Successful surgery for Kentucky Derby winner (AP)

[Up2Late]

(After so many here voiced their concern, worries, and hopes for a good out come for Barbaro yesterday, after his devastating injury in the Preakness, I felt it might be the right time for some GOOD news. Though it is very early for optimism, the news IS good, so far.) :D

Posted on Sun, May. 21, 2006

Successful surgery for Kentucky Derby winner

AFTER LIFE-THREATENING INJURY, BARBARO `PRACTICALLY JOGGED' BACK TO STALL
By Richard Rosenblatt
Associated Press

KENNETT SQUARE, Pa. - Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro came out of a day-long surgery Sunday to repair three broken bones in his right rear leg and "practically jogged back to the stall," the colt's surgeon said. At this moment "he is extremely comfortable in the leg," said Dr. Dean Richardson, who stressed before the marathon procedure that he's never worked on so many catastrophic injuries to one horse.

Barbaro sustained "life-threatening injuries" Saturday when he broke bones above and below his right rear ankle at the start of the Preakness Stakes. His surgery began around 1 p.m. Sunday at the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center for Large Animals.

At the front gate, well-wishers already had tacked up signs: "Thank you, Barbaro," "Believe in Barbaro" and "We Love you Barbaro." "You do not see this severe injury frequently because the fact is most horses that suffer this typically are put down on the race track," Richardson said before the surgery began. "This is rare."

Unbeaten and a serious contender for the Triple Crown, Barbaro broke down Saturday only a few hundred yards into the 1 3-16-mile Preakness. The record crowd of 118,402 watched in shock as Barbaro veered sideways, his right leg flaring out grotesquely. Jockey Edgar Prado pulled the powerful colt to a halt, jumped off and awaited medical assistance.

(more at link)

<http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/14636270.htm>

[pecwae]

1. Thank goodness!!

I was afraid to watch the news this morning; so afraid this woudln't be the outcome. I'm so relieved and thank you for posting.:woohoo:

[Imalittleteapot]

2. Watched for Barbaro news all day yesterday -

anticipating bad news. Early this morning I heard on NBC that the chances for recovery are still 50/50. The Mercury News info sounds so promising. Thanks for posting.

Sounds like this magnificent horse has the same fighting spirit off track as on. Go Barbaro!!!:applause:

[NaturalHigh]

3. I hope he recovers.

I know from experience how devastating it is to have to put down a horse, and I hope his owners and trainers aren't forced to do that.

[CottonBear]

5. Barbaro isn't out of the woods yet: blood vessel damage could do him in.

I felt so awful for his trainer and his jockey. I had to have a horse put down once. It was truly awful and horrible. A friend's horse broke a front leg (femur) and had to be put down immediately. One minute she was fine and then she was hurt and then she was gone.

Barbaro is in the best equine hospital in the nation. I have a friend who is an academic vet who worked with one of the equine specialists who is now at Penn. My friend said that the staff there is thge best and the facilties are the best. It is better that a back fetlock was broken rather than a front one. A front leg break is much harder to treat and heal.

All they can do is keep the animal calm, keep his gut moving, and keep the leg stable while monitoring the blood flow in the leg and in the foot. He will be able to exercise in a swimming pool (no weight on legs) if he can get past the initial post-surgical phase and then the bone and tissue healing stage.

[kestrel91316]

13. Psssstttttt - the femur is the huge thigh bone high in the BACK leg.

Maybe you are thinking the radius or humerus?

[CottonBear]

16. Yes! you are right! I don't know why I said femur. I know better.

In any case, her leg was totally broken and hanging. It was awful. Poor baby. :(

My orthopaedic surgeon dad would not be happy with me! I was the only kid in 6th grade who had access to a real skeleton to learn the bones of the human body!

My good friend is an retired vet professor and he and I go over horse anatomy all the time. (he's got great textbooks and charts of the muscles, bones etc.) I'm a designer not a medical person (I fainted when dissecting the fetal pig in HS), but I am learning to enjoy helping out the vets and learning about horse care. I even assisted a vet with two equine castrations! I handed him instruments etc. and I did not faint!

[kestrel91316]

69. Don't feel bad. I fainted the first time I watched a cat spay, before I

was in vet school. I got over my squeamishness through sheer force of will.

[Arugula Latte]

4. I hate these "sports" and "amusements" that exploit animals.

Horse racing, dog racing, rodeo, circus -- Ugh. Why people support these barbaric businesses is beyond me.

[chitty]

6. I'm by no means an expert

but I think these horses like to race. Some oe the other things may be barbaric but I'm not sure about horse racing.

[Critters2]

63. If they like to race,

set them free in fields, and let 'em race. No riders, no betting, no tracks. Just horses racing when they want, stopping when they want, not running if they don't feel like it.

