RIP Barbaro

[Angela Harlem]

That's cool

 

[MrPryck2U]

Talk about beating a dead horse.

 

[DaveC]

You saved yourself...barely.

Am I supposed to be relieved that I apparently escaped your wrath?

 

[Canadiens1131]

Ah, brilliant. Human arrogance. We up 'here', and animals down 'there'.

We do tend to eat the things down 'there'. I hear horsemeat is really good actually, but have never had the opportunity to try it.

Anyway he'll make a fine glue so chin up guys

 

[DaveC]

At least I'm not the only insensitive asshole around here.

Hi Habs

 

[Canadiens1131]

Humor - what's that all about anyway?

 

[BonosSaint]

Ah, you have to understand the almost spiritual/sensual connection between women and horses.

 

[Chizip]

Ah, you have to understand the almost sensual connection between women and horses.

i once accidentally went to a website that showed that, not pleasant

 

[BonosSaint]

I said sensual.

At any rate, Barbaro was a wonderful horse. I saw that race and held out hope he'd beat the odds. He did for a long time.

 

[a_young_old_fan]

The Jockey Club (the Thoroughbred breed registry in the US) requires live cover for foals to be registered, so AI would not have been an option. AI is used extensively in the non racing sport horse industry, but often the qualities which make a horse good at racing don't work for other sports. Plus the stud fees for non race horses are substantially lower.

I didn't know that, thanks. I know around here with the horses it is done all of the time, but these are mostly rodeo horses. It brings a whole 'nother level of respect to the owners for trying to save him.

 

[yolland]

No more snide remarks, please--a RIP thread is a RIP thread, whether it's for a human athlete, a poster's dog or a celebrity.

If you want to have a discussion about the appropriateness or lack of it in publically lamenting the loss of some particular person or being, then create a journal entry or perhaps a thread in FYM to debate the issue. Getting your agitation out by mocking one particular instance of it is inappropriate.

 

[angelordevil]

No more snide remarks, please--a RIP thread is a RIP thread, whether it's for a human athlete, a poster's dog or a celebrity.

If you want to have a discussion about the appropriateness or lack of it in publically lamenting the loss of some particular person or being, then create a journal entry or perhaps a thread in FYM to debate the issue. Getting your agitation out by mocking one particular instance of it is inappropriate.

There's a fine line between humour and stupidity. I'm actually surprised by some of the replies to this thread. I'll be the first in line to attack horseracing, but you'll never catch me mocking one of its participants in death.

DaveC, judging by your subsequent replies after your so-called apology, I'm assuming it wasn't sincere in the first place. More like calculated. Too bad.

Also, if you want to know why we spend more time worrying about animals than AIDS orphans you should look something up on Marshall McLuhan. 'The Medium is the Message'...have you heard about him? He's Canadian. Look him up. Be a part of the solution.

 

[YBORCITY]

No more snide remarks, please--a RIP thread is a RIP thread, whether it's for a human athlete, a poster's dog or a celebrity.

If you want to have a discussion about the appropriateness or lack of it in publically lamenting the loss of some particular person or being, then create a journal entry or perhaps a thread in FYM to debate the issue. Getting your agitation out by mocking one particular instance of it is inappropriate.

Great post!!! I feel really bad also about Barbaro and I also feel bad about the Aids Baby from above but as I was reading this Thread it became clear to me I need to stay away from this place for awhile. It amazes and frankly makes me sick about the stupid bickering that goes on here, while a lot of you know that I'm good for a wise ass remark now and again but to take it to the level that it goes to like on this thread is just too much....... CHEERS Y'all

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Ah, brilliant. Human arrogance. We up 'here', and animals down 'there'.

i don't get the whole euthanizing thing because how can we really tell how much pain a horse is feeling? how can we honestly say that a horse would rather be dead than to live with pain? would you rather be dead or live with pain? if you couldn't communicate that feeling, would you want someone else to make the decision for you?

but as far as the whole humans are up here and animals are down there... well... yea. there is a reason why we're at the top of the food chain, just like other animals are superior to lesser animals in their own natural habitat.

 

[U2Kitten]

U2Kitten -- given your reasoning for your stance against euthanasia, I would guess you're a vegan or at least a vegetarian. Am I right?

Well I have tried many times, but still eat some meats cooked by other people. The only meats I really eat are burgers and hot dogs, turkey on holidays, maybe some meatloaf and sausage on pizza.

