Lip Service

     If you get anything from the racing industry, chances are it's nothing more than just lip service.  Turn a blind eye, a deaf ear, and keep racking in that cash.

           Over the years there have been reported cases of abuse and neglect, dumping, slaughter, hidden ownerships, all in one industry, the racing industry.  Despite the proof set forth, and witness accounts, the Jockey Club, including the State Commissions and the tracks seem to resort to hear no evil, see no evil, and speak no evil.  Apparently denial is not just another river in Egypt.  

         Despite the rules and regulations set forth by the tracks, there always seem to be hundreds, upon hundreds of horses slipping threw the cracks.  Public out cry, and demanding that policies be enforced seem to fall on deaf ears, or some bullshit public statement to pacify those that don't really know what is going on.  

          Here we have our latest tragedy down in Louisiana, I present to you the Ryder Ridge River Farm saga.  Look for yourself.  Lip service, not just from the track, but also from the local police.  Well, these pictures seem to paint a different story now don't they?

    Each track has their own set of policies, and regulations that need to be upheld, and those do vary from state.  But, this is unacceptable.  However this is the wonderful statement that ;
                                            Delta Downs has received a number of comments in the past several days from individuals concerned about the care of horses. We want all of our Facebook friends, and the community at large to know we are totally committed to supporting humane policies and practices regarding the treatment of horses, especially those in the care of individuals holding a license to race. We have conveyed your concerns to the State Racing Commission, and will continue to do whatever we can to support these authorities and their commitment to the responsible, effective, and humane regulation of racing in Louisiana.

           There have been numerous rumors of neglect over a period of time, and this is what they have to offer up.  I mean isn't this bad for business?  Why would you continue to let someone like this run horses at your track?  And where is the humane society in all of this?   Why did it get to this point?  How did the authorities allow it to come to this?  Apparently in a interview, the local sheriff had been monitoring the situation?  From his car, just driving by?  Or just a phone call?   Call me silly here, but I am fairly sure doing a drive by is not sufficient, or taking the word of a person is not either.  

      Of course we all know that there is two sides to every story, but I do believe in this case there is only one side, and that side is pretty damn evident.  Wouldn't you agree?

       This would of been shoved under the rug, pushed aside, and remained rumors had it not been for Remember Me.  Any assistance they have offered to help the equines has been rejected.  

              What happens now?  More horses starve death,  more shallow graves, more lip service?  Once again Equine Welfare put to the side, not just here, but everywhere.  This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Equine Welfare.  

They Don't Come Cheap

   Since the other morning's rant about AC$H, and the standardbred world.  I have been inspired to touch on a subject.  One that I do see a lot of.  Chip In for the purchase of a horse.  I see these pop up a lot, not with one particular group or another, but many groups. Fund raising for trailing expenses, the purchase price, etc.    

                Think about it this way.  If you cannot afford the rock bottom price of $500.00 dollars, which is a very reasonable price, dare I even say low price (if being sold privately, which, I guess well these are sales we are referring too.) of said horse that you want to save.  How do you intend to provide long term care, or even acute care, teeth floating can run between $80.00 in the upwards of $200.oo, not including the fact that you may have more dental problems that require repeat treatment.  Farrier services can vary also starting at $30.00 for a trim, and up depending on corrective shoeing, again we go back to a possibility that getting the hooves back to good shape can require more than one visit.   Vet services, most of the time we do a farm call, 50 to 65 dollars right there, shots 100 plus sometimes, sound checks, bute, antibiotics, holy sh*t right there could add up to 200 dollars or more.  So, there it is, and that doesn't include boarding fees (if that is the route you have to use), hay (and we all know there are many places suffering from extremely high hay cost), grain (and that can get higher if the horse requires a specialty grain), bedding, straw or shavings.  Water buckets, feed buckets, halters, leads, bridles, bits, saddles, saddle pads, riser pads if you need them, new brushes, shampoo, show sheen, detangler, treats, etc.  Are you picking up what everyone is laying down??  All of these things add up.  
                           Naturally some of you will say, but I have a saddle already, and pads, brushes, show sheen, bridles, bits etc.  But, the starting up cost of getting one of these horses that you don't know from Adam, will most likely come out to the purchase price, that person X is fund raising for, so if you cannot afford that measly 500, how in the world are you going to be able to pay for a animal that could potential cost you thousands, and to be fair I haven't added in the training fees if you end up with a behavioral challenged horse.  Food for thought on that one my friends.

                     These are the chances one takes when buying blindly.  When you get the chance to go to the sales, you have a chance to see the horse move, even if it is a flurry of 20 seconds of some jackass cantering the crap out of the horse in the ring. (Something else we shall touch on in another blog, a subject that holds a special place in my heart.)  And you can check the teeth, look at the hooves, look for any open wounds, signs of cushings (have seen a lot of them popping up), signs of strangles or other various illnesses, or even signs of the horses being drugged, yes it happens more than one thinks.  And then you will see just how high the mark up is on these horses when going threw programs.  I know many live a in fairy tale world of bliss, but that is one of the ugly truths of horse dealing, in fact the ugly truths of horse dealing, I could write a novel, or hell maybe a manual.  

