3 race horses died in Vancouver within 2-week span in July: B.C. Ministry of Public Safety

A jockey is seen riding a horse at the Hastings Racecourse in Vancouver in an undated file photo. (Facebook/ Hastings Racecourse and Casino). In the 2023 racing season so far, three horses have died and another was injured during competitions at the track.

Three racehorses died and another was injured during competitions in Vancouver last month, according to B.C.’s Ministry of Public Safety.

The ministry and solicitor general oversee the Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch, which regulates the province’s horse racing industry, and provided a breakdown of the fatalities and injury to CTV News on Friday.

The incidents all occurred within a two-week span at the Hastings Racecourse in the city’s east side, according to the ministry’s statement.

The first death happened on July 16 and involved a horse named One Fifty One that fell during the second race.

“The horse was euthanized based on the recommendation of the veterinarian due to an unrecoverable injury, a fractured bone in the front leg,” wrote the ministry.

Six days later, a horse named Lent Me Twenty died before competing in the third race of The Cup—an annual event that attracts roughly 10,000 formally-dressed attendees.

According to the ministry, Lent Me Twenty “flipped over backwards in the paddock,” an area where racehorses can be viewed prior to the race, and struck its head on the ground.

“The horse succumbed to its injuries,” reads the statement.

Exactly two weeks after One Fifty One was euthanized due to an unrecoverable injury, a horse named Memorandum suffered a similar fate.

During the fourth race on July 30, the horse “took a bad step and unseated its jockey,” the ministry said.

“The horse stayed on its feet and was attended to by a contracted GPEB official veterinarian,” the statement continues.

In the end, the veterinarian determined Memorandum should be euthanized.

On the same day, a horse named Irish Luna tore a ligament in its ankle during the second race, but a veterinarian determined that injury was recoverable and the animal was not euthanized.

“Unfortunately, horse injuries and deaths can occur during the race season and, in fact, there were also deaths last year, though not during live races,” wrote the ministry.

The solicitor general says there were eight racehorse deaths in 2022—six resulting from injuries and two that were “from natural causes.”

None were during live racing, the ministry says.

“GPEB is not aware of any factors unique to this year that have contributed to the injuries and deaths,” the statement continues.

The ministry says the branch will continue following the advice of its contracted, official veterinarians “to protect the health and welfare of racehorses.”