Through a FOIA request to the California Horse Racing Board, I have obtained the following details on some of that state’s kills last year (more can be found here).
Auntie Mimi, Jun 8, Santa Anita T
“Horse was training when it [‘it,’ not she] sustained a LF injury: comminuted, complete, displaced humerus fracture; rupture; extensive hemorrhage.” Also: “osteochondral disease [both front limbs].” Auntie Mimi was four years old.
Valiancer, Jun 18, Santa Anita S
“Hemorrhagic diarrhea, colic, nasogastric reflux, pulmonary edema, and suspected DIC.” Valiancer, just three, suffered like this for two days.
Twentyseventrouts, Jul 2, Los Alamitos R
“Horse fell in stretch. Right forelimb: complete, displaced fractures of both proximal sesamoid bones with the complete rupture of superficial and deep-digital flexor tendons, the suspensory ligament, the intersesamoidean, straight and short sesamoidean ligaments, and the collateral ligaments of the metacarpophalangeal joint.” That’s a lot of destruction. Twentyseven was six years old.
Irondale, Jul 7, Los Alamitos S
“Horse tied in stall, groom heard commotion, went to stall, [horse] died within five minutes. Cause of death not determined [but] compatible with a sudden cardiorespiratory collapse.” Irondale was five years old and had last been raced Jun 24.
Mucha Woman, Jul 17, Pleasanton S (died Jul 21)
“Four days ago, while trailering to Del Mar, [horse] got down in trailer and was repeatedly kicked by [unidentified horse] in the next stall. Severe trauma with multiple lacerations. Despite aggressive treatment, shock and death resulted.” Mucha was five years old.
The story or notes of the stall death of IRONDALE at Los Alamitos on July 7, 2023 raises a lot of questions:
1-Who tied the horse up in the stall?
2-Why was the horse tied up in the stall?
3-Why did the groom leave the stall when the horse was tied up?
4-What happened that would cause the horse to have some type of episode that causes something fatal to occur that somehow can’t be verified, but rather compared to a certain way of dying in horses?
5-What causes ‘sudden cardiorespiratory collapse’ in a racehorse in the stall?
6-Was there someone else in the stall while the groom was out?
7-Did someone inject the horse with something? 7a-Was that the reason for tying the horse up in the stall — to kill him?
8-Where was the “trainer” of IRONDALE when this sudden death occurred in the stall?
9-Why can’t the exact cause of death of IRONDALE be verified?
10-Who made the determination that the exact cause of death can’t be verified?
11-Why do we not see a report that the person or persons responsible for the Welfare of IRONDALE was/were penalized in any way, shape or form?
(I know; it’s because horseracing is a vile industry that “polices” itself and death to the horses is an everyday occurrence.)