“He’s a jackass, but he’s my jackass,” Julie Izzo fondly said of her beloved equine buddy of years after the latter’s 39th birthday on St. Patrick’s Day. On that day, former racehorse New Year’s Eve (sired by Night Conqueror) became the world’s second-oldest thoroughbred American horse. Quite a milestone moment for any four-legged bovine, and Izzo’s adoration was quite understandable. Little did she know, just four months after the horse got his name in the history books, their world would be upturned.

The retired American horse was rechristened as Axl by Izzo, whose love for the legendary hard rock band Guns N’ Roses knows no bounds. For 32 years, since Julie bought the gelding in 1993, the two have spent many a leisurely afternoon together, forging their bond ever stronger. However, now, Izzo will only have the doting memories to keep her company.

An article on Thoroughbred Daily News from July 11 has shared news of New Year’s Eve’s passing, and the brooding tone can hardly be overlooked. “He was 39 and reported to be the oldest living Thoroughbred at the time of his death,” reports TDN. The American horse took its last breath in Pennsylvania. Remembering all the days they spent together, Izzo issued an official statement to ensure New Year’s Eve was sent off to the unknown by his comrades with heavy hearts.

“He had started to lose strength in his hind end, and getting up was becoming increasingly difficult. True to his breed, he still tried with everything he had to keep going. But it wasn’t fair to keep asking,” Julie wrote. She went on to note how she knew the day was creeping closer. “One day, he paused in an effort to rise and looked me in the eye with an expression I’d never seen on his face before. He simply had nothing left to give. I had always promised him that I would not compromise his comfort for more time. And although he was ready, I was not. But I never would be,” Izzo elaborated in her statement on the beloved American horse.

“I will forever be grateful for our many years together. There will always be a piece of me missing. He wasn’t an extraordinary racehorse. But he was extraordinary to me,” the note read further, as Julie thanked all those who stood by her over the span of three decades in taking care of the American horse, New Year’s Eve.

The horse raced only 18 times in his lifetime, earning a collective amount of $3,140. However, neither his racing career nor the 39-year-old’s longevity was something that Izzo cared about. Instead, it’s her love for horses that made her tend to New Year’s Eve with sincerity. “I want more people to become aware of better ways to take care of their horses. If there’s any legacy that Axl leaves behind, it’s that people take it upon themselves to learn better horse husbandry tactics,” she said in March about how the American horse has helped her to gain more knowledge about how to take care of the animals.

While Izzo’s heartbreak is warranted, the horse racing community has had to deal with a lot of similar emotions this year alone.

The American horse is the latest to bid adieu

In early January, the American horse racing community was caught completely off guard. The 2x Washington Park Handicap winner, Perfect Drift, son of the iconic Dynaformer, was euthanized on January 4. The tough call had to be made to give the horse respite from the paddock injury that he was suffering from for a long time. It was also the same issue that shortened Perfect Drift’s racing career. Between 2001 and 2008, the American horse placed in 32 of his 50 races and won over $4 million on the turf.

Similarly, just last month, the legendary trainer Bob Baffert was left aghast by a loss that almost seemed personal.

The four-time Kentucky Derby winner, D. Wayne Lukas, left the mortal plains after a storied career. The rivalry between Baffert and Lukas became part of the American horse racing community’s lore and will continue to inspire others. Naturally, with his peer’s demise, Baffert was gutted. On June 29, he took to social media to express his sorrow. “I’ll miss him every day for the rest of my life,” the 2x Triple Crown-winning trainer wrote.

Quite the rollercoaster of a year for horse racing fans, wouldn’t you agree? Which of these deaths hit you the hardest?