When possible, I get the 'veggie' or 'soy' burgers or hot dogs. I cannot stomach seeing the raw, bloody, uncooked meat, it's just like a dead corpse to me. If I have to cook it, I don't. (the only meat I can cook are those premade meat patties and hot dogs) I walked out of my high school home ec class when the teacher demanded we cut up a whole chicken. The sound of the bones breaking was just like a body being ripped apart (and in reality, that's exactly what it was) I have never and will never cook chicken. If I was in a position where the only way I could have meat was to hunt or butcher, then I'd go totally veggie. I still hope to be able to someday soon (very hard when hubby and kids don't accept it and won't eat vegetables) I could, however, never go vegan. You can't even have anything that uses milk or eggs, not even most bread or pasta. The way I look at that is, the chickens and cows are being given a job, instead of being killed, so buying their products keeps them alive (though they're not always treated well, but I'm treated like crap at work myself)

I am very anti- hunting. I tried to be 'pro choice' on it since I had a few cousins who liked to do it and I didn't want to believe they were bad guys, but I can't. How anyone could get a thrill out of seeing an animal alive, then killing it and standing over its body taking pictures is beyond me. I've held many a dog and cat in my arms as they died, and that look in their eyes as the life leaves them is very haunting and disturbing. I could never willingly cause it and don't understand how anyone can. I hear hunters describe their 'kills' in stores and I want to punch them. I also dislike most hunters because of the way they treat their dogs. Every year when deer season is over, I see dozens of starving, or already dead, hound dogs on the side of the road. Some hunters just toss them out of the truck, or leave them in the woods. (This has been my suspicion for years, but last year I saw a news story about it, some but not all hunters really do abandon the dogs.)

I am not against assisted suicide or euthanasia for humans IN THEIR RIGHT MIND, if that is what they truly want after much consideration. But I don't believe anyone should make the choice to end the life of another innocent creature without their consent.

Sorry for the rant, thanks for giving me the chance to explain, since I'm banned from FYM

 

[MrPryck2U]

Once again: RIP Barbaro.
My guess is Barbaro didn't go to the glue works.
This poor thread snowballed out of control by folks who didn't take a few moments to filter their thoughts before typing them out.

 

[randhail]

No glue factory for him - somehow I doubt that was ever a possibility with him - he could be buried at Churchill Downs or at some horse farm.

 

[U2Kitten]

I've heard they don't bury whole race horses, only their heads and hearts Guess they cremate the rest of them?

 

[MrPryck2U]

Where'd you hear that?

 

[DaveC]

DaveC, judging by your subsequent replies after your so-called apology, I'm assuming it wasn't sincere in the first place. More like calculated. Too bad.

Also, if you want to know why we spend more time worrying about animals than AIDS orphans you should look something up on Marshall McLuhan. 'The Medium is the Message'...have you heard about him? He's Canadian. Look him up. Be a part of the solution.

You know what, screw you. This is getting comically ridiculous.

You obviously have some sort of problem with me, since you want to keep bringing it up. I apologized, and everyone else in this thread seems to have had the maturity to move on, except you.

If you've got an issue with me then so be it, send me a PM.

I don't give two shits whether you think my apology was sincere or not. It wasn't for your benefit anyways. I'm not sure why you even felt so impelled to threaten me and then question my motives in a thread you weren't even in before, and to which you made zero contribution other than to come after me.

So I'll say it again: what's your beef here? Be an adult and talk to me. Don't hide behind vague threats to report me or accuse me of insincerity.

And while you're at it, stop acting like you've got some kind of power over me. Where the hell did you get the idea that I was somehow waiting for you to approve of my apology post? Pull your head out of your ass and maybe you'll be able to see from up there on your high horse that we aren't all waiting with bated breath for your opinion on matters that aren't your business.

I'm a hell of a lot angrier over this than the language of this post suggests, but I don't much feel like being banned today.

For the time being you've been saved...barely.

(Sounds scary, doesn't it!

I pretty much had the same reaction to your post. )

ETA: For those of you who are here for reasons other than those mentioned in the above post, I'm again sorry for derailing the thread. I felt that I needed to reply to the quoted post. I'll get out of your hair once I see what happens.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

No glue factory for him - somehow I doubt that was ever a possibility with him - he could be buried at Churchill Downs or at some horse farm.

don't be so sure...

Death of a Derby Winner: Slaughterhouse Likely Fate for Ferdinand
by Ray Paulick
Date Posted: July 25, 2003
Last Updated: July 25, 2003

Ferdinand, the 1986 Kentucky Derby winner who went on to capture the following year's Horse of the Year title with a dramatic victory over 1987 Derby hero Alysheba in the Breeders' Cup Classic, is dead. The Blood-Horse has learned the big chestnut son of Nijinsky II died sometime in 2002, most likely in a slaughterhouse in Japan, where his career at stud was unsuccessful.

