THOMAS PITTS
Another Melbourne Cup has passed, but the cost to Australia is not only taking the next day off work with a bad hangover, but supporting a day which animal activists say kill thousands of horses and basically tortures them, but there are dangerous in spreading that information.
In 2013 Nicole Alexandra the Vice President of Animal Liberation NSW posted a simple compilation of information and images that exposed some of the dark side of horse racing, the image and information was shared over 20,000 times on Facebook.
A great step for the exposure of the issue, however along with this came numerous threats against Nicole for her post.
“A few people shared the image on their pages – which I was able to see, and would detail how I needed to be “taught a lesson”. Threats of rape, physical abuse and death threats ensued on people’s posts, which unfortunately I mostly didn’t capture,” said Nicole.
Even though the situation was daunting at first Nicole says some of individuals apologised once she explained her stance a little more to them. This post has lead to dialogue of the issue right up until today.
“This campaign is not about demonising the individuals within the industry – it’s about the fact that as a society, the time has come for us to open these dialogues and evolve our ethical stance for the animals which are a part of our world,” said Nicole.
Nicole outlined just some of the information she shared back in 2013 and the issues that horses suffer due to being pushed so hard racing.
“A University of Melbourne study has found 90% have blood in their lungs with 56% in their windpipe, and an Equine Veterinary Journal study which found hemorrhaging in the lungs in 95% of horses checked during two post-race examinations,” said Nicole.
Animal Liberation NSW suggest that 15,000 horses a year are killed in Australia as many are deemed ‘wastage’ by the racing industry.
“One study estimated that only 300 out of every 1,000 foals produced will ever start in a race (30%). Given the high costs and time required for retraining and maintaining a horse, it is believed a significant portion end up in sale yards, and ultimately at knackeries (horse abattoirs),” said Nicole.
For further information on anti-horse racing groups and information on racehorses use the following links Coalition for the Protection of Racehorses and Animal Liberation NSW.
