Cross Breeds

Can somebody explain why it is ok to murder (or euthanize) a weak/injured horses like Vick euthanizes dogs?

First of all, let me say that I think that what Vick is accused of is disgusting and wrong...if he truly did it. But what I am confused about is why is it okay to kill a horse who becomes injured or is too weak to run races? Why is a dog more valuable than a horse? Race horses are raised specifically to entertain humans. In the mean time they suffer serioius injuries. Once horses retire from racing at an early age, they are killed. Most horses are killed the same way Vick is accused of killing dogs... shot, electrocuted, etc. So how is the way Vick treats dogs different than race horse breeders treat horses? Reminder..I am not defending Vick... I just want to know the differences in animal treatments.

Public Comments

1. The difference is that when horses are injured and cannot distribute their weight evenly on all 4 legs, their digestive systems go out of wack and they woud end up dying anyway. If necessary, the animals are put down humanely with a shot. Plus, the horses are being bred for something they do naturally anyway, run. If a horse is a runner, no one will stop it. If it isn't, no one can make it. They are kept in top physical condition for this. An injured dog can recupperate and live a decent life in most instances. What Vick and his associates are accused of doing is killing them in inhumane ways (electrocution, beatings) when they could have otherwise lived. Dogs, for the most part, have been bred to be compainion animals and are not dependent on fighting for survival. People need to get this out of the dogs. To do so, they are teased and starved so that they look at the other dog as a source of food. They are kept in terrible conditions.
2. The difference is that it's actually the humane thing to do with horses. Take Barbaro for instance, he shattered the bone in his leg. Horses are easily spooked, and when they have an injury like this, they can end up injuring themselves worse. While the doctors attempted to repair Barbaro's leg, it ended up backfiring, and he had to be euthanized. Also, most horses are not shot or electrocuted. Most horses are euthanized with the same sort of injection that veterinarians use to put pets to sleep. You will never see a horse shot or electrocuted officially. It is not condoned by the sport, and PETA would come down just as hard on them. Horse racing is not a sport where the animals are bred to kill each other, and they are not put to death because they lose or just aren't ready to perform. My last point - the other reason why what Vick did was worse is because of the depravity of it - from Yahoo! Sports - "The indictment of Vick alleges that about eight young dogs were put to death at his Surry County home after they were found not ready to fight. They were killed 'by hanging, drowning and/or slamming at least one dog's body to the ground.'" Any human being that would hang a dog or slam them to the ground is worthy of anything that is then brought upon him. He is scum (if this is true).
3. horses that break a leg often cant recover from the break and get infection and die a slow death. Race horses are treated very well after they retire, go to a farm for stud services or sold for a pleasure horse. They are not put on a track to fight to the death and made to suffer and bleed to death, horses love to run. Michael Vick and his ilk are cruel sadistic people who love watching suffering and raise a dog to kill or be killed. Basically the dog has 1 shot, and that ends up in death either way, so there is no comparison.
4. Vick is accused of murdering dogs, not euthanizing them.
5. Well done Rob B. I could not have said it better myself. It is sad to have to put an animal down, whether due to injury or illness! What was done to these dogs was evil on several levels.
6. Well the main ethical difference between the two is that the dogs were purposefully injured, whereas horse injuries are accidental. Its not like the horses are bred to fight each other on the track while they race and injure each other. If you just came across a fighting dog lying in the street with those kind of injuries, it might be the ethical thing to do to put him down (humanely, not violently like Vick or his associates allegedly did), but the real transgression comes from putting the animal in the situation where he gets injured so grievously in the first place. You do have a point about the value of a dog vs a horse, though, though you may not realize it....greyhounds are bred for racing, just like horses are. Greyhounds produce puppies a lot more easily and in greater number than horses can breed, though, and the young greyhounds that arent among the very fastest are often destroyed. Young foals that dont end up showing the heart or talent for racing are still often sold to private owners, etc., but usually not destroyed. So, in that regard, the horse's life is worth more than the dog's, and the reason is simply that - a horse is worth more than a dog in monetary terms, and business is business, so the horse's life is worth more than the dog's.
7. The horse that can't stand is fatally injured. 99.999% of things horse do are while standing. They even sleep standing up. That is a mercy killing instead of making it lie down and get internal injuries. Think of Barbaro. He was usually in that harness thing but died anyway. Other than dogs that were too beat up and might have died anyway. What Vick "allegedly" did was kill puppies for not being aggressive. What is more, he did not just shoot them, he killed them in ways that made them suffer.
8. Plenty of horses become breeders after the end of their racing career. Also there are standards for euthanasia to make it as painless for the animal as possible. Almost the same standards applied to people who are dying say of congestive heart failure.
9. The way race horses are treated is wrong, but I'd have to question you on the way they are euthanized. Under federal law they must be rendered unconscious before they are killed. I think more than anything this outrage is over the methods Vick and pals used to put down the dogs. Had they put them to sleep the way any vet would, lots of folks would still be enraged, but not nearly to the degree they are now. Greyhounds are also euthanized (in many states) after they've lost their ability to race. All of it is cruel and inhumane if you ask me, but Vick took cruelty to a whole new level. Clearly him and his friends got their jollies off watching living creatures suffer.