Five Quarter Horse trained by Heath Taylor, including three runners from the $200,000 All American Juvenile at the Downs at Albuquerque on Sept. 2, were euthanized Wednesday after testing positive for equine infectious anemia, the California Horse Racing Board announced late Wednesday afternoon. Taylor has lost 18 horses to EIA in the last month, 12 at Los Alamitos and six at Lone Star Park in Texas. The first positives were detected Sept. 24, according to the racing board. The horses euthanized on Wednesday were Superfli, Favorite Fire V, and Heart of Gold V – who were second, third, and sixth in the All American Juvenile – as well as Chaddock and Devastating, according to the racing board’s website. Chaddock was a 2-year-old who was winless in three starts. Devastating was a winner at Ruidoso Downs in June and was eighth in the $3 million All American Futurity at Ruidoso Downs in 2023. All of Taylor’s horses based at Los Alamitos were tested earlier this month. Favorite Fire V, Heart of Gold V, and Superfli were placed in quarantine in late September after testing negative, but later tested positive, the racing board said in its statement released Wednesday. Chaddock and Devastating also recently tested positive. The racing board said an additional six horses trained by Taylor have tested negative, but have been placed in quarantine because they were in “close contact” with affected horses in other states. All 12 of Taylor’s horses that were euthanized at Los Alamitos were based at Downs at Albuquerque as recently as early September. The horses were ordered to be euthanized by the California Department of Food and Agriculture, following state and federal guidelines, according to the racing board. The disease has struck some of Taylor’s leading runners. The Marksman V, winner of the $832,707 Ruidoso Derby in New Mexico and fourth in the $1.4 million All American Derby on Sept. 2, was euthanized in late September at Los Alamitos. Flash Bak, one of the nation’s leading older Quarter Horses, was recently euthanized at Lone Star Park, Taylor said last weekend. The CDFA continues to monitor the situation and is involved in tracing the whereabouts of horses in Taylor’s stable, the racing board stated. A viral disease, EIA is a rare disorder that is potentially fatal. Screening for the ailment is handled through Coggins tests, a type of blood test. Horses must have a negative Coggins test to gain admittance on racetrack backstretches or be transported across state lines in an effort to avoid spread of EIA. Taylor, 54, is one of the nation’s leading Quarter Horse trainers. Through Wednesday, he ranked fourth in the nation in earnings this year, with $3,267,899. The outbreak has not affected Taylor’s ability to start horses who have tested negative. Last Saturday, Taylor finished first and second in the $90,000 Robert Boniface Los Alamitos Championship for 3-year-olds and older with Jeriko and Empressum, two leading older runners. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.