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To Save a Life: The Greatest Feeling in Racing

Racing
#21

Read the recent article on Bloodhorse about millionaire Gallo and his participation in the Pegasus. "I view the horse business as a commodity. I don’t fall in love with the animal even though I think he’s a magnificent beast."

[I]His sentiments kind of left me with a bad taste in my mouth. Its clear; horse racing is a business and the horses in the business are vehicle to success. But I feel the “commodity” mentality is why this guy needs to be smacked upside the head with Steve Haskin’s article. If he feels so strongly about the horses being a commodity for his chance to have fun; I hope someone can get him to elaborate on his thoughts of aftercare, the amount of perfectly good TB’s traded to the killers every year, responsible breeding, responsible ownership. I would be curious to know if this guy has any concern for what happens to the commodities standing in his barn when his gamble doesn’t pay off

I agree; One of the biggest frustrations is that breeders do not take responsibility for the foals they bring into the world every year. When one of their foals eventually end up in a Kill Pen, very few of them will offer a dribble of cash towards rescue or humane euthanasia. It is only with the threat of public shaming for their lack of help that they finally step up to the plate the same goes for any connections associated with the horse. Nick Zito has rescued his horses out of kill pens (a few of them live at his house) and donates all of his retirees to aftercare organizations for second careers. He should be commended. This is an industry carried on the backs of horses; do right by them. [/I]

#22

Snaffle, that is one (albeit prominent) person in racing who didn’t edit himself sufficiently and sounds like a lout. He doesn’t speak for me and there are plenty more like him in other equine sports and barns everywhere.

Personally this problem is so vast, I don’t think the focus should be on the individual. Tracks can and should put protocols in place ("Don’t sell this horse to a “kill buyer” directly from our track) but at what point does their control stop? The trainer responsibility rule works because theoretically the trainer has control over his or her employees. But second and third owners aren’t anyone’s employees–how do you stop them from getting a horse gone that they don’t want any more? The first load of thoroughbreds that the woman in the Haskin article picked up from auction allegedly came from a breeding farm because the owner died. Unless the breeder also races, tracks have no control over what a breeder does. The state doesn’t license a breeder so there is no license to suspend.

There is also a part of this that is uncomfortably familiar to people who were on COTH ten or 15 years ago. Haskin’s article put the price (I’m sorry bail) at almost a thousand dollars a head. I went to Twitter and looked at the individuals. There are horses with severe injuries particularly one with horrible proud flesh on one leg. Last week at the Barretts sale, horses in good flesh and good health with papers went through and couldn’t get the $1000 upset price but tack a story to it and these horses came pretty close. I have an awful feeling that some of the sellers out there are exploiting a business model, just an updated version of the “truck is coming”. That’s not to say that these horses weren’t at risk and believe me I am sympathetic to people who want to save them all but when an unscrupulous seller senses that you want something more than the cost that the market will bear, the price will go up. Do it enough times and you create a market and sellers will go looking for TBs to entice you with. That may help the individual horses but it sure doesn’t solve the problem and it can make the cost of TBs artificially high for those people really looking for starter horses or horses to legitimately flip by adding value.

Finally people lie. I’m learning that now first hand because I have a horse to find a good home for. When you talk to other owners, some of the most extravagant lies have become legend like the handicapped program that didn’t exist or the little kids brought to the farm as props. This is not a simple thing.

3 Likes
#23

[I]we all know that when you support and buy from a KB you are furthering the cycle. These scam artists know they can charge top dollar for the horse and someone will rescue it. The question arises in “how do we, as an industry, keep it from getting to that point”. How do we keep horses off the kill lots and put a dent in their business model. If a horse is injured to the point that a second career is not an option; why don’t these trainers and ownership take responsibility and have the horse humanely euthanized.

Save it from the potential sad ending that it could likely end up with because 20+ years of a pasture ornament isn’t feasible for most adoptees who are looking for an OTTB. Lets be honest; these are the type of horses who get homed with someone looking for a pasture-mate and things don’t work out 5 years down the road and these are the horses who end up in the wrong hands. I’m not saying the crippled don’t deserve a chance at a second home but if the injury is that debilitating, why not do right by the animal

Many of these tracks have second career listings available to them. The following tracks either have their own listings for trainers or work with CANTER or have a CANTER affiliate within reasonable distance: Charlestown, Mountaineer, Finger Lakes, Suffolk Downs, PARX, Pimlico, Hawthorne, Golden Gate, [/I]Laurel, Delaware.

