Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro euthanized

[MADem]

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/national-news/2007/January/29/Kentucky-Derby-winner-Barbaro-euthanized.aspx

Barbaro, winner of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) whose battle to overcome injuries suffered in the Preakness Stakes (G1) attracted worldwide attention and a legion of fans, was euthanized on Monday morning at the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center.

Gretchen Jackson, who owned and bred the Dynaformer colt along with her husband, Roy, said that Barbaro’s front feet were beginning to become affected by the limited ability of both his laminitic left hind foot and his fused right limb that was shattered in the Preakness Stakes to bear weight.

The decision was made early Monday after consulting with Dean Richardson, D.V.M., chief surgeon at the University of Pennsylvania’s veterinary school.

“There was not a foot that was not affected,” Gretchen Jackson said. “He just would not lie down. He had not layed down for two days now. That can’t be good for him. He’s got to get the weight off of his feet. They were bringing him in and out of the sling, but his front feet were showing signs of laminitic changes and we just thought rather than put him through any more else. He had been good up to the beginning of this month, and then everything went.”.....

[OrangeCountyDemocrat]

1. That's Awful News

[qanda]

2. So sad

[brentspeak]

3. Very sad

[ShortnFiery]

4. Rest in Peace dear boy!

Enjoy the green pastures of Heaven that we all hope to experience some day. :hug:

[lse7581011]

5. Very Sad News!

at least his suffering is over!

[mcscajun]

6. Too sad, but the owners did the right thing.

"We just reached a point where it was going to be difficult for him to go on without pain," co-owner Roy Jackson said. "It was the right decision, it was the right thing to do. We said all along if there was a situation where it would become more difficult for him then it would be time."

[xchrom]

7. good night sweet prince.

paradise is waiting for you -- and has the sweetest green fields and the coldest water waiting for you.

god bless and keep you barbaro -- you will be missed.

[kestrel91316]

8. This was the right decision at the right time. Foundering on all 4

is pretty much a death sentence..............

Very sad. Wish those Thoroughbreds were bred with stronger legs, but I guess those with heavier leg bones don't win races.................

[CountAllVotes]

18. Barbaro = a victim of GREED

They should have put Barbaro down immediately after the injury occurred, as is normal procedure for this type of injury. They were trying to get him going again for stud fees; weak bones and all and the insurance company sure didn't want to pay the policy either you can bet on that. I'd bet if you check the pedigree on Barbaro, you'll find many other horses that are very closely related in it.

Very sad. :(

May poor Barbaro Rest in Peace at last!

No more suffering for this poor horse now. The insurance company will have to pay up and the owners won't be enjoying any stud fees as they'd hoped. :mad:

:dem:

[El Supremo]

27. What makes you think they didn't collect his semen?

[CountAllVotes]

28. you cannot artificially inseminate horses

luckily it is against breeding rules for thoroughbred horses. However, for purebred dogs and cats - a different story.

[Runcible Spoon]

55. you CAN AI horses, just not thoroughbreds.

it goes against Jockey Club regulations to keep the lines knowingly pure; also the stud must be living IIRC

[Scairp]

35. Not necessarily

You get attached to these horses, especially if they are winners and as beautiful as this horse was. Frankly, I was surprised he survived even 24 hours after the initial surgery, let alone all these months.

[piedmont]

52. They knew from time of the accident that he'd never be able to breed.

We all knew he would never have been able to put all his weight on his hind legs, as is necessary to breed a mare-- that was pretty obvious from the start. As has already been said, people get very emotionally attached to their horses. These folks had the money to spend on the best care for Barbaro, and the vet med has advanced enough to have given a glimmer of hope. I call bullshit on this "the owners are just GREEDY!" complaint.

[tbyg52]

58. I have been following this story from the start,

and I believe the owners just really loved the horse. They put him down as soon as it became obvious that it was hopeless and he was in pain, but it looks like he did have a few good months. I'm not crazy about horse racing or any other form of using animals for our entertainment, but I loved this horse and I think his owners did also.

