Mmm Mmm Good?

Here's some food for thought this holiday as reported in the May 16 edition of Horse.com.

A recent Gallup poll, conducted in the wake of Eight Belles' euthanasia after the Kentucky Derby, indicates that a significant minority of respondents support a ban on horse racing. According to an article first reported on BloodHorse.com, almost four in ten Americans (38%) said they would favor discontinuing sports that involve competition between animals. This was taken to mean horse and dog racing, not competitive dog shows or agility competitions.

According to Gallup, these views are consistent regardless of the respondents' attitudes toward other moral issues like abortion, euthanasia and gay rights. "There are relatively few significant differences in attitudes toward a ban on horse and dog racing among various demographic segments," writes Esther Marr.

Women were slightly more in favor of banning racing than men and the age group 18-29 favored the ban slightly more than older respondents. The results were based on telephone interviews with 1.017 national adults 18 and up and conducted May 8-11.

In response to the findings, Alex Waldrop, president and CEO of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association commented: "We need to do a better job helping the public understand all we do on a daily basis to care for our horses and provide the safest possible environment for them. The health and safety of our athletes is the number one priority of our industry."

To which I say: Put your money where your mouth is. Mandate that all tracks set aside a percentage of their daily handle for retirement homes for thoroughbreds, mandatory drug testing of all competitors and regulate the use of whips.

Put that on your grill!