[I]CANTER has locations at the following: Arizona, California (north and south), Colorado, Washington, Michigan, Illinois, Kentucky, Chicago, Minnesota, Texas, Heartland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New England, Maryland, Delaware, West Virginia and South Florida

Out of all the above CANTER organizations; I hardly ever, ever see listings (or NEVER see listings) from Arizona, Colorado, Mountaineer, Washington, Illinois, Kentucky, Minnesota, Texas, Heartland, Ohio, and South Florida

So what happens to the thousands of horses raced every year at the following tracks that either don’t utilize their CANTER listings or don’t have an organization like CANTER to help the horses who just are not working out in their chosen career path. This is a lot of tracks with a lot of horses who appear to have no option. (Horses from the Louisiana tracks regular show up in the kill pens down there a few days shy of their last race):[/I]

Aqueduct- New York
Rillito Downs-Arizona
Turf Paradise-Arizona
Yavapai Downs- Arizona
Oaklawn-Arkansas
Fresno Racetrack- California
Los Alamitos- California
Arapahoe Park- Colorado
Tampa Bay Downs- Florida
Idaho Downs
Arlington Park- Illinois
Fairmount Park- Illinois
Hawthorne- Illinois
Hoosier Park- Indiana
Indiana Downs
Prairie Meadows- Iowa
Ellis Park - Kentucky
Turfway- Kentucky
Delta Downs- Louisiana
Evangeline - Louisiana
Fair Grounds- Louisiana
Louisiana Downs
Hazel Park - Michigan
Canterbury Park- Minnesota
Monmouth- New Jersey
Albuquerque Downs- New Mexico
Ruidoso Downs- New Mexico
Sunland - New Mexico
Zia Park- New Mexico
North Dakota Park
Belterra- Ohio
Hollywood- Ohio
Thistledown- Ohio
Fair Meadows- Oklahoma
Remington-Oklahoma
Portland Meadows- Oregon
Lone Star Park- Texas
Sam Houston- Texas
Emerald Downs- Washington

#24

You seem to be starting with the assumption that every Thoroughbred owner everywhere cannot wait to dump horses. Which is as false as it is purposely inflammatory.

There are lots of options for TBs coming off the track. CANTER is just one. COTH giveaways is another. There are several TB re-homing groups on Facebook, and many TB owners have connections with local re-homing groups. It’s also not unusual for TB owners to have interests in other equine disciplines that enable them to channel retired TBs into eventing or foxhunting homes (to name two.)

These broad generalizations serve no purpose. Every TB who stops racing is not at risk–any more than every horse that events will die in a rotational fall.

3 Likes
#25

[I]@Laurie B not exactly. I know there are plenty of great people in racing who love and care for their horses and try their best to find them suitable second careers. But for every good person, there is a lot of bad who go with it.

The racing industry has come a long way in the last few years thanks to social media and internet. Social Media has pushed tracks and ownership to be responsible while it has also helped them reach a broader fan base to support aftercare and 2nd careers.

I know that the slaughter figures on TB’s used to be far, far worse in the 90’s and prior when options for the horses were very few.

With that being said; many more TB’s ship direct to slaughter every year than those event horses or show jumpers who die from jumping injuries and rotational falls. Every week the Louisiana and bush tracks are shipping horses to the killers just days after their last races. Many of them never even make it onto social media for the overpriced rescue prices because they are kept hidden for a reason.

Correct, CANTER is one of many organizations who help these horses; I was using them as a starting example. But I am hard pressed to find any horses listed regularly from the above listed tracks and you would be hard pressed to convince me that the hundreds of horses who end their racing careers at these tracks every year end up retired with their owners or go to the breeding shed; surely some do.

