Tragedy at Pimlico

“He has food, shelter and water. And someone comes over and rubs on him every day.

WTF is wrong with being a horse?”

“I think it's a really good sign that he's able to do a limited amount of grazing now. That says a lot.”

“I was working at Pimlico out in the infield that day and my heart just dropped when he broke thru the gate early. Good to hear that he's coming along though!”

“LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - The Breeders' Cup turned tragic in the $2 million Distaff on Saturday when the filly Pine Island was euthanized after breaking down on the backstretch.
Round Pond won the Distaff, but the victory was marred by Pine Island's fatal injury. Fleet Indian, the 8-5 favorite, also was injured later in the race but her injury appeared treatable.
Pine Island was euthanized after dislocating her left front ankle, which broke the skin and introduced infection into her bloodstream, according to Dr. C. Wayne McIlwraith, an on-call veterinarian Saturday at Churchill Downs.”

“Its over, he was euthanized this morning.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/more/01/29/barbaro.ap/index.html”

“So sad.”

“There was a piece on NPR yesterday. They were saying that he had been experiencing more complications.”

“Unfortunate. But when it got to the point that they couldn't manage his pain and keep him comfortable any more that it was time to let him go.”

“Now I'm curious if they'll pull his testes to harvest any mature swimmers they can find. Breeding is the only reason they were keeping him around, so it makes sense. Most race horse breeding is in-vitro so its a viable solution. Sad that it came to this, though.”

“I'm sure they've laid in a stock of frozen semen and he'll be posthumously in the stud business for years to come.”

“I gess he is perty stinky now.
/o:3”

“My horse was bred via frozen semen out of a premium dressage stallion in Idaho. It was a process I tell ya getting that stuff to Michigan at just the right time. You should have seen the look on the FedEx guys face. He had to deliver twice before the mare conceived. She didn't even get to see how handsome her "husband" is.

I have no doubt that they made a collection prior to euthanizing.”

“The Thoroughbred industry requires all registered foals to be bred through live cover. Artificial fertility treatments, listed below, are not permitted.

so unless he deposited his load...it's worth about $3.50”

“His dam is pregnant with what will be a full brother, sired by his sire, that's some consolation.”

“Well here in the "thoroughbred capital of the world" it was the lead story on all the local stations. A co-worker of mine has a wife who is a vet., and she specializes in horse legs and feet. When the accident first occurred she predicted that Barbaro would not die of the initial injury, but the laminitis that would follow. I didn't pay much attention at the time because it started to look like he would be somewhat crippled but survive.
I guess she was right after all.”

“horse racing is so inhumane and wrong.”

“Opie, that is true for thoroughbred racing through the Jockey Club of America but not for breeding sport horses for other uses. His seed would still valuable for breeding.”

“yea i know..but the main goal is to use him to sire more racers.

Animal seman is the highest rated commodity in the shipping industry. Salesmen would kill to get a shipment of Rate 500 barrels.”

“1800 smakaroos for a vial to successfully artifical insemination of a mare with the foal of a moderately successful sport horse of good breeding.

Of course the biggest fees are for racehorses I grant you Opie. I was merely making the point that I doubt this stuff would be clearanced at a price of 3.50 when many jumper/3 day event horses are bred out of racehorses and there is no "live" requirement.”

“3.50 was a southpark reference.

I told you don't give him tree fiddy”

“They're still trying to make money off him...
”

“Thoroughbred racetracks in the U.S. reported more than three horse deaths a day last year and 5,000 since 2003, and the vast majority were put down after suffering devastating injuries on the track, according to an Associated Press survey.

Countless other deaths went unreported because of lax record keeping, the AP found in the broadest such review to date.
last edited: 6/14/08 8:19:51 PM”