Horses Die at Aintree Races

"Death came again to the Grand National yesterday...as two horses died in appalling falls.

There were four deaths at the three-day meeting last year, five in 2009 and since 2000 a staggering 33 horses have died at the Aintree spring festival..."

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/racing/article-1375310/Grand-National-2011-Aintree-day-horror-millions-2-horses-die.html?ITO=1490

What a disgraceful waste of beautiful, feeling animals. Have a race by all means - horses like to run - but why does this particular race insist on installing these awful fences with pits, sometimes filled with water, hidden behind them? The pro lobby point out, truthfully it seems, that it brings in big money. Money to see death? How pathetic. And very ugly, even.

Comments

Anonymous said…

The racecoruse was sold out for the first time in its history too.
I will hold my hand up and admit I have on occassion enjoyed watching showjumping, but there the horse has a choice if it doesn't want to jump then the jockey tends to end up doing the jump by themselves. At a steeplechase like the National there is no choice for the horse as there are so many other horses right behind them. Unless, of course, you are the horse at the back, then the man on your back beats you with a stick to make you go faster.

It would appear that LiveJournal cannot verify my credentials even though LiveJournal has allowed me onto my own page so I'll just have to be anon! H.

10 April 2011 at 13:14

Adele Cosgrove-Bray said…

Hmm, not very anonymous!

I don't mind the race itself, but the jumps with pits/troughs behind are needlessly cruel. Also the horses themselves are so young now, too young for their knee and hip joints to have matured and strenghened. This apparently makes them faster than an older horse but more liable to injury.

17 April 2011 at 17:58

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