The Jockey Club today released a North American fatality rate for Thoroughbreds based on a preliminary analysis of data collected over a one-year period in the Equine Injury Database, the North American database for racing injuries.

The Equine Injury Database, which grew out of a need identified at the first Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit in Lexington, Ky., in October 2006, was launched in July 2008. It is part of an industry-wide emphasis on the protection of the health and welfare of its equine athletes, and the collection of data is the first step in the process of examining and preventing athletic injuries in the racehorse.

Based upon a year’s worth of data beginning November 1, 2008, from 378,864 total starts in Thoroughbred flat races at 73 racetracks participating in the Equine Injury Database, 2.04 fatal injuries were recorded per 1,000 starts.

The analysis was performed by Tim Parkin, BSc, BVSc, PhD, Dipl. ECVPH, MRCVS, a veterinarian and epidemiologist from the University of Glasgow, who serves as a consultant on the project