Letters to the Editor: Gretchen Jackson

We spent minutes stopping traffic on a busy country road because of a loose dog. She was small, dirty, covered with sores, and her teats swaying from a recent litter. She finally shot down a side road and we spent time trying to catch her in someone’s yard. Police arrived. They chased her which led to her being even more afraid and vicious, snapping at us as we tried to capture her. She ran under a pickup truck. A good idea as we could not reach her. Now a state trooper arrived he donned huge padded gloves perfect for barbecuing, but still could not get her. My son-in-law drove by, parked and got a racquet out of his car to use to push her to a spot where she could be grasped. Two vets going to lunch from the New Bolton Center drew off the road to check out what was going on. Dr. Smith from field service asked some questions and went back to his truck to get some tranquilizer, which he was able to squirt in the dog’s eyes. 

This worked, making her docile enough to through a blanket over her and grasp her. She still was able to bite someone in the hand. Mission accomplished. 

This is what I am surrounded with. People who care about animals, go out of their way to help animals and vets giving of their time and knowledge to aid in the welfare of animals. This was a group of caring people looking out for an animals welfare. There are just such people in racing right now. 

What has happened to racing? Has the picture changed? Have the people involved forgotten about training and are just training the vet to be the brewmeister and get the horse to the races no matter what? Have they forgotten that the horse is an animal, a living creature with a heart? Who hasn’t seen a horse do the impossible, finding more power in the final strides to the wire? What are the owners thinking of? Is the picture in the winner’s circle worth breaking rules and pain? If all that purse money is all that counts, even more meaningful than the horse, more valuable than the horse’s condition or the jockey’s neck? Please go into Nascar where you can change a tire without hurting anybody. 

There are lots of people in racing that love their horses. They even might consider them part of their family. These are the people that should be in racing. They should not have to suffer the stigma that those who don’t care about horses place on racing. No one wants to come to the track and see an accident. Nor does anyone want to back a chemical horse. It is way over due that all the committees that have been formed and agencies, commissions, groups, clubs, etc stop talking and go about doing. Some groups will have to step down in order to form a strong national racing policy that has a clear plan of enforcement. This is the only way to create a force that can and will bring about change. This should have happened long ago but now if it doesn’t happen it will be adios to racing. It is my opinion that we are in need of officials that are not codependent nor are they in denial. We all must enter into a new era of racing. Not all are responsible for racings plight, but we who are in racing are all responsible for bringing about change. 

Owner/Breeder 

Gretchen Jackson