Who should be held accountable for the hundreds of horse deaths that occur at U.S. racing tracks every year?
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Battle of Midway had long “donkey ears” he liked rubbed, stuck out his tongue as if it were an act of mischief and, when he was a foal, once pulled fan wires out of electrical sockets. At the end of each day, Finley fed Battle of Midway an apple and marveled as he took perfect bites.Finley led Battle of Midway to the equine hospital and into the radiology room. When digital images of his X-rays flashed onto a screen, Finley burst into tears.
►Should anyone be held accountable for the death of Battle of Midway, one of 23 horses that have died on the track during the winter meet at Santa Anita and one of hundreds that die at U.S. tracks every year?Flavien Prat, who was Battle of Midway’s regular jockey, did not respond to an interview request made through his agent.
Each state involved in horse racing has created its own governing body and enacted its own rules, and the sport has no central authority.With the backing of a prominent horse owner, Rick Porter, she has a plan to affect change. Keith is the executive vice president of Fox Hill Farm, owned by Porter, who purchased Battle of Midway as a yearling.
“So when you ask, how come they’re not trying to identify wayward trainers, my answer to that is all complicit.” “Typically what happens in any animal exploitation industry is that the law defers to common industry practice,” he said, “and common industry practice in horse racing has been various drugs, whipping, running horses before they’re physically mature. So there is not going to be any accountability from outside of the industry. The industry is left to police itself.”
An endearing commodityAs is nearly any Thoroughbred, Battle of Midway, on one level, was nothing more than a commodity, to be bought, sold and managed in pursuit of a profit. The horse changed hands twice, was the subject of an insurance payoff and earned his various owners more than $1.5 million in purse money. But Battle of Midway endeared himself to his handlers and racing fans with a compelling story on and off the track.
Battle of Midway had better luck in the Derby. Going off as a 37-1 long shot, he changed his trajectory. He finished third. Changes at Santa AnitaThe same day on which Finley euthanized Battle of Midway, she left flowers with red apples inside his stall. That stall was still empty March 3, when animal rights activists gathered outside Santa Anita Park.Three days later, after the death of yet another horse, the Stronach Group — which owns Santa Anita Park and tracks elsewhere around the country — shut down the dirt racing surface and said experts would be brought in to investigate.
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