Kristin_Tallent's Blog

Big Brown, the horse that could win the Triple Crown, has a slight cracked left front hoof, but his trainer says he's confident the colt will run the Belmont Stakes in a couple of weeks.   This concerns me.   Big Brown has missed some training the last few days to allow his injury to heal, but my concern is that they will race this horse no matter what for the simple fact he could win the Triple Crown.   He is being treated by a hoof specialist and I would like to think that people who work with animals do it because they love animals.  However, money talks,  and what if this gentleman is paid off to say Big Brown is fine?   Yes, I have turned into a horse-racing conspiracy theorist, but seriously.   If Big Brown had not won the previous two big races, it wouldn't be as big of an issue.   Sure, the horse's owner would miss out on possible big bucks if their horse was denied a chance to win a race, but this is COMPLETELY DIFFERENT!  This horse could make history and make BIG TIME MONEY for the owner.  

I think this should be pointed out also: Big Brown was treated for more serious issues last year.  He had abscesses in the soles of each of his front feet that led to wall separations.   I am no vet or doctor,  but again, I can speak only from my past experiences as a competitive runner.   I had multiple stress fractures in college.   My bones had become fragile from the pounding of running 50+ miles per week.   After my first set of fractures, I wasn't allowed enough time to fully heal, so it became a recurring injury.   Just when I would reach top shape, fractures would flare up again in addition to new hot-spots on different metatarsals.    It was painful but I continued to train because I was on scholarship.   Finally, my senior year, a stress fracture on my right foot completely broke in a race.   I had taken pain killers, but the pain from this injury could not be disguised.   I still suffer from flare-ups today in my feet, which is difficult to deal with because I love to run.  I'm a runner; it's who I am!  

My point in telling you this is that I would think my situation is similar to that of a race horse.   An inury starts out as something small and after  not being allowed the full amount of time to heal, leads to more serious problems.   As we saw with Eight Belles, those serious problems, for horses, can ultimately lead to termination of life.  

I sincerely hope that these vets, trainers and owners take into consideration, more greatly, the colt's life than making history or money.   No animal or person should have to endure the sort of pain Eight Belles did.   My message to the Big Brown-crew, "I'm watching you!"  I'm sure other horse lovers across America are too!