Will George Washington Be the Next Barbaro?

Thoroughbred horse racing is a dangerous sport. Every day, horses and jockeys put their lives on the line for the sake of entertainment, the gambling industry, and racehorse owners' pockets. It's a huge industry, and one that creates a lot of jobs for a lot people and horses. Unfortunately, there's also a lot of waste in the form of horses that are cast off after they're no longer useful. The majority of the public never sees the ugly side of racing, only the fun side: the glamour and the excitement. They celebrate as their favorite horses cross the finish line first, suffer disappointment when they don't, and cry when the unthinkable happens and their horse is horribly injured.

When Barbaro fractured his leg during the running of the Preakness last year, there was an outpouring of support from racefans around the country. In fact, he sparked a great swell of emotions in horse lovers everywhere, and the infection spread to people who had never had any particular interest in horse racing or even horses before. Yes, Barbaro was a hero. He had been a champion and his career was ruined in one fateful moment, but he was fighting for his life. He gave hope that goodness would prevail in the face of great adversity.

But it was not meant to be. After nearly a year of suffering and fighting, Barbaro was finally humanely euthanized. The nation wept, books were immediately written, and I imagine there's a movie deal already in the works. I wouldn't be surprised if it portrays Barbaro as veering off the track at the Kentucky Derby to pull a kid out of a well before going on to victory. I don't intend to sound mean and bitter about the poor guy, but let's face it: he was one of many, many thoroughbred race horses that are injured and killed each year. This one just happened to be a Kentucky Derby winner, and his injury just happened to take place in a very well-known race. Many people who don't follow horse racing at all will watch The Kentucky Derby, The Preakness, and The Belmont in hopes of seeing history made.

And now, racehorse George Washington sustained a fracture while running The Breeder's Cup and had to be euthanized on the track. Will there be an outpouring of support? Will internet discussion boards devote pages and pages of threads to offering their prayers for him? Will there be books and Breyer models and t-shirts and bumper stickers for George Washington as there were for Barbaro? I suspect not, because George Washington was humanely put to rest immediately, as he should have been.

Humans, unlike horses, on the whole are highly romantic and have such a high degree of self- and species-preservation that we felt that it's better to be alive at any cost than to be dead. For many, the concept of putting down a horse (or cat or dog), unless absolutely without-a-doubt a necessity, is a horrifying one. If we can fix the injury with surgery and keep the horse in a padded stall for the rest of its life, surely that's better than death! I'm afraid that I have to respectfully disagree. I highly doubt that a horse, suspended from a sling for weeks on end and then confined to a stall is thinking, "well, at least I'm alive." What's more likely going through his mind is how much pain he's in, how uncomfortable he is, and how much he'd like to be outside eating grass right now. He isn't facing the fear of death, because animals just aren't capable of abstract philosophical thought.

Horses are not meant to stand on three legs. They are heavy animals, and the strain that is carried by the three healthy legs while one is healing is often too much. While a dog or cat can often adapt just fine when a leg is amputated, horses do not fare as well. The great stress on the other three legs can cause founder, an extremely painful and often fatal lameness. While this doesn't always happen, it's a real possibility that should be considered when deciding whether a severely injured horse should be euthanized.

America, feel free to mourn for George Washington. However, be glad that he was not put through months of suffering in the hopes of squeezing some babies out of him. He did not spend weeks in a sling, unable to move. He wasn't confined to padded stall, dreaming of fresh grass and fresher mares. He is at peace.