Sixth horse dies at Stampede

CALGARY – A sixth horse has died after it sustained an injury during Thursday night’s chuckwagon races at the Calgary Stampede.

One of the outrider horses for Grant Preece stopped in the fourth turn during the sixth heat of the nightly event.

The animal was loaded into the horse ambulance and taken from the track.

Calgary Stampede spokesman Doug Fraser said the animal "suffered a breakdown injury to the right front limb."

"This injury is one of the most common catastrophic musculo-skeletal injuries among racing horses," he said.

Veterinarians were on the scene immediately and the decision was to euthanize the animal.

With three days left in this year’s Stampede, six horses have died.

Following the fifth heat of the chuckwagon races Wednesday night, driver Kurt Bensmiller noticed one of his horses appeared to be in distress. It died in its stall of causes that are still unclear.

On Monday morning, a thoroughbred chuckwagon horse suffered a heart attack while doing routine exercises. Later, one of the Calgary Stampede’s stock horses had to be euthanized after apparently breaking his back in the novice saddle bronc event.

That night, in the final heat of chuckwagon races, an outrider horse apparently injured its shoulder and collapsed after the rider dismounted.

The horse was euthanized.

Monday’s deaths came just the day after rider Amy Carver’s quarter horse suffered an apparent heart attack and collapsed on her during the team cattle penning event. Carver was taken to hospital with a broken shoulder blade and serious head injury.

Last year four animals — three horses and one steer — died during the 10-day Stampede.

Fraser said each of the animal deaths this year are the result of distinct circumstances and are all unrelated.

"To lose six horses in one year is very unusual and very upsetting," he said.

He added none are the result of on-track accidents, human error nor negligence.

grichards@theherald.canwest.com