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Child Item

Prime time investigates horse cruelty

Akabusi

Just watched this on RTE and it is one of the worst things I’ve ever seen on animal cruelty. The levels of cruelty to horses in this country is disgraceful and the horse racing industry are a big part this. It was always front and centre when a horse falls when racing and has to be put down but what RTE has shown here is what happens to all the others that don’t make it and even some that do. We really need to review all the money this industry receives from us taxpayers.

Also bravo to the investigative journalists who yet again show up the cruelty humans inflict on animals but it also demonstrates just how useless our officials are when in the sheds next to the slaughter such conditions and practices are allowed happen.
Well done RTE, this is the sort of program you can be proud of and justify the licence fee with.

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Frumy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122252768#Comment_122252768

100% virtue signaling nonsense the horse racing be broadcast by them the same week!

People always forget something in these debates. So long as something makes lots of money anything goes. Any amount of abuse/cruelty/corruption etc. Money talks. Horse racing makes an absolute fortune.

The very act itself of whipping a horse to run faster is cruel. They will babel on these whips don't hurt but plenty of studies prove they do. Then killing the horse behind a little crappy curtain with a fall? It's barbaric when you think of it. Good showing young stallion you raced well unfortunately you broke your leg so you must die, here and now, in front of everyone.

The Roman Gladiators weren't as cruel with animals

https://animalsaustralia.org/our-work/compassionate-living/science-reveals-whips-hurt/

So long as horse racing turns over millions and millions it's here to stay.

kippy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253128#Comment_122253128

I don't think there's any issue with the national broadcaster shining a light on whats going on here. It's not their fault that this goes on. It's hardly a government conspiracy either to try and give up our "culture" - the could defund horse racing any time they like.

The type of attitude in your post is exactly why this type of behaviour happens and continues in al walks of life.

Any right minded individual wouldn't be making excuses for what came up in that programme or pointing people to "look over there - they are worse" etc etc…..

They'd be asking why its happened, what controls have broken down to allow it to happen, looking for a criminal investigation and asking how they might stop it happening again.

magicbastarder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253187#Comment_122253187

the news department and the sports department are separate beasts in RTE; it's not as if either can say (or should say) to the other 'we're broadcasting this, do you think we shouldn't in case it makes you look bad?'

Frumy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253128#Comment_122253128

Horse meat is sold as equine beef? I always thought 'beef' lately or least cheaper beef tasted different or funny. Maybe this is the reason.

magicbastarder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253007#Comment_122253007

my wife has a horse too, and i'm up at the stables several times a week. it's kinda interesting, i've never met anyone at the stables who showed an iota of interest in horse racing; they seem to move in very different circles. the sport she and everyone she knows would be interested in would be dressage, jumping, that sort of thing.

Frumy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253191#Comment_122253191

They'd be asking why its happened, what controls have broken down to allow it to happen, looking for a criminal investigation and asking how they might stop it happening again.

Truth is no one cares. Apathy is the emotion that sweeps over everyone on these things. People eat meat and they know the animals are abused but out of sight out of mind. Most who seen the programme will mention it today in work and then it will never be spoken of again. Just the way it is.

Oscar_Madison

We’ve seen documentaries on elderly abuse in care homes - bad practices in crèches - if we treat our most vulnerable human beings badly then it’s no surprise that animals are being treated badly -not saying it’s right but it shouldn’t be a surprise .

magicbastarder

also, i have a vague memory of reading about some (unsurprising) report that working in an abattoir is not good for the mental health. probably a minimum wage job with zero supports and massive scope for desensitisation.

Leg End Reject

Horses, bull calves, greyhounds, puppy farms, thousands of cats and dogs abandoned in animal shelters every year - the level of animal cruelty here is horrific.

Has Primetime ever gone into abattoirs here to see how lambs, sheep, cattle and pigs end their days?

Leroy42

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253187#Comment_122253187

I don't understand your point about RTE here. Are you saying that since they show horse racing they shouldn't investigate? Or that they should stop showing racing as soon as they start investigation?

can you imagine the uproar, the claims of left wing wokeness, if RTE cancelled all racing coverage because a few journalists said they found instances of bad treatment?

you want RTE to be the judge and jury?

this show has done great work in highlighting what could be a major issue in the industry. There are serious questions for the industry, and government, to answer. This show highlights these issues, drags them into the mainstream and starts the conversation.

Up until last night this was an area that the vast majority or people didn't know about, and probably never even thought about. Now far more people are aware and it begs questions to be asked.

Well done RTE.

Former Former Former

So let’s see, we had;

Animal cruelty that was absolutely sickening
Falsification of documents
Fraud
Tainted meat illegally entering the human food chain

Yeah, RTE virtue signaling is definitely the problem here.

The entire horse industry is absolutely rotten. This shyte about loving the animals and sure they have a better life than most people is all well and good until the horse can no longer race, and then things get pretty grim.

StevenToast

Todays news....tomorrows fish and chips....

Please RTE tell me what to be at outraged at next week and the week after....

No one will talk about this ever again tmw.....

This thread will die a death and be ground into a boards burger....

Frumy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253266#Comment_122253266

Well my point is simple.

So long as horse racing makes money it's here to stay, RTE show it, take the advertising revenue etc. I understand it's a different department but your also saying the people in the department involved with showing horse racing and advertising it can leave their conscious at the door. It's not like they can't show other content it's just that horse racing content makes more money. They could show 500 other things but CHOOSE to show horse racing due to the big bucks involved.

So long as people can be greedy it's here to stay, different department or not they are still following the mega money.

