Could humane activists shut down racing?

Published: December 29, 2008 08:43 am EST

Somewhat overlooked amid all the hoopla surrounding the US presidential election was the fact that voters in Massachusetts went to the polls and effectively killed dog racing in that state.

They were motivated to do so by a clever campaign by people and groups active in the quest for humane treatment for dogs. These people, and groups, such as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), are not interested only in dogs. Recall the protests after Eight Belles broke down after runing second in the Kentucky Derby this year.

People have said harness racing is lucky in that we're such a small target that we've slipped under the radar of the humane activists. That's not much of a consolation. These groups certainly know about both harness and Thoroughbred racing and no one should be surprised if we're among the next to be targeted.

And what will the basis of the claims against racing be? Cruelty by racing horses over unsafe surfaces? Cruelty by racing horses when they're physically immature or even lame? Cruelty by racing horses treated with too many drugs?

No, I think the target will be whipping because it's so obvious and seems so inherently cruel. It evokes images of slaves in the American South being whipped.

I have a dog. I love my dog. She's capable of some bad behaviour at times, but woe to the person who ever took a whip to her.

What would happen if someone walked into a stable, opened a stall door, and started lashing a horse with a whip? People would be calling the cops in a heartbeat and that person would be punished. So what's the difference if the whipping takes place in a race?

I must admit that I've changed my thinking on whipping. I realize that racing must do something to regulate it and control it. In the long run, I think whips will be banned, but first racing must do something to control the blatant whipping that seems brutal to the public. I think we're going to have a hard time interesting young people in racing if horses are repeatedly lashed with a whip.

Times have changed and harness racing better think about changing with the times. True, I never heard much controversy about whipping years ago. But years ago you could smoke in restaurants and whip misbehaving kids in school, too. Can't do those things any longer. Times change. This isn't 1958.

It's interesting that whipping seems to be regulated tightly in some jurisdictions and totally unregulated in others. It seems to be up to the commission rules and the judges and it's not uniform. That in itself is a problem.

It bothers me when I see no fine or suspension for excessive whipping. The worst I've seen in many decades of racing took place at the Meadowlands and the New Jersey officials apparently turned a blind eye or saw no reason to take action.

I'd rather see racing write the rules to control whipping---such as requiring drivers to keep the lines in both hands---than to have outside interests force racing to changes its rules. Heck, the humane activists probably wouldn't limit their actions to simply banning whipping; they'd probably use the Massachusetts strategy and try to ban racing entirely.

I don't think this issue is going to go away no matter how we try to sweep it under the rug or continue on in a state of denial. I'd rather see racing become proactive rather than reactive on the whipping issue.

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