Horse racing is being suspended at the Sonoma County Fair due to a lack of available horses. [Image courtesy Sonoma County Fair]
The popular horse racing events at the Sonoma County Fair are being suspended this year due to a lack of available horses to race, fair officials announced this week.
The closing of Golden Gate Fields, the 83-year-old race track between Berkeley and Albany, last summer and the elimination of horse stabling at the Alameda County Fair this coming March means there’s a lack of horses for the fair’s summer race meet. The industry as a whole has come under scrutiny for its treatment of horses; between 2021 and 2023, Golden Gate Fields had 35 horse deaths, according to Berkeleyside.com.
“We remain indebted to the legacy of racing and the industry,” Sonoma County Fair officials said Feb. 4 in an announcement. “We are deeply saddened by the conditions in the horse racing industry that have unfolded to prompt this decision.” With the closing of Golden Gate Fields last year, following the 2008 closure of Bay Meadows Racetrack in San Mateo, the industry is centralizing its horse population in Southern California, the announcement explained.
Fair officials said they’re implementing a reprogramming plan to bring new entertainment to the fair this August. The fair’s 2025 theme is “Hot Dogs and Cool Cats.”
“This year’s fair is all about celebrating our four-legged, feathered and scaly friends with amazing animals shows, the ‘Petals and Pets’ flower show and more,” the announcement continued. “The Racing Grandstand is set to host a new lineup of events for a wide variety of family fun.”
The 2025 Sonoma County Fair runs Aug. 1 to 11 at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, 1450 Bennett Valley Road, Santa Rosa. Visit sonomacountyfair.com.
