A seventh horse this year has died at Santa Anita Park
A 4-year-old horse was euthanized Thursday at California’s Santa Anita Park after suffering a fracture in training, becoming at least the seventh horse to die at the famed complex in 2020 and eighth of its racing season.
The horse, Unveiled, fractured its right humerus while galloping in morning training, the facility said.
After X-rays at the complex’s equine hospital, people tending to Unveiled determined the horse could not recover, and a veterinarian recommended that Unveiled be euthanized, the park said.
Horse deaths at Santa Anita gained nationwide attention last year, when officials briefly suspended racing after more than 20 racehorses died in 10 weeks.
That sparked a task force to investigate scores of deaths dating back to 2018. But late last year, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office announced that the panel found no animal cruelty or criminal activity.
When Santa Anita reopened for racing in late March 2019, there were numerous changes: Trainers had to apply two days in advance before working out a horse; jockeys had to replace whips with softer “cushion crops,” and restrictions on steroids, anti-inflammation drugs and race-day medications were instituted.
The December task force report said improved safety policies had “reduced the number of fatal racing and training incidents.”
Including Unveiled, at least seven horses have died at Santa Anita this calendar year, three in three days in January.
A horse also was euthanized at Santa Anita on December 26 after suffering a fracture while training, two days before the park’s first races of the season.
Of the eight horses that have died there since late December, six died after fractures. One died of a “probable cardiac event,” and another died after a collision with another horse, the track said.
The park houses 2,000 horses and is one of the largest equine training facilities in the country, according to its website. Santa Anita Park said in January that horses raced or trained at the park “more than 420,000 times over the last year with a 99.991% safety rate.”
