Well-Known Trainer on Kentucky Derby Horses: "Every horse is held down with so much equipment it makes my mouth bleed just watching."
A Stop Horseracing Article from All-Creatures.org

FROM HorseracingWrongs.org
April 2021

racehorse tongue tie
What you see below the bit in this photo is a very fine tongue tie.

Gina Rarick is a well-known American trainer currently working in France. She is, also, a frequent critic of U.S. Racing; in fact, she was on the same “Real Sports” episode on which I appeared. She wrote the following on her FB page Wednesday:

“It’s Kentucky Derby week in America, and while I would like to appreciate the buzz that attracts people to the sport that normally wouldn’t pay any attention, I cannot find much positive to say. The photos of the horses are making my head explode.

Every horse is held down with so much equipment it makes my mouth bleed just watching. Lip shanks doubled with crossed nosebands and sometimes tongue ties and more on every one. Every. Single. One. One trainer proudly posted a video of loading a horse to go to Kentucky. It took a lip shank, four people and a broom to get the job done. I would be humiliated to post a video like that.”

And then in response to a question on “lip shanks”: “It’s a chain that goes around the head collar and is placed between the teeth and the upper lip, so pulling it tight is supposed to have an effect sort of like a twitch.

If you see some of the Derby horses walking, they are being held down like Macy’s Thanksgiving day balloons. Can’t take one natural step.


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