Equine Vet: 'What impact would 23 and 1/2 hours of standing in a closet have on the mental health of a child?'.... A two-year-old horse is equivalent to a six-year-old human. A three-year-old horse is equivalent to a nine-year-old human. Yet, the biggest races...are for three-year-olds. They still have their baby teeth. Their bones are not mature.
In June, Dr. Kraig Kulikowski, renowned equine veterinarian, testified (along with me and several others) before two NYS Senate committees.
Highlights:
A two-year-old horse is equivalent to a six-year-old human. A
three-year-old horse is equivalent to a nine-year-old human. Yet, the
biggest races…are for three-year-olds. They still have their baby teeth.
Their bones are not mature. Their brains are not mature. I can just tell you
that as a two and a three-year-old, all their body parts are immature at
that point and that they’re still developing.
These juveniles are herded out to the racetrack for less than 30 minutes of
exercise per day. Then, these juveniles spend the rest of the day standing
in a 12-foot by 12-foot stall. A 12-by-12 stall for a thousand-pound horse
is equivalent to a four-foot by four-foot closet for a one-hundred-pound
child. Most of these juveniles never see pasture or a moment of playtime
once they start their racing career. What impact would twenty-three and
one-half hours of standing in a closet have on the bone strength of a child?
What impact would twenty-three and one-half hours of standing in a closet
have on the mental health of a child?
The juvenile racehorse often comes off the track with stomach ulcers from
the stress of their work and environment. These juvenile racehorses also
leave the track with tendon and ligament injuries which severely impact
their comfort… These juvenile racehorses often have evidence of
osteoarthritis, even at the ripe old age of four years old. Some of the
arthritis is from straight wear and tear. The rest of the arthritis is from
chronic repetitive and excessive joint injections with corticosteroids.
These juvenile racehorses also often have been mentally stressed to the
point where many boarding facilities do not accept thoroughbred as boarders
because they are considered dangerous or wild.
Twenty years ago…I learned that two and three-year-old horses are juveniles
and should not be stunted for greed. I learned I wanted to help horses stay
sound and healthy throughout their entire life, not just until the next
race. I actually learned to be a good equine veterinarian. I could not be a
racetrack veterinarian.