Good! I hope when people see the tombstones they will realize how stupid and inhumane horseracing is.

Posted by: Aneliese | April 30, 2009 12:13 PM

this is wrong, not the horse racing of course, but the way this is stated. the horses are treated better than the jockeys themselves. horses have their personal vets, and all the other things. many people find horse racing cruel but it really is not. these horses are not treated inhumane. they are well taken care of. i know this for a fact. yes many horses die, but mostly of age. the accident that accursed this passed week with the horse hitting the other horse from behind and killing it, it was an accident, the jockey had no way of stopping him, did anyone ever mention anything about the jockey that fell? i think not. he is okay by the way, just a sprained ankle

Posted by: Sarah Vasquez | April 30, 2009 01:10 PM

I was a "care"taker for harness horses in upstate new york back in the early '90s. I can tell you first hand that the animals are just income. In no way is there any respect for the animal as a sentient creature. They are brought to the track at the age of 2 and the life is run out of them by 5. Disgusting!

Posted by: Ricky | April 30, 2009 01:13 PM

It seems that everything related to inhumane and cruel treatment of animals is directly related to profit. I envision a world where people will choose compassion when they reach the crossroad between compassion and greed. I see a world where we expand our limited ideas regarding the relation between humans and other animals. I dream of the day that we begin to appreciate the beauty that each creature has to contribute and we unbridle the constraints we often place on the beautiful creatures we share this planet with. These realizations are being manifested despite the opposition to this new way of thinking. Let us all direct our positive energy and attract what we want for the creatures of this planet...freedom from confinement and lives that are natural to them. It is happening!

Posted by: Michael Essi | April 30, 2009 01:32 PM

Dang that's a lot of horses. My 7 year old neice wants to be a jocky and I keep trying to explain to her why she should do something else. I think I'll have her read this.

Posted by: lindsey | April 30, 2009 02:54 PM

I made a pledge to myself never to attend any kind of event that uses animals for entertainment. That includes horse races, circuses, rodeos, zoos, stage shows like in Vegas, or any other type of so called "entertainment. Maybe it entertains the customers but I am sure it doesn't entertain the animals who have no choice!

Posted by: Rex's Mom | April 30, 2009 03:14 PM

Does anyone realize that Gabriel Saez, the jockey who whipped Eight Belles to death, is riding in the derby this year under Larry Jones!!??? I am disgusted.

He is even riding in the Eight Belles named race. I hope people protest his riding.

Posted by: CLT | April 30, 2009 04:15 PM

Care to tell us exactly how you know that for a fact, Sarah? From my firsthand knowledge of the thoroughbred industry I say you are just making up fibs.

Posted by: Elphaba | April 30, 2009 04:25 PM

Anybody who's raised horses knows that 2-yr. olds' leg bones are not ready to withstand the rigors of training for races. Just when is someone going to step in and outlaw the cruel and stupid tradition to utilize such young horses and thereby change this sport into a more honorable one?? BRAVO to PETA for making such a touching statement by erecting the hundreds of headstones! Now let's hope the media will be giving this gesture and its deep meaning the attention it deserves, so everyone in our country will be made aware of this big problem!!!

Posted by: Irene Arm | April 30, 2009 04:35 PM

How could any DECENT person defend the use of horses for horse races, rodeos, zoos, etc? The idea of horses being pushed, prodded, drugged, and forced to run to exhaustion is IMMORAL, that's all there is to it. "Entertainment" that uses animals is mercenary -- it derives profit from suffering -- and benefits only the owners. If this seems "fun" to some people, it's only because they are ignorant of the animals' conditions,
apathetic, or cruel. These horses were KILLED -- and their owners should be prosecuted!

Posted by: cassandra | April 30, 2009 05:04 PM

The horse racing industry needs to move quickly towards humane, ethical standards. "Big Brown" won the 2008 Kentucky Derby on a (now-banned) performance-enhancing steroid drug! He is now retired-- to produce more drug-needy offspring. Until racetracks clean up their act, horse racing is NOT a "Sport."

Posted by: Jean from Kentucky | April 30, 2009 05:17 PM

Go Peta Go!

Posted by: Holly | April 30, 2009 05:33 PM

My uncle did and does horse racing and his horses were always treated the best. The best veternarian care, best grooming, top of the line feed and lots of love and care. He has a picture of each and every horse he has ever had in a race mounted in his office and lining the game room in the basement of his house. So not every race horse is abused, but there are some who actually are and that shouldn't be allowed, so those people should be dealt with.

Posted by: Denise | April 30, 2009 07:44 PM

Sarah
Even if it were true that race horses are treated better than jockeys (an often trotted out claim that I seriously question), jockeys choose to be at the racetrack, horses don't.

Posted by: lynda downie | April 30, 2009 11:44 PM

You guys need to get your facts straight. Horse racing is not cruel. The industry is working everyday to make the sport safer for both horses and jockeys. People love their horses as is if they were part of their human family! I know first hand. My thoroughbred is fat and happy and enjoys a strawberry poptart with me in the morning! Does that sound like an abused horse to you?
You people really need to get a life!

Posted by: Rebecca W. | May 1, 2009 12:02 AM

If horses receive such great care, it's only because the jockeys want them at their best. These horses are trained from a very young age and raised to run for a jockey's monetary gain. It's a sport where both members of the so called team aren't necessarily willing participants. I'm sure that once off the track, they may have nice living conditions, but in no way does that justify having to fulfill a life of an owner by running. Animals aren't servants. It wouldn't be justifiable to have a human slave as long as you gave them nice shelter, food and water, and top medical attention so why is it okay for another life form? That's right, it's not.

Posted by: Chelsea | May 1, 2009 07:18 AM

Training at a younger age promotes essential bone growth, and they are not raced for the jockeys' gain. Horses and jockeys form a lasting relationship. Just look and Mike Smith and Zenyatta. Another thing is that horses naturally love to run and race. They do it in pastures and out in the wild on their own free will.

Posted by: Rebecca W. | May 1, 2009 10:41 AM

My favorite sport is track and field. I never miss an opportunity to watch that when it's on television. It just amazes me to watch how fast some human beings can run, it is poetry in motion.

I find track so much more interesting than horse racing, and the participants choose to be there!

Posted by: Rev. Meg Schramm | May 1, 2009 12:57 PM

That list sent shudders down my spine.

Posted by: Salogma | May 1, 2009 04:09 PM

I was born and raised in Louisville, Ky. and have attended many Derbys. I am so glad that I was enlightened to the HORRORS of horse racing and the profligate business that it is. Though I no longer live in Louisville, I refuse to attend a Derby or spend one dollar in Louisville during that time. I am a proud member of PETA and I will place flowers once again on Eight Belles' grave when I visit Louisville the last of May. I applaud the members of PETA who are staging a memorial at Churchill Downs this Friday and Saturday in honor of the equine athletes who have given their lives. Blessings.

Posted by: Pamela Harp Gentry | May 1, 2009 05:02 PM