But then, how would that make anyone rich?

edited for a typo

[The Stranger]

8. Last Saturday, I came to agree.

I have always loved horse racing. Always. Watching the races, experiencing the history, the pagentry, the beauty of the horses and jockeys together.

The passion and the drama. And how the entire nation was once so enthralled with horse racing. Horse and rider, seemingly an ancient marriage. I loved horse racing.

But all of that changed on Saturday. I had heard people speak out against it, and I had to take some time to examine it.

It is with great sadness that I can no longer support it. It will be very, very difficult, but I really see no other way.

[Coventina]

24. I grew up loving horse racing. Now I see it for what it truly is: cruelty

No one disputes that horses love to run and are competitive with each other.

But "horse racing" as an industry is for human amusement, not for the good of the horses.

There are many caring owners, trainers, jockeys, etc. who truly love their horses and take the best care of them imaginable. I would never say that everyone in the industry is an inhuman monster, far from it.

BUT! The industry produces a surplus of horses, not every horse bred to race is successful. And believe me, they don't all end up as studs, show horses and pampered pets. A lot of the "washouts" and retirees end their miserable lives in the slaughterhouse, or a victim of cruel neglect at the hands of their 7th or 8th owner.

Barbaro was a "best-case" scenario horse. He was raised under enlightened owners and trainer. Yet, he ended up with a life-threatening injury merely in the pursuit of human pleasure. I call that exploitative.

Human atheletes are capable of weighing their choices with possible outcomes and consequences. Horses cannot. If they refuse to race competitively, they don't know that they could end up in the slaughterhouse. If they "choose" to race, they don't know that they may be euthanized if hurt.

I will never watch another horse race again.

[McIntyre]

67. Love/Hate Relationship with Racing

I know what you mean -- just when I surrendered to the "Love" part of this love/hate relationsship I have with the racing industry it kicks me in the teeth again. I've long been a Michael Matz fan (show jumping) and when he became involved in racing I knew he'd do it right in spite of the harsh realities.

I wrote this a couple of years ago -- you may find some common ground here:

I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with the horseracing industry. As a child I spent hours drawing the horses’ sinewy shoulders, outstretched heads straining against the bit, and tried to capture that “look of eagles” in their eyes as they battled down the stretch to the wire. I celebrated the Run for the Roses with mint juleps made from Kool-Aid and catnip from the garden as Stephen Foster’s “My Old Kentucky Home” raised goosebumps on my arms. I can still remember my best friend crying inconsolably when Northern Dancer lost his chance to win the 1964 Triple Crown and to add insult to injury, had to hand over the dime she’d wagered against me.

For me, the bloom started to come off the rose in the early 1970s. The women’s movement was at its zenith; Billy Jean King and Bobby Riggs went head to head in the first male-female tennis match. Likewise, an equine battle of the sexes arose as a gorgeous black filly named Ruffian scored big for the ladies, winning 10 out of 10 starts. The culturally inevitable match race against the enormously talented 1975 Kentucky Derby winning colt, Foolish Pleasure, was on. Ruffian led the first quarter-mile until her leg snapped like a matchstick; her competitive spirit was so ingrained it took her jockey more than 50 yards to stop her. The three-year-old superstar was destroyed, as were my rose-colored glasses.

In spite of this I struggled with my ambivalence until I watched the Breeders Cup Mile from Arlington Park on Oct. 26th of this year. That race did me in. A European entry named Landseer was pounding down the stretch when his leg snapped just below the knee. His lower leg flopped around like the limb of a rag doll as he, like Ruffian, struggled to continue the race. My response was visceral; my blood literally ran cold as I broke out in an immediate sweat.

For all its riches, beauty, tradition, and pageantry, the industry is fraught with commensurate greed, cruelty, and ugliness. The horses -- just babies really -- are far too young; their joints and bones are still forming. Asking them to carry weight over ever-increasing distances at ever-increasing speed is unconscionable, at best. For all the hugs and kisses on the muzzle, they are after all, a commodity. I don’t doubt the genuine affection owners and trainers have for these horses, but it’s a perverted kind of love to be sure. Otherwise, they would allow their babies to reach a more humane level of maturity before making such demands upon their bodies. But, as it stands, that is economically infeasible. Hence, the perversion.

The cruel and unusual punishment of the jockey lifestyle is compulsory due to the fragile physique of the immature equine athlete. These men are forced to do unspeakable things to their bodies to maintain childlike proportions and weights (110 pounds). The consequences can be fatal at worst, mentally and physically debilitating at best for all but a few. Bingeing, purging, abuse of laxatives and diuretics, sweatboxes and “heaving bowls” are de facto tools of the trade. Malnourished dehydrated jockeys oftentimes struggle against weakness and dizziness while controlling a 1,000-pound animal going 35 mph. Appeals to increase jockey weights by as little as three pounds are ignored by the industry.

