DM Article re. shooting Thoroughbreds

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Bounty

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Great, the DM have now published another sensationalist article which will lead to 1000's of racebred TBs being 'rescued' by novice owners
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Absolutely Irresponsible Journalism
 
What a load of crap.

Their headline story yesterday (IIRC) was so offensive - DM was outraged that two young kids in foster care were being adopted by a gay couple rather than being adopted by their ill grandparents (who also had the kids' mum, a heroin addict living there). Because in the DM world, someone in the early stages of heroin recovery (and therefore facing a saddeningly high change of not staying clean) and 2 people deemed not physically up the job > gay couple.
 
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Can I just make it clear that I only just saw this thread and posted in the feedback bit before doing so!!
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How exactly does a horse 'wee itself'? That is a phrase used to provoke an emotional response in the reader and give them a mental image of a shaking toddler with wet pants. Horses urinate, the normal horse way. Plain and simple.
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im sorry but i just read that and it makes me sick to think that breeders are breeding horses that they are having killed right away, why dont they just not breed?
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what is the actual point?
that story has literally made me feel sickk
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OP, what is the problem with the article, it does happen, too many TB's which are surplus to requirements end up at the slaughter house. I'm not against horse slaughter by a far stretch, I believe it plays a necessary role in todays econmic climate and would rather see a horse shot professionally than dumped in a field and left to starve. I just don't quite see why you have an issue with the truth being told.

Not all TB's will be "rescued" by novices, it's like saying that any old horse being sold will end up in a dodgy home, it can happen but it doesn't always mean it will.
 
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im sorry but i just read that and it makes me sick to think that breeders are breeding horses that they are having killed right away, why dont they just not breed?

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Presumably because 11 months previously the credit crunch had not hit and they thought they would be able to sell the foals and make a nice profit.
 
I don't think the OP had a problem with the practice, rather the sensationalist way in which it was being reported - correct me if I'm wrong.
 
I have to admit, when i read the phrase
"babies... shaking, peeing themselves and eating each other's necks" i laughed a little - this journalist has absolutely no horse sense at all
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For me the most shocking aspect of the article was the fact that the horses had been kept at the abbatoir for a week before slaughter.

I thought the reason that horses could only be slaughtered at two venues in the UK was to prevent this trauma.

All animals are sensitive to the smell of blood.

And yes I think that Britain - like here in France breeds too many horses most of whom will NOT be stars of the track and arena. Perhaps British Breeding should focus more on the far bigge market for sensible riding horses who can do some riding club activities and give their non-competitive owners a pleasurable day out at local shows.
 
BankEndRescue - I have no problem whatsoever with the practice, and I am well aware of how frequently it goes on. What I have a problem with is the overly emotive phrasing, and the way it will impact on a load of fluffy do-gooders (the sort with little/no equine experience) to go out and 'rescue' these horses
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Don't we already see enough ropey TB's loitering in fields looking miserable already?!

Until those within the TB industry, who have plenty of money but very little inclination to take responsibility for their animals, realise how wrong the sheer numbers of horses wasted through racing are, thsi situation will always continue
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i had exactly the same thoughts after reading this article....its green light for albeit well meaning but completely novice buyers to go and "rescue" a former racehorse. Much better, I think for the horse to be humanely destroyed then fall into the wrong hands and a spiral of neglect.
What the article did not explore and could/should have done is what steps can be taken in the first place to minimise the high volume of wastage in the TB industry.
highly sensationalist rubbish journalism which potentially could cause a real welfare crisis.
 
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BankEndRescue - I have no problem whatsoever with the practice, and I am well aware of how frequently it goes on. What I have a problem with is the overly emotive phrasing, and the way it will impact on a load of fluffy do-gooders (the sort with little/no equine experience) to go out and 'rescue' these horses
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Don't we already see enough ropey TB's loitering in fields looking miserable already?!

