Ferdinand at Elizabethtown welcome center - Kentucky
Posted by: 
GT.US
N 37° 42.691 W 085° 50.113
16S E 602665 N 4174446
This statue of Ferdinand is located inside the Elizabethtown Welcome Center in Kentucky. If the center is closed, you can see him through the window.
Waymark Code: WM9NB3
Location: Kentucky, United States
Date Posted: 09/08/2010
Views: 6
Wikiepedia (
visit link) Tells us:
"Ferdinand (1983–2002) was a Thoroughbred racehorse racehorse who won the 1986 Kentucky Derby and 1987 Breeders' Cup Classic. He was voted the 1987 Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year.
He entered stud in 1989 and was later sold to a breeding farm in Japan in 1994.
Much to the outrage of many horse racing enthusiasts, reports indicate that in 2002 Ferdinand was sent to slaughter in Japan with no fanfare or notice to previous owners. He likely became either pet food or steaks for human consumption. Ferdinand's death was the catalyst for the Ferdinand Fee, an optional donation program to fund keeping old racehorses alive.
In September 2006, the United States House of Representatives approved H.R. 503, the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, which would ban the slaughter of horses in the United States. The bill did not make it out of committee in the Senate, however. In January 2007 the bill was re-introduced.
In the summer of 2006, the New York Owners and Breeders' Association, based in Saratoga Springs, New York, initiated the small voluntary per-race charge (collected from owners of NY Breds) called the "Ferdinand Fee" that will funnel the revenue to Bluegrass Charities and the Thoroughbred Charities of America, two organizations that help fund race horse rescue and retirement groups. Another small step in maintaining the safety of Thoroughbreds sent to breeding sheds around the world: Some owners are now including buy-back clauses within their stallion contracts. Reportedly, such clauses were included for Derby winner Silver Charm and Dubai World Cup winner Roses in May, both of whom were sent to Japan.