NBC Tries to Balance Coverage of Triumph and Tragedy Washington Times Take a look at an interesting article we found.
Big Brown wins Kentucky Derby; filly Eight Belles euthanized ABC News Take a look at an interesting article we found.
Why did Eight Belles Have to be Euthanized? Slate Take a look at an interesting article we found.
Most of these zones remain hundreds of feet below the surface, but they are beginning to spill onto the relatively shallow continental shelf off the coast of California.
May 05, 2008
Whenever there’s a death of a great horse, especially in full view of a television audience, the outpouring of grief is monumental. It happened with Ruffian, some 34 years ago.
It’s happening now with another great filly, Eight Belles.
There are well-meaning people who think she should -- and could -- have been saved, but they are all wrong. It wasn’t cruelty to put her down; it was kindness.
With certain single fractures you can splint a leg and the horse can be removed and treated and go on to lead a relatively pain-free life. But, as Eight Belles passed the finish line at Churchill Downs, she didn't break one leg, but two. The first, a condylar fracture at the bottom of the cannon bone at the fetlock, went right through the skin. This injury in itself was catastrophic, without there even being a broken sesamoid bone in her other ankle.
If you or I break a leg, we can retire to our bed and peruse our get-well cards. But you can't restrain a horse and keep her lying down. Even if equine science were able to stabilize a horse with Eight Belles’ horrific injuries, they’d also have to redesign a horse’s digestive system, heart and other internal organs.
If a horse lies down for any extended period (or is even put in a sling), it cuts off blood circulation and can stop all organs from functioning. In simple terms, a horse needs to stand on all four legs to live.
All these are medical facts, easily checked out in any number of places. On a human level, we all want to do the right thing. But to even attempt to keep Eight Belles alive for any period of time would have subjected her to an unconscionable amount of pain and a slow, agonizing and inevitable death that no one in their right mind would want.
We can get into a discussion of what horse racing can do to safeguard its sport, and they’re trying—maybe now they should try harder. We can talk about the rigors of the Triple Crown itself, and the distance of the Derby, so early in the year, that puts incredible stress on these young athletes. The fact is, lethal breakdowns occur in 1.5 out of nearly every 1,000 starts.
It’s heartbreaking when a great horse, any horse dies. But as Jane Smiley said in a balanced New York Times editorial—Eight Belles doesn’t deserves pity, but respect.
In any sport there is risk. Always.
We should be indebted to a veterinarian, like Dr. Larry Bramlage, who was able to do the best for his patient, when she needed him the most.
Share the Eye:
Filly Went Out In Glory bloodhorse.com Take a look at an interesting article we found.
Filly's injury in Derby was severe philly.com Take a look at an interesting article we found.
How Jocks Saw Race New York Post Take a look at an interesting article we found.
still thinking about today...
Eight Belles death was...
63% 0% 7% 30%
It is tragic what has happened. It's unfortunate that science and medicine can't create some sort of devise that could be worn on the broken leg(s) that would give the horse a chance at a life.
How can the bones be strengthened?
How and why did the injury occur? Is it the stress and distance? Is it an issue of age?
I answered the poll to the right by saying Eight Belles' death was a "fact of life". I don't think it was "tragic" because that would be too negative.
I have great admiration for the good doctor for staying totally focused on what was best for his patient under his brief care. It would have been cruel to delay the inevitable and extend his patients pain because he was concerned about being judged by such a huge audience. He made the tough decision, the right decision. Shouldn't we hope for this type courage and compassion for all creatures, great and small, who often suffer needlessly? often against their will?. . . . but that is a topic for another forum, another day. . .
to South-Side John:
Your point is excellent and it had not occurred to me. The doctor must have been under enormous pressure from the closely watching public eye. Caring only for what is best for your patient should be the average code of conduct. But under those extraordinary circumstances, concerns of image, public opinion, backlash, and other matters that would otherwise be irrelevant must surely prey upon the mind. So yes, kudos to the doctor for keeping his head and doing the right thing when it would have been so easy not to.
ExPat is right to say that Eight Belles' death was a 'fact of life'. But I disagree about rejecting the 'tragic' description. You're right, of course, that such a word is negative but, hey, sometimes negative things are facts of life. Fortunately, there are enough positive facts of life to balance them out and make life worth living. And three cheers for that. But premature death always strikes me as tragic... AND a fact of life.
Let us not forget the death of Ray Chapman in 1920 that ultimately led (though it took a bloody long time) to the requirement of batting helmets in Major League Baseball. That did not protect Mike Coolbaugh from a similar death more recently and the subsequent use of batting helmets by the field coaches.
As early as 1914, football listed twelve (!) fatalities. That's a far cry from that 1.5 in every 1,000 statistic that the horse's have.
I vividly remember the 1982 broadcast of the Lightweight Championship of the World when Boom-Boom Mancini faught Duk Koo Kim. It was a brilliant fight and both boxers were formidable. Horrible was the news that Kim died soon afterwards from the brain injuries he had incurred. Some people thought this was the end of professional boxing but it wasn't. What no one seems to remember (but I sure do) is that, for the first six or seven rounds, Kim had Mancini dead to rights. It was Kim's fight and some of us thought Mancini was certain to lose. The spirit of competition was strong in the young Korean athlete. Alas, it was stronger than the athlete himself.
To: ExPat and DreadPirateRoberts
I too had "cause for pause" about the labels for the categories used in the poll. When I voted, "Fact of Life" seemed like it could be an "all of the above" 'cos it seems that everything, once it happens, becomes a fact of life. There are no right or wrong answers, it's just a matter of individual perspective and feelings at the time. Perhaps "unfortunate" would have worked in lieu of "tragic", especially in light of news about the death toll caused by the cyclone. I'm very saddened that it ended up the way it did, death on the heels of triumph.