[Roland99]

69. Greed? Have you paid ANY attention to the owners of Barbaro?

:eyes:


I will never understand why people don't try to INFORM themselves before spouting off in ignorance.


Here's a little hint:
http://www.nbc11.com/sports/9266539/detail.html

[msanthrope]

9. Rest In Peace, poor dear. n/t

[msanthrope]

10. Rest In Peace, poor dear. n/t

[indepat]

11. Am heartbroken: I grieve for Barbaro and all those killed and maimed in pre-emptive war(s)

:hug:

[TheCowsCameHome]

12. Very sad ending to a beautiful animal.

[JudyM]

13. Horse and dog racing may be fun to watch and bet on but they involve

cruelty to the animals. This is just one very small example. Yeah, injury to any 'athlete' is common, but there's much more involved than that.

http://www.animalaid.org.uk/h/n/CAMPAIGNS/horse/ALL///

http://www.idausa.org/facts/racing.html

[LeftyMom]

17. Yes, that's definitely true.

It's sad that people derive their entertainment and wealth from the exploitation of animals, and sadder still that so few people will speak out against it.

[CountAllVotes]

24. I speak out against it

and will continue to do so.

One awful experience was enough for me! :mad:

:dem:

[JudyM]

78. And "animal rights" as an issue is so often scoffed at - even on DU - or associated with

what many feel is bad sportsmanship of the ALF, PETA and Greenpeace. It takes radical steps to effectively bring media attention to the atrocities. Don't even get me started on factory farming atrocities - and most people still don't know the awful reality.

[CountAllVotes]

19. don't forget purebred dogs and cats

They come from places called puppy mills and cat mills these days. They are all sick and inbred.

Soon, many of our beloved species of dogs and cats both will become extinct as the genes have become heavily contaminated due to unethical/corrupt breeding practices.

Barbaro did not die in vain. Barbaro should stand as an example of what happens when you breed for greed.

:dem:

[tbyg52]

59. I do not beleive in *buying* any dog or cat.

There are too many in the shelters that need homes.

MUTTS RULE!!!

[MADem]

23. Funny, I never got a thrill from horse or dog racing....I like animals, and

there's few things more fun to watch than a horse or dog running around free, but on a track? Ehhhh....I guess some like the gambling aspect of it all, the chance to show how clever they are by picking the right horse, and the reward of money if they DO make the right choice.

[RamboLiberal]

14. What a shame - As a horse-lover since I was a kid

didn't exactly make my Monday any brighter. At least he's free now and running in greener pastures and will never suffer again.

[Imalittleteapot]

15. :-(

:cry:

I had been following his progress, but lost touch lately. Today I am saddened (and surprised) to learn of Barbaro's death. RIP good buddy.

[gizmonic]

16. How Sad :(

:cry:

[Tippy]

20. I saw recent film clips taken of him in the last week or so

I knew...it would not be long before they had put him down It was quite apperent he was in terrible shape and in pain....They should have sdone it right away but he was so strong I wanted him to have a chance...

[Lowell]

21. RIP Barbaro

Barbaro was euthanized a short while ago. He lost his fight for survival. Rest in Peace.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070129/ap_on_sp_ot/rac_barbaro_23

[Lowell]

22. RIP Barbaro

This thread has been combined with another thread.

Click here to read this message in its new location.

[Eurobabe]

25. Oh my GOD, I just bawled like a baby reading this....

I've been following his progress since day one. This horse was special. He was a fighter. RIP Bobby, you'll remain in our hearts forever. :cry: :cry: -48 family

[Morgana LaFey]

60. I heard it this morning and it broke me up

I saw a segment on tonight's news and I was blubbering all over again.

I don't know WHY I'm so heartbroken about this incredible animal, but I am. We're not big racing fans by any means, but we watched the Ky Derby last year and Barabaro's performance was surreal. Simply surreal. It was as if he had wings. He left everyone in his tracks, far back in fact -- about a quarter of the track's length as if they were running through mud or had lead on their feet or something. I saw a clip of it again tonight and damn! Just as I remembered -- it was every bit as special and magickal and simply surreal.

