Prosecutors Claim There is no Evidence of Animal Cruelty at Santa Anita Racetrack Despite the Almost 50 Deaths in One Year

The number of horse deaths at Santa Anita Racetrack in the last year have been absolutely appalling. It seemed another horse died every week, sometimes multiple in one week. In just two months, over 20 horses died at the track. That insane number caused the track to be shut down for a short while so that experts can find the cause of the problem. Nothing was found to be wrong with the soil or the racetrack itself, proving what animal activists already know — the root of the issue is horse racing itself.

They implemented new safety regulations and just days later, the 23rd horse died. By September 26th, the number of deaths was already over 30. And yet, they held the Breeder’s Cup there anyway. Over the span of one year, from July 2018 to the end of June 2019, there were 49 horse deaths. The worst of it occurring between December 2018 and March 2019 — when the racetrack received national attention and backlash. In that short time frame, a total of 23 horses died.

And yet, the Prosecutors in Los Angeles County, according to NPR, “say they have found no evidence of animal cruelty or illegality associated with [the] rash of horse deaths at Santa Anita Park racetrack since mid-2018.” The district attorney made over two dozen recommendations for improvements for the safety of the horses, saying “Horse racing has inherent risks but is a legally sanctioned sport in California. Greater precautions are needed to enhance safety and protect both horses and their riders.”

That is exactly the problem — that it is a legally sanctioned sport. Senior vice president of PETA, Kathy Guillermo says: “It’s beyond credible that the district attorney doesn’t see that trainers who medicate horses obviously know that they’re injured and sore, so the trainers should be criminally culpable if they then force the animals to race to their deaths. Fortunately, the D.A. agrees with what PETA has said for the last decade: The racing industry has not done enough to protect horses on racetracks and the industry will die itself unless it does far more. Legislation to increase transparency in this secretive and deadly industry is essential, and PETA will continue to work to ban drugging, whipping, and all abuse in California and every other racing state. No sane person can find it acceptable for horses to suffer and die in a sport.”

The district attorney’s report tries to put the deaths at Santa Anita racetrack into perspective by comparing them with the deaths at Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby where the deaths are even higher per average. It also explains that the “the national average for catastrophic racing breakdowns has declined almost 20 percent” since 2009. But the real insight here isn’t that it isn’t so bad at Santa Anita racetrack, it’s that horse racing is bad in general and overall. If this many horses dying is seen as not so bad, the entire industry needs to be rethought, and hopefully someday abolished.

If you agree, sign this petition calling for an end to cruel sports like horse racing and jumping!

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