LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Churchill Downs has responded following a string of horse deaths connected to the racetrack since late last week, including three here on Kentucky Derby week.
Two horses were euthanized because of injuries, and two others collapsed and died on the track.
Churchill Downs issued a statement Wednesday afternoon, saying two horses trained by Saffie Joseph Jr. have died of "cause yet to be identified"; Parents Pride on Saturday and Chasing Artie on Tuesday.
Officials say Joseph, Jr. requested his horses be scratched through Friday, and the request was approved by the stewards.
The officials added that two other horses received "musculoskeletal injuries from which they could not recover"; Wild on Ice received his injuries while training on dirt last Thursday and Take Charge Briana during a turf race on Tuesday.
Wild on Ice was taken to the Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington for care, but officials say both were ultimately euthanized for "humane reasons."
"While a series of events like this is highly unusual, it is completely unacceptable. We take this very seriously and acknowledge that these troubling incidents are alarming and must be addressed," a portion of the statement reads. "We feel a tremendous responsibility to our fans, the participants in our sport and the entire industry to be a leader in safety and continue to make significant investments to eliminate risk to our athletes."
Officials with Churchill Downs say each horse was taken to University of Kentucky's Veterinary Diagnostics Lab for full necropsies. They say they'll "continue to press for answers and are working with regulators to conduct swift and thorough investigations."
The concerns came as Champions Day finished up, celebrating Thoroughbred racing history — an archive that unfortunately, because of the nature of the sport, also comes with great heartbreak and loss.
"I don't know if there's any rhyme or reason to what's happened recently, it's just very unfortunate," Gary Prater, a lifelong Louisville resident who heard about the news Wednesday morning before coming to the track, said. "Broken bones —they just happen. It's part of horse racing."
WHAS11 News also interviewed Dr. Alan Ruggles, who works at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital. He specializes in orthopedic surgery and lameness, and has been practicing for 35 years.
"It's hard to make specific conclusions just [on the basis] that they happened close together," Ruggles said. "Am I concerned four horses are dead? 100 percent. You'd be silly not to be concerned about that. It bothers me. But it's hard to make a conclusion of some way you could change that, per se, due to negligence or a condition that existed."
And if you're wondering why many race horses have to be euthanized following injury, Ruggles explains: "We need to get horses very comfortable right away to prevent those secondary problems, and some injuries are so severe that we're unable to get them comfortable because they have to immediately weight bear."
And ultimately, horses have to walk consistently to live and be healthy.
WHAS11 News also reached out to the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission for a response. Officials with KHRC said they're "actively investigating" the recent incidents.
"The KHRC is committed to the health and safety of every horse and rider and will follow the robust investigative procedures in place for issues of safety and racing integrity," officials said in a May 4 statement.
The KHRC said musculoskeletal and sudden-death necropsies will be performed at the University of Kentucky.
"Both types of necropsy are complete post-mortem examinations. Musculoskeletal necropsies focus on a known injury, while sudden death necropsies are broader in scope," the KHRC said.
Joseph Jr. called the deaths 'mind-boggling,' telling WHAS11 News he's searching for answers. He added that all blood work came back fine, but says something still doesn't feel right.
"The odds of this happening twice is a trillion [to one]," he said. "I run almost 4,000 horses, and it never happens like that. It doesn't make sense."
Make it easy to keep up-to-date with more stories like this. Download the WHAS11 News app now. For Apple or Android users.
Have a news tip? Email assign@whas11.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter feed.