The Horse Race – The Race That Can Be Lost in the Horse Race
Horse race is a common term for any close form of competition, but when used in a political sense it can easily lose focus on the real issues. With all the mudslinging, name calling and attack ads, it is easy for voters to get lost in the horse race. It is a race that can be lost even before it begins.
A horse race is an endurance event where a team of humans and horses compete to cross a finish line. The sport dates back thousands of years and was a popular pastime among many ancient civilizations, including Ancient Greece, Rome, Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. It is a sport of speed and stamina that attracts millions of fans and spectators to races each year to witness the spectacular fusion of speed, strategy, and stamina.
The most prestigious horse races in the world offer a spectacular spectacle of culture, high stakes, and lavish celebration. However, there is something else behind the glamour of these world-famous events. Behind the scenes, a world of broken bones, drug abuse, gruesome breakdowns, and slaughter lies.
Behind the romanticized facade of Thoroughbred horse racing is a brutally competitive industry that uses a cocktail of legal and illegal drugs to mask injuries and artificially enhance performance. Pushed beyond their physical limits, the horses often suffer from a painful and debilitating condition called exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage (EIPH). This is a dangerous and potentially fatal complication of horse racing that results when the horses bleed from their lungs while running at such high speeds.
This condition can also affect the heart of a racehorse and cause them to stop breathing. To avoid EIPH, many horses are given a cocktail of medications including sedatives and steroids to suppress their pain and increase their blood flow. This results in a vicious cycle of drug dependency and abuse. The horses are then forced to run faster and longer in a relentless quest for glory. The ensuing bloodshed and pain is both horrific and deadly for the horses.
There is a growing consensus that horse racing needs to address the underlying issues behind its glamorization and embrace an animal welfare paradigm that recognizes animals as equals to human beings. If the sport wants to survive, it must start with a fully funded industry-sponsored wraparound aftercare solution for all ex-racehorses who leave the track. Otherwise, it will continue to hemorrhage into a death pipeline where the only options for these horses are to be bailed by independent nonprofit rescue groups or be sent to slaughter in Mexico or Canada.
The deaths of Eight Belles, Medina Spirit, Keepthename, Creative Plan, and Laoban are just the tip of the iceberg for this cruel and abusive industry. The lives of these horses and countless others deserve a more dignified end than a Facebook post and a short window of opportunity to be “bailed” by an ineffective, underfunded rescue network. It is a race to hell for these horses, but they can win this one with the right support.