Yeah, too bad. Ghostzapper, Barbaro and Lost In The Fog were some of my favorites. I really thought Barbaro would win the Triple Crown. He really is a horse with heart. It’s good that he’s still alive and can be a stud though. Lost In The Fog was really great, one of a kind, something special. I’m very happy to have been lucky enough to see his life.
I don’t remember what happened to Ghostzapper?? 
I am a verry forgetfull person!! 
He was injured and retired in I forget what race. Here’s a link to read about it.
Thanks Jodi, I was thinking Silver Charm, but I knew that he ran too recently to have met that fate, so I was wracking my brain to remember which horse I remembered hearing about. I understand in the end that really horses are just a business, but there a living breathing business, ya know.
I had heard about what happened to Ferdinand but I never saw it in that light. I just read those articles, crying almost as much as when I read the very first one in the Blood-Horse. What a terrible eand to a great horse. Absolutely terrible. Also about the others. It makes me sick. Have they no feelings? A horse to them is just a way of making money, and if it stops producing money, it is no longer worth anything, it just costs them. 
Yeah-If you think about it (especially in countries that consume horse meat) if a horse is worthless on the track or in the breeding shed, it’ll bring you more money per lb. It is sad to think of this but it happens to too many horses every year, millions worldwide. So next time you go to the store to pick up a can of Alpo, just think what’s in that can (Meat “By-Products” useally means whatever they COULDN’T Eat!!! {I.E. Horse Meat that is unsold.})
Excerpt from “The Texas Massacres-Horse Slaughter In America”- Today, the Edinburgh School of Agriculture in England has estimated the worldwide horse population at more than 65 million, 10 million of whom live in the United States . Each year alone, horse sports draw 110 million spectators; in dollars, horse care draws: $15 billion; investment and maintenance: $13 billion; and rodeos: $110 million.
And the trade in their flesh is estimated at $150 million. It is a hidden industry, dating back to age-old taboos. Even the “Society for the Propagation of Horse Flesh as an Article of Food” failed to encourage consumers to develop a taste for horse. This time, the failure was a result of a 20th century move toward respect for animal life and a growing worldwide vegetarian population. Still, the slaughter continues, supplying the demand for pockets of horse-eaters in France , Belgium and Japan . In the United States â€â€� though legal â€â€� the idea of eating horses is so offensive that killer buyers prefer to be called “horsetraders,” slaughterhouses become “meat packing plants,” and the byproduct of their industry is hidden in pet food cans and, more largely â€â€� about 90% of it â€â€� is shipped abroad where it remains mostly out of our sight and out of mind.
Read This:
Facts on Horse Slaughter In The US
Horse slaughter itself has been debated ad-nauseum on many forums. The fact of the matter is that because of the racing industry and other sources the number of unwanted horses is really astronomical. If horse slaughter were to be stopped, who would care for the unwanted horses? Whose responsibility would they become? Would they be euthanized? Neglected? Turned out to pasture and forgotten about? What would their quality of life be? It’s easy to say, don’t kill them–that’s bad. But who will take care of them? I don’t know. But when you can buy a horse for almost less than the cost to keep it in a month because the supply is so great, you know there’s a problem.
I am not saying horse-slaughter is the answer, but the problem needs to be addressed on a larger scale than just closing down the meat packing plants and writing new legislation. What infrastructure do other countries have in place to deal with unwanted race horses? Does it work? How can the racing industry norms be changed so that there are less horses that break down at a young age?
As for Japan, I’m not defending what they did to Ferdinand, but you have to understand that space is a premium here. There’s not nearly as much open space for pasture lands as there is in the United States. They seem to have the same problem as the United States–too many unwanted horses, but the threshold for how many unwanted horses is much lower because less people can adopt them meaning there is less of an outlet for these horses, despite the popularity of racing. And racing, unfortunately, is an industry. If the numbers aren’t profitable, get rid of it. Horses are expensive to keep, and if they’re not earning money, from a businessman’s perspective, why pay to feed it and keep it? It’s just not practical, regardless of sentimental reasons. And when things are expensive, it’s best to be practical.
