Horse racing is a sport that requires tremendous strength and stamina. Its physical demands often take their toll on young horses in peak physical condition, who break down and die during races.
While a few horses do complete careers without injury, most need cocktails of legal and illegal drugs to mask injuries and boost performance. They are pushed beyond their limits, and at top speed one wrong move can be fatal.
Origins
Horse racing is a sport with a rich culture and tradition that spans centuries. However, behind the romanticized facade of Thoroughbreds on the track and fans sipping mint juleps is a world of drug abuse, injuries, and even slaughter.
In medieval England, professional riders would race horses to demonstrate their speed and endurance to potential buyers. These riders were known as jockeys and rode bareback.
By the 18th century, horse racing had become a formalized sport in England. By the end of the 1800s, betting had increased and more tracks were open. Disqualification can occur before, during, or after a race and is usually due to the use of performance-enhancing drugs.
Rules
In order to keep races competitive, fair and exciting, race authorities use a system of racing classifications. This system allows races to be framed to only allow horses within a particular ratings band. For example, a race might be framed for horses with an official rating between 66 and 80. This ensures that the best horses compete against one another.
Trainers can also enter a horse rated one or two pounds above their ratings band, but must carry the extra weight. This makes them unable to win the race. This is known as a ‘+1’ or ‘+2’ horse. Penalties for medication violations are also incurred, with higher penalties for multiple violations.
Scoring
Even the most ardent supporters of horse racing have to admit that the sport asks a lot of its participants. It puts horses through a lot of physical exertion and, as a result, they are susceptible to a variety of injuries.
These include exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage (bleeding in the lungs), which causes a gurgling sound and reduces oxygen intake and performance, and laryngeal paralysis (inability to move air from the windpipe), which results in a roaring noise and reduced respiratory function. Other potential injuries include musculoskeletal problems, such as broken bones and fractures.
Despite these risks, horse racing continues to be one of the few sports that continued during the 2020 COVID-19 crisis.
Injuries
Horses are put through a lot of stress during races. Their bones, ligaments and tendons are all under immense pressure, especially as they are pushed to go faster.
Injuries are a normal part of horse racing and it is impossible to completely avoid them. However, those that are severe enough to be career-ending should be euthanised immediately.
The majority of catastrophic musculoskeletal injuries (CMI) that racehorses sustained in this study involved the left front limb, consistent with previous studies, and were mainly due to fractures of the long bone of the fetlock. Tendon injuries were also common in this group, especially those of the superficial digital flexor tendon and deep digital flexor tendon.
Drugs
As with human athletes, drugs are a big issue in horse racing. Positive swabs can disqualify a race winner and lower the value of a horse. Many drugs are banned in competition, while others are permitted at certain levels. Among them are local anaesthetics, bronchodilators and cough suppressants.
Robinson says that it is a constant struggle to keep up with new methods to circumvent the drug testing system. Breakthroughs in gene therapy have opened up the possibility of gene doping, for example. It’s all about greed, she adds. Trainers will try to give their horses an edge over their rivals. Sadly, that often results in broken legs and death.
Slaughter
While many people see horse racing as a glamorous sport, behind the romanticized facade lies a world of injuries, drug abuse, and gruesome breakdowns. This industry is also plagued by a culture of corruption and the widespread use of illegal drugs to boost performance.
The slaughter of racehorses at the end of their careers is common. Although a small number of them are retrained for other equestrian pastimes, most will end up being shot or killed and turned into cheap meat.
Unlike other industries that use animals, horse racing does not have any legal welfare standards. Unless these are adopted, horses will continue to be exposed to significant risks and suffer.