Thoroughbred horses are increasingly inbred
Since its origins in 18th-century England, the industry has prized purity over diversity
THE COURSE OF true love never did run smooth. That is particularly true when your lover weighs half a tonne and is wearing steel shoes. At the National Stud in Newmarket, a town in Suffolk widely regarded as the home of thoroughbred racing, it is breeding season. A mare stands in the shade of a stable. Her hooves have been covered with leather boots, to dampen kicks; her head is held by grooms. Tim Lane, director of the stud, calms her. The horses, brushed till they are as shiny as conkers—“they’ve got to look good,” explains Mr Lane—eye each other warily.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Neigh laughing matter”
Britain June 19th 2021
- Brexit faces problems at the Northern Irish border
- A panel finds that London’s police are “institutionally corrupt”
- A campaigning LGBT charity turns a deaf ear to its critics
- Thoroughbred horses are increasingly inbred
- The British covid-19 warning
- Retail parks are well-placed to weather lockdowns
- Britain wants to make better use of civilian reserves
- Britain’s academic split: problem-solving v problem-wallowing
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