The only feasible option I can see is get rid of the source, pass a law against racing and you get rid of the need for the mass production of horses for the racing industry. Hopefully this would lead to a decrease in the overall (and over-) population of equines in America or worldwide, what have you. However, in doing so, you also get rid of the nice income the state makes on this legal form of gambling. I’m not sure where the funds go, but I assume it’s to public works (education, state budget, etc.). So, you lose a valuable form of funding for other things–it’s catch 22.
Anyone else have other ideas? Or did I just put my foot in my mouth? 
You do have a very good point. But I don’t think getting rid of racing all together will help…
If I may be so bold as to ask: Do you ever eat meat? Do you always make a huge deal about it?(I know this sounds like I am for horse-slaughter, but I AM NOT.) And yes, I am well aware of the fact that some people are vegetarians for this reason, and I applaud you. But I am not going to protest eating chickens because I like chickens.
At almost any other time, I would have said it is “kill or be killed” or something of that sort, but that does not apply here. Simply because the animals we eat have no way of protecting themselves from our modern technology. So, the question is not “What should/can we do to reduce/stop horse-slaughter?” it now expands and becomes “What should/can we do about nature?”
I think that people have reached a time in their evolution that is both highly progressive, and at the same time hindering. We advance in technology, but as most of us can plainly see, we are very behind on many other subjects (for lack of a better word).
Please do not jump at my throat if you find this offencive just drop me a pm(thanks). This was meant to express my opinions, NOT to convince others to think the same way. Now I must go to bed. Thank you for reading my ramblings.
Just on Ferdinand and the Japanese. If space is a premium, dont import foreign horses, apparently Japan has plenty already. And any horse that is a champion of one of our 3 (some argue 4 with the Breeders Cup) big races, they deserve special treatment. Its like hitting the lottery, even if its only a million dollars, your never the same again (did I just say only??) 
Though I also dont think you could compare chickens and horses comparable members on the food pyramid.
Japan’s just recently gotten into TB racing from what I understand (as in, the past 20 years). They import studs and mares from the US to improve their breeding stock, the same way that FF players buy studs and broodmares to improve their breeding side of things. If the horse proves to be a bad stud (not passing on the desired traits, not very fertile, etc) then what are they going to do? Spend thousands shipping the horse back across the Atlantic where it is still virtually worthless in terms of the money that these people deal with? Sure, if they’d put out a news broadcast saying “Hey, we’ve got this horse who won a big stakes awhile back and we don’t want, does anyone want him?” people would’ve responded and likely the horse would’ve found a good home. But that’s assuming people ever even heard about him. Do you think ESPN is going to post a story like that? MSNBC?
I’m not saying we shouldn’t care that bad stuff happens to “worthless” race horses, but I’m not sure that winning a TC race or a BC race makes it that much more important to protect than a horse who’s been passed around from trainer to trainer trying to run in 10k claimers his whole life. At least the higher class horse was pampered for part of it.
Along those lines, if the connections of a good (or even not so good) racehorse want to ensure that the horse has a good quality of life, they should 1) not sell it someplace like Japan, where there are logical/valid reasons for not being able to keep very many horses 2) sell it with however many clauses are necessary to ensure that, if the horse doesn’t do well where it is, the original owners are to be notified/offered the horse back.
The US can afford to house “worthless” horses like Cigar, Da Hoss, etc. (Note: I’m not saying they’re worthless themselves, just worthless as money-makers, aside from helping to sell tickets to the KY Horse Park ) Other countries are potentially more “practical” about these things. With as little arable land as Japan has, I imagine feeding its citizens is also a challenge at times. Therefore, a case like Ferdinand kills two birds with one stone. Yes, it’s tragic, and yes, it’d be nice if something like that never happened again, but we need to be realistic. The racing industry is about the money, and the horses themselves are often just viewed in solely that light.
Like Shanthi said, if the owners had cared enough to keep tabs on the horse to make sure it was well cared for and such, this would not have happened. If a horse is sent over to Japan and isn’t succesful most likely it will get slaughtered. So then, don’t send your horse to Japan. Then there’s War Emblem, he was sent to Japan to become a stud, his owners found a reputable stable that wanted to stand him and despite the fact that he is still having problems covering mares, they are giving him a chance and aren’t going to send him to the meathouse, they said they might even send him back to the states to a farm that knows how to handle reluctant studs. Case in point, the owners did there homework before sending him to Japan.
