horses run, why not race them. seeing them get hurt sucks' but thats life they could die a lot more cruel .

no definately not. horses were made to run so racing them is very logical.

Well Mr.Ed said to me the other day that all the race horses he speaks with just do it for the money.

i've had horses all my life. it DOES NOT hurt the horse. horses weigh an average of 1200-1600 pounds thus a jockey is an afterthought. racing is no biggy for these horses. they are of proper breeding (generally thoroughbreds) and are raised to run and race. dont be mislead into thinking these horses dont enjoy what they are doing. that's what they are bred and born to do.

I do love horses and i must admit I love to watch them race, just 27 miles from Saratoga..Lately though, you hear these poor animals giving all they have only to have their bones just break. How horrible..Gives a new prespective on the sport. I think it hurts the horse too. Im sure NYRA doesn't care what the horse might feel, it's all money.

I've worked with race horses and I can tell you that racing a well breed, properly trained,and well cared for race horse is not going to hurt it. These horses are not just loved by the people who care for them, but are large investments. Over racing them or abusing them would be counter productive. There's also safe guards put in place by each country's Jockey Club to make sure these horses aren't hurt through misuse. They regulate everything from the jokey's weight to how many races a horse can run to how hard you can tap a horse with the whip. Nobody wins when a horse gets hurt and nobody wants to see it happen. Those tears you saw on Derby Day for 8 Bells were the same kind of tears you would have shead over the passing of a pet. What would hurt these horses is not running them after breeding them to do nothing, but for 6,000 years.

Not at all, horses don't have feeling's. . . and they taste fantastic. Has anyone here ever had a horse steak?

It's tough on their tendons for sure, as they are trained at such a young age. I've taken in Thoroughbreds that had both front tendons bowed, & plenty of "hit" needle marks to prove it too. Even at my age I still love to run them for recreation as it is so invigorating. I myself would NEVER ride a horse let alone run a horse before the third birthday, just me tho!

Horses love to run. Horses love to compete against each other. If you put a group of colts out in a large pasture together, the first thing they will do is run against each other as hard as they can go. The problem is that racing has become a speculative business. These days, the horses exist only to breed. The whole focus is on using a few key races to make a colt as valuable as possible and then retiring them to stud. No one considers that a colt who has only raced a few times before retirement has not had a good test of soundness. Then they take these unsound colts and breed them as many times as they can in a few short years while they are fashionable. Years ago the Jockey Club fobade AI because they didn't want to have too many foals from one stallion, lest they inbreed too much or breed a lethal gene too thoroughly through the population. So the breeders and vets figured out how to reliable settle a mare on one cover. Now they breed 100+ mares a year in one hemisphere, then ship the stallion to the other hemisphere and cover another 100+ mares. They do this for a few years, breed hundreds of foals, and then retire and dump the stallion, or ship him to another country. They aren't selective about the mares they breed these stallions to. Pretty much, if she has a heartbeat, they'll breed her. The goal is to collect as many stud fees as possible in the short time before the stallion becomes unpopular. Some of the mares they are breeding haven't a sound leg to stand on. The colts may be crooked when they are born, but in order to bring in top dollar at the sales, they do surgeries on their legs to force them to grow straight. Once they have made them pretty, they take them to the sales and sell them for top dollar. The unsuspecting buyer takes them to the track and trains them for racing so they can repeat the cycle. If we returned to the old system the horses would have a far better life. Colts used to race 20 - 40 times before retiring to stud so we could evaluate the soundness. They were then stood to a book of 20 - 30 mares a year. The mares were chosen very selectively. If a mare was crooked or unsound, she wasn't bred. Unsoundnesses included congenital blindness and bad mouths as well as bad legs. Less fashionable stallions got a chance as not everyone could get in to the popular stallions. That meant there were a lot of outcrosses available. Most colts were gelded, and there were many racing opportunities for geldings. Only the best and soundest colts were kept for breeding. We didn't have this overload of cheap, unsound horses being abandoned and left to starve. We had a reasonable number of sound, healthy horses, some of which were used for racing and breeding, the slowest of which were still sound and athletic enough for other pursuits. When you race a sound, fit, healthy horse, it doesn't hurt them at all.

No I do not, but it is wrong to abuse them to make them run. But most horses love to do it and carrying a person, especially a tiny jockey is nothing to a strong fit horse with lots of conditioning behind it. Race horses are bred to race, they breed the heart and desire into them so they really are cooperative with people. If you drive by a pasture of horses often they will run as fast as they can just for the sheer joy of it, especially the young ones.

Nah, they're bred to do it, they want to do it, they HAVE to do it, it's in their blood, they have the energy for it, they're ready to do it with some training, it's fun to train them, they learn easily, they like doing it...Yeah, I'd say no.

Well, no basically I don't think it is wrong to use a horse to race. What is wrong is how we as humans go about it today. We take the horse and deny it natural behaviour patterns and herd support so that we can race them as two year olds, before they are even physically mature. We whip them for trying their hardest for us and then discard them because they can't run fast enough. A long and hard look needs to be taken at the racing industry. Horses run fast they are designed to do so by nature. And indeed, some like to do so and make excellent racehorses,but I think that we need to look at what is best for the horse, it's nature and needs, not at what drugs can make them endure to run faster. Humans need to ensure that the welfare of the horse is taken proper care of emotionally, mentally and physically to ensure it's happiness and health. When this happens horses will always do their best for us.

No I do not think horse racing is cruel. There are some issues and some cruel people in the industry and accidents happen even to horses playing in a field.

if youve ever been to a racing stables you will understand. the trainers apsolutly love and care for the horses and they get a betta life then most horses the get boxed(stabled) and exercised feed and ruged. when a horses is sacked most of the trainers have people who will buy off them and train them under english.

I must admit I find it distasteful seeing the Grand National and knowing that horses lives are being risked. I have never understood it. But I have met lots of people who ride who advise that the horse loves it. Every since I got on a horse when I was little I have pondered this question, same with camels, elephants etc

Yes, I believe it is wrong on many levels. I also am against greyhound racing. Of course the animals should be let out in a large area to run and play, but give them the respect so they are able to do so when they feel like it, not when *us humans* want to make money or be entertained. There are many things that we can do for entertainment, but I don't believe animals are one of them-in that respect anyways. The same goes for circus animals and the like. Many of the animals raced end up getting injured and people have trouble adopting them out because of their special needs. It's 2009 for crying out loud! Go to a baseball game instead.

Trust me it is NOT wrong because they only race horses that are meant for races which are thoroughbreds and they can stand the pressure so it isn't wrong

I think PEOPLE hurt the horse. The racing part isnt so bad, I think its the trainers pushing them too hard.

Yes I do. I know people say they love to run and they enjoy it, but they don't enjoy being shot if they have a fall. Racing drivers know the consequences of a crash, horses don't.

Not really, but you are right that it does hurt the horse at times. Horses are built for speed and can run their hearts out if they want to, it is why they love to race. The trainers on the other hand can be abusive and that is where it hurts the horse. Other than that, it is not wrong to race a horse.

to race seems fine... to jump the hurdles and risk a broken leg... I have seen a horse break a leg on a jump. racing is ok if they dont jump.