A horse race is a contest between a number of horses. The first to reach the finish line wins. The race may be over a short distance or long, depending on the custom of the country in which it is held.
The horse race has become one of the world’s most popular sports, both as a spectator sport and as a gambling activity. It has expanded worldwide as more people from different cultures discover the thrill and excitement of watching and betting on a live horse race. It is not surprising, then, that it has become a multibillion-dollar industry and a major source of employment in many countries.
Despite the fact that there are places in the world where you can see wild horses run and play, it is important to remember that they are prey animals that have evolved to move quickly as a group, not individually. Despite the claim by the racing industry that horses are born to run and love to compete, the truth is that these creatures are not meant to be fast on a track, where they are subjected to exorbitant physical stress.
There is no lifelong tracking system for the thoroughbreds that the racing industry breeds and races, which means that horses are bought and sold infinitely into unknown circumstances. This is a major problem, and it is not confined to horses that have already been injured. There are countless examples of healthy horses dying of catastrophic cardiac events or broken limbs in training or after a race.
In addition, the grueling physical stress of a horse race is not without its psychological effects on horses. Several research studies have shown that horses who are repeatedly exposed to the sight and sound of other horses running faster than they are, as well as the sound and vibration of the whipping they receive during a race, show significant signs of depression or anxiety.
In addition to the aforementioned injuries, horses have also been known to suffer from bucked shins, bone spavins, frog sores, laminitis (a severe form of hock soreness), a spiral fracture that causes the shape of the fetlock bones to change, and a condition called sandspurs, which is a severe case of ringworm infection. Horses can also lose their appetites and experience gastrointestinal disorders due to the high amount of grain they must consume to fuel a race. These conditions have prompted more and more people to question whether or not horse racing is in fact humane.
