How to Prepare For a Horse Race

A horse race is a contest of speed among horses that are either ridden by jockeys or pulled by sulkies and their drivers. Horse races are popular all over the world and are often a showcase of national pride, heritage, and style. They are a huge draw for bettors, and are a key part of the culture around horse breeding and racing.

To be ready to run a horse race, the animal must first build up its conditioning. This can be done by running at a moderate pace for a set distance or, more commonly, by working the runner at a faster pace for a short period of time, known as a breeze. Afterward, the trainer will decide whether the horse is fit to race.

While some horse races are open to the general public, many are restricted to members of a certain social class, such as elite events like Royal Ascot and the Kentucky Derby. As a result, the atmosphere at these events can be very formal, with ladies’ hats and men’s suits being standard attire. Attendees also enjoy a wide range of drinks, such as mint juleps and champagne.

During the verbal-only interviews with industry informants, some of them used words such as naturalise and normalise to downplay the impact of specific racing practices on horses. They also downplayed aspects of the horses’ emotional and behavioural expressions when they were being handled or exercised. This approach was particularly evident in the responses to Image 3. Some of the animal advocacy informants who commented on this image argued that the handlers were contributing to the horse’s stress by introducing unnecessary force and discomfort in their handling.

The equine body is not designed to bear the immense physical demands of thoroughbred racing. Breeding 1,000-pound thoroughbreds with massive torsos and spindly legs is a recipe for disaster. A horse does not reach full maturity — that is, its bones have stopped growing and the growth plates in its vertebral column have fused — until it is around 6, yet most horses are thrust into intensive training at 18 months. This means that the average racehorse is only two years old when it begins to be pushed hard to compete.

For this reason, it is not surprising that a lot of racing injuries and deaths occur. Deaths at the track can be caused by pulmonary hemorrhage (bleeding out of the lungs), heart failure, fractured spines and shattered legs. And the vast majority of those who die are young and still in their adolescence. These deaths are not just a tragedy for the horses; they’re a tragedy for the people who watch them. It is time for a horse race revolution that puts the well-being of the thoroughbred at its core. This requires a shift in focus from the most visible, egregious racing issues to routine training and husbandry practices, human-horse interaction and aspects of the horses’ naturalness. In order to do that, the prevailing discourse on “the best life” for the thoroughbred must be replaced by one that values its welfare and respects its boundaries.