We were so taken with Barbaro after the KY Derby that we made it a point to watch the Preakness too, and saw the horrible accident. That was heartbreaking enough.

Now this.

I guess my tears are for the death of hope, the death of a dream, of a dream and hope of something so magickal no one else (no other animal) could come close. Flying, like Pegasus. WHAT an incredible animal.

I don't buy the GREED thing either. That horse was loved. His vet, choking back tears himself, talked about how well he'd done -- how much heart, and that they made the decision that if and when it got to where he couldn't continue without pain, then they'd put him down. That vet and Barbaro's owners loved that horse.

I'm so very glad I got to see that one magickal race. Oh, my. What a race it was.

[Duppers]

66. "Certainly, grief is the price we all pay for love,"

Morgana, I don't buy the GREED thing either. Some people just cannot imagine how loved horses are.

"Certainly, grief is the price we all pay for love," co-owner Gretchen Jackson said.




Horses are being slaughtered. You can help: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/535322448

[alcibiades_mystery]

26. Does this mean we don't have to hear about the horse anymore?

Please, would it be so!

Oh, yes. I'll set up my mini-shrine to the horse like everyone else ("may you live in our hearts forever!"), but if there is even the possibility that I never get another health update on a race horse, that will have made it all worth it....

[Tippy]

29. If you feel this strongly why do you read those threads?n/t

[MADem]

30. I am guessing it's that curious philosophy followed by a societal subset that dictates

that 'snark is cool' and if you can make someone feel bad about having an emotional connection to something, then somehow you've 'won.'

In the old days, it was called peeing/pooping in the punch, a rather sad and attention-seeking activity, really. Pay no mind, it says more about the pee-er/pooper than anything else.

[alcibiades_mystery]

31. Quelle dommage

I am adequately chastened in my attention-seeking activities.

:rofl:

[MADem]

36. Ah, but chastened is insufficient, you must fish that poop out of the punch, discard it, sterilize

the bowl, and make a new batch! Then, and only then, can you be regarded as truly chastened...!

[alcibiades_mystery]

38. But it's very like a whale...

:-(

[MADem]

39. Well, get busy Captain Ahab, take care of Moby Dick, no excuses! NT

[alcibiades_mystery]

42. Er...

huh?

[MADem]

46. Very like a whale, you said...it's a literary allusion, you see. NT

[alcibiades_mystery]

48. Thanks

Moby Dick is a literary allusion. Learn something new everyday...

[zonkers]

37. Nice. Real nice.

[Tarc]

50. "Who peed in your cornflakes today?"

Is the modern version of that saying. But I was getting rather tired of the constant horse updates as well.

[MADem]

51. Well, you're spared them now, I guess.

I'm in the camp that doesn't have a problem digesting more than one news story. And I'm a fan of that 'Ignore thread' thing when the subject matter gets over the top and is repeated, ad nauseum.

I feel bad for that horse, and while it is sad that he had to be put down, I am hoping that the work they did with him will help other horses who suffer leg fractures. It just seems a shame that they're always shooting the doggone horses when the have a leg problem--it's almost as though they just won't bother, because they figure the outcome always won't be good, and they don't want to even try...of course, it is expensive, too, but the first time you do things, it's always expensive. Maybe it takes a high performing horse, or two, or ten, to change the way they care for the old gray mare that isn't special to anyone other than the ones who care for her...

[Duppers]

65. Exactly!

Thanks, Tippy. Bet the heartless asshole doesn't wanna hear a word about our pets either.

[bleedingheart]

40. well there will be a commerative stamp made shortly...

:evilgrin:

Oh god...I will rot in hell for this post..but I can't help but unleash my dark humor sometimes...

[alcibiades_mystery]

41. Noooooooooooooooooooo! Not a commemorative stamp!

Aw jeez...that's just the beginning, isn't it? Commemorative coins, blankets, maudlin plate sets, napkins, velvet paintings...aw fuckity fuck. We'll never see the end of the deeply held feelings re; this friggin' race horse! Yaaaaaaaaa.

