Horse dies in chuckwagon race at Calgary Stampede
A horse has died after a chuckwagon race at the Calgary Stampede in Canada.
The horse collapsed and died of a heart attack shortly after completing a race at the Calgary Stampede on Sunday night (5 July).
The race — in which horses pull wagons round a figure of eight dirt track — was the first heat of the GMC Rangeland Derby.
The horse, owned by championship driver Reg Johnstone, collapsed on returning to barn.
The horse was reported to have taken part in the race and post-race parade without showing any visible signs of stress.
A spokesman for the Calgary Stampede, called the death “a tragedy.”
“To lose an animal, regardless of the circumstances, is always difficult for the participants in the GMC Rangeland Derby, because these horses are treated like family,” he said to local press.
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“The horse died relatively quickly so there was little the veterinarians could do to save it.”
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