Doping in any sport takes away from the integrity of the competition, no longer are athletes competing using power, skill, and pure ability, they are relying on pushing past physiological limits into borrowed stores. This becomes even more controversial in horse sport because the athletes are not able to give their consent. They are unknowingly pushing past their natural abilities, which can cause “an actual or potential health risk to the athlete” (Haisma 2006, P.4). Although the substances may have been administered to increase performance, not all are given for this reason, some doping has the well being of the horse in mind. Still, it is unethical to work an animal past its breaking point, this holds true whether the drugs were administered with the intention of reducing pain or increasing stamina.

Competition vs. Home Training 

It is a strange thought that the associations one has with their equine partner change depending on the environment they are in, and yet that seems to be the case quite often. A horse who is at home, living daily life, seems to be treated as just that, a horse with a life and interests and inherent value.  A horse who is away at a competition seems to be treated as a machine, or a means to a title or a purse, and not a partner in the journey. This is not always the case, and in no way do horse competitions promote unethical treatment of the animals, but they seem to open the door.

If a horse sustains a non-life threatening injury during a time when it is on home property being routinely worked, either as maintenance or in preparation for competition, it will more often than not be given time off. The horse will be put in a recovery program working towards restoring the health of the animal so it can continue working when it is fully functional again. If this same horse sustains this same injury when away at a competition and the scope of analgesics and other doping agents can reach it, they will most likely be administered. The horse will be asked to continue to compete and work itself past the parameters set by its physiology. This could result in more serious injuries being sustained and decreased affective states for the horse. In this sense, competition promotes the usefulness of the horse and hides the life within it.

For the Horse or for the Win?

Some of the banned substances that are administered to horses are given with the best intentions. If a horse sustains an injury it will often be given time off to rest and recuperate as well as have analgesics and anti-inflammatory medications administered purely for comfort and positive affective states.

People ask a lot of their equine partners under competitive circumstances, sometimes more than the horse is capable of. The underlying problem remains as to whether drugs that are being given are to alleviate the horse’s pain or to beat out the competition.

IIf approaching this from a consequentialist perspective, it doesn’t matter why they were administered in the first place, what matters is how you act after. It would be unethical if you give the horses drugs to mediate the pain response and then continue to strain the injury through competition, possibly resulting in more serious damage. It would be ethical if you give the horse the drugs to make them more comfortable and then allow the body to mend.

The ethical issues behind horse doping really come down to the relationship between horse and owner. If the horse is seen as a tool to achieve money and fame, as most racehorses are, then the doping is most likely going to be unethical. If the horse is seen as a partner and a friend, helping to achieve goals then the doping will be most likely be rooted in good, ethical, intentions. Still, these are grand generalizations as every doping case is unique.