Until those within the TB industry, who have plenty of money but very little inclination to take responsibility for their animals, realise how wrong the sheer numbers of horses wasted through racing are, thsi situation will always continue
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Thank you for clarifying your point of view. In light of that, then yes, I agree with you
 
Bounty - totally agree. I knew someone who bought a 'cheap' tb colt and let him run with her mare (not quality in any way!) and she seemed surprised that she produced a foal every year....(durr). The outcome was, foals unwormed, left in a dreadful state...being put down and one (horror of horrors) being wheelbarrowed off the field, so riddled with worms that it couldn't stand up.

You may ask if I did something? Yes I did, but she totally ignored me and the BHS guy who went to see her. Why the yards sell entire animals is beyond me. You will always get some idiot who thinks they have a bargain and don't know what the hell they are doing. I lost a lot of sleep over this I can tell you - it was many years ago BTW.
 
I had never heard of the rescue centre mentioned in this article but the DM is doing is best at sensationalism. I was at Goffs in November for the Foal sale and it was sad, I could have come back with a number of foals for free, the chap I worked for was realistic, he took a hit on the huge Coolmore covering fees and took his colt home for the yearling sales as well as deciding to keep the mare he had entered for the following week. We had heard that a lot of mares had been put down and that a lot of foals were going to go unregistered for the 2009 season. Like most things people have got greedy and there is overproduction, this coupled with the economic downturn will mean that hopefully production will be cut back and the status quo will right itself. IMO I think it is kinder for a horse to be put down than have the possibility of going from one unsuitable home to another. But this is not condoning the state of the TB industry at the mo, ATEOTD racehorses are luxuries so naturally they are going to be the first to go when times are hard.
 
Some of you need to remember that a mare does carry for 11mths not sure how many people are able to predict that far in the future. Secondly as much as I agree too many horses are being bred a lot of sporthorse breeders are aware & are cutting back on how many mares they use this year, as is the racing industry. Also people have to remember that for some, horses are a business no different to breeding cattle, sheep, deer or any other animal for meat, fur etc. Just because you feel a horse is a large vision of a dog or cat, for many they are NOT pets. I don’t agree with horses being kept for a week where animals are being slaughtered because I do believe they know & can smell death. I don’t however have a problem with a horse being killed in a humane way if there is no other alternative. And no, I have not read the article because unless it is written by someone who understands horses it won’t be subjective & more then likely full of inaccuracies
 
I read it and did mutter "boll*cks" at some of it.

If you have a very valuable mare carrying a foal, you would not risk aborting at this late a stage to avoid covering fees - in fact you'd have already paid them surely? Aren't most fees paid by October in the racing world - once scanned in foal?

I know I'd paid mine well before my mare foaled.

Also aborting at such a late stage is very dangerous and I can't see vets agreeing to abort or kill off a live born foal unless there was somethign catastrophically wrong with it.

I'd still much rather see them go to potters than end up starved to death in a field or on project horses as they've been numptied to the point they are dangerous as some bunny hugger "rescued" them

But I'm with Bounty, Potters isn't the problem - the racing industry's shocking wastage is - they are the ones who should be cleaning up their mess instead of letting the press sling it at the abbatoirs.
 
This has very little to do with the so called credit crunch, this has been happening for years, its what happens in order to keep people entertained.

ANY animal can wee itself in fear, it refers to the animal loosing control of its bladder rather than choosing to relieve itself.

The person who mentions the horses wetting themselves and eating at each others necks is the person from the sanctuary Serena who went under cover at the slaughterhouse not the writer....

The practice is disgusting, the horses are there purely because of people trying to make money from breeding/racing and failing at it! Simple! For the love of a race horse the death of a heard.........

I am not a bunny hugger as you like to refer to people but a realist, I have worked in the racing industry for many years and it is truely a bloodthirsty sport!

Hopefully people will begin to understand what happens in the industry rather than just what they see on race day!
 
I'm afraid they are a disposable commodity rather like grayhounds.
When they don't pay they go.
There will be more stories like this but better to be shot than end up as a welfare case
 
That's disgusting poor horses shouldn't be slaughtered for meat. If they aren't selling them then they should stop breeding. We have a lovely retired race horse and i couldn't imagine him being slaughtered.
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