Grand national

Don’t get it myself, industrialised cruelty in the meat industry, just look at chickens reared in cages for 1. Not as visible as the horses on the tv though. I know one wrong doesn’t justify another but really there are bigger cruelty cases to solve before we get to this.

 

Not sure what more they can do really. The number of runners is now maxed at 40 when it used to be 60 plus. The more risky fences like Beechers have been sanitized as much as possible. Animal welfare before and after has improved no end, dousing the horse with water as soon as they finish being an example. Horses are pulled up as soon as they begin to struggle. Yes you can ban the race but where do you stop?

 

I'd have them stop crossing the Melling Road. It's dangerous. As soon as they reach that first fence their lives are in their hands. Close the road and you don't have that problem. Unless you're hit by an oncoming bus or lorry.

 

Shorter run to the first fence be an idea,then they not reaching fence at too high speed

 

I'd get rid of the absolute no hopers from the line-up and bring the top weight down. No horses under 8 or over 11 should be allowed to run. All runners should have had at least 3 chase starts that season winning once over at least 3 miles with more than 8 runners in the field. No horses should be allowed to run solely over hurdles to preserve their handicap marks as they wouldn't be allowed to run.

 

We would be looking at this through different eyes if it were 3-4 jockeys losing their lives every ‘traditional’ Aintree meeting....and don’t forget, they still have the choice to race or not. I enjoy the racing, even the jumps, and there is always going to be an element of risk. This meeting every year has the potential for horse deaths as a given though, and it’s not good enough.

 

Eventually the protestors will win out. There will be no horse racing at all. The only pleasurable past times will only be for the super rich and they will start hunting working class people for sport.

As ultimately those making the rules and pandering to those that want them changing will have nothing to adjudicate over. It will have come full circle. To keep their importance they'll sanction a series called "Running Man".

 

Check your messages.

 

The abolitionists need to take on board that they are arguing for the elimination of thoroughbred horses, which are bred solely to race. Hopefully good sense will prevail and the protesters will receive deterrent sentences.

 

I wish someone would just be honest and say that they consider a dead horse or two a year a worthwhile cost for the entertainment and gambling opportunity of the Grand National.

 

Making the fences smaller has probably led to an increase in danger (citation needed). I was listening to someone (great source again i know), and they said that smaller fences has led to an increase in speed - which means that there's more chance of a fatal accident.

I'd water the **** out of the ground too - the softer the better. Makes them go slower, which would lead to less falls.

 

You are persistent I’ll give you that. Nobody will say that.

I will say that the risk of death to horses and the stats of how many are lost, compared against the multi-million pound industry it supports, the hundreds of thousands of people employed off the back of it, that it isn’t just a simple conversation.

Do I want horses to die? No, of course. Do I value the life of two out of hundreds or even thousands of horses more than the livelihoods of thousands of families? No. I dont. If that makes me cold hearted, unreasonable or whatever in your eyes, so be it.

It is not feasible to not make use of any animals at all in supporting our day to day lives, be that sport, the food chain, security.

Are we having protests for police horses and dogs? They die in service.

Guide dogs get ran over by cars. Is that risk unfair?

What about the aeroplanes that kill innocent flocks of birds in their jet engines?

Are we all to go 100% plant based in our diets? I’d not last three days.

It will be a very sanitised life if everyone that complains about everything gets their own way. This conversation about horse racing is just one of many. What is acceptable? What can and can’t we do?

There will be no activity that involves any level of risk, to human life or beast; there’ll be no meat, fish, eggs or dairy in anyones diet; we won’t have pets as even keeping a dog will be deemed cruel as they should all be wild and feral like pack wolves, in fact we’ll probably go mad through boredom as we will all be sat in the cold and dark as well in case we produce a gram or two of carbon so can’t have any heating, not even burn some wood or use any electricity.

If we all went vegan, banned the use of animals for sport, security and any human supporting activity, closed the zoos etc, hundreds of species would become extinct within a couple of years.

 

Would banning the National or jump racing kill horse racing as an industry? I doubt it

 

Horses don’t die well. Even hoofing it wrong can cause lameness & send it into lockjaw..
A broken limb is such a horrific way to die for a horse. It’s nervous system is completely fcked & to kill its brain is the only way to relieve the misery. They use a silent bolt, rather than a gun, which would startle other runners.
Was it Dark Raven who broke its hind quarters at Aintree..? I just saw AR posts on Facebook. That animal died in pain & sadness. A bit like most people’s dinner tonight.
You care or you don’t. & that’s ok..
The protest was a bit lame. I’d never heard of that group.? Should have fire bombed the fences when no animals or people were around.? Oh well, next year more covert, let’s plant sabs in security..
10 years ago, on this board, I was getting tons of abuse for saying all gamblers were complicit in the deaths of 3 beautiful animals. The thread, which I started ran for 30 pages, & I even got abused by personal friends.
Whatever. What amI I on about? You bet & animals die. That’s probably the last Grand National as you know it.
Too bad. Bet on summat else. Like each other.?

 

Dang. You know your ****, brother/sister. Saves me being arsed.. & you’re right . Pure vegan is impossible if you taken aeroplane..​

 

I av a bet, i enjoy Horse racing, i go at least 2 / 3 times a year, hopefully everybody will come t'gether an resolve all the issues,

 

Undoubtedly, because the fanatics would not stop there. They refuse to admit that others might take a different view.

 

I'm no vegan, nor a veggie, don't think I could give up a bacon sarnie, sausages or a lamb joint.
I'm a hypocrite, I know.
I love nature and all the things I eat are out there in my locale, frolicking and cute.
I try not to think about it.
I'm a hypocrite, I know.
I live in area where hunting, shooting and racing is endemic, it gives a good livelihood to so many people round here. My wife's company, tho not linked to any of those industries, does very well and can charge above the norm, because of the affluence in the area generated by those industries.
Fox hunting and pheasant shooting is huge round here, I hate it, have happily stuck my car in the middle of the hoorays to annoy them, when the hunt brings roads to a standstill, but I'll happily sit in a pub with animals on the wall and our best client, allows the hunt to use his land. But he pays us well.
I'm against using animals for sport, but I can justify eating them.
I'm a hypocrite, I know.
Love nature, can spend a day just sat watching the birds, rabbits, hares, lambs, foxes, badgers, deers, bats, the last goes on, in the field.
But......
I know, I'm a hypocrite.

 

That's not necessarily so mate. The racehorses won't be 'eliminated' at all. The sport can be reconfigured at the VERY least. The sport does contribute to the deaths of many animals a year. To therefore point this out and make it a debating point as on this forum is perfectly ok in my book. Jumps racing is inherently dangerous and does cause deaths of horses every year so to some extent the sport itself is 'eliminating' its own stars