Multiple Barrel Horses Stabbed at NBHA Las Vegas Super Show Event

A very tragic situation has occurred in the barrel racing world.

Scott Rodgerson on Unsplash

There are stories that will just take your breath away, and this happens to be one of them. On Saturday, social media reports started to blow up about a disturbance at the NBHA Professional’s Choice Las Vegas Super Show.

Several horse owners have confirmed on social media that someone intentionally stabbed their horses by entering their stalls in the early morning. There have been several conflicting reports, as social media goes, regarding the number of horses, but the incident has been acknowledged by the National Barrel Horse Association.

Hailey Krahenbuhl and her incredible horse Saaul Good, better known as Sully won the Open 1D on Friday with her smoking time of 14.418 and in doing so picked up a check for $1,805. Unfortunately, Krahenbuhl confirmed on social media that Sully was one of the affected horses.

Krahenbuhl and Sully had just been competitors at The American Semi-finals in Arlington, Texas on Championship Weekend as well. The duo had qualified and earned their way through multiple runs, proving just what superstars this horse and his rider are.

Another competitor, Arielle Phillips, posted that her horse had also been stabbed multiple times, and that the suspect had actually spoken to her that very night. Her account of the incident is disturbing.

Yet another report comes from Keira Weisbart and her equine partner “Rocket”. As Weisbart states, the incident happened at the South Point Hotel, Casino and Equestrian Center. Security is strong there with cameras everywhere. Apparently this was not enough to deter the suspect from committing such heinous crimes.

In a world where these horses are people’s lives and livelihoods, this is an absolutely sickening situation. So many heartbroken posts have been made, and comments wishing all involved the best. This is the norm in the industry - competitors come together in times of need, and this is certainly one of them.

A suspect has been taken into custody according to the NBHA, and it is believed that there is no further threat to horses at this time.

A situation like this is nearly unfathomable and has shocked the industry. Of course, fear has gone through the participants in Las Vegas as well. Horses are the heart of the sport and are cared for at times better than the competitors themselves.

Rodeo On SI will follow this story and continue to report on the status. Currently, all research shows that the horses have received professional veterinary care and are recovering. As competitors ourselves, we cannot imagine going through this experience, and we wish everyone involved and their horses a fast and safe recovery and many thoughts to resolve broken hearts.