Nearly 10 horses a week, on average, died at American racetracks in 2018, according to the Jockey Club’s Equine Injury Database. That’s a fatality rate that is anywhere from two and a half to five times greater than in the rest of the racing world.
Outside of the United States, medications for racehorses are strictly regulated, policed and punished, according to the Jockey Club, among the oldest and most influential organizations in horse racing. Cracking down on drugs is essential, reformers say, because the drugs allow horses to run unnaturally fast and mask pain, which leads to more breakdowns.