Frumy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253364#Comment_122253364

true, outrage seems to affect us for 24 hours and that's it. Once it doesn't affect us personally meh

Iguarantee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122252865#Comment_122252865

or at least a bit of temporary damnation…

rainagain

I didn't watch the programme as I don't need more images of cruelty in my head - 30 years ago I did a project in school about the shipping of horses abroad for slaughter in horrific conditions, and those photos haven't been forgotten.

What I do know is that Ireland has plenty of legislation around animal welfare, but very little enforcement.

Loads of info on https://animallaw.ie/

Former Former Former

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253261#Comment_122253261

Has Primetime ever gone into abattoirs here to see how lambs, sheep, cattle and pigs end their days?

Well, the main focus of the programme was the criminal activity around tracing, sales and export of horses, the abattoir bit was just the unsurprising icing on the cake.

The other point is that the beef and pork industries don't hold the animals out to be anything other than a commodity that is to be grown, killed and eaten. We might not like to think about the inside of the Kepak factory but I doubt anyone believes it to be anything other than messy and bloody. The horse industry is built on a very different image that is - let's be honest - a complete load of bollocks, and receives huge amounts of government money to maintain that image.

magicbastarder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253364#Comment_122253364

if you dislike the news and current affairs section of RTE covering negative stories, you could always watch dancing with the stars instead?

Leg End Reject

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253525#Comment_122253525

I know that, but there is still a blind eye turned to the conditions that animals end their days in. The fact that sentient animals are considered commodities confirms that. Humans have been treated the same in the slave industry in the past, and it still happens in people and child trafficking.

I bet this won't have any real effect on attendance at race meetings.

Leroy42

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253396#Comment_122253396

You said it was virtue signalling.

I'm asking you what way they should have done it. Should they have ignored it completely, because it may cause them some commercial issues? Or should they have immediately cut all talk of horse racing and other horse events based on what they have uncovered without bringing it to a wider audience and letting the government and public discuss it?

Horse racing will be here to stay if the public decides that despite the issues brought up yesterday their enjoyment of the sport tops the issues the issues that were raised. RTE are merely bringing a product to the public that they continue to want.

You are blaming RTE, it's the horse racing punters that are to blame, and the rest of the public. We will either demand changes to be made or we won't. If the public no longer accepts horse racing then RTE will stop showing it as there won't be an audience and without an audience there won't be advertisers.

It would have been far easier for RTE to say nothing, and protect the commercial side of a business that is under increasing commercial pressures. What they have done is be able to separate that out and bring a serious public interest story into the public domain.

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253128#Comment_122253128

It's properly regulated and good standards in place when they know the cameras are on.

Elliot has let the mask slip more than once though.

If this kind of thing is going on at this scale it shows that it is a scummy industry. It only exists because of gambling.

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253364#Comment_122253364

This.

Horse Racing Ireland will bring out the highly respected trainers who will acted shocked and upset claiming they don't know anything about this sort of thing etc.

Defund the cnuts now.

Macy0161

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253109#Comment_122253109

The horse and greyhound "industries" shouldn't receive any state money at this stage - that money should be put into actual sports. Given the size of the gambling market, even justifying it through the betting tax is outdated.

yagan

If the expose about the greyhound meat grinder is anything to go by all that will happen is a few self regulatory policy papers will be written and the government will give more of our money to the horse racing industry just like it did to the greyhound mincers.

Hellrazer

Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue says 'the full rigors of the law' will be applied following revelations from an RTÉ

Ill believe that when I see it.

Hellrazer

BTW - Heres a contact list of email address of every TD in dail Eireann.

Feel free to email every one of them.

TD CONTACT LIST.xls

phonypony

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253128#Comment_122253128

What an utterly ridiculous post, easy to see you have 'skin in the game', your post essentially completely disregards hard evidence, criticises those who see it as it is and then justifies the scummy practices.

These students you speak of who don't make the grade, are they beaten, their identities changed and shoved into a cage and murdered in cold blood? No, they are not. That is a invalid analogy.

And by the way, treating animals like crap and utter greed are absolutely no part of my culture. Conspiracy theories belong elsewhere.

Markus Antonius

Been saying it for years. Nobody cares less about horses than those who work in or get "entertained" by the horse racing industry.

I only caught the last 5 minutes of the documentary last night, but it's a bit rich of RTE highlighting this now. They've been horseracing's biggest underwriter for years. Always grinded me how much they would celebrate Colm Murray and "what he did for horseracing". Horseracing? You mean that rigged, socially acceptable money-moving mechanism that couldn't give a flying fck about horses?

Disclaimer: I do find horse racing horrifically boring to watch.

GNWoodd

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122254123#Comment_122254123

Posters seem to be taking a very broad brush approach to this issue . We have those saying what was shown last night wouldnt have happened if there was no horse racing. In the same way that no animal abuse would occur if everyone on the planet went vegan . Both are correct statements but neither will ever happen .

Animal slaughter has to take place but it should happen as quickly and humanely as it is possible for it to occur. The spotlight should be on those responsible for animal cruelty wherever it happens . DOAFM can close down a farm within hours if they wish but they didn’t know this was going on until RTE exposed it while routinely working in the same yard. That is not believable.

Well done to those involved in RTE for making the programme. It can’t have been easy.

whisky_galore

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122253180#Comment_122253180

It is popular and profitable, and so long as that is the case your opinion and the hopes of shutting down a multi million industry counts for nothing.

I think if anything the greyhound industry may go to the wall in the future as doggy men and followers age out and new blood may not take it up, but there's no royalty or Arab sheiks in that game and the money is loose change compared to horses.