Society/Culture Horse racing is cruel

[Lethality]

I was going to title this thread 'Is horse racing immoral'? However, that question just made me smile, it's like asking whether the Pope is Catholic.

From an animal cruelty standpoint, to the culture of drunkenness and brawling, to the gambling industry which preys on problem gamblers, and the frequent association with organised crime, it's hard to make a case to the contrary.

So I changed it to whether horse racing was simply cruel, which is not a small question either.

Horses are whipped, get internal bleeding from strenuous activity and stress, and frequently suffer sickening falls which means they are killed, severely injured or euthanised.

I'm certainly one who refuses to participate in this sport. It seems like a celebration of the worst and tackiest parts of our society, all based around an event which is deleterious to the health of some animals.

The sooner we're done with it, the better.

http://www.news.com.au/national/are...t/news-story/3472d55efbc4f481220a819a5458a9be

A STAR horse is “not well” after a sickening fall on Melbourne Cup day, which has again raised concerns about whether racing is cruel.

Hong Kong jockey Joao Moreira looks to have escaped serious injury after crashing heavily in race 4 but Regal Monarch, who he was riding, has been rushed to a vet clinic.

While the nation stops to watch the Cup today at tracks, pubs and offices, there will be a much smaller group turning their backs.

It’s a group has been expressing its animal welfare concerns for years now but a look at social media chatter indicates an anecdotal increase in the volume of criticism this time around.

Twitter tracking service Keyhole found of Twitter mentions of the Melbourne Cup today, 13.6 per cent were negative in nature, 58 per cent neutral and 28.4 per cent positive.

Anti-racing activists claim the much-loved tradition of horse racing is cruel, unethical and dangerous.

 

[King Brown]

Yes.

 

[tandino]

No.

 

[tandino]

I'm certainly one who refuses to participate in this sport. It seems like a celebration of the worst and tackiest parts of our society, all based around an event which is deleterious to the health of some animals.

Just out of interest, are you a Vegan?

 

[Reynolds Number]

It's only cruel one day of the year.

 

[Gigantic]

Yes.

I think the whole day is ridiculous. People getting dressed up to celebrate a needless day where horses are getting unnecessarily whipped for people's entertainment.

Blah, blah, blah about race horses being treated and looked after well. They are professional race horses whose purpose in life is to fulfil the pleasures of humans and of course the gambling industry. I'm sure they look forward to every race day.

And before anyone asks, yes, I don't consume animal products.

 

[Lethality]

Just out of interest, are you a Vegan?

I don't eat meat unless I am offered it.

 

[tandino]

I don't eat meat unless I am offered it.

Doesn't the livestock industry have a detrimental impact on animal health and welfare?

From an ethical standpoint I can't see how one could be against horse racing and yet still eat meat.

 

[Upgrayedd]

Yes

It also brings the best out of everyone.

 

[Lethality]

Doesn't the livestock industry have a detrimental impact on animal health and welfare?
From an ethical standpoint I can't see how one could be against horse racing and yet still eat meat.

I don't eat meat, unless its been offered. The rationale is that it is meat which has already been killed on my behalf, so therefore eating it doesn't add to any further suffering.

The livestock industry certainly needs to be looked at. Things have improved, but there are still horror stories.

 

[undefined]

90% of racehorses have stomach ulcers.

It's absolutely cruel and everyone involved within the industry ought to be ashamed of themselves.


Andrew Hansen said it perfectly 5 years ago:

 

[Thats Wright]

Social media is a blight on society.

What could've been.

 

[tandino]

I don't eat meat, unless its been offered. The rationale is that it is meat which has already been killed on my behalf, so therefore eating it doesn't add to any further suffering.

But the same can be said of the meat sitting in the fridge down at Coles. All those animals have already been killed for consumption and undergo no further suffering, they're just conveniently sitting there to be picked up.

 

[Benny78]

If a vego attacks you for your life choices start eating prawns instead of beef. 300g of prawns is like 25 lives whereas a 300g of steak is like 0.003% of a life.

Attacking people with regular diets isn't beneficial if it increases the problem. Why attack people for the life choices? They have the power to spite you by eating more animals than they usually would to compensate for the ones you don't.