[bleedingheart]

47. now are ya going to make me explain the subtle joke...

it used to be...a long time ago...that horses were sent to the glue factory...and that glue was used on stamps....

take all the thunder out of an evil joke why don't you...

[The Stranger]

32. Destroyed, but he never lost a race -- never even placed behind another horse.

How utterly tragic.

[AngryAmish]

80. He came in last at the Preakness

[Vinca]

33. This makes me so sad.

Barbaro, with his strong will to survive, was one of the few bright lights in this miserable world we live in. I know his owners tried their best.

[Corgigal]

34. also from the article

“We were really lucky, really lucky,” Gretchen Jackson said. “I just appreciate the heck out of him, and I think he knew it. He was well loved. Such luck; at least he’s out of his damn stall, and running around with Secretariat, I hope.”



Ah, that is a nice visual. Odds were always against him but I so wanted a miracle.

[AnneD]

43. Just awful....

Kudos to the owners who gave him every chance they could to fight. And fight he did. Wonderful thoughts to folks that truly love horses. So much was learned from this.

[wordpix]

44. a great horse and a dirty, cruel business

I know horses are bred for racing but it's still cruel.

[Raine]

62. TOTALLY agree

it's needless animal exploitation and ridiculous to be still doing this in the 21st century.

[aaronbees]

45. Remembering Barbaro....

This is pretty devastating news for me, but I'm not surprised. Sounds like the complications from this weekend were all too much. They gave it a gallant effort, led by Barbaro who was just a magnificent, brave creature.

:( Here's a nice tribute from journalist Steve Haskin:

Remembering Barbaro
by Steve Haskin
Date Posted: January 29, 2007
Last Updated: January 29, 2007

On the morning of Jan. 29, Dr. Dean W. Richardson, head of surgery at New Bolton Medical Center, made the somber announcement most everyone had been prepared to hear more than eight months earlier. Barbaro had been euthanized. The wave of grief that was anticipated back then now came swiftly and unexpectedly.

After so many months of hope and high expectations, Barbaro’s fight for life and the miracle story he had written were over. There would be no happy ending to this fairy tale. One did not have to hear Richardson’s words to know they were as heavy as the millions of hearts around the world that had embraced Barbaro and his struggle to survive against all odds.

...

Then, virtually overnight, the colt suffered a “significant setback” when some new separation of the hoof was found requiring additional removal of tissue, and a pall once again hung over the Kennett Square clinic, as it did back in May and again in July when Barbaro developed a severe case of laminitis that would ultimately lead to his death.

...

Rather than dwell on the outcome, it is best to concentrate on the heroic efforts that were made to save a horse that lived eight months longer than he should have. It was not disease or injury that ended Barbaro’s life, it was recovery. If there is a flaw in nature’s power of healing, it is that it cannot be applied to the Thoroughbred, to whom the words stationary and prone do not co-exist. Infused with the fiery blood of its ancestors, the Thoroughbred’s impetuous nature sadly is in constant conflict with its fragile legs, and it is that nature that often leads to its demise.

Source and rest of story: http://news.bloodhorse.com/viewstory.asp?id=37320

[Ignacio Upton]

49. :(

:cry:

RIP Barbaro, from an avid horse racing fan. And to those who say he was the victim of greed...his owners put a lot of work and care into keeping him alive. Not every owner and trainer is heartless.

[IronScorpio5]

53. Sad....

great horse.

[lumberjack_jeff]

54. They kept him alive long enough to stockpile his economic value in test tubes.

To say that I'm ambivalent about a horse is an understatment.

[piedmont]

56. If he couldn't breed naturally, his semen has virtually NO economic value.

see the posts upthread.

