Dominatrix to surprise punters at Kempton Park:
Activists will invite punters for a whipping
Date: Monday 18 September
Time: Noon
Location: Kempton Park Racecourse, Premier Enclosure entrance
As part of Animal Aid's call for a ban on the use of the whip, a PVC-clad dominatrix will be surprising race-goers at Kempton Park. The dominatrix will invite punters to offer their own rumps for a whipping to see how they like it.
Animal Aid has produced a meticulously researched report, A Hiding to Nothing, which shows not only that whipping is cruel, but that horses who are whipped perform less well. In response, the Jockey Club acknowledged that 'more races are lost rather than won through use of the whip'. In light of this, the national campaign group is baffled as to why the whip has not been banned.
Says Andrew Tyler, Animal Aid Director:
"Using pain in an effort to control an animal is morally repugnant to anyone with respect for animals. The evidence shows, in any case, that such violence is counterproductive in terms of safety and in producing winners."
There is an evocative account of whip use given by the owner of a young filly in a letter to Racing Post. Wrote Jasmine Chesters:
"When she came out for her first race this year, the only words I can use are that she was thrashed. Not by other horses, but by her jockey. She was hit at least 12 times inside the last furlong and a half, and finished third. Her rider was suspended for two days but the harm he did to my horse was incalculable. She has never run the same since. She breaks well but on reaching about the four-furlong pole, when she is nearly always in the first four or five, as soon as she is smacked to push her on, she drops herself out. Her emotions must be in turmoil. She must be expecting to be thrashed again. We have nursed her all season but to no avail. Now I have to make the decision as to what to do with her."
Notes for Editors:
- For more information, contact Andrew Tyler on 01732 364546 (at the demo/out of hours: 07918 083774) or Dene Stansall on 01724 278608
- For further background, see A Hiding to Nothing (report on the use of the whip) and Riding for a Fall (exposé of the racing industry)
- View our powerful 90-second web film
- Animal Aid has an ISDN line for broadcast quality interviews
|
