THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, September 26, 1996 TAG: 9609260005
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: 26 lines
In his letter (``Horse racing: the flip side,'' Sept. 22) Jeremy Soria says: ``Horses are not sold to slaughterhouses; instead they may just go to a farm to live out the rest of their days. They are most certainly not turned into dog food or glue.''
This statement is patently false, according to Horse Illustrated magazine, which estimates that up to 75 percent of racehorses wind up at slaughterhouse.
As for the ``beneficial veterinary drug'' Bute, which allows horses to run with injuries that would otherwise be too painful, Waterford Park in West Virginia reported that the number of horses who had to be killed after ``breaking down'' doubled from an average of 30 to 60 a year after Bute was legalized. The use of drugs like Bute and Lasix is controversial, even within the racing community.
Horse racing inevitably spells suffering and death for horses. People who care about horses should do all in their power to see that any proposed Virginia tracks never see the light of day.
YONA GREGORY
Norfolk, Sept. 23, 1996 by CNB