This is the moment a racehorse was shot dead at a busy racecourse after breaking its leg near the end of a race. Wigmore Hall raced on courses around the world before it was humanely destroyed at Doncaster races at the weekend. The seven-year-old horse shattered one of its forelegs and fell less than three furlongs (less than half a mile) from the finish at the St Leger festival at Doncaster last weekend. Scroll down for video . This is the moment Wigmore Hall was humanely destroyed at Doncaster Races after breaking a leg in a race . The decision was taken to put the badly hurt animal down, and a temporary screen was erected to shield the scene from hundreds of racegoers. The horse's jockey, 26-year-old Adam Kirby, was understood to be inconsolable. Afterwards specialist vets said the decision to put a quick end to the animal's suffering was the right one. The RSPCA's equine consultant, David Muir, said: 'I can't see that the vet has done anything wrong or the racecourse, either. 'Shooting a horse is probably the most humane and quick way that you could put a horse down.' He told the Guardian: 'In the circumstances where a horse has suffered a catastrophic injury, what would worry me more would be the delay involved in splinting the leg, taking the horse away and putting him down somewhere else after the horse has been suffering all that time.' An equine vet, who asked not to be named, told MailOnline: 'What the picture is showing is a veterinary procedure, an act of humanity rather than one of cruelty.' The seven-year-old horse had been competing at the St Leger festival at Doncaster Racecourse when it fell . A spokesman for the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) said: 'British racing's welfare standards far exceed existing animal welfare legislation. 'Over the last 15 years, the equine fatality rate in British racing has fallen by a third. Horses are at risk of injury throughout their lives, regardless of the type of equestrian activity they participate in.' The authority also confirmed that the fatality rate for racehorses currently stands at 0.2 per cent. BHA chief veterinary officer Jenny Hall said: 'This sad incident was the only fatality at Doncaster's flat racing course this year from 1,563 runners. 'The team of veterinary surgeons were at Wigmore Hall's side in moments after the injury. The vets were able to make an immediate assessment of the Wigmore Hall's condition. 'In this case the diagnosis was made that the injury was untreatable, so the correct course of action for Wigmore Hall's welfare was for him to be humanely put down.'
Racehorse Wigmore Hall broke a leg less than three furlongs from the finish .
Seven-year-old horse had been competing at St Leger festival in Doncaster .
The badly hurt animal was shot dead by a vet behind a temporary screen .
Industry sources and vets say shooting injured horse is most humane way .
Unnamed horse vet: 'This was a veterinary procedure, an act of humanity'
This is the moment a racehorse was shot dead at a busy racecourse after breaking its leg near the end of a race. Wigmore Hall raced on courses around the world before it was humanely destroyed at Doncaster races at the weekend. The seven-year-old horse shattered one of its forelegs and fell less than three furlongs (less than half a mile) from the finish at the St Leger festival at Doncaster last weekend. Scroll down for video . This is the moment Wigmore Hall was humanely destroyed at Doncaster Races after breaking a leg in a race . The decision was taken to put the badly hurt animal down, and a temporary screen was erected to shield the scene from hundreds of racegoers. The horse's jockey, 26-year-old Adam Kirby, was understood to be inconsolable. Afterwards specialist vets said the decision to put a quick end to the animal's suffering was the right one. The RSPCA's equine consultant, David Muir, said: 'I can't see that the vet has done anything wrong or the racecourse, either. 'Shooting a horse is probably the most humane and quick way that you could put a horse down.' He told the Guardian: 'In the circumstances where a horse has suffered a catastrophic injury, what would worry me more would be the delay involved in splinting the leg, taking the horse away and putting him down somewhere else after the horse has been suffering all that time.' An equine vet, who asked not to be named, told MailOnline: 'What the picture is showing is a veterinary procedure, an act of humanity rather than one of cruelty.' The seven-year-old horse had been competing at the St Leger festival at Doncaster Racecourse when it fell . A spokesman for the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) said: 'British racing's welfare standards far exceed existing animal welfare legislation. 'Over the last 15 years, the equine fatality rate in British racing has fallen by a third. Horses are at risk of injury throughout their lives, regardless of the type of equestrian activity they participate in.' The authority also confirmed that the fatality rate for racehorses currently stands at 0.2 per cent. BHA chief veterinary officer Jenny Hall said: 'This sad incident was the only fatality at Doncaster's flat racing course this year from 1,563 runners. 'The team of veterinary surgeons were at Wigmore Hall's side in moments after the injury. The vets were able to make an immediate assessment of the Wigmore Hall's condition. 'In this case the diagnosis was made that the injury was untreatable, so the correct course of action for Wigmore Hall's welfare was for him to be humanely put down.'
This is the moment a racehorse was shot dead at a forelegs and fell less than three furlongs (less than half a mile) from the finish at the St Leger for video . This is the moment Wigmore Hall was breaking a leg in a race . The decision was taken to put the badly hurt animal down, and a the most humane and quick way that you could put showing is a veterinary procedure, an act of seven-year-old horse had been competing at the St Leger festival at Doncaster Racecourse when it