Are horses put down because they can't race anymore? how is that different from what Michael Vick did?

Question

I know sometimes horses are put down because they are hurt very bad in are in pain, but are they also out down simply because they cannot compete anymore?

Answer 1

Yet again, someone blurs the lines between what is actually involved in a sport and feeds into propaganda by the radical animal activists that would have us all eating Vegemite, wearing pleather and eating granola.

I have worked within the racing industry all my life and horses are not just put down because they can't race. Granted some have catastrophic injuries but the vast majority will become broodmares or sold off as riding prospects and some find their way (usually by owner donation) into the arms of the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation and other such organizations. They then rehab them if needed and re-school them for a different career away from the track. I actually own one that came from the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation and he has some leg issues but nothing that we can't work around and that is usually the case with most of them.

The main problem in this country is that the breeding of unregistered, poor quality horses is out of control. There are too many people playing My Pretty Pony and thinking it would be cool to breed so that they can have a foal. These are the animals that later find themselves in dire straits and at rescues. It's the same way with dogs, people just want to breed their animal and cannot understand that for every action, there is a consequence. Horse racing is not entirely responsible for the amount of horses that are either destroyed or end up in rescues. As far as comparing racing to Michael Vick, that is beyond objectionable. We devote our entire lives for very little pay, few days off and long hours because we love and care for those horses and to suggest that our practices are even in the same realm as those of Michael Vick is abhorrent.

Answer 2

Yeah,but they aren't hung or drownd. although some folks will put a hose down for the insurance money, which I think is sleezy.

Answer 3

Some Thoroughbred and Standardbred race horses end up in the kill pens when they can no longer race, and anyone who believes otherwise is not grounded in reality.  

In the most recent issue of the Blood Horse magazine that I got, sales results from a Thoroughbred sale in Louisiana were reported.  There were a number of yearlings, two-year-olds and broodmares that were reported sold for prices of $400 or less.  While it's possible that some of these horses may have gone to good homes, it's more likely, at that price, that they're going to end up in the kill pens.

...And this was a recognized Thoroughbred sale, not the usual weekly or monthly regional auction where horses of any breed or unregistered horses are sold, which is the more typical "dumping ground" for racehorses that can't race and aren't desireable as riding horses are sold.  (This is also the typical venue for broodmares being culled.)  A lot more of the horses that are sold at the general auctions end up in the kill pens.

A lot of this has to do with people breeding marginal (or even sub-marginal) horses without thinking of the consequences.  And because a lot of people choose to treat horses as commodities, rather than as companion animals.  

I don't know what the answer is.  I wish I had one.  I wish that everyone who breeds horses, either as a business or just for fun, would think really hard about producing more horses when they're making decisions about breeding.

Answer 4

Horses are usually only put down in the case of severe injury. There are some uncaring owners who will put a horse down for the insurance money (when the injury isn't severe enough to require euthanization, but severe enough to end the racing career), but those are few and far between. Barbaro is the perfect example of how not all injuries can be fixed. His owners put lots of time and money into trying to save his life, but in the end, the laminitis resulting from the broken leg was too severe. Most horses who cannot race anymore are rehabilitated as trail ponies, companion horses, family pets or work with disabled youths, and of course a lot are entered into the business of breeding.

Horses who do require euthanization are put down quickly and painlessly with a shot by a licensed veterinarian. Michael Vick tortured those dogs. There's no comparison between the two. Michael Vick is a cruel, inhumane person who needs to be electrocuted, drowned, or thrown against the concrete.

Answer 5

Besides the difference in they way they are put down (horses are euthanized humanely NOT hung or drown)  you are comparing two completely different things. Dog fighting (despite what "good ole boys" think) is NOT A SPORT. Nor does it deserve to be. It is not regulated in any way, while horse racing is a highly regulated sport. Racehorses receive excellent care on the track, watch Animal Cops or some show like that where you see skinny/ sores/ disease...that's akin to dog fighting. You have to have a license to work on a racetrack-  not a contact to get you in the door to a secret location. A dog that has been used for fighting has no future, it will never ever be a pet in any way shape or form. Retired racers have a much better chance at a life after racing. There are all kinds of organizations to place retiree's and horses that don't make it as runners typically get sold as riding prospects. I am the first to admit that some racehorses to end up at kill auctions, I hate it but it is fact. However it's not just the TB industry that has created the overpopulation of horses in this country, the backyard breeder who breeds anything that's physically  able to reproduce with the market in such bad shape plays a big role in it too.

