A race in which horses are bet on to win.
In their natural habitats, horses are herd animals who understand that they need to cooperate with each other to survive. On the racetrack, humans perched on their backs compel them — often with a whip — to run at breakneck speed in close quarters. As a result, the industry’s claims that horses “love to compete” bear no relationship to the way that horses naturally live their lives in the wild.
Horse racing is a dangerous sport and a deadly business. Most horses die in the course of a race, many from debilitating injuries. The majority of equine fatalities occur due to fractures in the forelimbs, which are caused by the force exerted on a horse’s legs as they leap over obstacles and through turns. This type of injury is exacerbated by the unnatural and unnaturally high speed of a race, which requires horses to flex their muscles to jump over fences that are too tall for them to clear.
Additionally, the high speeds of a race can cause a horse to suffer from exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage (EIPH), which is a condition that causes horses to bleed from their lungs during intense running or training. The condition is exacerbated by hot or cold weather and may be prevented by giving the horses a preventive medication called Lasix.
Most horse races are contested over dirt, grass, or synthetic surfaces, depending on the climate and the preferences of trainers and owners. The surface of a racetrack is critical to the success of a runner because it affects the traction and the ability of a horse to handle the ground.
The most common track surface in the United States is dirt. This type of track is usually a little dustier than other tracks and provides a good surface for horses to run on. Grass tracks are popular in Europe, where the sport of flat-track horse racing originated. Runners on a grass track are more likely to experience muddy conditions, which can reduce their speed and the quality of their performance.
As a horse gets ready to run a race, it is conditioned with routine jogs and gallops in the early morning before a workout or race. During a workout, a runner is asked to run at a faster pace for a short distance to test its fitness and readiness to race. During this time, the horses are also weighed and may have their blood drawn to check for certain medical conditions.
The final stage of a horse’s preparation is to enter a claiming race. A claiming race is a race where any licensed horse owner can purchase a runner for a predetermined amount of money as soon as the race begins. When a horse is claimed, it changes ownership as soon as the race begins, although the prior owner retains all of the purse money for the race. The claiming method of race entry is an important part of the American horse racing industry, but it is not without its drawbacks.