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The Forum > Article Comments > Melbourne Cup: The race that gets us to stop and think about animals? > Comments

Melbourne Cup: The race that gets us to stop and think about animals? : Comments

By Nicholas Pendergrast, published 26/10/2011

Animal rights are about more than our right to enjoy or profit from them.

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This video says it all - and it's also hilarious:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKTsWjbjQ8E
Posted by The Acolyte Rizla, Saturday, 29 October 2011 10:33:24 PM
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I'm not an animal rights activist but I'd like to point out that the majority of people responding to this article (so far) got defensive, offered personal insults to the author, and made arguments that didn't make sense in context of the author's argument. :(

The author's argument was that animals are sentient beings with rights of their own - therefore they shouldn't be used by humans. His argument was more than saying cruelty to animals is wrong...he's saying using animals is morally wrong.

Therefore arguing that racehorses (and somehow it seemed to get on to cattle ;p) are treated well (are they? are his arguments that many are put down when they fail untrue?) doesn't really refute the author's argument.

I would like to hear if anyone can argue morally that racing horses is acceptable and/or right. Just to hear the other side. :)

Are the people who are in favour of racing horses coming from a stance that animals are things rather than "ones" - as the author claims they are? Or are their moral reasons that racing is okay based on a different premise?

I write the above because I've not really considered animal welfare before but I want to keep an open mind, and change my views in life based on what is true, and what is loving. I also want balanced views that work for everyone's good. And doable views! Change can be quite hard...both on the personal and global level...so it makes sense that we would get upset and defensive when confronted with these kind of views.

I'm not saying that means such views are automatically right...just that the emotional reaction many of us have to them might mean we need to look deeper.
Posted by sharnii, Monday, 31 October 2011 11:24:23 PM
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Sidenote: (I'd also be interested to hear any factual evidence for suffering of racehorses or whether they are killed when they fail. Or whether they have good retirements as some posters claimed. As to the argument that some animals wouldn't be alive if we didn't breed them for human use..."giving" life doesn't mean one is god over that life. In either human or animal context. It just means one partly enabled a life.)
Posted by sharnii, Monday, 31 October 2011 11:24:42 PM
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Sharnii, first I suggest you read my first post on this thread, the second post.

Race horses are expensive to breed, & valuable as brood stock, if any good at their task. When mares & stallions retire from racing, they lead rather luxurious lives, as they must be in peak condition to bread.

I have owned a number of race horses, but have no interest in racing, other than a pony flutter at a pony club.

I have owned both retired race horses, & slow race horses. Slow horses are no use for racing or breeding, & are sold on, often cheaply to the equestrian market, & pleasure riders. Retired geldings are obviously no use to the industry, & are also sold on to the same area.

My son & I were show jumpers. Our horses required a lot of training, & much exercise. They had to be fit & well to compete. If your horse didn't trust you, you could not be successful. My daughter was into dressage. Her horses require years of training, & a really great understanding between horse & rider to be successful.

I have had a couple of horses who could not handle retirement. They were miserable without regular exercise, & contact with their people, but I currently have 2 aging retired horses, something over 20 years, who have not been ridden for years. They come when called, for a brush, or a carrot, & give every impression of being happy, "down the paddock".

I don't think our horses are treated any differently than most others, other than those owned by some ladies. I am sure some ladies I know would have their horses in the house with them, if they could be toilet trained.
Posted by Hasbeen, Tuesday, 1 November 2011 12:42:17 AM
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A horse meat industry insider recently said that Australia slaughters 50,000-70,000 horses a year for human consumption.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2010-07-16/butcher-defends-horse-meat-trade/907098

Horses are also slaughtered for pet food. It is hard to trace exactly what proportion of these horses come from the horse racing industry, as race horses ending up slaughtered for human consumption or as pet food is not something that the horse racing industry is proud of. However, it is absolutely clear that some horses from the horse racing industry do make up this figure.

Queensland vet Eva Berriman has said: "But even in the absence of documented figures, the finger must be pointed firmly at the racing industry, which has a very high attrition rate of fine quality, well-muscled horses still in their prime often with no road open to them except to a horsemeat abattoir."

The horse welfare group in Australia, Cedar Springs Horses Inc, attempts to rescue race horses destined for the slaughterhouse to reduce the number of race horses that meet this fete, but they can’t rescue everyone.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/australian-racehorses-for-dinner/2008/02/02/1201801095371.html

The horse racing industry can always pick out individual examples of horses who “retire” and don’t face slaughter, however, this doesn’t change the fact that horse racing and The Melbourne Cup is inseparable from the killing of horses well before they would live to if they were free from the horse racing industry.

Even those who aren’t going to be slaughtered for pet food or for human consumption overseas still face the risk of serious injury during a race, which can lead to them being killed. We’ve all seen the sheet put in front to shield the crowd from seeing the horse being killed right there on the track.

The horse racing industry justifies this by saying there are lots of dangerous sports where athletes face injuries. This is wrong for at least two reasons. First, when a human athlete such as a jockey gets a serious industry, they are not “put down” on the track. Secondly: ‘While jockeys and motorsport racers can provide informed consent for their participation, this cannot logically be claimed for horses.’

http://www.thescavenger.net/animals/horse-racing-the-hidden-cruelty-revealed-708.html
Posted by Nick Pendergrast, Tuesday, 1 November 2011 1:01:29 PM
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Don't you people manage to talk tripe.

Just one question, would you rather be a Ozzie horse, or a Zebra waiting its turn with the lions or crocks in Africa?
Posted by Hasbeen, Wednesday, 2 November 2011 12:58:47 AM
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