the same about dog racing as well)

Horses begin training or are already racing when their skeletal systems are still growing and are unprepared to handle the pressures of running on a hard track at high speeds.[sup]5[/sup] Improved medical treatment and technological advancements have done little to remedy the plight of the racehorse. Between 700 and 800 racehorses are injured and die every year, with a national average of about two breakdowns for every 1,000 starts.[sup]6[/sup] According to The Jockey Club’s Equine Injury Database, nearly 10 horses died every week at American racetracks in 2018.[sup]7[/sup] At Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California, 37 horses died within a year, causing the Los Angeles District Attorney to conduct the first-ever criminal investigation into the culpability of trainers and veterinarians who medicate horses for soreness and injury and then put them on the track.[sup]8[/sup] Strained tendons or hairline fractures can be tough for veterinarians to diagnose, and the damage may go from minor to irreversible at the next race or workout. Horses do not handle surgery well, as they tend to be disoriented when coming out of anesthesia, and they may fight casts or slings, possibly causing further injury. Many are euthanized in order to save the owners further veterinary fees and other expenses for horses who will never race again.

Read more here - https://www.peta.org/issues/animals-in-e...ion-death/

[IdeomotorPrisoner]

I like the floppy sunhats and Del Mar opening day is freaking awesome. It's like time travelling back to when you actually could still take a plane there. 

I know it's cruel. All animal exploitation sports are. They work them too young and euthanize them for the bodies they break. Or drug them and then euthanize them.  And make a fortune off horse eugenics. Only horse PEDs make a 5000 dollar stock horse a derby winner and it really is a sport of playing equine god.  Our entire species is a sport of playing god over animals though. 

But derby outfits are so much fun. As are all excuses to play dress up.

[Maxmars]

I found that the adage by which all hotwalkers live is most telling:

"Live by the shank, die by the shank."

Those I spoke to all seemed to agree that horses are NOT friendly... and they will
from time to time, "decide" to hurt you.... because they can.  

A sort of mean bully streak.

I juxtapose that up against the farce of a life horses are compelled to live... and well...
let's just say I didn't feel overly sympathetic to the racetrack staff's struggles with thoroughbreds.

[UltraBudgie]

Apropos of that, here is a video that is funny.

[LeeroyTheRooster]

I'm going to chime in, I grew up around thoroughbreds and trotters.   Most do have a bad temperament,  it's all in how they are brought up. If you have a "pet" racehorse of any kind, that's exactly what it what is... a pet. We had one when I was young that didn't do good on the track because it was "too tame" so to speak... he got sold off and became a polo horse, and from what I heard he did good there.  Our other two  horses did pretty good and won races. One was Breeders Cup Nominated. The only thing that changed was we didn't let all the kids pet and love on the other two. They knew one thing and one thing only, RUN!

[UltraBudgie]

Sovereignty first, Journalism second.

I think I've seen this movie before.

[FlyersFan]

Those I spoke to all seemed to agree that horses are NOT friendly... and they will
from time to time, "decide" to hurt you.... because they can.  

If I were a race horse and treated this way, I'd be hurting people too.

I've never liked horses and don't trust them.

[IdeomotorPrisoner]

Sovereignty first, Journalism second.

I think I've seen this movie before.

It's a synchnocity! 

What's going to happen now is some creature is going to crawl out of the slime and start attacking NATO.