Joe Landers turned his lifelong love for horses into a lucrative business, first by breeding them on his Texas ranch and then running a pharmacy catering to their race performance needs.
But it was the Weatherford man's love of money, federal authorities say, that made him part of a growing problem in the horse racing industry that is putting profits ahead of horses and their well-being. Landers pleaded guilty last week in federal court to charges related to the production and sale of dangerous drugs for racehorses in Texas and in other states, according to federal court records.
Injected with drugs, muscled horses are being pushed faster and faster, leading to gruesome injuries on the track that often result in euthanasia in front of stunned onlookers.
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