Through a FOIA request to the California Horse Racing Board, I have obtained the following details on some of that state’s kills in 2025 (previous ones here).
Mr Favorite Jess, May 31, Los Alamitos R
“Disarticulation/luxation of LF joint, rupture/tearing of soft tissue structures.” Mr Favorite Jess was four.
Bones, Jul 30, Del Mar S
“Colic episode – impaction – apparently died spontaneously during night.” At the time of his death, Bones was being used as a “pony horse” – its own kind of cruel servitude.
Abadon, Sep 13, Los Alamitos S
“History of colic since 8:30 pm Sep 12; went down sometime in the night; down upon arrival this morning; euthanized.” Abadon was six and had last been raced Jul 5.
Actually Wanda, it was the economics of operating the track with declining interest in betting of horses that finally led to Portland Meadows closing & having the property redeveloped as an Amazon warehouse distribution center. Our farms hay supplier has told us the same pressures are building on Emerald Downs as well. Amazon wants Emerald Downs property also as an Amazon warehouse. The last few months protests outside the grandstand of Portland Meadows also helped people see the reality of racing before it was closed & demolished too.
Thanks for your input, Fred and Joan.
In the real world, it’s no secret that things can happen unexpectedly with just about any type of animal so the idea that the racetracks can purposely and deliberately FAIL to provide adequate round-the-clock supervision to each horse is not an acceptable solution. Failure to provide adequate round-the-clock supervision is not a solution.
To put the responsibility of “guarding” over one-thousand head of horses on only two individual human beings is ridiculous and unacceptable. I assume this blatant failure to provide adequate round-the-clock supervision to each horse is one of many reasons why Portland Meadows was shut down and removed from existence.
May the same thing happen to Del Mar, Santa Anita, and Los Alamitos racetracks.
To all of the earlier commenters, at our old Portland Meadows most nights after the racing card was completed, there was only 2 guards that covered the backside gate & patrolled the barns with a 1,000+ head of horses! When this area had its periodic freezes & ice storms & the horse people could not get to the track, those poor guards would be the only ones to feed & water the whole backsides horses! There were no dorms or living 1/4`s on the backside legally. Many times horse people would sleep in the tack rooms or parking lots in old run down RV`s if they could get away with it.
Obviously, DrlMar and Los Alamitos don’t have enough security to patrol the stable areas overnight.
If they did, they’d have someone who’d hear a horse in distress, and call a vet.
But then, I suppose these tracks don’t want to pay to have a vet on call after 4 or 5 pm.
Yet, the owners and trainers love these horses like family.
If they did, they’d not take their horses to tracks with inadequate security. They’d have their horses all in one area of stalls, and have someone spending the night, staying awake, so they’d hear a horse who’s in pain.
If they truly loved horses, they’d wouldn’t be breeding them so much, and they certainly wouldn’t be racing them.
Having said this before I find these stall deaths very disturbing. Spend some cash and take care of your ward that you all love like family.
It’s sickening that these horses are left alone unattended to suffer from colic and die unattended or discovered hours later and euthanized.
The abuse and the neglect of these horses should put the owners and the trainers in jail.