Two more Thoroughbreds destroyed at Churchill

In a story filed Monday, June 23, 2008, by the Associated Press entitled, “2 horses euthanized Saturday at Churchill Downs, jockey injured,” they tell us the following:

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Jockey Shaun Bridgmohan suffered minor injuries and his horse, Vinstar, was euthanized after the horse took a spill during the first race at Churchill Downs.

An agent for Bridgmohan said he was taken to a Louisville hospital Saturday afternoon, but had no broken bones or serious injuries.

According to a release from the racetrack, the 29-year-old jockey was dropped near the sixteenth pole in the six-furlong sprint when the horse appeared to take a bad step.

Bridgmohan, who rode Pyro to an eighth-place finish in this year’s Kentucky Derby, appeared to have been kicked by a trailing horse as he rolled under the rail.

Dr. Lafe Nichols, the state veterinarian for the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority, said Vinstar had to be euthanized after suffering sesamoid fractures in both front legs and dislocated right front fetlock.

The 3-year-old son of Vindication is owned by Stonestreet Stable and trained by Steve Asmussen.

A second horse was euthanized in the fourth race, according the Courier-Journal.

Naughty Fu Peg was given a lethal injection after fracturing the knee of his right foreleg during the race, the paper reported Saturday. The 3-year-old gelding was trained by Tim Burton for owner Sano Park.

A recent Associated Press survey found that thoroughbred racetracks in the U.S. reported more than three horse deaths a day last year and 5,000 since 2003, and the vast majority were put down after suffering devastating injuries on the track.
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(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

From the Tuesday Horse’s Mouth

Why do the jockeys not demand safer racing? It is obvious how dangerous it is to ride these injury prone horses due to the numerous drugs given them to kill the pain to keep them racing. Where are the jockeys in all of this? Too scared to speak out? What about the retired jockeys? Scared they won’t be inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame? Come on guys — where’s your bottle? If not for the horses, what about your fellow jocks?]