Santa Anita had its third horse death in nine days when a gelding pulled up during a race and was euthanized. Twenty-six horses have died in racing or training at the California track since 26 December.
The Los Angeles Times reported that Kochees sustained an injury to its left front leg in a race on Saturday. Kochees was taken off the course with a splint. However, during surgery on Sunday it was determined that the nine-year-old had lost blood flow to the leg and the decision was made to euthanize.
Tim Layden
(@SITimLayden)With the death today of 9yo gelding Kochees (injured Saturday) at Santa Anita, the tally is:
Dec 24 – March 31: 23 deaths in 98 days.
April 1 – May 16: 0 deaths in 46 days
May 17 – May 26: 3 deaths in 10 days
Racing at Santa Anita was suspended indefinitely in March after the rash of deaths over the winter but the track has since been reopened. Factors such as the track surface, overworked horses and medication have been blamed for the deaths.
Animal rights organization Peta (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), has called for racing at Santa Anita to be suspended once again. “Santa Anita and all California tracks must suspend racing until the ongoing investigation by the district attorney is complete and the new rules have been strengthened,” read a statement. “Decreasing the number of broken bones is not enough.”
Santa Anita is due to stage the Breeders’ Cup meeting for a record 10th time on 1 and 2 November.
