More Horses Die at Calgary Stampede
- by Alicia Graef
- July 13, 2012
The deaths of three horses at the Calgary Stampede, a 10-day event where people can go to pretend that we still live in the Wild West, has spurred outrage from animal advocates and calls to ban chuckwagon races for good.
The accident that lead to the deaths happened on Thursday during the GMC Rangeland Derby when the lead horse faltered on the backstretch of the race and collapsed, taking down the three other horses and the wagon with him and causing a collision with one of the outriders.
The lead horse died on the scene, two others had to be euthanized on the track due to their injuries and a fourth will need surgery. A necropsy on the lead horse revealed the cause of death was a ruptured aortic aneurysm near the kydney, according to a press release.
“This pre-existing condition is undetectable in animals and could have ruptured at any time of exercise,” explains Dr. Evans. “The condition is a weakening in the wall of the aorta–the major vessel leading from the heart. This area of weakened wall can rupture and the horse then bleeds out internally. The rupture occurred in the abdomen, which explains the hind limb weakness noted in the horse prior to the collapse.”
The incident has animal advocates understandably calling for a ban on chuckwagon races.
“It always shocks and infuriates me … you’d think after 100 years they’d come to realize they cannot prevent deaths,” said Michael Alvarez-Toye of the Calgary Animal Rights Coalition.
He said the group is organizing a protest on Saturday “to mark the occasion of the Calgary Stampede’s 100th Anniversary of cruel and callous acts perpetrated upon animals.”
Sadly, this tragedy comes after weeks of announcements about improvements to safety that were made after six horses died in 2010. A total of 50 have died since 1986.
The Stampede began a Fitness to Compete program, which increased veterinary inspections before and after races, breaks between events and reduced the number of outriders for each wagon from four to two to make more room on the track, but it hasn’t helped protect horses.
“Clearly, the Stampede’s much publicized safety improvements have failed to make the race any safer,” said Peter Fricker, a spokesman for the Vancouver Humane Society, which supports a ban. “Horses continue to die needlessly. This has to stop.”
According to a statement, the Stampede will be using the results of the necropsy to make further improvements.
“Nowadays, in veterinary medicine there’s very much a push on for evidence-based decision making,” said
Calgary Stampede race mishap kills 3 horses
A Canadian chuck wagon race ended tragically Thursday after a horse with a breached blood vessel collapsed and died midcompetition.
By Brian Browdie / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Saturday, July 14, 2012
Sun Media / Splash News/Sun Media / Splash News
Three horses died and a fourth was injured seriously during a chuck wagon race in Calgary, Alberta on Thursday after the left lead horse suffered a ruptured aortic aneurysm. Officials euthanized the right lead horse and another that crashed into the rig.
A Canadian chuck wagon race ended tragically Thursday after a horse with a breached blood vessel collapsed and died midcompetition.
The mishap occurred at the annual Calgary Stampede during the Rangeland Derby, when the horse, the left-side leader of a team of four horses that was pulling a covered wagon, went down on the backstretch, dragging the rest of the team into the dirt. An horse being ridden behind the rig slammed into it.
Officials euthanized both the right lead horse and the outrider. A horse stationed at the right wheel required surgery for its injuries but is expected to survive.
“The left lead horse experienced a ruptured aortic aneurysm, leading to sudden internal bleeding and explains why the horse faltered, weakened and then collapsed,” Dr. Greg Evans, chief veterinarian for the Calgary Stampede, said in a statement. "The condition is a weakening in the wall of the aorta - the major vessel leading from the heart."
"This pre-existing condition is undetectable in animals and could have ruptured at any time of exercise," Evans added.
Sun Media / Splash News/Sun Media / Splash News
Chuck wagon driver Chad Harden, above, reacts to the collapse of his left lead horse during a chuck wagon race at the Calgary Stampede on Thursday. The horse went down after suffering a ruptured aortic aneurysm, pulling the rest of the team into the dirt on the racetrack’s backstretch.
“The outriding horse is an 18-year-old horse," a tearful Chad Harden, the team's driver and owner, told CBC News. "I’ve had him for 13 years. He’s part of our family, he’s supposed to be my kid’s horse."
Some animal activists called for the suspension of chuck wagon races, which have claimed the lives 50 horses since 1986, according to the Vancouver Human Society.
"Clearly, the Stampede’s much publicized safety improvements have failed to make the race any safer,” society spokesman Peter Fricker said in a statement. “Horses continue to die needlessly. This has to stop.”
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/calgary-stampede-race-mishap-leaves-3-horses-dead-article-1.1114536#ixzz20cKTMqYc
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