At least 4 horses are dead following the 2024 Punchestown Racing Festival which took place between 30th April and 4th May.
Horse Racing Ireland has confirmed the deaths of:
7-year-old horse Watch House Cross who was brought down in a “HSS Hire Handicap Chase” race on 1 May 2024.
12-year-old French horse Sire Du Berlais was fatally injured on 2 May 2024.
6-year-old horse Getamotive who “looked to go wrong” in the “Howden Insurance Brokers INH Flat Race” race on 3 May 2024.
10-year-old horse Foxy Jacks who fell in the “Donohue Marquees Cross Country Chase” race on 4 May 2024.
The latest deaths follow six fatalities at last year's Punchestown festival. Those horses were killed after suffering “an irreparable cannon bone fracture, a fractured sacrum, severed tendons from cuts, fractured shoulder and fractured pelvis with internal bleeding.”
They are all among a growing list of horse racing victims.
Further to a parliamentary question from Paul Murphy TD (Solidarity-People Before Profit) to the Minister for Agriculture, Horse Racing Ireland released statistics showing that over 1,300 horses have lost their lives at racecourses and point to point races in Ireland since 2012.
Horse Racing Ireland – which has received more than €1.3 billion euros in government grants to-date – previously revealed the method of killing to be either lethal injection or a bullet in the head.
The death figures do not include the horses injured at racecourses, taken away and later killed elsewhere or the horses killed behind the scenes because they are not fast enough to win races.
Many more race horses are also killed in slaughterhouses. Between 2016 and 2023, 15,658 thoroughbred horses were slaughtered at “Department-approved slaughter facilities” in Ireland.
ACTION ALERT
Don’t bet on horse racing or attend horse racing events.
Since 2001, the Irish Government has granted €1.31 Billion of scarce public funds to horse racing
Contact the Taoiseach, Tanaiste and Finance Minister and demand an end to state funding to this gambling activity which causes so much suffering and death. 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 Simon Harris TD
Email: simon.harris@oireachtas.ie; finegael@finegael.ie
Telephone: +353 (0)1 618 3805 or +353 (0)1 889 2442
X: http://www.twitter.com/SimonHarrisTD
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DeputySimonHarris
Tanaiste 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
Michael McGrath TD
Minister for Finance
Email: michael.mcgrath@oireachtas.ie; minister@per.gov.ie
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/michael.mcgrath.1614
Twitter: http://twitter.com/mmcgrathtd
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
2023 €72,800,000
2024 €76,000,000
TOTAL: €1,388,904,981
(€1.38 Billion)
Thoroughbred horses slaughtered in Ireland
2023: 1,428
2022: 1,050
2021: 1,105
2020: 1,549
2019: 2,218
2018: 2,526
2017: 2,829
2016: 2,952
SEE ALSO
Six horses KILLED after suffering horrific injuries at Punchestown
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2023/06/29/six-horses-killed-after-suffering-horrific-injuries-at-punchestown/
More horses confirmed dead following races at Irish racecourses
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2021/08/19/horses-confirmed-dead-following-races-at-irish-racecourses/
Why you should say NO to horse racing – download and distribute the leaflet https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2023/08/05/new-leaflet-why-you-should-say-no-to-horse-racing
Watch the BBC Panorama documentary “The Dark Side of Horse Racing”
https://youtu.be/VlpQhJFd5Bo