The industry’s unwillingness to let horses grow up, much less grow old, and allow jockeys to lead some semblance of a normal, healthy lifestyle is emblematic of its greed, pure and simple. For me, the Run for the Roses now has the jaded look and pungent smell of funeral flowers.

[barb162]

72. wise choice!

I watched it several years back and I won't watch that stuff anymore

[CottonBear]

9. Running is the essence of a horse. They are very strong and fragile

at the same time. Any horse can break down due to accident, stress or kicks from other horses. They can hurst themsleves even when they've never been ridden and are pastured alone. I know of foals tht were crippled accidently by their dam kicking them in the knee (the foal is now a TB brood mare), horses kicked in the head by rival mares, horse that fell down and pulled muscles and tendons, horses that had narcolepsy, horses that colicked, horses that foundered and horses that developed an overwhelming bacterial infection. My horse recently kicked her pasture mate in the stifle joint and laid open a nasty cut on his rear leg. He is OK and the wound should heal fine.

Horses are a paradox: strong and fragile, brave and fearful, calm and wild. That is the essence of horse. Racehorses love and live to run. It is amazing how many don't break down.

I saw a 2 year old warmblood jump a metal farm gate, break her front femor and be put down within a half hour's time. :(
She had been put in a small paddock to keep her from moving around too much in order to heal a hoof abcess (common in horses.) She wanted to be back with her pasture mate is all I could think to explain why she jumped a 4 1/2 foot gate.

I hope that Barbaro get better and lives to be an old stud.

[MrPrax]

12. You forgot...

gopher holes...never good for horses.

[CottonBear]

14. Holes...bad...

My horse recently cut her leg when she rolled next to the fence (and tore down the bottom wire and let a yearling filly into her pasture and then the gelding chased the filly 'round and 'round until I could open a gate and let the filly run to safety. It was quite a rodeo.) Fortunately, she wasn't badly hurt and she's fine now. BTW, her grandam was a racehorse in FL and LA.

Point is, they can mortally injure themselves with out any help from people or other equines. I have not idea where the saying "healthy as a horse" came from. :(

[Southsideirish]

30. At LEAST run them on grass tracks or the "turf" as its called. Much

kinder to those delicate legs and prettier, too. I don't know why the hell they don't adopt it here as they do in Europe.

[CottonBear]

38. There is turf racing in the US. Tracks are located inside the dirt track.

Look at pictures of most major tracks and you'll see turf tracks inside the dirt tracks.

I don't know if turf is necessarily safer than dirt. We also have steeplechasing in the USA.

[Raine]

75. I do too

they are DISGUSTING. With all the technology we have today there are certainly plenty of ways to be entertained that don't involve the exploitation of animals! :grr:

[TorchTheWitch]

7. Shut the music off at the club to hear the news

At work last night the manager for the first time ever made the DJ turn off the music and turned up the volume on the tv's all over the club to find out what happened. I thought the customers would be pissed off, but everyone was rivited to the tv's. Big cheers went up on hearing the good news, more rounds of celebratory drinks got passed around, and a lot of people stayed till closing just to discuss the whole thing amongst each other. I think that's the first time that pretty much everyone in the club was talking with everyone else about the same topic. I don't even think that happened when the Eagles got clobbered in the superbowl. Kind of neat that a bunch of very different personalities in a bar would all be so interested in the health and well-being of a horse. Kennett Square isn't very far from here, but I doubt that the location had much to do with the amount of interest.

Here's to hoping Barbaro gets to live to be a happy, lazy, contented old fart.
:toast:

[Strathos]

10. I'm sorry, but does anyone else see this as barbaric?

I mean, running those horses at top speed, a rider beating them and expecting them to do it time and again all for the mighty dollar?

I don't like it.

[Caoimhe]

11. The horses love it

They are bred to run.

[PaulaFarrell]

54. Most do love it

but they are pushed too far for their age. A two-year-old colt is probably equivalent to a 10-14 year-old human. They do not become adult until at least 4 years. There is a lot of wastage in the industry. Very few thoroughbreds grow up to be racehorses. If they are lucky, someone takes the rejects on and tries to make a riding horse out of them. A lot end up at the glue factory.

[CottonBear]

15. The horses are bred to run.

Much of the whip action is the jockey asking the horse to change leads (i.e. change which leg leads in the gallop stride so that one side doesn't get more tired than the other.) These young horses can't really be ridden in a normal situation. After their track career is done, they are "let down" (food and training exercise cut back) and put out to pasture for a bit and then trained as riding horses. The three year olds only know how to run fast to the left.