[Roland99]

70. Yet another person posting in ignorance. *sigh*

Educate yourself:
http://www.nbc11.com/sports/9266539/detail.html

[roguevalley]

72. horses are among the greatest animals out there. my brother had

three. two died of aged related illness and his stallion, Stryder, is a wonder. Horses and dogs, two of the greatest creations of God's earth. RIP, beautiful Barbaro.

[bklyncowgirl]

57. My condolences to his human family. They were very close to saving him.

It is very sad, a month ago they were almost ready to release him from the hospital. Then one setback after another and the owners had to make the agonizing but humane decision to put him down.

I'm reading alot of extremely negative posts. As a horse owner, I've been watching this story closely and I'd just like to share a few things that I've learned about Gretchen & Roy Jackson, Barbaro's owners.

The Jacksons own a small but high class breeding and racing operation. They are probably as good owners as any racehorse could hope to have. Their Pennsylvania farm is populated by equine retirees, many of whom they went to expensive extremes to save after they were injured. Mrs. Jackson has been active for years in organizations that find good homes for ex-racehorses. Since Barbaro was injured she's been using her high profile to campeign for an end to horse slaughter and to raise funds for research into laminitis.

Barbaro was a homebred--they raised him from a foal. After he was injured, Mrs. Jackson visited him daily, there are stories of people finding her sitting on the straw in his stall. If any of you have dealt with stallions, that takes a great deal of trust. Barbaro for his part reportedly would start screaming if he heard her voice and she didn't immediately go to him.

She has said that if his leg did not get strong enough to stand the strain of breeding (and for those of you who've been nattering on about them harvesting his semen before he died--Barbaro is a thoroughbred and required by the Jockey Club rules to mate the way that nature intended) that Barbaro would probably either spend the rest of his life on their farm or go to the Kentucky horse park along with racing greats Cigar and John Henry where he could be visited by his legion of fans.

If it was my horse and I had the sort of money the Jacksons have and my horse showed the sort of determination and good sense that everyone who has been near Barbaro says that he has shown, I would have done the same.

[tbyg52]

61. Hear, hear,

and now you've got me crying again. But it's ok.....

:cry: O8) :cry:

[Morgana LaFey]

63. Thank you for that

(And just how do you keep any horses in Brooklyn???)

They sound like class acts, just like their incredible horse. (I wish I could quit blubbering over this.)

[bklyncowgirl]

73. How do I keep horses in Brooklyn?

Actually, I grew up a horse crazy kid in Brooklyn in the 60s. I started riding at a stable in Staten Island. Since my parents couldn't afford to indulge my horse habit, I did what generations of horse crazy kids have done since the beginning of time--I got very acquainted with the business end of a shovel and worked in exchanged for the privilege of riding. I later taught riding, led trail rides through city parks and ran summer camp riding programs.

Around 15 years ago we moved to New Jersey to be closer to my parents. My daughter caught the horse bug bigtime. Once the car payments were done, we put the money into board on a little Thoroughbred gelding whose owner felt that he was not going to make it on the track. Except for the board payments, he was free.

I had to break him myself and with my 13 year old daughter helping. Usually this is a terrible idea but my daughter's not the usual kid. A year later she showed our horse at her old lesson barn and took home two championships. She's now working as a trainer at a nearby barn.

We still have Shadow, he's a terrific jumper, trail horse and officially the best western pleasure Thoroughbred in the state of New Jersey--but he does live in New Jersey--not in Brooklyn.

[Morgana LaFey]

81. Aw, that's a great story

Thanks, and well done, you two (mom and daughter).

[Raine]

64. Barbaro victim

of man's outmoded form of "sport" and entertainment. :mad: I'll never forget seeing on the news the horse the day he was injured and the agonizing pain that he was clearly was in. :cry:

[liberal renegade]

67. but isn't a

horse born to run? regardless of his pedigree..just asking..

[LWolf]

68. What kind of a horse?

Wild or feral horses run to escape threat. They don't run just because. They travel at a ground-devouring trot that they can maintain for a long distance, or a walk. Horses are prey animals, and running is a response to threat.

