Victoria Killed Most Racehorses: DeathWatch 2026 Reveals

Other DeathWatch 2026 Key Findings:

• At least 160 thoroughbred horses were killed from racing. Statistically, one horse was killed every 2.2 days during the racing year 2025/26 in Australia.
  

• 65 percent of the horses died before they were likely to have reached full skeletal maturity.
  

• Nearly 70 percent of the horses who were killed from racing had started on the racetrack at just two years of age.
  

• At least 12 racehorses were killed as a result of neglect and starvation while under the care of licensed racing personnel.

Throughout the 2025/26 racing season in Australia, CPR monitored Stewards Reports from every state to collect evidence of the annual death toll of racehorses. Unfortunately, there is no publicly available information about the many additional racehorses who are killed behind the scenes or following injuries sustained during race trials and race training at private facilities.

 The 2026 DeathWatch Report contains individual state reports, case stories and many further details about the 2025/26 racing season in Australia. Read or download it here.

Victoria remains the least transparent state

Racing Victoria Stewards reports were the least transparent about the cause of racehorse deaths on racetracks, noting nearly all deaths as unspecified “serious racing injury”. Any race video evidence of the incidents was immediately erased.

When CPR contacted trainers throughout the season to confirm details regarding racehorses who had been severely injured during racing, we were frequently told by Victorian trainers that they were “not at liberty to give CPR any information”. As such, the number of Victorian racehorses who were killed following injuries sustained on the racetrack is bound to be significantly higher that what CPR was able to verify for the 2026 DeathWatch Report.

“Victorian taxpayers are made to subsidise horseracing whether they like it or not, and the very least the industry could do in return is to be transparent about the true cost to the animals they exploit for gambling and entertainment,” said Mr Celotto.

Strong opposition to horseracing and the Melbourne Cup in Victoria

Animal friends are speaking up strongly against the cruelty of horseracing across the country this spring racing season – Victorians especially. So far more than a dozen public Nup to the Cup events are happening in Victoria offering people a cruelty-free alternative to attending or gambling on the races. The official Nup to the Cup party event in Northcote, Melbourne, which last year attracted close to 2,000 people, is on again on Melbourne Cup Day 3 November 2026.

CPR is also back with its Nup to the Cup Parade replacing the traditional Melbourne Cup Parade on Monday 2 November. Animal friends will be meeting at Flinders St station at 11am to support the racehorses who are forced to risk their lives under the slogan “Celebrating Animals Instead of Exploiting them”.

“While bearing witness to the devastating abuse of horses in the racing industry, it’s truly heartening to see the Nup to the Cup movement continue to grow and to be surrounded by so many fellow friends of the animals on a day like the Melbourne Cup,” Mr Celotto said.

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