Pushing New Holland aside; have any of you been to Sugarcreek or Unadilla sales barns in NY in the past year or two and seen the amount of TB’s that run through there? They never receive the cry for help like the ones who run through New Holland and they silently disappear. Many never even run through the sales barn

Like I said; the industry has made plenty of headway but it still has a long way to go. When the industry is foaling 25,000 foals a year it is no surprise that it is held under the microscope. [/I]

2 Likes
#26

The corollary to the original story

https://www.paulickreport.com/news/ray-s-paddock/texas-case-reveals-tricky-business-horse-slaughter-rescue/

It was fascinating to read the comments. Apparently no one is ever supposed to sell a horse.

#27

Here is something the Louisiana breeders are doing. Also mentions that Rosie Napravnik markets horses for second careers.

https://madmimi.com/s/af91bb?o=fm

1 Like
#28

That’s kind of a cop out statement. I think the world would be a better place if people put horses best interests at heart and didn’t just sell them to whoever to make a buck and be rid of them, when if they looked a little below the surface, they can see that its probably not going to work out for the horse…Like I just read how one of Mike Repole’s young stallions wasn’t being successful commercially, so he had him gelded and is being retrained as a riding horse. He said he could have sold the horse as a stallion to someone, somewhere, but he had the feeling that that wouldn’t end well…that’s the kind of thinking that I would like to see a lot more of!

Nice story about the LA breeders and cool to see Rosie Napravnik involved with the RRP and OTTBs :slight_smile:

#29

Relevant update published yesterday: https://www.paulickreport.com/news/ray-s-paddock/chicken-houses-and-horse-rescue-a-complicated-tale/

#30

I applaud the Paulick Report taking this on. For people like me old enough to remember CBER, this was all too familiar–the sad pictures, the overwrought descriptions, the exhortations to dig deep and come up with more money because “the kill buyer won’t take any less”, the “bail” set at 2 - 3 times meat price, the “save” and then rinse and repeat two weeks later all while attacking anyone questioning about the welfare of the horses or where they end up and with whom as “haters”.

Maggi Moss is an outspoken critic of the business model and right afterwards, the group finds a horse that she used to own and try to attack her with it. Hmmm, how coincidental.

I have a friend who is associated with a legitimate TB rescue who takes the horses in, rehabs them and finds them homes. They are completely transparent about the money and the horses and they have the appropriate tax designations for a charity. It is an expensive and sometimes thankless task. There is a limited amount of money out there for donations and you could see this as taking money away from rescues that aren’t always pounding people with the rescue high and the save like this one does. Because after the “save”, there are usually just a bunch of bills and that doesn’t get anyone excited.

2 Likes
#31

I too am glad that Paulick Report covered this story. While the facts may not be totally clear around icareihelp, one thing that is mentioned in the article is the TAA and their work to accredit rescues and shelters. If people want to give money, giving to an accredited group is the way to go. There are many fundraising efforts online and I am sure some are legit but some aren’t.

I hope the horses are in new homes soon. However, the easy part is buying a horse to save it – the hard part is providing 10-20 years of good care.

1 Like
#32

Snaffle1987 - I co-run CANTER ILLINOIS and we do listings at Fairmount Park Race Track, which is one of the cheapest claiming tracks in the country. We average about 130 horses a year - meaning we (and when I say we, there are TWO of us. YES, TWO OF US) find homes for 130+ horses a year. I am sorry that you “never” see listings from us - please follow us on Facebook to keep abreast of the horses we post.

CANTER Colorado, CANTER Minnesota, CANTER Chicago, CANTER Ohio and CANTER West Virginia are all active and take regular listings. I know Texas, Florida and heartland struggle to find dependable volunteers. We are 100% volunteer run and really the horses’ future careers are intrinsically tied to the kindness and generosity of these volunteers.

There is a chronic shortage of volunteers willing to go to the racetracks regularly, build rapport with the trainers, and do the listings. It’s a ton of work, labor intensive, and sometimes you’re out there in the cold and heat and it’s a thankless job. You do it for the horses and for no other reason. Although our affiliate has tons of Facebook followers and likes and shares, in terms of donors and volunteers - we really struggle.

I would encourage any of you reading this - if you really want to make a difference, PLEASE volunteer with a CANTER (or other rehoming organization) near you. We desperately need your help.

6 Likes
#33

Getting the horse out of the kill pen is the easy part. Finding them permanent homes is a whole nother ball game.