Domestic horses have been bred for specialized reasons. Draft horses, carriage horses, and many others aren't "born to run." The only horse bred exclusively for running is the thoroughbred, and over-specialization helped lead to Barbaro's, and every injured TB's, injury.

It's true that the thoroughbreds I've known have loved to run. They've been bred for it. I have a 1/2 tb out in the barn right now, an older retired daughter of a stud who broke a leg on the track. She'd rather gallop than canter, rather trot out than jog, and has the fastest running walk I've ever seen. She's always been "hot," impatient, and nervy. Thankfully, her dam was a calm, solid quarter/mustang cross with plenty of common sense. While she is "hot," she is also willing and cooperative.

When speed becomes the only factor, because the horses only have to last a couple of years before retiring to the breeding barn, you don't need the kind of bone and hooves that take punishment for a lifetime. When horses can run with Lasix and other drugs to keep them from bleeding, etc., you don't need better, stronger, horses. When you can run babies whose growth plates may or may not have closed yet, you don't really need a horse sound enough to have an adult career. With all of those factors, there are way too many thoroughbreds who leave the track without much of a future.

I have this futile hope that the death of Barbaro, and the nation's attention on it, could lead to a more humane, more responsible, more ethical racing industry.

Silly me.

:shrug:

[MADem]

71. Say,,thanks for that informative post. I learned more about horse breeding in your few paragraphs

than I ever knew.

[LWolf]

74. Your welcome. ;) n/t

[bread_and_roses]

75. I can scarcely believe some of the snide posts in this thread

One has to wonder what motivates such mean-spiritness.

Barbaro's breakdown in the Preakness left a pall over the rest of the racing year for many of us. I, for one, and I think many others, never watched three-year olds race without wondering "what if." People who don't follow racing probably don't know how rare it is to have a horse like the Barbaro who emerged in the Derby come along. One who fills even the casual, uneducated eye like mine the way he did, one who moves like he did. One who seems to have it all, who may be really great. The sadness of losing that possibility never lifted.

It was some small comfort that he might survive, might at least live out a life in comfort and care. Now, his death brings all the sadness back.

There are surely people in the horse world - owners, trainers, vets - who are unethical, greedy, and callous. But I don't think that any of Barbaro's people were among that lot. The odds that he would ever be able to cover a mare seemed pretty remote. I think they just, simply, loved him. There's always the possibility that I'm being sentimental and naive, but nothing they said or did led me to think otherwise.

There are valid complaints agaist the horse-racing industry, and valid arguements against racing horses at all, I think. But some of us are so enchanted by the miracle in motion that is a TB running that we can't stay away. And even an animal can become - like a little girl down a well, a child miraculously rescued from a bombed house, an earthquake survitor - a symbol of hope. The sadness many of us feel is about a horse, but not just about a horse. It's about death and loss, and how fragile is all life and beauty.

[Justpat]

76. You can add your own thoughts to the Barbaro memorial at Blood Horse.com

go to: http://news.bloodhorse.com/BarbaroMemoriam.asp

[HuffleClaw]

77. they could roast him up for a fundraiser!

yum.

[liberal renegade]

79. you must

be french canadian..

[HuffleClaw]

86. *snicker*

[MasonJar]

82. As a proud Kentuckian who saw this magnificent animal win the

Kentucky Derby in all his elegant grandeur, I am heartbroken. Please let something intelligent be done. How can we go to the moon and not be able to help injured thoroughbreds? It does not compute. May this promote successful research on many levels, especially bone repair and track safety enhancement.

[MADem]

84. That is what I hope too, not just for the front-end horses, but the everyday old gray mares, too NT

[DawgHouse]

83. Poor thing. I am glad they did the right thing for him.

[Nutmegger]

85. Beautiful horse.

:cry:

[Coventina]

87. RIP Barbaro. Victim of human greed and thirst for spectacle.

:cry:

I hope his owners have learned their lesson and will speak out against the cruel horse racing industry.

And for those who would defend this barbaric practice, don't even bother replying to me. I have no time to debate with the compassion-challenged.