Reporter Barbara Bayer, as detailed in an exclusive story in the July 26 issue of The Blood-Horse, attempted to learn of Ferdinand's whereabouts after a member of the Howard Keck family that owned and bred the horse inquired about having him returned to the United States, where he began his career at stud. As a racehorse, Ferdinand won eight of 29 starts and earned $3,777,978, retiring as what was then the fifth leading money winner of all time. His victory in the Kentucky Derby gave trainer Charlie Whittingham his first success in that classic, and it was the final career Derby win for jockey Bill Shoemaker.

Ferdinand was retired to stud in 1989 at Claiborne Farm near Paris, Ky., where he was foaled. His initial stud fee was $30,000 live foal, but he achieved little success as a stallion from his first few crops of runners.

Sold to Japan's JS Company in the fall of 1994 at a time when Japanese breeding farms were aggressively pursuing American and European breeding stock, Ferdinand spent six breeding seasons at Arrow Stud on the northern island of Hokkaido, from 1995-2000. Initially popular with local breeders (he was mated to 77 mares his first year), Ferdinand was bred to just 10 mares in his final year at Arrow, and his owners opted to get rid of him.

After efforts by the farm staff to place Ferdinand with a riding club failed, he passed into the hands of a Monbetsu, Japan, horse dealer named Yoshikazu Watanabe and left the farm Feb. 3, 2001. No attempt was made to contact either the Keck family or Claiborne Farm.

Bayer at first was told by Watanabe that Ferdinand had been "given to a friend." When she asked for more information, she was told Ferdinand "was gelded and I think he's at a riding club far away from here." In fact, records showed Ferdinand was bred to six mares in 2001 and then two in 2002. He spent a period of time at Goshima Farm near Niikappu, where a former handler at Arrow Stud had seen him.

Finally, when Bayer told Watanabe she wanted to see Ferdinand, the story changed yet again. "Actually, he isn't around anymore," she was told. "He was disposed of late last year." Ferdinand's registration in Japan was annulled Sept. 1, 2002, Bayer learned.

"In Japan, the term 'disposed of' is used to mean slaughtered," Bayer wrote in The Blood-Horse. "No one can say for sure when and where Ferdinand met his end, but it would seem clear he met it in a slaughterhouse."

"Unfortunately, to those well-versed in the realities beyond the glitter and glory of the racetrack, it comes as no surprise," Bayer wrote. "Ferdinand's story is the story of nearly every imported stallion in Japan at that point in time when the figures no longer weigh in his favor. In a country where racing is kept booming by the world's highest purses and astronomical betting revenues, Ferdinand's fate is not the exception. It is the rule."

"That's just disgusting," said Dell Hancock, whose family operates Claiborne Farm, upon hearing the news of Ferdinand's likely fate. "It's so sad, but there is nothing anyone can do now except support John Hettinger's efforts to stop the slaughter of Thoroughbreds in this country. That wouldn't change anything in Japan...to have this happen to a Derby winner is just terrible."

While the Japanese are among the societies that consume horse meat, it is more likely a slaughtered Thoroughbred would be used for pet food, since the meat consumed by humans is a certain breed of horse raised specifically for that purpose. The slaughter of no longer useful imported breeding stock and many domestic Japanese Thoroughbreds is not uncommon. Shortages of land and the high cost of maintaining a pensioned horse are reasons slaughter is considered an alternate. As in the U.S., where slaughter is also an option available for horse owners, a number of organizations are attempting to provide homes for retired and pensioned racehorses, stallions, and mares. The Japan Racing Association funds one program that currently benefits 90 horses.

Among the people Bayer met and spoke with while trying to learn of Ferdinand's fate was Toshiharu Kaibazawa, who worked as a stallion groom at Arrow Stud during the horse's years there. He called the former champion "the gentlest horse you could imagine. He'd come over when I called to him in the pasture. And anyone could have led him with just a halter on him. ... He'd come over to me and press his head up against me. He was so sweet."

"I want to get angry about what happened to him," Kaibazawa added. "It's just heartless, too heartless."

 

[Hewson]

don't be so sure...

Then again, maybe you can be sure:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sport...chill-downs,1,6335581.story?coll=chi-news-hed

Barbaro May Be Buried at Churchill Downs

By Associated Press
Published January 30, 2007, 12:50 PM CST


KENNETT SQUARE, Pa. -- Barbaro's final resting place could be just a few hundred yards from the scene of his greatest triumph in the Kentucky Derby.

