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Equine Fatal Injury Rate is Steady in 2012

According to a March 8 Jockey Club release based on information collected in the Equine Injury Database, fatal breakdowns in North American Thoroughbred races stayed about the same in 2012 at just under two per 1,000 starts.

Data: Slight Drop in Fatal Racehorse Injuries

Synthetic surfaces still have the lowest number of catastrophic breakdowns per 1,000 starts, but overall fatalities for all surfaces didn't change much from 2009 to 2011, according to Equine Injury Database statistics.

Proactive Approach Sought on Racing Surfaces

Regular testing and proactive investment are keys to improving the safety records of racetracks, a co-founder of the Racing Surfaces Testing Laboratory said Oct. 16 at the fourth Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit.

Project to Identify At-Risk Horses Announced

The Jockey Club June 13 announced plans to develop a statistics-based system that would notify track officials and regulatory veterinarians when a horse that has been entered in a race is facing a heightened risk of injury.

PA Horsemen Call for State-Level Meetings

A coalition of Pennsylvania horsemen is seeking a series of "state-level" meetings of all stakeholders in horse racing to examine ways to improve the health and safety of equine and human participants.

Data Reveal Three-Year Fatality Rates

An analysis of data collected by The Jockey Club over a three-year period shows the race-related fatal injury rate was 1.91 per 1,000 starts during the period, falling from 1.98 per 1,000 starts in 2009 to 1.88 in 2011.

Jockey Club Sets Up Injury Reporting Website

The Jockey Club announced March 5 that more than a dozen racetracks have committed to publishing their statistics from the Equine Injury Database through a new website set up by the breed registry.

Vets See Progress in Equine Health, Safety

Veterinarians said the racing industry is making significant progress in identifying causes for equine injuries, and they urged patience despite persistent negative public perception in regard to racehorse breakdowns.

After Few Bumps, Smooth Ride for TP Polytrack

Officials at Turfway Park, which at the end of 2010 completed five full years of racing on Polytrack, said the results have been largely positive, and there is no thought of returning to dirt.

Stats Look at Fatal Injuries Over Two Years

An analysis of statistics compiled by the Equine Injury Database for a two-year period shows a slight decline in the number of catastrophic injuries, officials said Dec. 15.

Training Injury Reporting Sought for Database

Officials with the Equine Injury Database are seeking support from owners and trainers to start voluntarily reporting injuries to Thoroughbreds during training hours.

What's Going On Here: Cooperation Breakdown

Eric Mitchell talks about the conclusions, or lack thereof, in recent injury studies.

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Study Looks at Number of 'DNFs' by Surface

A study performed by Equibase at the request of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association indicates the percentage of "career-ending did-not-finish" incidents was about twice as high on dirt than on synthetics in 2009.

Nicholson: Expand Safety and Welfare Efforts

Nick Nicholson, the president and CEO of Keeneland, called for the Thoroughbred industry to expand its efforts to protect its participants--both human and equine--from injury.

Data: Fatalities Similar Across All Surfaces

An initial analysis of equine injury data released earlier this year shows no statistically significant difference in the risk of fatalities in Thoroughbreds on different racing surfaces, officials said June 28.

Video Streaming of Welfare and Safety Summit

The third Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit on June 28-29 at the Keeneland Sales Pavilion in Lexington will be available via a live video stream.

What They Said at Meeting of State Regulators

Attendees at the annual RCI meeting in Lexington had lots to say about various issues in the Thoroughbred racing industry.

Preliminary Equine Injury Data Released

A preliminary analysis of equine injury data over a one-year period shows 2.04 fatal injuries in Thoroughbreds per 1,000 starts, The Jockey Club said March 23.

NTRA Prepares Expanded Code for Alliance

An expanded code of standards for the National Thoroughbred Racing Association Safety and Integrity Alliance should be ready for review and a vote by the NTRA board of directors in March 2010.

Equine Injury Data Called Critical to Racing

The Jockey Club Equine Injury Database has compiled statistics over a 12-month period for 84% of all flat racing in North America, but now comes the process of analyzing the data in an attempt to quantify the results.

Jockey Club Launches Injury Database

The Jockey Club has launched the Equine Injury Database system that will provide the racing industry with its first national database of racing injuries. The Equine Injury Database grew out of a proposal first put forth at the Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit in Lexington in October 2006.