Steve Asmussen accused of animal cruelty by PETA
 

Oh boy....batten down the hatches on this one.
Seems Joe Drape broke the story today.
Can't be good for the sport, and I certainly hope it's unfounded.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/20/sp...mentsContainer


Joe Drape ‏@joedrape 37m
PETA Accuses Asmussen of Cruelty to Horses; 10 complaints to state & feds video among documentation http://nyti.ms/1l5kh3y

Warren Eves ‏@warrenthebull 11m
PETA'S 285-pg report claiming mistreatment of horses supported by 7+ hours of video taken with hidden camera filed with feds in Ky & NY Tues

If these things are going on at Asmussen's barn...imagine what goes on at the barns of the little guys who are trying to eke out a living in this game.

The beginning of the end of thoroughbred racing, IMO. Not being sarcastic.

An organization that kills 80% of the animals in its care on a yearly basis is not going to take the game down.

Consider the source
 

It comes down to what evidence they have.
PETA has blown smoke plenty of times before.

My money says they got evidence.

After all...the guy worked for Asmussen for 4 months.

Have to agree. Pot calling the kettle black

I think its incredibly 'Ethical' to pose as a plant in order to get "evidence". :rolleyes:

I am sure the greyhound people thought the same thing over the last 20 years.

Well...how else are you supposed to get to the bottom of things?

You can get to the bottom of things anyway you want, i guess it just matters how badly you need to get to the bottom of things.

If that's what it takes to get the bad guy, kudos to the undercover. Handicappers of all people should applaud anything that gets the cheats and abusers exposed.

If horses have been mistreated, those guilty should pay the price.
Going undercover may have been necessary.

PETA should be held accountable, too, if this turns out to be a crock.

IMO...there is nothing wrong with placing a man "undercover" to uncover illegal activity. It has been done to unearth other crimes...and it is quite acceptable in this case too. This isn't just about the horses...it is also about the jockeys on their backs. The practice of putting a human being in grave danger in the pursuit of profit is unconscionable, IMO...and needs to be terminated. Injured horses need to be RESTED, and not raced...and those gentlemen who don't realize this, or can't afford this "luxury", do not belong in this game.

Im glad they went after a high profile trainer rather than a nickle and dimer. Not only does this crap affect the horses and jockeys but the ones that keep this sport alive, us. Im all for whatever this group can uncover, it sure cant make this sport any worse than it is already.