I use a crop when required on riding horses. Properly used, the crop is applied for an instant and then taken away. It is never to be used as punishment but rather as an additional aid (cue) when the leg, seat and rein cues aren't enough.)

[Acadia Blue]

22. I h ave owned horses, and I find the treatment of race horses and

performing Tennessee Walkers cruel. They are natural athletes and what the vets and trainers do to enhance performance is unnecessary. Especially what they do to the gaited horses is horrific.

[CottonBear]

42. I agree about the Walkers but not the racehorses.

Walkers who are shod normally are wonderful equines! I hate the built up shoes and chains, etc.

[auburngrad82]

17. Much worse things happen to horses than racing

Horses are built to run and are some of the fastest animals on the planet. Thoroughbred racehorses are probably the best taken care of animals on the face of the earth. People spend enormous amounts of money on these horses to make sure they are in the best possible health.

I have a horse and ride horses all the time. The crop (whip) is used to get the horses attention and to give them directions. It does not hurt them. If you watch a race very closely, in many cases the rider isn't even hitting the horse with the crop. He's waving it around so the horse sees it and gives the rider his attention. Just to keep him from losing focus on what he's doing. It may seem barbaric but it's not as bad as it looks.

On the other hand, I have had old farmers tell me stories about "having" to beat a horse into submission with a tree branch. This is just a farm horse, not a race horse. I've also seen pictures of pasture horses whose hooves have grown so much that they can barely walk and horses who are left in a pasture with no water and little grass and eventually just starve to death because their owners expected them to fend for themselves. Again, these are just pet horses because someone "wanted a horse".

A friend's yearling had to be put down when she got her leg tangled in a wire fence and damaged it so badly she couldn't be saved. They took down the fence, but it's too late for the horse. She was beautiful and they had a lot of hopes for her as a show horse.

Our stable recently rescued three horses from a meat auction in PA. They were previously owned by Quakers and pulled carts and buggies. Their owners had purchased new horses and didn't need them any more. If they had not been rescued, they would have been butchered and sent to Europe as horse meat. That's what happened to Hall of Fame racehorse Exceller. The racing community didn't find out about him until it was too late.

To me, a racehorse running is a beautiful thing. And as far as sports go, to me, boxing, hockey, and football are much more barbaric than horse racing. I don't see beauty in humans trying to injure each other. I do see beauty in a horse running.

[Coventina]

26. Human athletes can understand the consequences of their choices.

The comparison to boxing, hockey, and football is not valid.

[auburngrad82]

33. I stated my opinion. I did not compare horses to humans.

In your opinion, what do you think should be done with horses?

When you make a statement that the horse doesn't have a choice you are anthropomorphizing the horse into a creature that thinks like a human. If a horse could choose, what would he choose? What are the options? I'm just curious.

[Coventina]

34. You compared horse racing to boxing, hockey & football.

Saying that the human sports are more barbaric. I happen to agree on that point. My point is that the human participants in boxing, etc. know the risks vs. rewards and make their choices aware of possible consequences.

I was NOT anthropomorphizing horses. My entire point is based on the fact that (as far as we know) horses are NOT capable of making that sort of informed choice. Racing horses are "forced" to race, and if they don't, they are washed out and *generally* bad things happen to them.

The problem of what to do with horses is a difficult one, because they have been biologically altered by humans for thousands of years. They are not fit to be released into the wilderness. I suppose a "best case" scenario would be a DRASTIC reduction in number of horses bred. Horses could be then kept as pets for those with the facilities to properly care for them.

[Strathos]

18. Well, I trust you guys

but I just hate seeing that video of that horse in so much pain!

I guess my heart runneth over too much. :-)

[Triana]

19. Why keep this horse alive?

I heard someone on NPR this morning talking about that and it's all about $$$$$$$$$$. "Well they've spent thousands on this horse."

"Well there's the fact that he's breed stock..." ($$$ in that too)

NO ONE mentioned what is best for the horse or what the horse will have to go through for recovery - IF he ever recovers.

It made me sick.

[Acadia Blue]

23. It really is about $$$$$ for these folks. Nothing but $$$$$.

[Triana]

27. This is disgustingly inhumane... (n/t)

[kitty1]

46. It's worth saving him if he can still breed I guess....

[Caoimhe]

37. I broke my foot last year

Guess they should have put me down :sarcasm:

The horse, if he makes it past the crucial first few weeks, will live a cushy life of luxury, getting fat on grain and having as much sex as he can. The pain from breaking his leg was the worst part. He isn't gonna feel that pain again, I guarantee they will keep him on meds to block it. It was the owners perogative to try to give him a chance, even though he will never race again. That's their choice, their money and to many folks, horses are like members of their family. So to judge them for trying to save him is a bit over the top in my opinion.

