Horseracing Wrongs has been filing annual “Killed” lists since 2014; we are the first to ever do this. Here are the nine-year (’14-’22) state totals, and the totals for some of our most conspicuous tracks. Please note, however, that these figures are at a minimum: More, surely, were euthanized off-site or simply fell through record-keeping cracks. Not reflected, either, are the horses killed at the nation’s 200+ private training facilities. And finally, these numbers say nothing of the tens of thousands who were bled-out and butchered upon “retirement.” In short, this is but a partial reckoning.
Arizona
total all tracks: 374 Killed
Turf: 328 Killed
Arkansas
Oaklawn: 86 Killed
(AR did not honor FOIA requests from ’14-’18)
California
total all tracks: 889 Killed
Del Mar: 105 Killed
Golden Gate: 228 Killed
Los Alamitos: 223 Killed
Santa Anita: 260 Killed
Colorado
Arapahoe (only track): 76 Killed
Delaware
total all tracks: 164 Killed
Delaware Park: 150 Killed
Florida
total all tracks: 850 Killed
Gulfstream: 436 Killed
Tampa Bay: 201 Killed
Illinois
total all tracks: 256 Killed
Hawthorne: 124 Killed
Indiana
total all tracks: 238 Killed
Horseshoe: 202 Killed
Iowa
Prairie (only track): 130 Killed
Kentucky
total all tracks: 442 Killed
Churchill: 173 Killed
Keeneland: 99 Killed
Louisiana
total all tracks: 516 Killed
Maryland
total all tracks: 341 Killed
Laurel: 264 Killed
Pimlico: 57 Killed
Minnesota
total all tracks: 104 Killed
Canterbury: 101 Killed
Nebraska
total all tracks: 56 Killed
(record-keeping is particularly bad)
New Jersey
total all tracks: 200 Killed
Monmouth: 165 Killed
New Mexico
total all tracks: 650 Killed
New York
total all tracks: 971 Killed
Aqueduct: 129 Killed
Belmont: 363 Killed
Saratoga: 150 Killed
Ohio
total all tracks: 479 Killed
Belterra: 103 Killed
Mahoning: 154 Killed
Thistledown: 147 Killed
Oklahoma
total all tracks: 411 Killed
Remington: 265 Killed
Pennsylvania
total all tracks: 819 Killed
Parx: 403 Killed
Penn: 283 Killed
Texas
total all tracks: 275 Killed
Lone Star: 137 Killed
Washington
Emerald (only track): 140 Killed
West Virginia
total both tracks: 746 Killed
Charles Town: 509 Killed
Mountaineer: 237 Killed
All Other States
235 Killed
What Can You Do?
There are many ways to help end horseracing: Share our daily posts on social media. Write a “letter to the editor.” Contact governors and legislators. And of course: Organize or join a protest!
