I watched the last leg of the Triple Crown yesterday fully expecting another stumble by the favorite. It seems that third leg has tripped up every horse since the days of Secretariat, Seattle Slew, and Affirmed.
I was pleasantly surprised to see I was wrong. I've now seen my 4th Triple Crown winner in my lifetime.
On a more serious note:
24 race horses die on the track every single week in the U.S. alone. That's over 1000 every year. England loses a horse on the track about once every three days.
Could you imagine the outrage if 24 football players died every week in the U.S. playing football? Horse racing IS inherently dangerous to the animal. It always has been, but we, as a society put our betting and entertainment needs above the basic well-being of the horse.
I am as guilty as anyone I guess. It was cool seeing another Triple Crown winner yesterday, the first in nearly 40 years, but I guess I want others to know it does come at a tremendous cost to the horses.
There are people trying to stop horse racing world-wide in much the same way that we have tried to stop dog fighting and cock fighting in America. I can't say as I blame them. And I sure won't stand in their way.
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