[Triana]

43. horses are built differently than humans...

...don't know if you've noticed that? There is hardly a comparison. And from what I read they are usually put down from this sort of injury for that reason. And, this one was particularly severe. Then, there's the fact that all the NPR guy talked about this morning was:

money
money
money
money

It was NOT mentioned that the horse was endeared to anyone who owned or cared for it, just about the money. Nothing else was even mentioned, even when he was specifically asked.

[CottonBear]

45. My friends have a TB borrdmare with a gimpy front knee.

She was kicked as a baby and the joint was broken. She can walk and canter. She really doesn't trot much if at all. We make sure that she is comfortable and safe. She has had several TB babies.
She is a sweet horse and lives on a beautiful farm with other horses to enjoy horse sociaty with.

[Triana]

48. Well, I hope this horse is so lucky...

...but IMO they shouldn't have been racing it in the first place.

[Caoimhe]

47. I guess you didn't watch the race

the jockey sobbing, the trainer and his family almost losing it... that wasnt for $$$ that was for the horse. People in the crowd were crying. I'm not saying $$ doesnt have anything to do with the reason this particular horse won't be put down, but this horse IS WELL LOVED by many.

[CottonBear]

49. NPR news is controlled by Bush PBS operatives who skew right. n/t

[Triana]

20. Yes, actually, I do. (n/t)

[The Stranger]

21. Yes, but it took me a while. Will likely take others a while as well.

Things like hunting were once similarly viewed as beneficial and traditional and historical, etc. But eventually people came around. Their view points evolved.

Of course horses can injure themselves running. So can everything else on the planet (and above it) that runs. But that is not really the issue.

The issue is confining at least a dozen horses that into very narrow tracks, fences, gates and then requiring that they run as fast as they can within this very confined space. This is a recipe for dead horses.

And it has nothing to do with the fact that horses love to run. Nothing whatsoever. It is about creating a dangerous, artificial environment in which the horses are beaten until they run by, through or over other horses.

THAT is the issue.

[northzax]

25. horses are not 'beaten until teh run by, through or over of the horses'

any horse that won't run without a whip, is never going to be run. horses that don't enjoy running will never run well, making it a waste of money to run them.

and not having racing is a recipie for the extinction of thoroughbred horses, since they were bred to race, and serve no other rational purpose.

[The Stranger]

32. Who should I believe?

You -- or my lying eyes?

[CottonBear]

39. The crop is used to signal lead changes, direct the horse, guide him

and encourage him to keep going. I own a horse and ride horses and I also own riding crops. Not all horses need a crop and the crop must only be used by a knowledable person. The crop is an aid NEVER a punishment. One must only use the crop at teh very right moment and never after that moment because then it does become punishment.

Have you ever seen horses play with each other or try to play with people? They play rough: they bite and kick and rear and run and bump each other. One teaches one's horse to respect his person as the alpha horse in the herd of two for the person's safety. What barely bruises or stings a horse can break a person's bones.

True horsemen (and women) respect horses. It is true tht there are some unethical riders and trainers (that's the same in any field or sport) but the vast majority of horse people are kind to such wonderful animals that hae served human kind nobly for 1000's of years in war and in work and in sport.

[truthisfreedom]

28. amazing. i wonder if he'll return to peak form?

[Caoimhe]

36. He will never race again

so the surgeon said this morning on the news. Right now it's about saving his life. They aren't even entertaining the notion that he will compete again. If he heels, his back foot will be like a giant fused knuckle, with limited if any flexibility. I hope he makes it!

[leftyladyfrommo]

29. He has about a 50/50 chance.

No doubt there is lots and lots of money involved here. But I don't think it's all about money. People who have horses tend to love them in a way that non-horse people find difficult to understand.

This trainer was devasted by this and so was the jockey.

[Caoimhe]

35. I agree

they are like members of the family. I've had pets that I sunk a lot of $$ in when they were sick or hurt, and there are always people who will ask how much I've spent only to mock me for it. It's entirely personal, the relationship a person has with an animal. The owner/trainer/jockey would not do anything to Barbaro to hurt him. He was initially in a lot of pain yes, as anything that breaks a bone is. But I bet he doesn't feel much pain in the next few months, they won't allow it! I don't find horseracing to be barbaric unless there is shady crap going on like drugging the horses so they can't feel when they are overdoing it.

I had a giant white Appy that was full of herself and would bite my toes in the stirrup. All it took was for me to ride by a bush, snap off a switch, and suddenly she was PERFECT! I never had to use it, just show it to her. I think that's mostly what the switch is for in racing. Any jockey who flailingly whips a horse the entire race will have a short career.