BTW, I'll always remember that fight and the emotions that followed.
Be well
JillyBean said...
What happened to Eight Belles is devastating. Thank you for the comforting explanation of how humane and necessary her death was.
I gotta say, I'm appalled by the act of mercilessly whipping these beautiful animals and pushing them so hard they break their legs and die. This is the second year in a row that a horse has died at the Derby. Maybe it's time for the jockeys to re-evaluate their techniques. If PETA gets their way and strips Eight Belles's jockey of his hefty prize, they just might.
I was watching CNN at a coffee shop on Friday and they had an "Obama and Hillary" story. CNN was saying that Hillary was going to bet on Eight Belles because "she is female, she is a strong runner, and I think she represents my political campaign." How eerie... I'm sure Hillary never expected something like this to happen! Yikes. Not a good omen for Hillary?
You know that you are a real Kentuckian when you saw and heard the news about Eight Belles and stood by your tv in disbelief. Horse racing is a win/lose sport... risks, challenges and devastation just come with that sport. We all know what happened to Barbaro after he was injuried, he faught for a great while up hill and down but utimately he had to be put down. These race horses are treated better than most humans and are given better medical care then most humans. I truly believe that if it was in the power of the owner's and trainers of Eight Belles they would have tried to save her in any way possible. It was simply a split second decision... let her suffer or end her suffering. Now as far as whose fault it is... that needs to be investigated, right now all fingers are pointing at the Jockey and for now I agree with that. This 134th running of the Kentucky Derby will go down in history, no matter the out come.
The euthanization of Eight Belles was the most humane thing to do. The track veterinarian who put the horse down made the correct decision as explained by the track spokesman, Dr. Bramlage. The decision was absolutely not influenced by the media, fans, or anything else. The decision was totally in the best interest of this animal. I agree with PETA on many things but they are way out of line on this one. Jockeys are the best friends those horses have and I don't believe for one minute that this jockey was aware of any complications during the race itself. It looked like the horse took a bad step in the stretch but it never faltered. After the race, the horse must have tried to compensate, thus causing the these horrific injuries. Peterman's Eye is correct that this horse would never have recuperated. It would have been inhumane to make it suffer. These things happen to horses out in open fields and at times when they are not being pushed. A horse race is exactly that...a race. Race horses are closely monitored long before, during, and after a race. They are in top condition when they enter that starting gate. This was an unfortunate and sad event for all involved but it is a part of horse racing that does happen from time to time. It is no one's fault. The industry will mourn it's loss and go on but to blame the jockey in any way is just wrong.
JillyBean said...
Here's a question for ya...
If it were another horse that broke down, with the exception of Big Brown, would the outpourings of grief be this much? What if, as opposed to the filly, it was some nondescript male horse that finished 14th...?
I would like to think that whatever horse this happened to the reaction would be the same, but in all reality... probably not. I have seen it happen many times in a plain old claiming race to non-champion, non-derby horses and it is always a terrible thing. I am sure the owners, trainers, and jockey feel the immense pain but when all is said and done I am sure the insurance money helps alleviate some of it.
leahold30 said...
I am a Kentucky girl. When your born in the horse capital of the world the derby is like religion. Like millions of others I was glued to the TV when this tragedy occured. I couldn't watch. I asked my husband to turn the TV off. I do feel that they did the right thing for the horse. The veterinarian was brave to make such a difficult decision so quickly.
Spinner said...
I heard an NPR discussion on this today. A Vet. brought up the point of the breeding. He pointed out that today, these animals are so bred for speed and often are only raced for 4-6 races before they are retired to stud. The owners don't want the chance of any injuries, not only for the safety of the horses, but also they want those stud fees. Hence the breeding is for a few fast races at an early age. These horses are 1200 lbs and better and are running on incredibly thin legs. I don't have any answers here, just thought this was an interesting observation. Maybe PETA should look at the breeding practices rather than the jockey. It does seem we do have a tendency to over breed domesticated animals for traits we find desirable. After all, there are several dog breeds that are so highly bred for certain traits that they are unable to reproduce naturally. The females must use AI to get pregnant. That's a bit much.
thecatalyst said...
I can only speak for myself, but I believe my reaction would be the same had this happened to any other horse. So tragic, but I think the vet rightly made the difficult decision to end Eight Belles' suffering.
Miss Julia said...
I am very emotional about animals, so I'm glad that I didn't see this sad event.
That being said, I have a horse, and most of us have some favorite and least favorite horse sports. I'm not a fan of racing because I prefer seeing a different type of interaction between horse and rider that is more interesting to me.
I love to go over jumps on my horse, and this certainly has some risks for both of us, although not so much as my driving a car in Los Angeles. With my horse, there is probably a greater risk of turning him loose in an arena or pasture where he would run wild and buck. I have seen horses seriously injured from just doing what horses do.
One of my trainer's horses practically tore his hoof off by casting himself in his stall. He was saved, but it was very serious. While I feel great sadness at having to put an animal down (as we eventually have to do with our dear pets), it is the humane thing to do. If a horse in the wild breaks a leg, it will not be so fortunate to be put out of its misery in a timely manner.
I really think we all need to put things into perspective! My enthusiasm has certainly been hampered by this tragedy. However, there are soldiers dying everyday, humans are starving all over the world, and natural disasters occuring daily, and many more important issues to deal with. Even though the horse industry is my families livlihood, I think the general public is making way too much out of the whole issue. Allow Eight Belles to rest in peace and go out with dignity. The horse finished 2nd in the prestigious Kentucky Derby! Celebrate her accomplishment.