Worst Spill You've Seen

[todko]

Originally Posted by Bababooyee

Amen.


There was one at River Downs last spring...last race of the afternoon. On a Friday. An otherwise beautiful day. He was at the low end of the food chain...3200-5000 claimer. On paper, not much talent to speak of. Maybe his 2nd or 3rd race ever. 3 or 4 yo. Grey. Still remember that grey mane. Right in front of the grandstand and I was on the outside rail. Maybe 20 yards directly in front of me. I felt the “thud” as much as I heard it. Seemed like forever before the medical team even knew what was going on. People screaming. “Where’s the help!?!” Women and children bawlin’. Men trying to be men with that glassy-eyed, concerned stare. Both horse and jock just layin’ there motionless. ****, what took them so long…I’ll never understand that. Finally, they got the jock strapped on a board and off to the hospital. They couldn't get the horse in the equine ambulance...tried draggin him in with the winch. He fought it. Barely budged. Couldn’t stand up on his own no matter how hard he tried. Broken femur or hip. Somehow they finally got him up…but he couldn’t stand on his own. About six guys helped him stay upright. Out came the tarps. Damn. Right after the injection, he bucked hard and crashed to the ground. Poor bastard. His once beautiful grey mane got all wet and muddy as they dragged his body into the equine ambulance. That was hard…

I was there that day. They butchered that "ambulance run". The guy next to me called them "farm hands". Appropriate description. They brought the water truck and hosed the horse off, one of the gate workers must have diagnosed heat exhaustion. Then they tried to drag him to his feet. By the halter first. The vet was nowhere to be found. It was pathetic.

Before they killed the horse they finally surmised it was a broken shoulder. That's why the horse couldn't get up. The horse thrashed forever. The nitwits were practically torturing that horse.

You're right. Little kids were crying and screaming. I remember a little girl on her dad's shoulders begging her dad to make them "stop hurting the horse".

I damn near starting crying too . . . it was very bad.

[estreetposse]

I saw it mentioned elsehwere I don't think any horses were put down...but opening day a couple of years ago Saratoga...1st race Jumpers I think nine started and only 2 or 3 finished wasn't pretty by any means. Of course either was our group at the end of the day!!!

[tiznowthegreat]

Originally Posted by todko

I was there that day. They butchered that "ambulance run". The guy next to me called them "farm hands". Appropriate description. They brought the water truck and hosed the horse off, one of the gate workers must have diagnosed heat exhaustion. Then they tried to drag him to his feet. By the halter first. The vet was nowhere to be found. It was pathetic.

Before they killed the horse they finally surmised it was a broken shoulder. That's why the horse couldn't get up. The horse thrashed forever. The nitwits were practically torturing that horse.

You're right. Little kids were crying and screaming. I remember a little girl on her dad's shoulders begging her dad to make them "stop hurting the horse".

I damn near starting crying too . . . it was very bad.

I was there that day as well and it was bad. It was a Friday afternoon and for people who don't go to RD that much, there's always a bunch of little kids sitting right on the rail so that made it that much worse. The vet at RD is a joke to me. About a month ago, Perry Outzs took his horse over to the vet during the post parade and told him that he had a limper. The vet just said ," you take that up with the owner."

Didn't Snack win the WEBN at Turfway?

On a more positive note, how great of a feeling is it when a horse goes down and you think oh ****..... then he just gets up a starts running and everything is fine!