# Why do they shoot horses? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 21, 2006, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597 "2006-05-21T01:45:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2006, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/41 "2006-05-22T14:09:48Z")
As a long time racegoer I have seen a few horses put down. The most distressing was an unraced 2 year old. I had taken a friend to watch the barrier trials - early morning, no betting, no crowd and it was a great day out until the second last trial. We were down on the fence near the finish post and only metres away a beautifully bred youngster pulled up with a snapped fetlock. Like **Barbaro** , its leg dangled as though held on by the skin. Screens were put up, then the horse ambulance arrived and the horse was put down. A horrible way to end what would have been a magical morning. ---
**Author:** ![SnakesCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@SnakesCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnakesCatLady)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2006, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/42 "2006-05-22T15:38:13Z")
> [@Sal Ammoniac](#): > > Is anybody else surprised that horses are so fragile? It seems remarkable to me that an animal used in a military capacity for thousands of years should go down so easily. Or is it that racehorses are significantly more fragile than cavalry horses or plowhorses or any other kind of horse? TB racehorses have very fragile legs. Horses used as warhorses or plowhorses - think Clydesdales in compairson. Much, much more massive bone structure. ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2006, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/43 "2006-05-22T15:52:53Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > Ruffian I saw on TV at home, and that was bad. Go For Wand, I was at a race book, and of course, it was on the big screen. Those [images](http://www.angelfire.com/realm2/classical0/gfw.html) are burned indelibly in my mind (graphic warning). > > But I still go. > > DD How’d the jockey fair? ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2006, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/44 "2006-05-22T16:55:34Z")
Okay, now I remember the program-it was “History’s Lost and Found” and the horse was merely known as “No. 5.” The artifact in question was his hoof, I believe, which had been preserved. (I wish that show was still on!) ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2006, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/45 "2006-05-22T17:09:43Z")
> [@Rocketeer](#): > > They certainly do shoot horses. My wife ran into a horse a few years ago. He had gotten out of his pasture, wandered across the road to investigate an orchard, then decided to cross the road just as Mrs. R came along. Smashed the heck out of the car. > > I went up the road to see what was going on, and wish I hadn’t. > > He was standing there, the lower part of his foreleg swinging around, attached by a thread. > > There was a cop there, too; I went home and a while later heard a shot. I’m sure regular ol’ horse-owners occasionally have to shoot horses, but racing horses at the track have a vet on hand to do the deed a little more delicately. Horrible situation any way you slice it. Then you have to dispose of the enormous body. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2006, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/46 "2006-05-22T17:20:10Z")
**Kalhoun** , I think the bodies of these horses are giving burial places. I think they said Ruffian was buried near the track. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2006, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/47 "2006-05-22T17:25:19Z")
> [@StGermain](#): > > **vetbridge** - I think it’s still the case that the Jockey Club doesn’t recognize offspring from AI breedings. At least when I had my mare bred the stud owner said they wouldn’t accept it. > > Yep, here it is in the Jockey Club regulations for registration. > > So getting sperm before putting him down would be pointless from a racing standpoint. > > **Guinistasia** - Yep, we have a Ruffian, and she took her name from the great horse. > > StG Very interesting. Here’s a GQ for you, if it isn’t answered here maybe I’ll open another thread. How about the grand kids? If a horse is conceived using AI the Jockey Club won’t recognize it. What about any foals that horse has? Financially it would still be worth having the bloodline continue for a Derby winner but it would be a longer investment. I’m assuming by your post that if the horse is not recognized by the jockey club it can’t race as a thoroughbred. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2006, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/48 "2006-05-22T17:31:04Z")
If the sire and dam are not both thoroughbreds, the horse is not a thoroughbred. Since the artificially inseminated horse is not considered a thoroughbred, his offspring wouldn’t be thoroughbred, either. I think the reason for the rule is to prevent fraud. It wouldn’t be hard for an unscrupulous breeder to use semen from either a different horse than contracted, or from a non-thoroughbred. The Jockey Club keeps that can of worms tightly shut. > [@Guinastasia](#): > > Kalhoun, I think the bodies of these horses are giving burial places. I think they said Ruffian was buried near the track. At the track (Belmont), on the infield near the finish line. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2006, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/49 "2006-05-22T17:42:01Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > If the sire and dam are not both thoroughbreds, the horse is not a thoroughbred. Since the artificially inseminated horse is not considered a thoroughbred, his offspring wouldn’t be thoroughbred, either. > > I think the reason for the rule is to prevent fraud. It wouldn’t be hard for an unscrupulous breeder to use semen from either a different horse than contracted, or from a non-thoroughbred. The Jockey Club keeps that can of worms tightly shut. > > At the track (Belmont), on the infield near the finish line. Thanks I thought it might be something like that. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2006, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/50 "2006-05-22T17:53:42Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > **Kalhoun** , I think the bodies of these horses are giving burial places. I think they said Ruffian was buried near the track. I’m sure they are disposed of in graveyards (if you can afford it). My SIL already purchased a plot for her horse and she’s left explicit instructions to bury her with him. I haven’t had the nerve to ask her husband how he feels about that. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2006, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/51 "2006-05-22T20:20:14Z")
