Activist Patrick Batuello confirmed 953 horse deaths on America’s horseracing tracks. That statistic doesn’t include all states, nor does it count the number of horses euthanized away from tracks. Batuello, trainers, an owner, a politician and veterinarians recently shared their viewpoints of the U.S. horseracing business with The Washington Post. Shelia Lyons, DVM and founder of Homecoming Farm, believes on-site CT scanning is one tool that can be used to prevent racing injuries and death.
Source: Washington Post, July 13, 2016.
People always say ‘the horse just took a bad step’ and that’s just not true, Lyons said. “Any horse that dies is an absolute failure of the veterinary system that was looking after the athlete. “These are not single-step failures. These fractures occur over a long period of time” CT imaging company CurveBeams’ pedCAT scanner produces high-resolution 3-D images of the human foot. In 2013, Lyons approached CurveBeam about adapting the technology for horses.”
INSIGHTS: It is not necessary to agree or disagree with Mr. Batuello, Dr. Lyons or others featured here. What is critical is the drive to eliminate questionable protocols and standard operating procedures from a business ripe for criticism. There are innumerable examples in the beef, dairy, poultry, swine and circus businesses, to name a few, where activists from outside and inside each industry worked for improved conditions. If those in horseracing haven’t started discussions with leaders in these industries to learn what can be done, there’s no time like the present to snap the reigns and get with it.