Please...

[Kara]

Ok...this may sound cheesy, and quite frankly I don't care one whit if it does...

Today @ the Preakness, Barbaro (the horse that won the Derby) broke his leg in 2 places. It hasn't been determined whether or not he'll recover, so if you guys & gals could keep him in your thoughts & prayers, it would mean a TON to me.

Horses are my first love, yes, even prior to snakes. To see an animal suffer to this extent just breaks my heart into a million pieces.

Please. Send Barbaro your best...he's hurting to an degree that most people can't imagine.



K~

[wolfy-hound]

OMG, it hasn't been on the news at all. How terrible. I hope they will update us, but that doesn't sound good at all.
My mother used to work a racing stable for D Wayne Lucas, and actually owned 26 racehorses herself at one time. She installed a love for the sport and for horses very early on, and I have owned and trained a lot over the years.
Wolfy who will eb thinking good thoughts.

[Kara]

Thank you Wolfy...you probably have a very good understanding of how racing can affect a horse, and how a major injury can affect an animal that was born to try his heart out.

Thank you. Keep your fingers crossed for Barbaro.

K~

[JLC]

Oh geeez, that's so sad! I don't know much about horse racing myself, but my heart and prayers go out! I adore horses as well, and the thought of one suffering so, whether famous or not, is heart breaking.

[Shelby]

Wow.. I don't know how I missed the Preakness..

I can never get my words out right, but it makes me sad to hear of his accident. Racing is so hard on their young bodies. At least the veterinary sciences have advanced exponentially, so he has a much better chance now than he would a few decades ago.

[Kara]

April...you absolutely hit THAT nail on the friggin' HEAD!!!!!!!!

As an industry, I quite frankly can't understand horse racing. It's been proven time & again that the equine skeleton needs at least 3 years to grow & fuse, yet in racing they commonly start YEARLING horses. WTF??!!??!?!?!!?!


Regardless, racing ethics aside, horses are horses...highly sensitive beings that *know* when something is wrong, regardless of how long it takes an idiot human to figure out the same problem.

Thank you for the backup, ladies. Keep the good vibes a-rollin'!

K~

[mlededee]

i hate hate HATE to hear about horse injuries. i don't know why but it bothers me more than any other type of injury or accident. i hate the thought of those poor young horses being raced. i hope poor barbaro can recover. poor thing--this won't be easy.

[Shelby]

Well they don't usually start lipizzans and other spanish horses until they're at least 5 if I remember correctly.. I saw a 23 year old andalusian doing all the (difficult) fancy footwork.. I don't see the reasoning of wearing them out when they're 2 or 3 when they can do so much into their 20s when they're started right - slowly.

[cassandra]

Jeez, broken in two places, that's insane...poor thing. =(

My first love was horses. I remember I had a cardboad box in my room that I'd put coins in to save up for a horsey of my own.

[Entropy]

I watched the Preakness and just...wow. Before they got him pulled up I had it called, such a pity. I'm suprised they are giving him as much of a percentage as they are considering he ran at least six or seven strides on his pastern (if you watch it's quite noticable that his hoof is not what his weight was landing on).
I frequent quite a few equine boards as well as reptile boards and nothing gets quite as heated as topics asking when a horse should be started...wow...Except maybe topics on Halter horses...those can get kinda nasty too. Flame fest guarantee. I myself have a three year old that I just put a few rides on and thinking back to her as a yearling I couldn't imagine hopping on her then.
I'll be watching for more information on Barbaro. I still remember watching the races with Go For Wand, Prairie Bayou and the race where Ruffian broke down (though that one has only been on tape since I wasn't yet born)...always sad.