I like traditions too, but this clearly cannot mean that all traditions must continue at all costs. Instead, I think traditions must be evaluated on a case by case basis. One philosophical issue at the core of this debate is determining what is made for man. Are horses made for man? If so, there should be no problem with raising them for any reason, including just to torture them to death. But who should be in charge of making this decision? I take coco’s point that we are currently operating under the assumption that the horses should have no say.
Someone (I forget who, but obviously either a creationist or a comedian) argued that horses were obviously designed for man to ride.
Ferdinand, the 1986 Kentucky Derby winner, died in a slaughterhouse in Japan 16 years later. Alydar, who finished 2nd to Affirmed in all 3 Triple Crown races in 1978 and also had success at stud, was whacked by his owner for the insurance money in 1990. And those were star horses. It's how they're treated after they're no longer profitable that really burns me up. The deaths of the horses at Churchill Downs is unacceptable and must be investigated, learned from, and prevented in the future, but I don't want to see horse racing ended. I want to see retired horses treated better.
It was due to soldiers wearing their sword on the left side it just made it easier to mount from the left
Thanks. It's gone on so long now I guess horses expect it. They would probably freak out if you tried to mount on the right.
It is certainly the uglier side of the sport. I live not far from Saratoga Springs in upstate NY, where horse racing & breeding are a huge part of the culture. Over the course of 20 years I have gone to a handful of events at the track when it is open from late July thru August. The Travers Stakes, to close the season, is a pretty big deal. Some refer to it as the sports 4th crown. Then I learned how many of them were euthanized over the month(ish) long season, some years back. It was like 30+ horses, and didn’t sit well with me. And I haven’t been back since. I understand the popularity & pageantry behind it. But I look it at it like I look at MMA cage fights. It may be entertaining for some… but I can’t bring myself to watch it.
Most people are right handed. Therefore, much of the "gear" cowboys would need on the fly - rifle, lariat, foodsack, water, etc....were mounted on the right side of the horse. These things would interfere with you mounting the horse from that side. Therefore, it just became "how it was" for TV and movies. Just a guess, but a left handed gun fighter, ranch hand, cattle hearder, etc...would have everything mounted on the other side of the horse.
Reminds me of an inexcusable error in the movie "Across the Wide Missouri." In one scene a papoose is mounted on one side of a horse. In the very next scene, the papoose is mounted on the other side. Who was stupid enough to do that, and then to let it happen?
As a lefty who owns horses you would be correct, and I have mounted my horses from both sides especially nowadays since my left knee is going bad I have a tendency to mount from the right
Probably because most people are right handed, and it was to use their stronger hand/arm to pull them up. Rode a beautiful horse in Patagonia two weeks ago in front of the mountain range. It was......glorious and beautiful. But all we did was trot a little. Scary as hell when a horse braks into a full gallop if you're inexperienced. Our daughter (now 28) loved horses as a kid. Rode a little bit. When she was about 6 we attended a family bar mitzvah in Louisville. Track was open, so we took her to see the ponies run. First two races-horse breaks down on the backstretch each race. Terrible to watch. Out comes the ambulance, the vets and the curtain to screen the horse from the spectators. Boom, two horses euthanized our first hour there. Never made it to race 3, the kid was hysterical at what happened. Horse racing didn't seem so beautiful that day. Horses are simply beautiful animals, majestic when they run, nothing else like it in sports, especially in those brilliant derby colors on a sunny May day. . But take a close look at the size of their legs and ankles compared to the force of running. While they are certainly bred to run-heart/lung capacity, diet, training, etc., no amount of special attention and training is going to give them a bigger set of bones, and eventually one of them will break down, catch a hoof, hit a small hole. Doesn't take much.. Just like Ruffian did in 1975 at Belmont in her match race vs Foolish Pleasure.
To the extent you're suggesting that was a leftist thing, I believe the dog racing amendment was passed by about 70% of Floridians. I used to enjoy the dog races back in the day, too, but there were horrible stories coming out about how the greyhounds were treated. I suppose additional regulations might have been an alternative, but it wasn't a partisan issue.
"You people". How horrible it must be to go through life viewing things exclusively through a partisan lens, while decrying anyone else who thinks differently than you do as the problem. See post 36 right above this one as Exihibit 1,423. Good grief.
To some people everything becomes a partisan issue. Dog racing, horse racing, they turn it into a dog and pony show.
Lighten up North. The libbies are the ones who show up at the sea world gate to complain about the orcas. Get a life. Libbies feel bad for greyhounds…gtfo. Lol, that’s the way it looks from here.
I never paid attention to dog racing, but if greyhounds were mistreated, it's only "libbies" who cared? Well, I guess it must have been only "righties" who enjoyed dog fights, along with sickos like Michael Vick.