I was not able to get a handle on exactly how many horses Alborano is keeping with Parker. In chicken houses. Being fed large buckets of what looks like chicken food mush or vomit but is apparently high fat mill mix?

2 Likes
#34

You hit the nail on the head IMO. I understand the passion that these campaigns create. I’m a horse lover and I feel it myself. But putting my Poindexter hat on, I think throwing these sob stories out there and then raking in the Facebook/Twitter cash is just creating a market within a market for horses that fit the profile. What happens to the grade QH/Heinz 57 horses that don’t? And what happens to the bailed horses when their usefulness as the face of the rescue is over? Now the “rescue” just has a bunch of expensive mouths to feed that probably have issues that kept them out of the broader equestrian market of riders and show people.

And that’s assuming everything is on the up and up. I’m deeply suspicious of an alleged killbuyer who “needs” to get 4 or 5 times what the horse would be worth in any reasonable open market, apparently won’t sell to individual buyers and has to move horses in overpriced herds.

3 Likes
#35

Without going into the very long Paulick Report article, it appears that more than a few of the horses were not fresh off the track, but were 12-20 years old and had obviously been turned out (sunburned manes and tails). Yet they were all represented as being dumped by their racing owners because they were not making any money.

3 Likes
#36

I have to assume that she means well though. From what I have seen, she is not anti-horse racing; she’s involved in the business/has friends and connections in it.

Its so sad and overwhelming seeing all of the horses but yeah, the reality is that once the “rescue” is over, who is going to want to pay for them, especially if they are not good riding prospects. It didnt sound like the ones in the “chicken house” are suffering but I do wonder about finding them homes.

Its good that she is bringing more awareness to the issue. I do hope the current windfall for the people running the “kill pens” doesnt continue though.

I figure all I can really do is: keep my horses for their lifespan, and not breed any. I wish more people thought like this.

#37

My question is, how many of these horses are actually kept track of? If they are out in a field, which looks like the case with the brown horse how many times have they been “bailed out?” Without identifying the horses and keeping track of where they go once they get bailed out, how do we know they are not repeat offenders? Not a single horse in any of the photos looked like a fresh off the track tb to me. The brown horse with a blaze, who’s photo is labeled “6 yr old mare clearly off the track” has a long sunburned mane and tail. With a fuzzy coat and way more fat on her than a race horse typically carries. Maybe she was off the track a year ago, but she’s clearly been field kept for a while now. So yeah, the potential is there raise money for her to be “bailed out” and simply send her back to the field she lives in until she is forgotten and then recycle her to be bailed out again. There needs to be transparency - what is her registration number, her name, and who took her from the “rescue” that bailed her out?

3 Likes
#38

An update
http://ntwo.org/updates/2018/the-bat…orses-at-risk/

(Some of the photographs are pretty disturbing.)

#39

I don’t know how active many of you are on facebook but just watching some of these kill lot pages is enough to satisfy me on the fact that so many TB’s are being sent on the truck every week. Doesn’t matter what kill pen page you watch but many of them are in states that don’t have active CANTER or sport horse industries who would be interested in these horses. Texas, Mid west, sometimes California, pacific north west. These are the pages with tattooed TB’s showing up in the listings every single week. Some seem like disposed of broodmares; others are direct off the track

And then we have the issue of how many horses ship direct or receive no publicity or coverage online for the main reason of keeping them hidden. Many trainers and KB’s were ousted when race horses were found at livestock auctions and it was publicizes on social media. Now, to avoid this, the KB’s pay a flat fee and pick them up at the track and bring them direct to their slaughter pick up location. The entire process is hidden from the public eye

Look at Mountaineer… ever hear the story of “that trailer” that comes through the track every week/month and everyone turns a blind eye to? What do people think happens to these thousands of horses at the lowest ranks at all of these low dollar tracks across the country every year when their racing days are up? Surely some are rehomed but the injured, the slow, etc whos trainers don’t want to waste their time with?

Its a sick cycle.

#40

I could not get through the entire article. But wanted to remind everyone that transparency is important with rescues and any charitable organization. Most of them do very good and very important work. But I know firsthand that there is some very questionable stuff that goes on, including executive directors who send money into their own pockets indirectly, or to family members. So please continue to help out as much as possible, just be careful of some of the fly by night operations.

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