I don’t agree with slaughtering horses, but as many others have said, banning slaughter will just create another problem. There isn’t enough land for the numbers of unwanted horses in this world, yes it is a problem of our creation, and as of yet it is a problem we have no good solution for.
On a much lighter note, Lost In The Fog hasn’t seen the light at the end of the tunnel just yet, looks like he might have a chance at survival.
Always best to keep a Positive Mental Attitude, no matter how long a long shot might be. Thanks for sharing
I know this is kind of an old, dead thread, but I had some thoughts on it.
First. Japan doesn’t have room for unwanted horses, they barely have room for their population. They have a culture extremely tightly adapted to a lack of both space and fuel. (Sashimi didn’t start out as a delicacy, it started out as a way of preparing fish without needing to burn something). We can’t really judge them for what happened. Most of Japan’s ‘native’ breeds of horse are, I believe, ponies…big horses just eat too much.
However, I do feel I can talk about a different racing industry. I grew up in England which, while rather better off than Japan, is still a small, crowded island without much space. Most of our native breeds are ponies or working horses…there is no full size riding horse that is uniquely English, unless you count the popular Cleveland Bay/Thoroughbred cross. (Cleveland Bays are carriage horses, although they’re often used for dressage these days). England also has a developed racing industry that is very, very different from American racing.
English Thoroughbred flat racing takes place almost exclusively on turf, with a couple of tracks using specially designed all weather surfaces. Almost all meets, even minor ones, are televised due to widespread, popular and socially acceptable off-track betting (English people, trust me, will gamble on anything, and bookmakers are expected to give odds on everything from the sex of the next royal baby to the chances of an asteroid hitting the Earth and wiping out human life ;-)). Distances extend from five furlongs to two and a half miles…which seems very long until you realize that running on turf is easier on a horse than running on dirt, and that Australian turf races run even longer. It’s fairly common for a promising sprinter to start running against older horses at two, something no American breeder would consider. The Triple Crown is the 2,000 Guineas over a mile, Epsom Derby over a mile and a half and St. Leger over I think two miles, they’re a little further apart than the American races, and it’s considered more important to test versatility than overall toughness.
The flat racing season is summer, winter is occupied by English steeplechasing, somewhat different from the US variety. There are, in fact, three kinds of jump racing…hurdle racing, ‘National Hunt’ steeplechasing and point to pointing. Can anyone name the most famous English races? I suspect most people would pull out the Grand National, a grueling test over two and a half miles and high fences, in which it’s not uncommon for more than one horse to be killed, and there is one historical instance of a horse winning by default…every other horse having lost their jockey somewhere over the course! Hurdle racers are generally four, sometimes five year olds, and normally animals that are less than successful on the flat. Unless they prove exceptional over the low fences, they usually move on to National Hunt steeplechasing after a season…although there are hurdling stakes races. It’s common for steeplechasers to race until eight or nine. Point to pointing or ‘hunt’ racing is amateur steeplechasing, usually run over slightly smaller courses and pulling its mounts from horses too slow to compete on the professional circuit…and it’s not unknown for a point to pointer to run into its teens, not because it’s still competitive, but as a training horse for young and inexperienced jockeys.
All of this means that there is a tremendous demand for mounts for steeplechasing. In the US, only a fraction of flat horses move on to the sticks. In the UK, /any/ horse that is sound and less successful on the flat is likely to be at least tried over fences. The vast majority of steeplechasers are, of course, geldings. Due to decent-sized purses and the prices these animals command, there’s a strong incentive to breed animals that are sound enough to run over fences, that stay sound longer, have more stamina and less speed. The down side is the higher risk of injury to horses in these tough races. In addition, with no native riding horse or warmblood breeds, Thoroughbreds are valued for crossing with Cleveland Bays, drafts and larger ponies/cobs to breed sports horses, and many are used as field hunters…techincally illegal, but the law is essentially unenforcable. A good, seasoned, Thoroughbred hunter can be worth almost as much as a racing horse.