[Southsideirish]

31. I really hate horse drawn carriages. Those big horses trying to navigate

through the stinking traffic with their heads down low -its disgusting. Sometimes I give the carriage riders the finger. I know its bad but it just kills me. Now I just make a point of turning my head the other way to show my disgust.

[CottonBear]

40. Draft horses were bred to pull carriages, wagons & farm equipment.

Horses used as carriage horses are generally treated very well and there are regulations regarding their feed, watering and work hours. They are certainly better off now than during WWI when millions and millions of horses died or prior to that when basic veterinary care and medicines were very primitive or non-existent. Wormers didn't even exist until the last half of the 20th century. Today, equines are better cared for than ever in human and equine history.

[Corgigal]

41. I have a question that I haven't seen the answer to

When Barbaro broke through the starting gate before the start of the race he was looked over by a vet before re-loaded back in. Does the the starting area have a video setup for a vet, or was the vet, live and in person, near the gate?

I know no one believes he injured himself before he was reloaded....but it bothers me. I just want to learn a bit of the process.

I am also aware, from my "bestest" friend in Baltimore, that Pimlico is running in the red and she hears talk of closing the park down. Which almost makes me wonder how strong the gates were to begin with.

All my years watching horse racing at Belmont park, I never saw a horse break through the gate. I'm aware it does happen, but in my eyes, its a rare event.

Thanks if anyone knows the answers to any of these questions.

[CottonBear]

44. The gate has (electronic?) magnets that hold it closed.

A Preakness commentator on NBC TV said that it is unusual but possible to break through the magnetic closure. I think the horse broke the gate open with his front end. He may have just shoved through.

I don't know about the other questions. The other horses were loaded so he was relaoded and they were off. No time was wasted. He seemed fine if not a bit too fresh and hot.

[bklyncowgirl]

50. The gates are designed to open if a horse pushes through it

A horse freaking out in the starting gate is an incredibly dangerous situation. There are handlers at each animal's head but if a horse bolts he can get out. Otherwise he might panic and flip over backward. Those gates are very narrow and the starters assistants stand on a narrow ledge along the side of the stall. If an 1100 pound horse wants to crash the gate he's going to do it.

Barbaro was very strong and eager. If he'd finished the race safely he'd probably be required to go for more gate schooling before he'd be allowed to race again--even if he was headed for the Triple Crown.

[Corgigal]

52. well thanks everyone

I can understand why the gate would open then. Better to allow the large animal out then have them panic is a small space.

I still wish I knew about the vet situation. Barbaro looked OK to me when he came through the gate but I'm not qualified to know for sure. These animals are so strong and fragile at the same time.
I guess the jockey would know his horse and would have scratched him if he felt anything. Especially this horse.

[catchnrelease]

51. There will always be accidents

but a lot of the problems that running horses have could be prevented if they were started later. By that I mean, don't put them into rigorous training before they are even 2 year olds. If you figure the horses in the Derby are 3 yr olds, and have already been in several races (or at least lots of them have), they have been worked pretty hard for at least a year. Yes, they love to run and I know for the most part the trainers don't purposely overdo it, but those bones aren't even finished growing for 3-4 years. Or at least that's what I was taught in college equine production classes.

When I had my first horse, an Arabian, I was told that their skeletons don't finish growing until they are 4, so I really overdid it and didn't even get onto his back until then. Just did ground work till I felt it would be "safe". Don't know if it made any difference, but he lived to be 30 and was never unsound.

[CottonBear]

59. I totally agree with you about starting them later (4 or after).

My Oldenburg filly just turned three in May. I will not back her until she's four and even then, just for a few minutes a day. I want us to be old ladies together! I've leaned on her back very gently and I'll start lightly lunging her with tack this summer. Oldenburgs grow slowly just like your horse.

[Runcible Spoon]

53. I own an off the track thoroughbred and have rehabilitated many others.

yes, they are bred to love to run. Yes, some do make very nice riding horses after retirement (case in point my 6 year old who just finished her second hunter pace, jumping 3 feet!) But let's not make this picture too rosy. Many if not most TBs are hard to recuperate even if they're not injured when they come off the track. They tend to be spirited and high strung if not flat out neurotic. And they are brd for that. And they are abused to make that worse. I HATE HATE HATE horse racing. let's stop the bullshit justifying it. I think it is a cruel sport to both horses and jockeys, who often starve themselves and ruin their bodies. I don't care how much a horse loves to run, they breed them to run too early when their bones don't fuse until years later. Many end up in the slaughterhouses. Some end up in good homes, some end up passed around and permanently fucked up. I will never support horse racing, even if it gave me my beautiful mare. After all, I have to be careful of her light and porous TB bones which need constant supervision if she is to ever be a good hunter:

[Beausoir]

55. What a glorious animal. You are very lucky.

I must admit to never having given a second thought to horseracing. I just assumed the horses were pampered and taken care of.
I will open my eyes in the future.

