2017 Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming dies of colic

Always dream (Bodemeister–Above Perfection, by In Excess {Ire}), the 2017 Kentucky Derby winner, died of colic Tuesday, Dec. 10, at River Oaks Farm in Oklahoma, according to Chad Schumer, who brokered the deal to send the stallion from WinStar Farm, where he originally stood, to River Oaks.

“The horse was sick,” Schumer said. “He had very typical colic and they took him to the clinic. He was there four days. They didn’t operate on him. Everything was fine. He seemed fine. He turned the corner. They sent him back to the farm and I think it was the appendix in his stomach that just burst.”

The appendix is ​​a large, muscular part of a horse’s large intestine that digests fiber and other food.

“It was very unexpected in the sense that they thought they had overcome the hurdle of him having colic,” Schumer said. “It was particularly devastating because they thought, ‘Oh God, this horse is sick. They spent the whole four days he was feeling better believing that everything was going to be okay, and then he went downhill very quickly.”

“The death of Always Dreaming is a terrible loss. “He was a remarkable horse – on and off the track – and his absence will be deeply felt by everyone who had the privilege of working with him, including all of us here at WinStar,” said Elliot Walden. “He will always be remembered as an incredibly fast horse who won the Kentucky Derby (G1) and the Florida Derby (G1). Our thoughts are with everyone at River Oaks Farm, where Always Dreaming would become the first Kentucky Derby winner in history to stand in the state of Oklahoma.”

Always Dreaming was the father of five crops, three of which were of racing age. He picked up one classified winner, five black type winners and four placed in black type races. His most successful offspring was GI Pennsylvania Derby hero Saudi Crown, who finished third in the G1 Saudi Cup this year. This gray also won the GIII Louisiana Stakes in 2024. Other winners listed include Tocayo; bricklayer in Canada; Brittany’s dream; and the late Grand Isle.

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This story was published in Top News and tagged Always Dreaming, Colic, GI Kentucky Derby, GI Pennsylvania Derby, Saudi Crown, WinStar Farm.