PETA not so nuts

PETA, I feel, is often so extreme in its views as to cause backlash. This time, however, I agree with nearly all of their points. My comments are added in bold. Please link through to, and sign, the petition.

PETA demanding changes after Eight Belles' death

Buzz up!

PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) has called for the suspension and investigation of Eight Belles jockey Gabriel Saez, and also has started an online petition to change the rules of thoroughbred racing.

Flatly ignoring PETA's suggestions could be risky for a sport where interest has steadily waned, and which is under siege after a succession of high-profile horses dying on the track.

PETA flexed considerable muscle in the sports world last year, raising the outrage about the Michael Vick dogfighting charges that sent the Atlanta Falcons quarterback to prison.

PETA's four demands are:

1) No racing or training for a thoroughbred until it turns 3 years old. The organization contends the animals' legs aren't fully developed until then. At least. I would say no training until three, no racing until four. Just as you wouldn't enter an eight year old child in the NYC marathon, baby horses shouldn't be running at the top of the game.

2) No more racing on dirt tracks. The group says the synthetic surfaces now used at Keeneland in Lexington, Ky., and at California tracks are far safer and result in fewer equine breakdowns and fatalities. Eh. Horses have been running on dirt and grass for eons. That said, it's worth looking into. Human athletes fare better on modern running surfaces, having run on dirt for ages, perhaps horses would too...

3) Cap the number of times a horse races each year. Indeed. In pursuit of the almighty dollar horses are run far more than they should be. True these are highly trained athletes, but even the best athletes need a rest. In the same vein, winning mares who have been retired from racing should also have a cap on the number of foals they are expected to produce in a 5-year period.

4) Ban whipping. PETA says that when jockeys flail horses with a riding crop the animals can be forced beyond their physical limits. I don't agree with this one. Riding crops are not designed to hurt the horses, more to make a popping noise to get their attention. That said, horses are smart. No amount of whipping is going to get a horse to do something he or she doesn't want to - I've seen horses reach around and bite their rider's leg rather than respond to unreasonable whipping. Perhaps there should be a ban on excessive whipping, but the occasional pop can be necessary to get a horse to focus. Eight Belles ran on her broken legs because running was in her blood. The only thing that might have stopped her is if the jockey felt she was off and forced her to pull up. And it's questionable if she would have let him do that. A horse who loves to run, or who is competitive will run herself into the ground of his or her own free will if he or she loves the sport and his rider doesn't know enough to pull him up. That said, Eight Belle's jockey should have felt she was off - if I could feel when my horse had so much as a pebble in her hoof, he should have felt her faltering when her legs broke.

The group also wants Eight Belles jockey Saez questioned.

"What we really want to know, did he feel anything along the way?" PETA spokeswoman Kathy Guillermo said. "If he didn't, then we can probably blame the fact that they're allowed to whip the horses mercilessly." If he didn't it's probably because he only rode Eight Belles when she was running. Her exercise rider is the one who spent the most time on her back, and is the one who would have been better attuned to nuances in her stride.