PETA Urges Monmouth Park To Postpone Haskell Invitational

OCEANPORT, NJ — The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals called for Monmouth Park to hold its horses and postpone Saturday's Haskell Invitational. PETA called it "cruelty" to make horses race during the high heat.

The National Weather Service issued an excessive heat warning that effects Oceanport. It lasts until 10 p.m. Sunday.

The Haskell Invitational's races last from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Oceanport's forecast shows a high of 95 degrees Saturday, according to NWS. The heat index will climb into triple digits.

"Heat kills, so it's extremely foolish and reckless for Monmouth Park to stay open with temperatures soaring to record highs," PETA Senior Vice President Kathy Guillermo said in a statement. "PETA urges Monmouth and the New Jersey Racing Commission to postpone the Haskell Invitational and cancel racing for the weekend. This is the only way to protect Thoroughbreds from heat-related injuries, as New York, Maryland, and Pennsylvania tracks have already recognized."

Five horse races have been cancelled Saturday because of weather concerns, according to Equibase.

Saturday's Saratoga horse race has been cancelled because of extreme heat. The New York Horse Racing Association called it the "responsible decision."

Monmouth Park officials are implementing extreme-weather protocols, according to nj.com. Preparations include supplying extra hoses for horses to cool down before and after races and emphasizing a misting system in the paddock. Monmouth Park could also shorten post parades to keep horses and jockeys out of the sun. They will also consider delaying post times and postponing races if it gets too hot.

“The safety of the horses, the jockeys, the fans — it really does come first here,” Monmouth Park’s media manager Tom Luicci told nj.com. “We’re prepared for the heat.”

A horse collapsed during a race and died April 2018 on England's Cheltenham racecourse, according to The Guardian. The race took place during one of England's hottest April days in many years. The temperature nearly doubled April's 14-degree Celsius average that day, which brought the temperature to about 80 degree Fahrenheit.

Cheltenham officials cancelled the next race because it "potentially posed an unacceptable risk to horses over this extreme distance in the prevailing heat," according to The Guardian.

Horses can deal with cold temperatures better than people but don't handle heat as well, according to studies.

“It only takes 17 minutes of moderate intensity exercise in hot, humid weather to raise a horse’s temperature to dangerous levels,” according to a 2010 study from Professor Michael Lindinger, an author for Equine Wellness Magazine. “That’s three to 10 times faster than in humans.”

Click here to get Patch email notifications on this or other local news articles or get Patch breaking news alerts sent right to your phone with our app. Download here. Follow Little Silver-Oceanport Patch on Facebook. Have a news tip? Email [email protected].