Tag: Horse Deaths

Twelve Race Horses Put Down at Santa Anita So Far in 2021; CHRB & Legislation Hopeful That New Law & Regs Will Solve Problem. Still Much Doubt

And the track death beat goes on.
Horse deaths from track break downs continue as Industry crosses fingers
Young horses are still being put down at Santa Anita Race Course
Every horse put down was 5 or younger.
The vet schools. some track vets, & all track owners have not said age is a factor.
Contention is that horse bone structure is not mature til 6 years of age
Impossible to change the industry, economic, and culture to protect young horses.
What needs to be done will never happen – Economically & culturally not possible

Passage of Horse Racing Bills By CA Legislature Adds Little to CHRB Regs & Vet Tests to Curb Horse Deaths – See Distilled Summary of Bills by Respected LA Times Journalist Spelling Out Detail.

Was it all for show? The California Horse Racing Board & The California Legislature have ended up doing little to stop the death of young horses at CA tracks in 2020.
A California Senate Bill 800 and an Assembly Bill AB 1974 were to have provided regs & compliance that moved the Horse Racing Industry Standards forward.
Neither, apparently, did so as out of all the language in either passed bill, only a provision to implement veterinary monitoring of training & medication was not ALREADY IN EFFECT.
So inaction and real oversight of the industry remains an open question.

Now Six Whips Per Race? Does the CHRB, Owners, The Stronachs, & Jockey Guild Realize How Awful that Sounds?

Horse Racing is under more scrutiny than ever. Industry groups and governing boards like the California Horse Racing Board continues to seek to solve and not solve the real problem that causes young horses to be put down.

The latest effort by the CHRB is to limit the number of times a jockey can use a whip to hit a horse during a race. That is now six times per the ruling that goes into effect in October. Meantime, it is business as usual.