Clodagh
Well-Known Member
On a lighter note, John Francome used to teach me at Pony Club (he's aged quite well!).
I pick up (Pheasants) with his nephew...nom nom!
On a lighter note, John Francome used to teach me at Pony Club (he's aged quite well!).
I think saying baby horses is pathetic and demeaning to the horse, unless it is a foal. And then just call it a foal.
The fatalities are really sad but no one is ever going to agree on whether or not racing should exist so I will just say I feel so very sorry for the connections of those who lost horses this week.
There have been some tremendous highs this week and some real fairytale stories. Paisley Park and Klassical Dream being just 2!
The highlight of day one was that fantastic little horse winning the Champion Hurdle - Espoir D'Allen. He really put them to the sword. It would have been more intersting if Buveur D'air had stayed on his feet as, ok he had no weight to carry and didnt jump any more hurdles but he had a lot of ground to make up once he got up and he still won by a nose on the line! And then of course you have Big River who was so badly outpaced down the back, completely out of camera shot and then all of a sudden there he is on the line poking his nose out for 4th place! A domestic National is on the cards now I think depending on where has the softest ground.
Day two saw Altior and Tiger Roll doing what they do best - jumping and galloping! I have to say I can't see Tiger Roll being beaten in the National again this year. He is such a gritty, tough, terrier of a horse who wont back down from a fight!
Day 3 we had the wonderful Paisley Park whose story - along with that of his owners is what really brings people into racing. Its not a big trainer, its not a big owner, its not a big name and yet he defied all odds and made a name for himself! And with his owners absolute sheer delight at winning - thats why we love what we do! Our lad, Voix D'eau ran a good race. He finished back in the pack and I didnt expect anything more given that he is a true good ground horse so the softer ground will have blunted him a bit. But he is home safe and sound and goes onto Aintree in a few weeks.
The final day started with a great sadness and finished on a high for that same stable and owner combination. But the highlight of the day has to go to the Gold Cup! It can't not! They went off at a blistering pace! This made it a truly run race in which the winner made it look relatively easy! Al Boum Photo could possibly be the horse that comes back to win again. He is young enough, gutsy enough and clearly more than good enough! And the Master Of Cheltenham finally got the crowning jewel of jumps racing! Willie Mullins can retire happy! And on the plus side it wasnt a Rich Ricci, Gigginstown or McManus horse that won! Though Annibale Fly was cannoning home yet again. His day will come in another big race.
Onward bound to Aintree now!
As Cheltenham Festival claims its first victim of 2019, a leading animal welfare charity is asking “Would you watch football if injured players were killed after a match? So why support horse racing?â€
its not ridiculous it shows the different value we put on the life of an animal compared to a human, the difference is the horse is an innocent victim who is not aware of the risks and is not in a position to make a choice, but the people who expose the horse to the risks know very well what may happen in a bad fall .
its not ridiculous it shows the different value we put on the life of an animal compared to a human, the difference is the horse is an innocent victim who is not aware of the risks and is not in a position to make a choice, but the people who expose the horse to the risks know very well what may happen in a bad fall .
They don’t let horses with lower ability run, those days have long gone.my friends horse broke a hind leg when he cantered over to see her. it happens to the most well looked after horses even if they are never ridden. there is no way to change that and although a racehorse being put down is horrible he/she is not suffering for long as opposed to the horses and ponies who are left to starve or dumped when they are dying so the scum who own them can get rid. i dont now watch the grand national live, i would rather watch the replay later, i wish they would have fewer runners in it and not let so many lower ability horses run ...
I think some of the animals rights campaigners, who don't have much to do with horses on a daily basis, don't understand the impracticalities of a horse recovering from a broken leg. I couldn't help wading into a Facebook post by a friend last year (maybe after Cheltenham actually) where he was complaining about horse racing and horses being put down after breaking a leg - I basically said, look, complain about racing all you like (and I did agree with quite a lot of what he was saying), but the part where they put horses to sleep when they break their legs is actually the only humane option. He was actually really interested when I explained a bit about horse biology and behaviour and why it makes recovering from an injury like a broken leg so difficult.How is that even an argument?
I can absolutely appreciate that there are arguments against the racing industry, and Lord know it has its failings. But the paragraph above from the LACS is just ridiculous.
Are you sure you know what you are writing about ?when you tack up your horse to ride it in the morning the chances of it having a fatal accident during work are somewhat different to a young not fully mature horse galloping at full speed over fences in a gang of other horses all trying beat it in an environment the horse is not used to.
and jockey inexperience, jack kennedy`s horse coming into the last hurdle was ridden in such a disgusting and unprofessional way it pecked on landing and he fell off.
life is life whether human or animal, is it a matter of value? yes we have dominance but how we chose to use that says a lot about how much respect we have for animals and the choices we make for them.
we have have had horses in a sling for up to five weeks,but is insurance another factor/ if i a horse has a fatal accident racing surely they can claim from the insurance
In that case we watched different events, what race or horse was jack Kennedy riding or might you have got that wrong too ?cheltenham dear
Take it you are both !you would have to be pxssed or stupid to miss that one!
They don’t let horses with lower ability run, those days have long gone.
Of course if there were less runners less horses would fall, if they removed all the jumps non of them would fall.i still believe that having less runners qould help
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