The result is a different type of horse, more versatile, but not often able to compete against the American horses on the flat. But, while horses still go for slaughter, their value in second careers is high enough that trainers and owners have an incentive to keep horses sound. The famous Red Rum, who ran the Grand National three times, was a horribly fragile animal who had to be exercised in salt water to stay sound. In addition, large scale betting results in strong fan followings, especially for steeplechasers, who stay around for years. The equally famous gray Desert Orchid, a splendid looking animal, never contested the Grand National…because his fan club asked his owners not to enter him in the dangerous race, but he did win the Cheltenham Gold Cup more than once, and, on retirement, was leased to the Quorn hunt to be used as a whipper-in’s horse, which he did for years before being put out to pasture.
I don’t see America ever countenancing betting on the scale England does. Nor do I see steeplechasing moving out of its regional niche status. But maybe if people realized the value of Thoroughbreds as sport horses, and as producers of sport horses, a little more…I think part of the problem is that that niche here has been partly taken over by the Quarter Horse. Thoughts?
I’d argue that the niche has been taken over by the Warmblood breeds. 
Perhaps not so much at the amateur levels, since a QH is generally much cheaper than a WB, but I was watching a show jumping competition the other day and everyone was shocked that Aaron Vale rode a TB into the ring (who kicked ass, got 3rd in his first ever Grand Prix jumping event 
Go TBs!). You still see TBs in upper level eventing because they’ve got the get-up-and-go to gallop strong for miles of x-country, whereas the WBs are much more…sleepy, in general. But overall, most “serious” competitors in English events tend to go with WBs or WB crosses. (Assuming that they don’t have a preference for one breed, or aren’t showing in breed-specific shows, obviously.)
I was reading something today when I was looking for info about jumpers… It was actually written in Australia, but I think is equally applicable to the US (or maybe not quite so much…). The problem with TBs getting to the upper levels of the sporting world, especially here where they’re all bred to be somewhat psychotic racing animals, is that they’re hard to put leg on. You try to use your leg, they spaz. You take your leg off, they’re lazy bums. With the number of horses coming off-track it’s presumably not cost effective to try and breed/raise a TB for sport since a similar OTB’ll cost 3500 vs 10k for a similar 4yo sport horse. The trade off is it’s much easier to ride a horse who’s been bred to jump 4’+ and do 4th level dressage in the Olympic disciplines than one that’s been bred to run extremely fast as a yearling/two year-old.
QH’s, while used at lower levels because they’re fairly cheap, aren’t really used much at the higher levels. They’ve sort of become like Arabs here. They have their own breed shows with equally artificial ways of going. They are still predominantly used in the western performance events (cutting, roping, etc) but we don’t have much of that on the East coast where I am.
Slightly off topic but I just read this.
This colt is just refusing to back down! What a horse, gosh. He was such a great racer and now he’s battling against death. Wow. That’s all I can say. Wow and WHAT A HORSE. Barbaro remains my favorite living racehorse though. Lost in the Fog has a VERY close second. lol. Secretariat and Man O’ War are my two favorites of ALL TIME. 
I’m really hyper today. -bounces off the walls-
Unfortunately Dexamethasone didn’t work at shrinking his tumors so now he’s going on chemotherapy to put the cancer in remission. If it works like it should, chemo in horses is still pretty experimental, it will give him one or two more years before he will start to regress again and eventually have to be put down.
Sad but in two years they might find something, otherwise hopefully he’ll be happy for however long he may live.
Show-jumping as well as hunters in America definitely seems to have been taken over by the warmbloods, although a lot of these “warmbloods” are generally half-thoroughbred so …
The quarter horse is still used primarily for western events in America where they completely dominate. You really don’t see that many QH’s in English events, and the ones you do see generally have a lot of thoroughbred blood in them as well.
Well yesterday evening at 5PM Lost In The Fog lost his battle with cancer. He went down after his morning graze with his trainer and showed signs of being in severe pain, they gave him pain medication but it wasn’t helping so they decided to do the humane thing and let him go.