                            If you want a free horse, go to the track, take a look around and speak with the racing barns, owners, trainers.  Often times you will land a horse with minimal issues (if any at all) UTD on shots, coggins, and a health certificate, trimmed up, and a known history, that is the way to go.  Do not get me wrong, I am sure there are some shady people in the racing world, in fact I know there.  But, there are people that are honest individuals and would like to do right by their horses.  Sure on some of these occasions, you will have to retrain the horse, call in a professional etc.  But, the start up cost is minimal.  Leaving you with that extra dollars for other things.  You have a horse that has been exposed to heavy equipment, hoards of people coming in and out, handled from the ground up and down, will stall with no issues, pick up feet, etc.   Who in the world doesn't want a horse like that?  (*disclaimer I am no means saying that this way is all rainbows and unicorns, but seems like a good option*)  You want that feel good moment of saving a horse, by going this route you have done so.  You prevented a horse from going to one of the many hell holes we call auctions, becoming transportation that will eventually be discarded, and even ended up on the back of a truck and on it's way to Canada or Mexico, and landing in a so called Broker Program.  At what cost to you as the "rescuer" pennies on the dollars compared to some of the train wrecks I have seen people buy blindly.   

                   Going threw the track(s) or vocation programs eliminates a lot of the price, and the fact is that you are saving two lives, not condemn two, three, hell four more.  You adopt a horse from a vocation program, or retirement fund, you have just opened up space for another horse to come threw.   Just food for thought again.

        Feel free to check out some of these available horses threw various retraining programs.  These are just two of many listings, however there is no shortage of better oppurtunties out there to adopt a horse in need, and in the process prevent another from ending up in a bad situation.  

New Vocations
The Canter Program (nationwide listings)

Kool Aid anyone?

  This is borrowed context from a morning rant.  While this isn't just about AC$H, this blog will explore more than them, but for some reason or another everything seems to go back to the them.  However, there are very vailid points made here, when it comes to rescue and the racing industry.  Of course this is another aspect we will explore.  So many things to do, and only so much time to type.  Thank you J.Doherty for posting this on a public page.  

What exactly is it with people and AC4H? As a Standardbred owner and trainer, I have tried to add all of the "Rehoming" FB pages in order to network with people who may be looking for a horses that are coming off of the track....we always have plenty in need of homes - PLENTY. I've noticed that one by one, AC4H has spread to each one, even the ones that are supposed to be for FREE HORSES ONLY. Last night I commented on a post that Lara put up on "Rehome The Standardbred" for a horse they want $450 for. Not two posts down, one of the admins had posted, again, that this was for FREE horses only. So I asked why Lara's content was posted there and was told something along the lines of "Just don't go there." Really? Why is that?

     Then I looked down the rest of the page and every other post was as ad for AC4H including that Sadie Lynn mare that they failed to mention had a foal back in the Spring and had been re-bred. So I ask, WHY...what is it with them that makes people act this way towards them? Basically they seem to run rough shod all over the horse industry. Do they blackmail people? (Well, telling them that they will report them to the racing stewards if they don't fork over money would be that). Are people afraid of them? Does the general population NOT involved in the harness racing industry realize that we have so many free horses available that WOULD NOT end up with the Amish and then in turn in these grade sales sold to kill buyers if people would offer them homes when they are FREE? Do they not realize that the Amish buy horses essentially in bulk when they come around, some of the nice sound trotters are resold for $2500-$5500 and the lame ones that wont be any good on the road are dumped down there in the sale? Basically the Amish are providing a "removal service" and AC4H is getting people to pay 5-10 times what the Amish gave for them to begin with? A good number (MOST in fact) aren't even fresh off the track, most have had numerous Amish owners in between the racing connections. 

          Do people not realize that saying "this horse won over $24,000 for his owners and they dumped him" is a ridiculous statement when the horse is 11 years old, hadn't raced in 5 years and probably cost the owners three times that amount to care for while in their stable. Oh, this has now turned into a full blown rant and I have horses to get to in the barn, so I'll conclude this essay with this....a good way for rescue people to de-bunk the myths of AC4H and groups like them is to educate themselves and other horseman about how each industry "really works." Come out to the tracks and the training centers, talk to racing officials and track management...help the harness horsemen in evaluating their retirees and assist them in rehoming the horses.

Common Sense?

The mishaps of life, and who you are involved with, will eventually catch up with you.  Being a shady horse dealer, is like being a fast chick with a reputation.  Word gets around, not only are you considered easy, but sleazy.  


