Four horses used in last month’s Galway Races Summer Festival are now known to be dead.

The latest horse confirmed dead is 6-year-old Irish horse Smoke And Mirrors who weakened and finished 12th in a race on Day 6 (30 July 2022) of the week-long event.

Three other horses are also dead following the festival.

On Day 1 (25 July), 5-year-old Japanese horse Crowns Major “suffered a fatal injury” in the 2-mile €110,000 “Connacht Hotel Handicap” race. One disgusted racegoer who witnessed what happened has vowed never to go racing again, tweeting: “What about a nice tribute for Crowns Major who died on the track yesterday? Not even an announcement or a stall of the races. Disgusting, disrespectful, will never be back to the races after witnessing the callousness of it. Complete disregard for the life of a winner on your track.”

On Day 2 (26 July), 7-year-old Irish horse "Hannon" was fatally injured and pulled up in the “Latin Quarter Beginners Chase” race.

On Day 3 (27 July), 7-year-old French horse Gabynako was destroyed after suffering an injured back in a race. The horse’s trainer confirmed the death two days after the race, tweeting: “Today we had to say goodbye to Gabynako a very special horse who had to be put asleep after he sustained an untreatable back injury in the Galway Plate.”

Gabynako, who was carrying rider Keith Donoghue, was one of three horses who fell in the 2.8 mile “Tote Galway Plate (Handicap Chase)” race. Another horse was pulled up in the race and two others unseated the riders.

On the same day at Galway Racecourse, an 8-year-old Irish horse named Sole Pretender “weakened” and BURST A BLOOD VESSEL during a Guinness-sponsored race.

Crowns Major, Hannon, Gabynako and Smoke And Mirrors are the latest victims of racing at Galway Racecourse. Four horses were killed there in a single day in September 2021.

They are among a growing list of racing victims. Sickening Horse Racing Ireland statistics show that over 1,300 horses have lost their lives at racecourses and point to point races around Ireland since 2012.

Thousands of race horses have also been sent to slaughter, including 1,105 in 2021 and over 300 so far this year.

The slaughter statistics were uncovered by Paul Murphy TD (People Before Profit-Solidarity) following Dail Questions to Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue. The Minister confirmed that between 2016 and 2022, 13,484 thoroughbred horses were slaughtered at Department-approved slaughter facilities in Ireland. See below for more details.

ACTION ALERT

Don’t bet on horse racing or attend racing events.

Urge Guinness and The Connacht Hotel to stop sponsoring horse racing.

Email: customer.service@diageo.com; Consumerinfo.ireland@diageo.com
Email: marketing@theconnacht.ie / Tel: +353 91 381200

There are renewed calls on the government to stop supporting racing. Since 2001, the Irish Government has granted more than €1.5 Billion of scarce public funds to horse and greyhound racing, i.e. €1,240 million for horse racing and €309 million for greyhound racing.

Contact Taoiseach Micheal Martin, Tanaiste Leo Varadkar and Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe and demand an end to state funding to these two gambling activities which cause much suffering and death to animals. Tell them to redirect the funds to the many deserving charities, health/homeless/environmental groups, sports clubs, animal rescue centres, etc crying out for funding.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin
Email: taoiseach@taoiseach.gov.ie; micheal.martin@oireachtas.ie; info@fiannafail.ie
Phone: +353 (0)1–618 4350 or +353 (0)21-432 0088
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michealmartintd/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/@MichealMartinTD

Tanaiste Leo Varadkar
Telephone: +353 (0)1-640 3133
Email: leo.varadkar@oireachtas.ie; finegael@finegael.ie
Tweet to: http://www.twitter.com/@LeoVaradkar
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeoVaradkar

Paschal Donohoe TD
Minister for Finance
Email: paschal.donohoe@oireachtas.ie; minister@finance.gov.ie
Tel: 01 604 5626
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PaschalDonohoe/
Tweet to @Paschald

Please sign and share the petitions

Irish Government: Stop giving millions of euros to horse racing
https://www.change.org/p/irish-government-stop-giving-millions-of-euros-to-horse-racing

Irish Government: Stop Giving Millions of Euro to Cruel Greyhound Racing
https://www.change.org/p/irish-government-stop-giving-millions-of-euro-to-cruel-greyhound-racing

SEE ALSO:

Galway Races: Massive 25% drop in attendance
The Galway Races summer festival has seen a massive 25% drop in attendance on its opening day on Monday (25 July 2022). https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2022/07/31/galway-races-massive-25-drop-in-attendance/

Galway Races attendance down for 5th year in a row
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2022/08/04/galway-races-attendance-down-for-5th-year-in-a-row/

Horses SUFFER and DIE at Galway Racecourse
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2022/07/22/horses-suffer-and-die-at-galway-racecourse/

113 horses killed at Irish racecourses in 2021
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2022/05/31/113-horses-killed-at-irish-racecourses-in-2021/

More than 1,100 race horses slaughtered in Ireland in 2021
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2022/05/13/more-than-1100-race-horses-slaughtered-in-ireland-in-2021/

Five horses killed at Punchestown racing festival
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2022/05/07/five-horses-killed-at-punchestown-festival/

Six horses dead following Fairyhouse racing festival
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2022/05/12/six-horses-dead-following-fairyhouse-racing-festival/

Horses slaughtered at Department-approved slaughter facilities in Ireland

2022 (to-date): 305
2021: 1,105
2020: 1,549
2019: 2,218
2018: 2,526
2017: 2,829
2016: 2,952

Horse deaths at Irish racecourses

2022: 47 deaths (up to May 2022)
2021: 113 deaths
2020: 65 deaths
2019: 102 deaths
2018: 111 deaths
2017: 88 deaths
2016: 83 deaths
2015: 89 deaths
2014: 99 deaths
2013: 121 deaths
2012: 82 deaths

Horse deaths at foxhunt-organised point-to-point races

2021/2022: 19 deaths (up to May 2022)
2020/2021: 23 deaths (HRI previously stated that up to 11 May 2021, there had been 28 fatalities)
2019/2020: 13 deaths
2018/2019: 38 deaths
2017/2018: 28 deaths
2016/2017: 32 deaths
2015/2016: 36 deaths
2014/2015: 30 deaths
2013/2014: 42 deaths
2012/2013: 49 deaths

Irish Government grants to horse racing

2001 €47,110,330
2002 €54,452,651
2003 €51,348,800
2004 €53,531,200
2005 €54,680,000
2006 €56,047,000
2007 €58,539,000
2008 €61,028,800
2009 €54,502,000
2010 €47,411,200
2011 €45,830,000
2012 €45,032,000
2013 €44,016,000
2014 €43,376,000
2015 €54,400,000
2016 €59,200,000
2017 €64,000,000
2018 €64,000,000
2019 €67,200,000
2020 €67,200,000
2021 €76,800,000
2022 €70,400,000

Total: €1,240,104,981 / €1,240 million / €1.24 billion

Irish Government grants to greyhound racing

2001 €11,777,583
2002 €13,613,163
2003 €12,837,200
2004 €13,382,800
2005 €13,670,000
2006 €14,012,000
2007 €14,572,000
2008 €15,257,000
2009 €13,625,600
2010 €11,852,800
2011 €11,460,000
2012 €11,258,000
2013 €11,004,000
2014 €10,844,000
2015 €13,600,000
2016 €14,800,000
2017 €16,000,000
2018 €16,000,000
2019 €16,800,000
2020 €16,800,000
2021 €19,200,000
2022 €17,600,000

Total: €309,966,146 / €309 million / €0.309 billion

Source: Department of Agriculture