This photo makes my buttocks clench!!!

I've been to that square, and even with sand down there's no way I'd be galloping. The slope is really quite steep, and it's cobbled under there so there's not much grip.

Don't like the Palio at all:(
 
MagicMelon said:
Horrid event, would love to see it banned.
Click to expand...

SERIOUSLY?! :rolleyes: Have seen horses running on worse ground and in a worse condition!!

I suppose horses shouldn't be allowed to jump big jumps either....and eventing is obviosuly cruel, lets ban that too....and polo, that seems very risky, all those people swinging sticks around....your horse may slip on the road and be fatally injured, lets ban hacking too.....hey, lets ban everything and all become fluffy bunny brushers :rolleyes::mad:
 
JoG said:
SERIOUSLY?! :rolleyes: Have seen horses running on worse ground and in a worse condition!!

I suppose horses shouldn't be allowed to jump big jumps either....and eventing is obviosuly cruel, lets ban that too....and polo, that seems very risky, all those people swinging sticks around....your horse may slip on the road and be fatally injured, lets ban hacking too.....hey, lets ban everything and all become fluffy bunny brushers :rolleyes::mad:
Click to expand...

This made me chuckle :p
 
in the last 10 years 50 horses have been killed in the various palios around Itay. 50 known deaths but how many others ended up at the slaughter house due to injuries? The palio trainers and owners don't usually bother treating their injured horses-they butcher them. Did you know that the majority are English bred TB's who are too slow for the racecourse?
http://www.equitando.com/?location=Argomenti&item=839
http://www.ecoblog.it/post/1543/palio-di-ferrara-e-strage-di-cavalli
http://www.osservatorio-sicilia.it/...-sangue-fino-ad-un-camion-e-vine-portato-via/
http://www.sancesario.com/pages/siena1.asp

not very pretty pictures, are they?
 
TBs are too fast and too delicate to run round a tiny square like that. I've seen paintings of palio horses from centuries ago, and they are shorter, with more bone.

From those photos it looks like they're no longer using bull penises as whips...
 
[QUOTE

From those photos it looks like they're no longer using bull penises as whips...[/QUOTE]

oh yes they are!! It was pointed out with pride by the RAI3 commentator. Only solace is that the jockeys are allowed to beat each other up with them during the race. I noticed some spurs too.
 
From looking at the photos and having talked about it in the past from someone from Italy who I used to work with, it's not something I'd would enjoy watching despite going to the races quite often....quite the opposite.

From what I was told I can't see how the nature of that can be compaired to eventing and racing in this country for example, far from it, yes horses get killed in a various sports but their are differences in the training, the risk, the welfare and the loss, so no personally don't think it's fair to compaire this to all racing or other deaths of horses in higher risk/dangerous sports.
 
:eek::eek:

what ever your views on racing (here or abroad), I think JoG has the right idea... I'd vote we leave other cultures to their traditions and we'll stick to ours, or at least to those that the government hasn't banned. :smirk:

but, in any case... they've got more balls than me, and at least they're wearing hats!
 
Horses die everyday...in different ways...!
I think they are crazy galloping round on that surface with no saddle but it has been done for a long time now - its part of the culture...its a tradition.
Fatalities happen - but not all horses can have a loving, caring and appriciative owner.
Christ - i would much rather see these horses race than walk round Egypt - which i did last year - and watch donkeys and horses slowly starving to death!!
I just get annoyed when people start getting on their high horse about things - there are lots of things going on in the world horsey or non-horsey which we may not agree with but that doesn't give you the right to start kicking off at somebody...which is what normally happens in these kinds of threads when somebody says something not liked by others ;):D
Rant over - sorry! ;):D
 
Crackajack said:
Horses die everyday...in different ways...!
I think they are crazy galloping round on that surface with no saddle but it has been done for a long time now - its part of the culture...its a tradition.
Fatalities happen - but not all horses can have a loving, caring and appriciative owner.
Christ - i would much rather see these horses race than walk round Egypt - which i did last year - and watch donkeys and horses slowly starving to death!!
I just get annoyed when people start getting on their high horse about things - there are lots of things going on in the world horsey or non-horsey which we may not agree with but that doesn't give you the right to start kicking off at somebody...which is what normally happens in these kinds of threads when somebody says something not liked by others ;):D
Rant over - sorry! ;):D
Click to expand...

my point exactly CJ.

ETA - just because they choose to race their horses over sand and cobbles, doesn't mean they don't "care" for them... just that their idea of what "caring" for a horse is different to yours or mine. And there's probably stuff we do that they don't like.
 
Last edited:
Spudlet said:
I've been to that square, and even with sand down there's no way I'd be galloping. The slope is really quite steep, and it's cobbled under there so there's not much grip.

Don't like the Palio at all:(
Click to expand...

Same! We go and walk around it every time we visit Siena. I know it's supposed to be all good fun and tradition etc.. I just don't see who in their right mind would gallop round a slope like that bareback?! xx
 
Crackajack said:
tradition or not, culture or not, I think cruelty to animals should not happen anywhere - just my humble point of view. Being human means acting in a human way - towards every fellow creature.
bull fighting, dog fighting and even horse fights are tradition and culture but it's cruel and should be banned...just like some horse races (i.e Pardubice)
Click to expand...
 
Not sure how I feel about the race in general - don't know enough about it to comment.

But we must surely all be in agreement that those photographs are absolutely amazing!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top