Answer 6

Both result in a dead animal, but what everyone is missing, is that Vick killed lots of animals S-L-O-W-L-Y.   He used torture methods to kill them.   What he did was the product of a sick and twisted mind, and was also illegal.

That's not the same as hunting, killing horses, or killing dogs and cats at a shelter (which I disagree with as well but it's still not the same.)

What I would ask is - why do so many people want to defend this jerk?   He's got enough money to live as a millionaire for the rest of his life without ever working again.   Why should he be immune to the repercussions of doing something as terrible as he did?   Same as OJ Simpson.  

Unfortunately,  in our society today,  money talks, and ethics have taken a back seat.

Answer 7

horses are not fighters.  if they are put down it is usally because of an accident that makes them in tremendous pain.  I know what you are saying but dog fighting is illegal and horse racing is not.  He did not put down the dogs in humane ways either

Answer 8

I don't know about horses, but greyhounds are sumarily put down when they are past their prime.  

however, quite a few are are saved through animal rescue centers.

Answer 9

OK, I agree with you that it is not fair to kill a horse just cause it can't race but what Michael VIck did was wayyyyy different.

Michael Vick raised dogs to fighet eachother.  These dogs fought  until they were bloody and beaten and in lots of pain.  They lived in tiny cages and when it was time to be "put down" they were drowned, beaten, strangled, suffocated, etc.  I think having a licensed vet give a horse an injection to kill it is wayyyy more human than what Vick did.

Answer 10

There isn't much difference.   They are both 'sports' one legal, one not.  The horses are put down in a more humane way if they go down at the track, they are not electrocuted or drown. I've worked on the track for many years, and not all of the slow horses get homes.  If they make it through the grueling years of training and racing unhurt, they still might end up as meat.   I dont think there is a difference in the two "sports".  Im not a peta lover either, I just like animals more than people.  Good question, you brought up a good point!

Answer 11

Horses are not breed to fight each until the death. They can live long lives and are only put down when their health is ruined.

Answer 12

Horses are only put down when there injuries are to severe that the vets cant do anything to save them or when they are extremely old

Answer 13

yes, some are but that doesnt make it right. michal vick killed his dogs because they lost a fight. dogs arent meant to fight. plus he didnt put them down gently, he electrocuted them, hung them, shot them, burned them...(do i need to go on?). he should go to jail.

Answer 14

when horses are too old to race or are too slow they take them to slaughter for meat and for leather this happens a lot

and i belive horse racing is wrong anyways because they hurt them with electric prods

and they whip them you wouldnt race a cat or a dog and hurt them with electric prods or whips now would you

but that is what i personaly think

Answer 15

Yes they are also turned into dog food or made into hamburgers.  The point about Michael Vick is pointless you have other issues in the world the War in Iraq the Health-Care Reform and finding a solution to the real problems of the world is the answer.  People are shot or blown up everyday and murders unsolved but yet a task force sent to a mansion etc.  Hey remember Oliver North--they let that one go.

Answer 16

It ain't the killing of the dogs - but rather the WAY these dogs were put down.

...hanging... electrocution... drowning... and flung onto concrete.

Sure - the end result is the same... but there are laws against cruelty to animals... and what Vick & his people were accused of doing violated those laws.   When they have to put down a race-horse, they usually do so with a "painless" injections.

Answer 17

what ever

Answer 18

racing horses are not put down if they just aren't fast enough.  they're sold or put out to pasture.  they are put down if they have an injury that can't heal because of the structure of their bodies.  dog fighting is nothing like horse racing.  don't compare the two.

Answer 19

no they are then used to bread

Answer 20

Horses are not put down because they can't race anymore, so the rest of your question is moot and your point is none.  Sure, you could probably find some renegade trainer who engages in such abberant behavior, but killing losing dogs is SOP in dog fighting but not in racing.  When horses are put down in the mainstream, it is done humanely and it is done because of injury or old age.  Reputable horse trainers do not put horses down unless they are physically unsound.

Answer 21

How do you know this?  Modify your question and tell me how.