Officials at the Kentucky Derby Museum, located on the grounds of Churchill Downs, said Tuesday they'd be "honored" if Barbaro were buried in a garden along with four other Derby winners.

"We've expressed to them how honored we'd be to have Barbaro here," Lynn Ashton, executive director of the museum, said. "We feel like we're bringing horses back to be honored."

The grave sites of Derby winners Sunny's Halo (1983), Carry Back (1961), Swaps (1955) and Brokers Tip (1933) are located outside on the museum grounds.

Owners Gretchen and Roy Jackson said Monday a final decision on where Barbaro would be buried had not been made. Other possibilities include the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Ky., and the Jacksons' Lael Farm, just a few miles away from the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center.

The Jacksons did not immediately return phone calls Tuesday morning.

Barbaro was euthanized Monday after complications from his gruesome breakdown at last year's Preakness, ending an eight-month ordeal that made him even more of a hero than he was as an undefeated Derby winner.

 

[U2Kitten]

Where'd you hear that?

I've always heard that. Secretariat was done that way

 

[MrPryck2U]

Kitty, you're partially right. Thoroughbread horses usually only have their head, heart and legs buried. But, in Secretariat's case, his whole body was buried.

 

[U2Kitten]

But, in Secretariat's case, his whole body was buried.

I'm glad

 

[angelordevil]

ETA: For those of you who are here for reasons other than those mentioned in the above post, I'm again sorry for derailing the thread. I felt that I needed to reply to the quoted post. I'll get out of your hair once I see what happens.

Dear sweet Jesus, Dave. Are you crazy? I think you might be. When I said “you saved yourself,” it wasn’t from “my wrath,” it was from being an eternal idiot after your initial remarks. So you apologized, but then kept the idiocy running with your smiley reply to Indra’s post–a post that nailed the exact reason you should have apologized in the first place.

Just for the record, this is the picture you posted, and quickly took down earlier in the thread:

http://www.worth1000.com/web/media/106585/glue.jpg

Personally, I don’t have a major problem with that. It’s a little inappropriate, yes, but it’s also dark humour. I’m all over that in a heartbeat. For example, I’ve been known to cuddle with my dog and joke in a high-pitched voice that I'm going to stick her in the oven and eat her for dinner. (Thankfully, because she only speaks French, she hasn’t reported me yet.)

Err...It's a horse.

I prefer to reserve my grief for sapient life.

I could have pulled out the quote on the 'bacteria in your mouth,' or some other part of your strange rant, but the one above pretty much illustrates the problem. You obviously have little respect for animal life, aside from human life. Even the most ardent of hunters still have respect for the animals they take. There's room for that, Dave. You can also debate all you want about the merits of horse-racing, but that's not really the issue. It's about an animal living in pain, plain and simple.

It's a pretty sad commentary that I have more respect for a dead horse than I do for you, and your lack of empathy. Maybe in time you'll grow a heart, and we can go for a lovely horseback ride in the country to reconcile our differences.

I sure hope so

 

[DaveC]

Whatever. You obviously don't know a damn thing about me, and you aren't worth the time it would take to write out a thoughtful reply.

See you around.

 

[tpsreports2424]

Ok, my mom has rode horses all of her life and I've rode horses and showed horses for a while too..

of course it's sad that a horse is being put to sleep when the horse did nothing to deserve it, but a horse doesn't comprehend as much as people would do. horses don't speak english guys and they can't have a conversation with you! if a professional vet says that a horse if suffering a huge amount of pain, and doesn't even know or get why it's feeling what it's feeling, i'd put the horse to sleep because the horse doesn't deserve to live the rest of it's life in unimanginal pain.

to add to this, the worst stress that could be put on a horse is horse racing, it's not cruel and unusual like whipping a horse, but it puts a lot of stress on the horse..

and to also add, i have 2 dogs and i love them to death..but i also eat meat...i say what does it matter if the cow is dead now? you are not saving it's life by not eating it, it's already dead and on a supermarket shelf...

 

[angelordevil]

See you around.

 

[MrPryck2U]

I guess maybe the lesson learned in this thread is that it doesn't pay to contradict others just for contradiction's sake.
I want to thank U2Kitten for teaching me that thoroughbred racehorses usually only have their heads, hearts and legs buried. I never would've looked that up on Wikipedia if I didn't doubt it to begin with. I would assume that they respectfully dispose of the rest of the horse's remains.
Barbaro was a champion racehorse and his handlers did the best they could to improve his quality of life, but Barbaro took a turn for the worse. As a result, the owners had no choice but to euthanize Barbaro. A truly difficult decision.
RIP Barbaro.
I would just suggest closing this thread because I believe its run its course.