New Zealand shuttler Ishiguru has been put down following complications from a knee injury.  The 11 year-old son of Danzig was a $1.15 million yearling at Keeneland and carried Sue Magnier’s colours to victory in the 2001 Flying Five Stakes (G3) in Ireland.

Ishiguru retired to Gloucestershire nursery Tweenhills Stud in 2003 and most recently shuttled to Chris and Mark Campin’s Chequers Stud.

“Treatment to the knee injury he suffered earlier this year had been successful and, while he was unable to travel to New Zealand this year, we were confident he would be ready for the British covering season,” Tweenhills director David Redvers said.

“Sadly, it appears he damaged the knee again, probably when rolling in his box, and on veterinary advice we had to accept the inevitable,” Redvers added.  “He had a wonderful temperament, and after a tremendous amount of hard work, his progeny were beginning to establish results that made him such an asset to mare owners, both here and in New Zealand.”

The best Ishiguru galloper to date has been Hellvelyn, a G2 winner of the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot and a G1 runner-up in the Phoenix Stakes in Ireland.

His filly Our Mark is a black-type winner of the Desmond Stakes and Meld Stakes while Ferneley opened his North American account in the G2 Del Mar Handicap earlier this month.

Ishiguru’s southern hemisphere bred stock have been headed by Geeza.  He was a G3 winner of the Te Rapa Breeders Stakes and was beaten a short-head when runner-up to Youthful Jack in the Listed Brisbane Plate at Eagle Farm in May.

Guru has on four races for Guy Walter in and around Sydney while the Mike Moroney trained I Robot has won three races in NZ but lost the 2008 Castledown Stakes (LR) at Foxton on protest.