'He Was Loved Every Single Day': Veteran Sire Kafwain Dies At Age 24

Kafwain, a longtime stalwart on the California stallion ranks, was euthanized April 24 after suffering a stroke.

The 24-year-old son of Cherokee Run had been living as a pensioner at Premier Equine Rehab near Nashville, Tenn., since September 2023. Jenny Earhart, who runs the 501(c)3 operation, said on social media that the stroke paralyzed Kafwain's hind end, and he never regained motor function.

"When I signed up for this job, I knew it would come with hard days, you just never seem quite prepared for them," Earhart wrote on social media. "We may have only had 'Kafe' for six months, but we made sure he had the best retirement possible, and most of all, he knew he was loved every single day. His legacy will live on through his foals, and I will forever be their biggest cheerleader."

Kafwain was pensioned to Premier Equine Rehab along with Ministers Wild Cat, who both stood their final active seasons at stud at Tommy Town Thoroughbreds in Santa Ynez, Calif. 

Kafwain began his stud career in 2004 and amassed progeny earnings of more than $21 million, led by Grade 1 winners Daisy Devine and Let Faith Arise, along with Grade 3 winners including Don't Forget Gil and The Pamplemousse.

Bred in Kentucky by Dr. and Mrs. R. Smiser West, Kafwain sold as a yearling to Becky Thomas of Sequel Bloodstock for $170,000 at the 2001 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. Thomas then pinhooked the horse for $720,000 at the following year's Fasig-Tipton Florida Selected 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale, going to The Thoroughbred Corp.

Kafwain won four of 11 career starts, with earnings of $715,848. 

He broke his maiden in his second career start, and quickly rose up the ranks of California's 2-year-old runners. He won the Grade 3 Best Pal Stakes at Del Mar, then finished second in the G2 Del Mar Futurity at the same track. Kafwain then won the G2 Norfolk Stakes at Santa Anita Park as a final prep for the 2002 Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Arlington Park, where he finished second to Vindication.

Kafwain returned to California to finish his 2-year-old season with a four-place effort in G1 Hollywood Futurity at Hollywood Park.

He debuted at age three with a win in the G2 San Vicente Stakes, before shipping to the Fair Grounds for an off-the-board finish in the G2 Louisiana Derby. His final start came in the G1 Santa Anita Derby, where he finished third. 

Kafwain was working toward a start in the 2003 Kentucky Derby, but he suffered a tendon injury in his final workout before the race, and his retirement was announced in July of that year.