[Venceremos]

57. What a beautiful mare....

And your garden looks great, too.

[Venceremos]

56. Need the hind legs for breeding

I was in the horse breeding business for 15 years. We had a Haflinger standing at stud on our farm until 5 years ago. I also worked at a stud farm in high school.

It’s important for a stud horse to be sound in the hind legs because of the way he mounts the mares for breeding. I’ve seen a horse injure himself in the rear legs just from mounting a mare wrong. Last time I checked, studs still have to rely heavily on their hind legs for breeding.

As I recall, when Charismatic broke down in the Belmont they were able to save him for breeding because he injured a front leg and not a hind leg. So I cannot see how Barbaro will be able to stand as a stud, at least not for very long.

Has anybody heard an explanation of how Barbaro will be fit for breeding after this sort of injury?

[CottonBear]

58. No explanation. TBs have to cover the mare. No AI for TBs allowed.

Perhaps he could be an Appendix or sport horse sire via AI.

[lynne]

60. Artificial Insemination?

[Venceremos]

62. Not for Thoroughbreds

As the other poster said, you can't use artificial insemination with Thoroughbreds. It has to be done naturally or they won't register the offspring. And a Thoroughbred must be registered in order to race.

[Kingofalldems]

61. Well he seems to be ready--in spirit at least

I saw on the news that he was checking out the fillies where he is staying.

[Venceremos]

64. Poor horse....

I saw that, too and all I could think about is there's nothing he can do about it. This is so sad.

[catchnrelease]

74. You're right

and they need the front legs as well. Years ago I visited a TB farm, and they happened to be breeding a mare with one of their top stallions. This horse had had a severe injury to one of his front legs. (I don't recall the cause altho' I imagine it was from racing.) It was healed and he walked on it, but it looked grotesque. Because the stallion needs to kind of hang on to the mares shoulders with his front legs, this stallion had a leather boot that they laced onto his "bad" leg, to give him extra support. But to support the whole weight of the horse while he's on two back legs and shifting around on his feet......that's pretty scary. I really hope for the best for this boy.

[Doremus]

65. The commentary I saw yesterday said that the bone repair had to be able

to instantly bear the full 1200 lb. weight of the horse. Lots of metal in his leg for sure. If it can hold him right after surgery, it'll hold him after it heals.

He is lucky in the sense that his owners predict they'll make more on his stud fees than the cost of his surgery and after-care. Profit, of course, is the bottom line in this barbaric sport. So from the standpoint that he is worth more alive than dead, he is a lucky horse indeed.

I mourn the hundreds and thousands who aren't so fortunate. When they can no longer perform they're discarded like so much garbage and most end up in slaughterhouses after enduring long trips stuffed into livestock trucks. It's a horrible death.

Dog racing is another exploitive sport. Greyhounds are bred in huge numbers by breeders hoping to strike it rich on the backs of these gentle animals. They're often shot in the head when they're no longer producing (easy and cheap), if not abandoned to die in locked crates by the truly unscrupulous. Rescue groups try to find them homes, but breeders pop them out faster than homes can be found. :(

There's a lot of suffering for the sake of a few moments' entertainment. Some may be okay with that. I'm not one of them.

[Up2Late]

71. Lots of metal, for sure, here's the X-ray

"...The bones were put in place to fuse the joint by inserting a plate and 23 screws to repair damage so severe that most horses would not be able to survive it...."



(more at the link below)
<http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5423247>

[EMAN51]

66. Any other horse would be at the glue factory now

Jaded, cynical, sarcastic call it what you will. Yes, I saw the injury and was happy that he got the best veterinarian surgeon money can buy so he can live out his life eating and having sex. But any other horse would have been anesthesized on the spot. The surgeon spoke of "tens of thousands of dollars" for the complicated surgery. It's sad that any animal (or heavens forbid, any human) has his fate determined by his wealth or lack thereof. I'm sure the owner loved his horse and did everything he could to save him. That is part of it, but the largest part is to insure his investment did not evaporate. If Barbaro could not command the astronomical stud fees he's sure to earn, would this effort to save his life been made?

[Venceremos]

68. High profile race

I have to wonder if part of the reason Barbaro is still alive is because he's a "famous" horse injured in a high profile race. I’ve seen plenty of obscure horses (with wealthy owners) put down at the track with less severe injuries. So it appears the TV cameras (or lack thereof) also helps determine their fate.

