It's that time of the year again. Early spring, which brings with it daffodils, bright skies, Easter and FA Cup semi-finals. It also brings the most debated sporting event in the calendar (in England anyway). The Grand National.
I'm sure many of you have already decided what this blog will be about, knowing I'm a soppy, animal loving vegetarian. However, I'm probably going to prove you wrong! As always, Twitter and Facebook have been alight with calls to ban horse racing due to the devastatingly sad news that two horses failed to survive the race this year. Despite safety changes being made every year to the course at Aintree, yet more horses have sustained injuries that cannot be treated. I hate this fact, I hate than any animal has to die.....but.....those horses were doing what they were trained to do. They were doing what they loved, running alongside other horses, being part of a pack.
Whilst I can be upset at this news, I am confused as to the amount of people calling for the sport to be banned. I'm confused as to the difference between this "cruel" sport and the eating of meat. Purebred race horses are bred to race. They are looked after, nurtured and cared for by trainers who want the best for their animals. These animals are there because of the racing industry. If racing was banned, those animals would either be put to sleep, or put out to pasture, despite being bred to run and race and jump. Isn't that more cruel to those magnificent animals?
How is the tragic fall of a racehorse, who is then attended by vets and only euthanised if the injury is untreatable (as is often the case with broken limbs), and even then, is treated with dignity, shielded from the crowd and put to sleep quickly, more cruel than the death of a cow, pig, lamb or chicken destined to end its life in a slaughterhouse? Part of a production line with hundreds of others, dealt with as a commodity to satisfy the taste for fresh meat?
Perhaps I'm oversimplifying, but how is the value of one animal decided? Is it how cute they are? Is it the fact that horseracing is a spectacle, broadcast for the world to see whilst animals destined for plates are dealt with away from prying eyes, only reaching view when in palatable little plastic trays, devoid of their "cuteness"?
Before deciding that something is cruel, perhaps a deeper view is needed. People in general will never, ever agree. It's our very nature to provoke and debate. However, much as I don't eat meat, wear leather and try to be responsible in the products I use I would not call for the eating of meat to be banned. It's an industry, like any other, that contributes to our economy and the same goes for horse racing.
If you ban horse racing, do you then ban halaal meat? What about battery eggs? Non free range meat? Feeding mice to snakes? Where do you draw the line?
I'm sure many of you have already decided what this blog will be about, knowing I'm a soppy, animal loving vegetarian. However, I'm probably going to prove you wrong! As always, Twitter and Facebook have been alight with calls to ban horse racing due to the devastatingly sad news that two horses failed to survive the race this year. Despite safety changes being made every year to the course at Aintree, yet more horses have sustained injuries that cannot be treated. I hate this fact, I hate than any animal has to die.....but.....those horses were doing what they were trained to do. They were doing what they loved, running alongside other horses, being part of a pack.
Whilst I can be upset at this news, I am confused as to the amount of people calling for the sport to be banned. I'm confused as to the difference between this "cruel" sport and the eating of meat. Purebred race horses are bred to race. They are looked after, nurtured and cared for by trainers who want the best for their animals. These animals are there because of the racing industry. If racing was banned, those animals would either be put to sleep, or put out to pasture, despite being bred to run and race and jump. Isn't that more cruel to those magnificent animals?
How is the tragic fall of a racehorse, who is then attended by vets and only euthanised if the injury is untreatable (as is often the case with broken limbs), and even then, is treated with dignity, shielded from the crowd and put to sleep quickly, more cruel than the death of a cow, pig, lamb or chicken destined to end its life in a slaughterhouse? Part of a production line with hundreds of others, dealt with as a commodity to satisfy the taste for fresh meat?
Perhaps I'm oversimplifying, but how is the value of one animal decided? Is it how cute they are? Is it the fact that horseracing is a spectacle, broadcast for the world to see whilst animals destined for plates are dealt with away from prying eyes, only reaching view when in palatable little plastic trays, devoid of their "cuteness"?
Before deciding that something is cruel, perhaps a deeper view is needed. People in general will never, ever agree. It's our very nature to provoke and debate. However, much as I don't eat meat, wear leather and try to be responsible in the products I use I would not call for the eating of meat to be banned. It's an industry, like any other, that contributes to our economy and the same goes for horse racing.
If you ban horse racing, do you then ban halaal meat? What about battery eggs? Non free range meat? Feeding mice to snakes? Where do you draw the line?
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