The Vancouver Humane Society (VHS) is sharing information about a death that occurred at the Hastings Racecourse in Vancouver within the last week.<\/p>\n
According to information shared by VHS, a horse named Gem Dancer was showing signs of distress as it was being led off the track after the race and collapsed.<\/p>\n
\u201cDespite efforts to cool the horse down, and after being in distress for approximately two minutes, Gem Dancer became unresponsive and pronounced dead,\u201d VHS says.<\/p>\n
VHS confirmed the details in an email from B.C.\u2019s Gaming and Policy Enforcement branch. Emily Pickett, the VHS campaign director, had some strong words in the aftermath of the death.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis horse was literally run to their own death for the sake of public entertainment,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Last week, Environment and Climate Change Canada issued a special weather statement about heat in Metro Vancouver, which included the day Gem Dancer would have been racing (June 8).<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s incredibly irresponsible to race horses in the midst of a heat warning. Gem Dancer\u2019s senseless death demonstrates how horses in the racing industry are exploited for profit, pushed beyond their limit and raced to the point of injury and death.\u201d<\/p>\n
VHS notes that this is the second known horse death at the Hastings Racecourse this year. The previous death occurred on April 13, weeks before the beginning of the 2025 racing season. The horse that passed was a three-year-old named Wynn Magic. Wynn Magic had suffered a compound leg fracture during a timed workout and was euthanized, according to VHS.<\/p>\n
The society is concerned that we may see more horse deaths at Hastings Racecourse in Vancouver this year, following four fatalities in 2024 and eight in 2023. It notes that in 2024 at the Hastings Racecourse, the fatality rate was 1.78 per thousand starts.<\/p>\n
VHS notes that the number is higher than the industry average of 1.11 across U.S. and Canadian tracks that report to the Equine Injury Database. It also states that it\u2019s almost double the 0.90 fatality rate at tracks that the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority regulates.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe organization is urging the public to pledge not to attend horse races and is reiterating calls for decision-makers to invest in alternative community events \u2013 ones that bring people together without putting animals at risk,\u201d VHS says.<\/p>\n