[jumptheshadow]

70. He has a long way to go

The surgery went well but the colt has to withstand infection and laminitis while going through an arduous recovery. Let's all hope he makes it.

There was an interesting -- and surprising -- indictment of the racing industry today written by the usually Neanderthal columnist, Ray Kerrison, in that right-wing rag, the NY Post. Kerrison blames drugs while trainer Nick Zito, who has seen many of his own horses break down on the Triple Crown trail, observes that the industry has bred a dangerous fragility into thoroughbreds along with speed:

<snip> Nobody can be entirely sure what caused the triple fracture in Barbaro's ankle, but there is one undeniable truth: the best 3-year-olds in this country in the last three years have all been dramatically - and prematurely - removed from racing through injury. Last year it was Afleet Alex, before that Smarty Jones and now Barbaro. What's going on?

It's a stretch to call it coincidence. In fact, there is a deeply ingrained perception in the business that the breed generally has been severely weakened over the years by the massive infusion of drugs, licit and illicit. <snip>


<snip> (Trainer Nick) Zito went on, "We've done a terrible job. We have debilitated the breed. I don't know if it's the sale, the speed, the breed or the market. Whatever it is, we have done a terrible job. We just don't have the same breed of horse we used to have." <snip>

http://www.nypost.com/sports/66387.htm

[Up2Late]

73. It was more than a "...triple fracture...," he had 3 broken bones, but...

...(Dr. Dean) Richardson said the pastern bone was shattered in "20-plus pieces."

<http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5423247>

[HuffleClaw]

76. BWHAHAHAHAHAHA. . .

but seriously, i first thought the headline was about the JOCKEY. who fucking cares about some horse?!

[CottonBear]

79. I and millions of other care about the horse and horses in general.

If you don't have something nice to say about this injured animal and his owners and fans, then don't say anything at all.

[Coventina]

83. My, how very progressive of you....

NOT!

:puke:

[bklyncowgirl]

77. Here's a nice interview in the NYT with the owners.

The people around this horse appear to be a class act. The owners and trainer credit the jockey for slowing the horse down but the jockey credits the horse's good sense in realizing that something was wrong and stopping without struggling.

Quote from the owner on why they're trying to save Barbaro's life even though it's questionable that he'll ever be able to perform as a stallion:

"Here's a horse that won the Kentucky Derby, that gave all of us, our families, our community, a lot of joy," Jackson said. "We have a responsibility to do everything we can to see that he lives. "

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/23/sports/othersports/23racing.html

[cookiebird]

78. Open the Book

TB racing relies on keeping records of the bloodline. TB's seem to be "inbred" and are not permitted to have non TB lines for several (???) generations. The legs these animals rely upon are very strong, delicate, and blood-sensitive. Laminitis is a killer and is related to the blood supply. As is any leg injury in a horse.
Please excuse my lack of technical terms. IMHO, the breed book needs to be opened if TB racing is going to be a sport--european cold-bloods, maybe or Arabs...just a thought. Grew up in Morocco...nice lines there.

[CottonBear]

80. TBs are a closed book or else they wouldn't be TBs.

They are descended from two Arabs and a Barb. All TBs are descended form these three stallions.

The original mares were "running horses" native to the British Isles. As the breed developed, the mare book was closed to include only TB mares.

[kskiska]

81. Tuesday Update on Barbaro

"Barbaro is doing very well. He's actually better today than he was even yesterday, and he was pretty good yesterday," Dr. Dean Richardson reported in a Tuesday morning news briefing at the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center, where the classic winner was resting two days after surgery to repair multiple fractures in his right hind leg suffered in Saturday's Preakness Stakes (gr. I) at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md.

"He's feeling very good," said Richardson, the surgery dean at New Bolton who led the surgical team through a lengthy procedure attempting to fuse Barbaro's ankle Sunday afternoon and evening. "He's walking very well on the limb. He's got absolutely normal vital signs today: his temperature, pulse, respiration, attitude, and appetite. We have no shortage of volunteers to hand-pick him grass, so he's grazing at a distance. He's doing very well."

Richardson, who was joined at the New Bolton Center by Barbaro's breeders and owners, Roy and Gretchen Jackson, said he wanted to clarify one comment he made following Sunday's surgery about saving the horse for the breeding shed.

"I made a big point about the optimal outcome is that he'd be salvaged for breeding," Richardson said. "Some people are taking that the wrong way. I want everyone to know that if this horse were a gelding, these owners would have definitely done everything to save this horse's life. I've known the Jacksons a long time. This horse could have no reproductive value and they would saved this horse's life. Just a couple of weeks ago we did an extensive salvage of a gelding."

more…
http://tcm.bloodhorse.com/viewstory.asp?id=33683

[CottonBear]

82. Thank you for posting this article kskiska. n/t