Racing officers visit zoo over allegations horse carcass 'fed to lions' Representatives from Tasmania's Office of Racing Integrity have visited an animal park in the state's south as they investigate the death of a race horse, amid allegations the carcass may have been fed to lions. Tasmanian Greens leader Cassy O'Connor asked the Office of Racing Integrity during budget estimates sessions on Thursday about the death of a horse at the Brighton Training Centre last Friday, and whether the horse's body was subsequently taken to Zoodoo, near Richmond north of Hobart, and fed to the big cats. Office of Racing Integrity General Manager John King said information provided to him indicated the carcass had been buried, but said there was an ongoing investigation into the horse's death after it went unreported. He said when a horse dies within 14 days of racing or trialling there was a requirement under national rules for a trainer to contact the Office of Racing Integrity within 24 hours of the death. ... Zoodoo director Donna Cuttriss-Smith confirmed representatives from the Office of Racing Integrity visited the zoo on Friday morning, but was positive that the horse discussed in Parliament was not fed to her lions, after making a series of frantic phone calls on Thursday evening. ... read more To be clear - the issue is not whether the lions were fed horse meat - that does occasionally happen. The actual issue is to do with the circumstances around the horse's death where there is legislation requiring the death of any race horse within 14 days of racing to be reported to authorities within 24 hours of the death - which does not seem to have happened in this case.
Why on Earth do the Greens bring on the zoo facility any queries relating to the death and subsequent events on a race horse dying at an entirely different location at all? It smacks almost of hidden agenda politics! Really any questions on circumstances and events must and should be directed to the racehorse facility only!
I suspect the Greens have over-cooked this story - they almost always do - but the potentially concerning angle is if the lions have been used to literally consume the evidence that the horse died in suspicious circumstances.
