equine deaths

A Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) internal adjudication panel has banned trainer Zvi Kriple for two years for breach of the racetrack safety rule that prohibits "the deprivation of necessary care, sustenance, shelter, or veterinary care" to a Covered Horse. The case concerns the former Kriple trainee, Royal Honey (Astern {Aus}). In April of this year, Royal Honey died a "very painful death" from colic when stabled at Belterra Park after Kriple failed to secure for the 5-year-old mare the necessary veterinary care, according to a written ruling dated...

For the first time in the United States since data has been recorded, the racing-related fatality rate at racetracks subject to the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority's (HISA) rules fell below 1.00 per 1,000 starts for a calendar year, the regulator said in a press release on Thursday morning. In 2024, 99.91% of starts did not result in a fatality. From January 1 through December 31, 2024, 47 racetracks across 19 states operating under HISA's rules recorded an aggregate racing-related fatality rate of 0.90 per 1,000 starts, an approximate 27%...

After 12 horses suffered fatal injuries at Churchill Downs in the last five weeks, prompting the Louisville track to announce new safety initiatives Thursday, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) issued an update on the situation. The HISA statement appears below in its entirety: Over the past several days, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) has undertaken multiple measures to better understand the circumstances surrounding the recent spate of equine fatalities at Churchill Downs in hopes of working with the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) and Churchill Downs...

Laurel Park will be open for training on Thursday and Friday, with the intent to run this Saturday, Apr. 29, Alan Foreman, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (THA), said by phone Wednesday afternoon. Last Saturday's cancelled Apr. 22 card of 98 entries included a pair of $100,000 races in the Native Dancer S. and the Primonetta S., scheduled for the main track. This time around, the racing office has taken 116 entries over 11 races with the same slate of five stakes. The decision...

Kitty Block, CEO and president of the Humane Society of the United States, has responded to the recent equine deaths in her joint blog with Sara Amundson, president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund, with the following statement: "This is a grave situation, and a shameful one, and you'd think the industry would be racing to clean up its act and implement safeguards to protect its horses. Unfortunately, that has not been the case. While some reform-minded racetracks and state racing commissions have developed and implemented new safety measures, this...