A tragic topic, but… am I the only one who thought of the “Far Side” cartoon of the veterinarian looking through a textbook in which all the remedies for horse injuries were “euthanization”? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![MaddyStrut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dbc845/32.png) [@MaddyStrut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaddyStrut)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2006, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/52 "2006-05-23T00:12:30Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > If the sire and dam are not both thoroughbreds, the horse is not a thoroughbred. Since the artificially inseminated horse is not considered a thoroughbred, his offspring wouldn’t be thoroughbred, either. > > I think the reason for the rule is to prevent fraud. It wouldn’t be hard for an unscrupulous breeder to use semen from either a different horse than contracted, or from a non-thoroughbred. The Jockey Club keeps that can of worms tightly shut. > > At the track (Belmont), on the infield near the finish line. The potential for fraud used to be the main argument against AI. However, with genetic testing, it’s no longer the main one. There are lots of arguments for and against AI that you see thrown about on horse discussion boards. Some make sense. Others are crazy. The one that makes the most sense is that live cover helps keep genetic diversity in the breed. A stallion can only cover so many mares but can inseminate a lot more through AI. Also, shipping a mare long distances and boarding her is an expensive and risky venture. So a mare owner may prefer to breed to a more local stallion even if he’s not the first choice. With AI, you could see more and more mares impregnated by fewer and fewer stallions. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2006, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/53 "2006-05-23T00:45:12Z")
my favourite quote from barbaro’s vet this morning: “he is very interested in the mares.” bodes well for his new career. go for wand was buried the next day in the infield of the track. it seems that the infield of some tracks serve as a horse cemetaries. [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=912](http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=912) she was buried with her blanket and a rose. ---
**Author:** ![DxZero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@DxZero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DxZero)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2006, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/54 "2006-05-23T00:49:45Z")
> [@rocking chair](#): > > my favourite quote from barbaro’s vet this morning: “he is very interested in the mares.” bodes well for his new career. He’s showing off his cool new scar. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2006, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/55 "2006-05-23T02:52:25Z")
> [@rocking chair](#): > > my favourite quote from barbaro’s vet this morning: “he is very interested in the mares.” bodes well for his new career. > > go for wand was buried the next day in the infield of the track. it seems that the infield of some tracks serve as a horse cemetaries. > > [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=912](http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=912) she was buried with her blanket and a rose. That entry is for Ruffian, not Go For Wand. [Here is Go For Wand’s grave.](http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=8454745) Looks like she was buried at the Saratoga Race Course. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2006, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/56 "2006-05-23T10:44:58Z")
yep, that was ruffian’s. there is a site that had where a good number of tbs were buried. most seem to be buried at their farms. i was trying to find a site for the ones buried at a track and came across ruffian’s. go for wand, i def. remembered being buried on site. ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2006, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/57 "2006-05-23T15:50:29Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > A broken leg on a horse isn’t a simple injury. Horses weigh much more than people and they can’t use crutches. It is possible to fix some breaks but the costs can be very, very high and you can’t count on any particular outcome. The horse may still be lame and horses can’t live like that. I can’t find on New Bolton Center’s site whether they have an exercise pool as well as the surgery recovery pool that we’ve all seen in the news. I observed the one at Rochester Equine Clinic in New Hampshire when my horse was there for arthroscopic surgery years ago. There’s a ramp into a doughnut-shaped pool where the horse can swim and thus exercise without weight-bearing on its injured leg. [Here’s an article](http://www.horses-and-horse-information.com/articles/1002pool.shtml) explaining therapeutic swimming for horses recovering from injury and/or surgery. ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2006, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/58 "2006-05-23T16:03:54Z")
By the way – does anyone here know whether Barbaro was shod with [rim shoes or toe grabs?](http://www.ctba.com/99magazine/sep99/sept5.htm) ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2006, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/59 "2006-05-23T16:11:57Z")
> [@EddyTeddyFreddy](#): > > I can’t find on New Bolton Center’s site whether they have an exercise pool as well as the surgery recovery pool that we’ve all seen in the news. From memory, the pool at New Bolton is huge. Anesthetic recoveries are done in one corner that has direct OR access. The other end of the pool has a ramp that is designed for awake equines to negotiate. I have some funny pics of us working on a recovering horse in the pool. Funny because we are all wearing hockey helmets. All it takes is one leg to twitch while the horse is being lifted/lowered! ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2006, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597/60 "2006-05-23T16:14:36Z")
I was hoping **EddyTeddyFreddy** would come in-how is your horse? [It seems Barbaro is doing even better today.](http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060523/ap_on_sp_ot/rac_tc1_barbaro_s_future;_ylt=AhachCw1CloMiaObZrb41pys0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTA3b2NibDltBHNlYwM3MTY-) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-shoot-horses/357597.md?page=4)