                      Of course most of you reading this, some are very familiar with the AC$H scamming.  The truck is coming, the truck is coming, we must save them.  In short, here is the run down.  They are a registered 501c3, non profit who "rescue, rehab, and adopt" (for reference please read the following Rip Off Report,  there is of course more than one compliant out there.  But, as rule of thumb in life, imitation is the most sincere form of flattery.  So, ladies and gentleman I present to you a copy cat verision Rip Off Report #2).  Now, while copy cat is not 501c3, this lovely woman has a pending 501c3 rescue because she is just such a wonderful caring individual, who is not in it for the money (excuse me while I gag) Sundew Saves.  We will catch up with them in a minute.  For the moment, I want to clear up how the broker programs work.  

                                             Broker programs are a host of horse dealers, errrr, I mean rescue efforts designed to give slaughter bound horses a second chance at life.  Sounds like a absolutely lovely, and heart felt thing to do.  The dedication and the work, the time, and effort of dealing with this cold hearted men who send horses off to Canada and to Mexico.  So, what's in it for them?  Well it's saving the horses, the love of equines, knowing that they have defied the odds and put these animals into forever homes.  And let me say this, if you buy that load of bull I just wrote, you may want to rethink where your money goes.  

               These people are not doing this for free, between 25 dollar donation fees, over priced coggins, and health certificates (which some cannot even get right), and not to mention the inflated prices. They are getting their cut..dare I say look at the 990 forms that are filed for non profits, the proof is in the pudding right there.  Non Profits often do have paid employees, and expenses, but sometimes it makes one wonder how after seven hundred thousand dollars, there are little to no expenses paid out.  Good job IRS, for keeping a eye on these things, but that is getting a touch off subject.

                     How broker programs work, or should I just be blunt and say horse flipping.  Ok, it's a fairly simple equation.  Person X (and or group) find a in with a kill buyer, or a ex kill buyer who no longer holds a contract, or a individual or group of individuals that supply the kill buyer, and they simply cross post, or take pretty pictures (honestly if you are reading this, you could of found someone with much better photography skills to do the pictures, nothing like over exposed, blurry pics, etc.)  and say that the dealer or kill buyer has set the price.  Now, while this is true, they will often tag on a extra hundred or so dollars to the the original price paid for the horse, you must account for the troubles that Person X has gone threw, price of gas, time of those fantastic photography skills, the poor quality of video show casing what a wonderful moving horse it is, and how quiet said horse is, and of course their description of the horse, and the identifying the breed of the horse, and even the sex (if you are lucky and they can tell the difference between a mare, a gelding, and a stud, but don't hold your breath on that one).   And naturally what the sales recommendation was (now keep in mind this is a subject we will touch on later, because that my friends is a whole another blog, hell could be a novel).   So, now after we have done all these things, we then list the horse out, most naturally on social networking websites, fastest way to get people to bail these poor souls.  Most people don't think twice about the prices, which can range between 300 up to 1200.   They donate, directly bail, based on a whim, and heart tug, and the good word of these dealers, oh I mean rescues.   The Killy Buyer collects his bottom price, what he absolutely sets a must have for the horse, and anything left over goes into the pockets of Person X, what happens to that money is beyond me, and that is like a million dollar question, sure we can all speculate, in fact dare I say let your imagination run wild on that one.  

              Now over a course of time, we have obvious persons willing to come forward and talk about the profiting side of it, and of course those are lies according to the accused.  But, what does common sense tell you?  I realize that common sense, is really not all that common, so that is a bit of stretch I suppose.  It's nice to see the horse dealing business hasn't changed in the past thirty some years, and that well if it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, well hot damn it must be a duck.   

              Here is the truth that no one, or very few will say to you, and when I say you, I mean those that have had that "feel good moment" of saving one of these slaughter bound horses.  That horse, was in no danger of shipping, maybe to another auction, maybe to another dealer who likes to wheel and deal.  But, to the truck and on it's way to be dinner. No.  There are standards (yes I know, hard to believe) when taking these horses for slaughter, and rules, and regulations.  I would be lying if I said every aspect was followed, and they adhere to the standards set forth by CFIA, and the E.U.  We do know that this is a business, and well money is money, and lost money is a bummer.  From a business stand point, why chance shipping a horse that will go down on the trailer, that's a loss profit, right?  Body scores, lameness, and so forth all play parts in horses that may or may not be shipping.  But, that my friend is another blog.  In the mean time, I would like to just say this.  Yes, it feels good to say I saved that horse from going on a truck to become someone's dinner.  But, ask yourself this, because you just paid a absurd amount of money for a "broker" horse, how many other horses did you just put on that very truck?   Not just as a consumer, but also as a rescuer.  You may think that you saved one, but you just sentenced two or three, maybe even four to become dinner.  The horses that you are seeing listed, and promoted, are not fit for shipping, the horses that are fit for shipping, you will never see because they are already loaded on the trailer, or in the personal lots of these people awaiting their final destination.  Just food for thought.