 

[Lethality]

But the same can be said of the meat sitting in the fridge down at Coles. All those animals have already been killed for consumption and undergo no further suffering, they're just conveniently sitting there to be picked up.

In that case purchasing the meat adds to their sales, and therefore they purchase more and kill more. I'm talking about meat that has already been purchased and would otherwise go to waste.

 

[M Malice]

Horse racing is one of my most disliked sports and I have zero interest in it, I can't see the attraction at all although it certainly has a bloody good publicity machine behind it, it has been brainwashed into the Australian psyche, I remember being at school in the 70s and all the kids gathering around the TV watching the Melbourne cup.

 

[sherb]

Horse racing is one of my most disliked sports and I have zero interest in it, I can't see the attraction at all although it certainly has a bloody good publicity machine behind it, it has been brainwashed into the Australian psyche, I remember being at school in the 70s and all the kids gathering around the TV watching the Melbourne cup.

I couldn't be less interested in horse racing if I tried.

 

[TheWoodenSlug]

It's definitely cruel and I don't understand the attraction. But I'm not really in a position to judge, given I eat meat in pretty much every meal I have. I also love fishing, which I'd say is at least as cruel on the fish as horse racing is on the horses.

 

[Seeds]

I was going to title this thread 'Is horse racing immoral'? However, that question just made me smile, it's like asking whether the Pope is Catholic.

From an animal cruelty standpoint, to the culture of drunkenness and brawling, to the gambling industry which preys on problem gamblers, and the frequent association with organised crime, it's hard to make a case to the contrary.

So I changed it to whether horse racing was simply cruel, which is not a small question either.

Horses are whipped, get internal bleeding from strenuous activity and stress, and frequently suffer sickening falls which means they are killed, severely injured or euthanised.

I'm certainly one who refuses to participate in this sport. It seems like a celebration of the worst and tackiest parts of our society, all based around an event which is deleterious to the health of some animals.

The sooner we're done with it, the better.

http://www.news.com.au/national/are...t/news-story/3472d55efbc4f481220a819a5458a9be

as per usual you focus on the wrong issue. Its not whether its immoral. its why people care about something that is so utterly stupid as horse racing that is the real issue. The Immorality of it is just a subset of the broader overall stupidity.

 

[Seeds]

It's definitely cruel and I don't understand the attraction. But I'm not really in a position to judge, given I eat meat in pretty much every meal I have. I also love fishing, which I'd say is at least as cruel on the fish as horse racing is on the horses.

fish dont have the same level of consciousness as mammals. they are virtually no different from plants so no its not even remotely as cruel.

 

[Seeds]

Horse racing is one of my most disliked sports and I have zero interest in it, I can't see the attraction at all although it certainly has a bloody good publicity machine behind it, it has been brainwashed into the Australian psyche, I remember being at school in the 70s and all the kids gathering around the TV watching the Melbourne cup.

you get that happens every single year everywhere in australia since the 70s right? how have you managed to avoid it to the extent that the last time you have seen people huddled around the tv to watch a horse race is the 70s?

 

[Seeds]

If a vego attacks you for your life choices start eating prawns instead of beef. 300g of prawns is like 25 lives whereas a 300g of steak is like 0.003% of a life.

Attacking people with regular diets isn't beneficial if it increases the problem. Why attack people for the life choices? They have the power to spite you by eating more animals than they usually would to compensate for the ones you don't.

prawns have basically no consciousness. cows do.

 

[TheWoodenSlug]

fish dont have the same level of consciousness as mammals. they are virtually no different from plants so no its not even remotely as cruel.

Has it been proven that fish don't feel pain? My understanding is that it is still up for debate. In any case, 'virtually no different from plants' seems a bit of a stretch to me.

 

[M Malice]

you get that happens every single year everywhere in australia since the 70s right? how have you managed to avoid it to the extent that the last time you have seen people huddled around the tv to watch a horse race is the 70s?

I get it, just highlighting how long the cup has been integrated into the Australian psyche via my early childhood memories/indoctrination.

I watch an extremely small amount of free to air television, I don't have foxtel, I stick to the google machine and Netflix.

 

[Partridge]

fish dont have the same level of consciousness as mammals. they are virtually no different from plants so no its not even remotely as cruel.

Don't have a beer with a biologist anytime soon!