by Rena Sherwood

Created on: October 22, 2009   Last Updated: October 23, 2009

It is not cruel to let one horse run against another. Foals in feral herds have been reported engaging in racing games for fun and to help them develop the strength and agility they need to survive. The best weapon a horse has for survival is to outrun predators. But the Thoroughbred racing industry has taken this instinct to the extreme. It breeds unhealthy horses, uses cruel training methods and then destroys the same horses it used to promote.

The Decline of the Racing Thoroughbred

The roots of Thoroughbred racing began in the upper classes of England in the 1600's. By the 1800's, the stud book was closed. This means that there is a very limited gene pool that the entire breed is reliant upon. Once a gene pool is reduced, any potentially deadly recessive gene becomes intensified with each successive generation. Of the three legendary foundation sires, 95% of all Thoroughbreds existing today can trace back to just one - the Darley Arabian (which was probably not an Arabian but an Akhal Teke).

In recent decades, one sire has dominated the Thoroughbred racing industry - Northern Dancer (1961 - 1990). It's estimated that about 75% of all Thoroughbreds alive today trace back to just this one stallion. Thoroughbreds continue to be line bred and inbred with relatives in order to make them faster.

The payoff is a horse prone to catching illnesses, getting allergies such as grass sickness and having weak bone structure. They lack the soundness and sensibility that can be found in many other older horse breeds. They also are prone to genetic eye diseases such as congenital cataracts and progressive retinal atrophy.

Training Methods

Horses are not physically mature until they are about five years old. But in order to give their owners a return on their investment, Thoroughbreds are broken to the saddle when they are yearlings and begin racing when they are two. This is why there are so many lethal injuries - because a Thoroughbred is not physically strong enough to endure training and racing with a human rider.

In order to toughen up their legs, yearlings are pin-fired or blistered. Although these practices are declining, they are still considered normal training practices. In pin-firing, a red-hot pin is inserted into the legs to cause inflammation and theoretically make the legs tougher. Blistering is painting a chemical that makes the legs blister.

Horses are left in their stalls for 23 hours out of every 24, with only one hour for training. They may not even get a chance to graze because they are too valuable to risk eating common grass. And if they are not fast enough or strong enough, they are given steroids in order to increase their tolerance of exercise.

No Retirement Plan

Thoroughbreds can live to be 30 years old. However they are often retired when they are five. They are then discarded and usually sold to butchers. Owning a horse should be for the life of the horse, but this is not a consideration in the Thoroughbred racing industry. Horses are to be used and then discarded.

Even Kentucky Derby winners are not exempt from this contempt for their lives. 1986 Kentucky Derby winner Ferdinand was slaughtered in a Japanese abattoir because he failed to make money as a sire. He was sold to Japan in the first place because he did not make enough money for his owners as a sire in Kentucky.

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