Eclipse Award champion turf horse Kitten's Joy, who went on to become a leading sire, has died, co-owner Ramsey Farm announced on July 15. The son of El Prado was 21 Ken and Sarah Ramsey – the latter of whom died in May – bred and raced Kitten’s Joy, and originally stood him on their Ramsey Farm in Nicholasville, Ky., beginning with the 2006 season. They later formed a partnership with John Sikura’s Hill ‘n’ Dale Farm to stand their champion at that farm, in Lexington, beginning with the 2018 season, while maintaining a significant interest. The Hill ‘n’ Dale stallions moved to the former Xalapa Farm outside Paris, Ky., in 2020.  "It is devastating to lose both my wife and her favorite horse in such a short period of time,” Ken Ramsey said. “My wife said, ‘This horse will bring us a lot of joy,’ and he certainly did. … Kitten's Joy was the horse of a lifetime." A release from Hill ‘n’ Dale said that Kitten’s Joy had been in good health, and was turned out in his paddock early Friday morning, as per routine. Around 10:30, the horse was observed to be lifeless in the middle of the field. It is believed that he died of a cardiac event.  "It was an honor and a privilege to have been entrusted to advance the career of what I believe to be one of the most important international turf sires of this century," Sikura said. “This stallion is a tribute to one the modern era's most creative minds, namely Ken Ramsey." Kitten’s Joy was out of the Ramseys’ foundation mare Kitten’s First – the first horse to race in Sarah Ramsey’s name, and whose name was derived from Ken's pet name for his wife. That "Kitten" moniker would go on to become one of the most recognizable in American racing. Kitten’s Joy won 9 of 14 starts and was second in another four races for trainer Dale Romans, with his only unplaced effort coming in a dirt sprint on debut. He took off on a tear in turf stakes in 2004, winning the Grade 3 Tropical Park Derby, Grade 3 Palm Beach, and Grade 3 American Turf. After finishing second by a head in the Grade 3 Jefferson Cup, he got right back on track with a win in the Grade 3 Virginia Derby, then took his first Grade 1 in the Secretariat Stakes. He defeated older horses in the Grade 1 Turf Classic at Belmont before finishing a troubled second to Better Talk Now in the 2004 Breeders’ Cup Turf at Lone Star. His efforts throughout the season were enough to earn him his divisional Eclipse Award as champion male turf horse. Kitten’s Joy had surgery at the end of that championship campaign to remove bone chips in his left knee. He made two starts the following season, winning the Grade 2 Firecracker and finishing second in the Grade 1 Arlington Million. Cartilage erosion in that knee caused his retirement, and he headed off the track with career earnings of more than $2 million. Kitten's Joy is the sire of 126 stakes winners to date, with progeny earnings of $128,271,339 through July 14. He led the North American general sire list in 2013 and 2018 and was among the leading sires another four times. In that same span, he was the leading living turf sire every year from 2013 until 2020, when he was overtaken by English Channel. Kitten's Joy's top runners include Eclipse Award champion turf male Big Blue Kitten and Cartier Award European Horse of the Year Roaring Lion. He is also the sire of Stephanie's Kitten, who counted the 2011 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf and 2015 Filly and Mare Turf among her multiple Grade 1 wins; 2016 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf winner Oscar Performance, a Grade 1 winner at ages 2, 3, and 4; 2020 English 2000 Guineas winner Kameko; 2014 Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint winner Bobby's Kitten; and Grade/Group 1 winners including Admiral Kitten, Chiropractor, Divisidero, Hawkbill, Henley's Joy, Kitten's Dumplings, Real Solution, Sadler's Joy, and Tripoli. Kitten's Joy is represented by 17 sons at stud worldwide, including several of the aforementioned accomplished runners whose stallion careers are nascent, giving the stallion a chance to increase his legacy. Oscar Performance (Mill Ridge Farm), Hawkbill (Darley Japan), and the late Roaring Lion (Tweenhills) have their first juveniles on the track this season. Divisidero (Airdrie Stud) is represented by his first yearlings, while the first foals for Kameko (Tweenhills) arrived this year. Kitten's Joy will also have several more sizable crops coming to the races. He covered 115 mares in 2020 at Hill 'n' Dale, according to The Jockey Club's Report of Mares Bred, with that representing his current crop of yearlings. He covered 107 mares in 2021. The Report of Mares Bred for 2022, his final season at stud, is not yet available. He stood for an advertised fee of $50,000 this year.