Ohio Racing Commission investigates 4th horse death in 2 months at Austintown racino

[Editor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify that Mahoning Valley Race Course’s muddy track was “sealed” on Feb. 22, the day the racehorse Uncaptured Soldier was injured and euthanized. “Sealing” a muddy track tamps down the racing surface and removes water, but can make it harder, which puts more stress on horses’ bones, according to PETA.]

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Another racehorse has died at Hollywood Gaming Mahoning Valley Race Course — the fourth death in two months, state racing officials confirmed.

Animal activists have renewed calls for the commission to investigate and suspend racing at the track until track conditions are deemed safe — but state officials said they don’t think safety is the issue.

Four-year-old thoroughbred Uncaptured Soldier was euthanized Feb. 22, after breaking his right front leg while competing at the race course, Ohio State Racing Commission Executive Director Chris Dragone told Mahoning Matters.

PETA — People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals — requested the racing commission “open an immediate investigation into the horse’s death, including an independent and transparent inspection of the track, and to suspend all races during the investigation,” according to a letter sent last week to the commission by Kathy Guillermo, PETA’s senior vice president for equine matters.

Dragone said the racing commission has raised concerns about the race track conditions, since it’s unusual to have four horse deaths in two months — and that’s a higher rate compared to 2020 and 2021. The racing commission is now paying closer attention to Mahoning Valley Race Course fatalities, he said.

But Dragone said he does not believe weather conditions in January caused the track to become unsafe for competition.

“I don’t think the weather or track could be blamed and there were no complaints about the track,” he said. “Other than [last week’s] tragic loss, there was really no other incident on the track.

“It was a muddy track, but it wasn’t too sloppy or really off, so I can’t say that the track conditions really came into play on this,” he said, adding a muddy track does not mean the race track is unsafe for riding. “That [Tuesday], no jockeys complained about the track, stewards saw nothing wrong with the track or [prior to] any of the other races.”

Uncaptured Soldier is the fourth horse in two months to have been euthanized at the race course. Mahoning Matters last month reported on the death of Hoboken Hustle, which was the third horse to be euthanized after an incident at the course on a cold day in January.

At the time, PETA asked the commission to stop outdoor horse racing until temperatures rise and to implement new cold-weather policies to protect horses.

PETA said in a letter last month snow was visible around the track before Hoboken Hustle was injured on Jan. 24. The high temperature that day was 27 degrees. On Feb. 22, the day Uncaptured Soldier was injured and euthanized, the high temperature was 58 degrees, according to Weather Underground.

“As the track freezes, it hardens, meaning the horses are racing on a less cushioned surface that puts more stressful impact on their bones, leading to injuries,” Guillermo wrote last month.

Three races were canceled at the racino in January and two in February due to “adverse track conditions” and heavy snowfall, according to the Horsemen’s Benevolent & Protective Association website.

A PETA spokesperson told Mahoning Matters the track was reported as muddy on Feb. 22, but that it was sealed. Muddy race tracks can be sealed by pulling a heavy weight over the track, packing it down and forcing water to run off. But this can make the track surface hard, which can put more stress on horses’ bones, the spokesperson said.

“While we applaud the caution taken to cancel races at Mahoning Valley Race Course during the recent freezing weather after we wrote [last month], the same discretion should be applied during other unsafe track conditions that can quickly make dirt tracks unsuitable for racing,” Guillermo said in the letter directed to Dragone and Elizabeth Rogers, assistant director of racing at the Mahoning Valley Race Course.

According to Ohio’s Thoroughbred Racing Rules, every permit-holding race course in Ohio is supposed to keep its course in good condition for the comfort and safety of the horses stabled and entered to race. The rules also state riders shouldn’t be forced to race on courses they feel are unsafe. Those who force riders to race in unsafe conditions may be sanctioned.

Dragone said racing commission rules don’t specify a “low” temperature which could cause races to be canceled for weather-related reasons.

Instead, it’s up to each race course operator and each race’s jockeys to inspect the course the morning or afternoon before a race, to determine whether it’s safe for competition, a source familiar with Mahoning Valley Race Course operations told Mahoning Matters last month.

Dragone said there are no reasons to suspend racing at the Austintown racino, since it’s not been deemed dangerous.

“I don’t plan on suspending Mahoning Valley, but I will tell you we took a look at racing every day at all the attractions, and if there’s any questions, we’re usually the first ones to make a phone call,” he said.

Guillermo said a synthetic surface, which is safer than a dirt track, should be installed to prevent further deaths.

“A statistically safer surface such as Tapeta should replace the dangerous dirt track before more horses die,” she said.

Dragone said the racing commission reviewed Uncaptured Soldier’s last six months of veterinary records and didn’t find any evidence of health concerns that could have resulted in the horse’s euthanization.

“We look at every incident and try to figure out why [it happened],” he said. “This horse was viewed by the track veterinarian when [he] came out of the paddock. He was not laboring and did not look like [he] was in any kind of distress.”

Horse trainers or veterinarians are required to report their horses’ deaths to racing officials, according to the Penn National Gaming Horse Racing Guide. The race course can then require a necropsy or other examination, the guide states.

Representatives of Mahoning Valley Race Course did not return calls for comment.

This story was originally published March 2, 2022 at 5:00 AM.