Very good point.
Becky
Well, I started out in the debate thinking racehorses mostly break down from youth, not inherent weakness. I do think that's still true. Certainly they would be stronger if they waited another year to run them.
But I've now read about so many TBs on the farrier forum and elsewhere that all have almost uniformly crappy feet, weak, thin walls and soles. That may be part of why they could heal past a bout of laminitis in Barbaro. He probably didn't start out with the best of feet. WHY? of all the breeding programs that should be able to breed for good foot (and bone) why have they let the feet go to hell on them?