Barbaro breaks leg at Preakness

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by dmek25

i think having a horse in sugery for over 3 hours is a joke when millions cant even afford health care.put the horse down and donate the money for the needy

This is ridiculous.

1) Why are humans more entitled to life than a horse?

2) Millions can't afford healthcare, but they all get it. Do you know of a hospital that turns people down for emergency surgeries?

3) Where were you born, the USSR? The owner of the horse can do whatever he damn well pleases with his own cash. It's not being paid for with tax money, or even with insurance money, it's coming right out of his pocket.

4) Whoever said putting the horse down was the most humane option? Will he be in pain? Yes. Would you be in pain after a 3 hour surgery? Should we put you down?

You don't euthanize to relieve TEMPORARY pain. You euthanize when the condition won't get any better. Broken legs can be fixed.

[EEich]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

3) Where were you born, the USSR? The owner of the horse can do whatever he damn well pleases with his own cash. It's not being paid for with tax money, or even with insurance money, it's coming right out of his pocket.

4) Whoever said putting the horse down was the most humane option? Will he be in pain? Yes. Would you be in pain after a 3 hour surgery? Should we put you down?

So you don't think this horse is insured? Would you like to make a little wager?

Do you think you can treat a horse medically like a human?
How exactly do you keep a thoroughbred off it's leg and out of pain for 6 weeks?
And the whole industry is chock-full of animal killers?
You really don't know too much about horses. Nice of you to have an opinion though.

[12thMan]

I think this horses' surgery will cause some contrevorsy in the future.

Some will say, why is that humans aren't afforded this type of attention and fanfare mind you. (I'm not arguing either point, by the way)

And some will say, well if this horse is 'priceless', why shouldn't they do everything to keep my cat, dog, horse, etc alive.

[dmek25]

schneed is there any other horse in america right now that would have gone thru 6 hours of surgery to try and fix a SHATTERED leg that gives that horse a minimum chance to survive?eeich is right on the money.this is just plain greed on the owners side for not wanting to miss out on the stud fees.take your insurance money and quit putting greed first

[12thMan]

Originally Posted by EEich

So you don't think this horse is insured? Would you like to make a little wager?

Do you think you can treat a horse medically like a human?
How exactly do you keep a thoroughbred off it's leg and out of pain for 6 weeks?
And the whole industry is chock-full of animal killers?
You really don't know too much about horses. Nice of you to have an opinion though.

You're right though EE, from what I hear he had a policy of between $40-$50 million....had he won the Preakness, it could have gone up to $100MM

[dmek25]

and no,i wasnt born in russia,but one thing i was taught by my parents was always try to do the right thing.needless suffering for monetary gain definitly isnt the right thing,especially if you care about the animal at all

[dmek25]

and if you knew anything about horses,95% of broken legs cant be fixed because is almost impossible to keep them off their feet

[dmek25]

ok, i think im done

[12thMan]

Originally Posted by dmek25

schneed is there any other horse in america right now that would have gone thru 6 hours of surgery to try and fix a SHATTERED leg that gives that horse a minimum chance to survive?eeich is right on the money.this is just plain greed on the owners side for not wanting to miss out on the stud fees.take your insurance money and quit putting greed first

I beg to differ, I don't think it's greed....it's business....plain and simple. I don't question their general affection and love for animals. But if the opportunity comes to fetch and extra, oh....$25-30 million I doubt anyone would turn it down.

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by dmek25

schneed is there any other horse in america right now that would have gone thru 6 hours of surgery to try and fix a SHATTERED leg that gives that horse a minimum chance to survive?eeich is right on the money.this is just plain greed on the owners side for not wanting to miss out on the stud fees.take your insurance money and quit putting greed first

So then because the owner's greed is a motivator, then the horse should be put down even if the surgery gives him a 50/50 shot at survival? I mean it's not like it's a really bleak situation, he's a coin toss to survive.

Most horses in America wouldn't get a chance to have surgery and keep on living, because most owners wouldn't pay for it. But whatever the motivator behind it, shouldn't we be happy that the horse is getting a second chance at life that most horses don't get?

This is one of the rare times when financial interests and the interests of being humane are aligning. Most horses in America don't get this second chance that Barbaro is getting, because of money, and that's the real shame here. Barbaro is the one horse that's getting what all humans deserve: a good chance to regain health.

Yes he'll be in considerable pain until it heals, but if you give me a choice between temporary pain and death, I choose temporary pain. What would you choose?

[EEich]

No... it's because of the owner's greed that it's being kept alive.

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by dmek25

and if you knew anything about horses,95% of broken legs cant be fixed because is almost impossible to keep them off their feet

No, there are ways to keep a horse off it's feet. It's just that most people choose not to, because it's too costly.

If 95% can't be fixed, why is Barbaro sitting at 50/50 right now after having not just a break, but an absolutely shattered leg?

EDIT: And you don't have to keep the horse off it's feet necessarily. There are ways to steady and support the joint without needing crutches or swings or horsey wheelchairs - like the insane amount of hardware implanted into Barbaro's leg. Again, it's the cost of that surgery that makes it so tough to treat broken legs. That surgery is never even an option for most owners.

[dmek25]

i would agree but the odds are still very minimal as far as survival.and we still are talking about an animal arent we?any human should be saved no matter what the cost,but we are talking about a horse(or maybe i should say racehorse,because that is the issue)can we agree to disagree?this conversation is taking up too much time that we could be talking about the skins

[EEich]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

No, there are ways to keep a horse off it's feet. It's just that most people choose not to, because it's too costly.

If 95% can't be fixed, why is Barbaro sitting at 50/50 right now after having not just a break, but an absolutely shattered leg?

I'd like you to explain the procedure that they use to keep a horse off it's feet and pain-free.
The leg was broken in three places... the doctors put rods and 23 screws in the horses leg... something they wouldn't normally do for a horse, unless it was guaranteed to return millions of dollars in stud fees. It was a hugely complicated surgery and they're still not sure that the horse will be able to bear the pain.

[EEich]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

EDIT: And you don't have to keep the horse off it's feet necessarily. There are ways to steady and support the joint without needing crutches or swings or horsey wheelchairs - like the insane amount of hardware implanted into Barbaro's leg. Again, it's the cost of that surgery that makes it so tough to treat broken legs. That surgery is never even an option for most owners.

Horsey wheelchairs... you've really though this one through. You should stop now. The insane amout of hardware has already been done... see the photo above. They're still not giving the horse more than 50% chance.