A horse race is an organized sport that involves riders racing horses over dedicated courses, often incorporating hurdles. The sport has developed from a primitive contest of speed or stamina into an elaborate spectacle involving vast sums of money and sophisticated electronic monitoring equipment, but the basic concept remains unchanged: the horse that crosses the finish line first is the winner. Despite these improvements, the horse racing industry continues to face major challenges. Growing awareness of the dark side of the sport has fueled calls for reform, and recent reports have revealed that the industry is losing fans, revenue, race days, and entries as more people turn away from horse racing.
The main reason for these declines is the inescapable fact that horse racing is a brutal, unnatural activity. In the wild, horses are herd animals that instinctively understand self-preservation and will stop to rest and recover if they are injured. At the track, humans perched on their backs compel them to run at breakneck speed and, in a cruel twist, try to force them to stay with the artificial herd even when they are injured.
Injuries and breakdowns are common in horse racing. Horses are forced to run far faster than their bodies can comfortably handle, and they must make sharp turns at high speeds. This can cause stress and strain on the joints, tendons, ligaments, and spine. The most common injuries are sprains, fractures, laminitis, and emphysema. The latter is a serious condition that causes inflammation of the tissue inside the hoof, which makes it difficult for horses to distribute their weight evenly and can lead to collapse of the front feet.
Horses are also frequently pushed beyond their limits, which can lead to dangerous and potentially fatal conditions such as exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage. They are often given cocktails of legal and illegal drugs intended to mask injuries, cover up pain, and enhance performance. The most infamous drug in horse racing is Lasix, which is used to prevent bleeding from the lungs during races.
Because of these problems, thousands of horses are euthanized or abandon the industry each year as foals, during training, while racing, or after their careers are over. This is a major issue for animal welfare, as many of these horses have little or no quality of life after they leave the track.
In addition to the physical suffering that horses endure, they are subjected to a great deal of mental and emotional trauma. This stress can contribute to a variety of psychological disorders, including depression and anxiety. Additionally, horse racing has been linked to a number of mental health issues in jockeys and other racetrack workers.