Two horses die at Belmont Park on Belmont Stakes weekend

Two horses were euthanized during this weekend’s races at Belmont Park, marking a horse death in each of the Triple Crown race sites this year.

The day of the Belmont Stakes was clean until the final race. During Race 13, which immediately followed Arcangelo’s winning the 155th Belmont Stakes, Excursionniste pulled up down the backstretch and was led off the course where he was euthanized.

“Devestated. There’s just no other word,” Little Blue Bird Stables, Excursionniste’s stable, wrote on Twitter following his euthanization. “He was our big, goofy, talented, crazy, 1 for 16 NYB superstar. We do everything as a team, and will console as one for quite a while. Love and appreciation to Team Hennig (especially Jairo). We’ll miss ya, Ex! This group loves ya…”

The following day, Mashnee Girl suffered what is being called a “catastrophic injury” to her left front leg during the first race — the same injury that occurred to Excursionniste, according to the New York Racing Association. Technically, that would mean both horses were euthanized in back-to-back races.

Mashnee Girl was in a crowded pack coming around the far turn when she fell, knocking her jockey to the ground and taking a frightening tumble.

During the undercard on the day of the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Park, Havnameltdown, owned by Bob Baffert, suffered a left front ankle injury and was euthanized at that park.

The Kentucky Derby is a completely different story. In the days leading up to the event, eight horses — Rio Moon, Freezing Point, Wild on Ice, Take Charge Briana, Code of Kings, Parent Pride, Chasing Artie and Chloe’s Dream — lost their lives leading up to the Run for the Roses.

Following the Derby, horses Kimberley Dream, Lost in Limbo and two other horses were euthanized for injuries sustained on the racetrack. Dream and Limbo were euthanized within 24 hours of each other to bring the total to 12.

PETA has been at the forefront of the fight against horseracing for years, and their word has been gaining traction since the Derby’s unfortunate string of deaths. The group’s senior vice president Kathy Guillermo released a statement after Excursionniste’s euthanization.

“Racing couldn’t manage to keep all horses alive for even one Triple Crown day this year,” PETA Senior Vice President Kathy Guillermo wrote. “Belmont Park did not do enough to prevent Excursionniste’s death. PETA urged the New York State Gaming Commission to require CT scans for all horses racing today in order to scan for preexisting injuries, which are present in 90% of these fatalities. They refused.

“The racing industry is digging its own grave — as well as this horse’s.”