Horse Racing Ireland vows to support investigations after RTE programme highlights 'appalling' abuse at equine abattoir

Horse Racing Ireland has said it is "deeply shocked" by the footage of animal abuse shown in an RTE Investigates programme broadcast on Wednesday evening and will "actively support" any Department of Agriculture or Garda investigation.

The programme, titled Horses: Making A Killing, featured distressing footage at Ireland's only licensed equine abattoir in Straffan, County Kildare, with hidden cameras exposing routine animal welfare abuse at the facility used by Shannonside Foods Ltd.

It also highlighted one of the business's welfare officers, Arann Fitzpatrick, inserting false identification microchips into horses and using black spray paint to change their colour markings.

In a statement released in the immediate aftermath of the programme, HRI said: "The board, management and staff of Horse Racing Ireland are deeply shocked and appalled by the content of the RTE Investigates documentary broadcast on RTE1.

"The criminal behaviour depicted in the RTE documentary is disgusting and is not the experience of the vast majority of the 30,000 people who make their livelihood in the horseracing and breeding industry in Ireland. 

"HRI has zero tolerance for mistreatment of horses in any circumstance and criminal and regulatory sanction must be imposed on anyone found to have behaved in an illegal way towards horses."

The video evidence focused on the lairage shed where animals are held in the days leading up to their slaughter and viewers could see horses being repeatedly whipped and struck with long lengths of plastic piping, while one horse is seen struggling for hours and falling before a member of staff attempts to use a pitchfork to force it upright. It eventually died after a harrowing ordeal and was dragged out of the shed the following day.

HRI's statement added: "Equine safety and care is HRI’s top priority, and this year HRI will invest €16.1 million in welfare and integrity services. The thoroughbred horse is enshrined in Irish and EU law. Significant legal and regulatory checks and balances are in place for thoroughbred horses from birth through their racing career and life cycle. 

"HRI will review the issues raised in the RTE documentary and will actively support any Department of Agriculture or Garda investigation, and urge anyone with information about mistreatment of horses to report it to An Garda Síochána."

Ryan McElligott, chief executive of the Irish Racehorse Trainers Association (IRTA), also expressed revulsion at the scenes depicted in the programme.

"Shocking doesn't even begin to describe the footage from inside the abattoir," he said. "John Osborne [HRI director of equine welfare and bloodstock] used the word abhorrent and I would certainly go along with that. 

"It highlighted the need for a rock-solid traceability system. No animal should ever be subjected to the circumstances we saw in the programme. What we saw is in direct contrast to the level of care horses receive in this industry. It couldn't be further from the standards that are upheld. 

"It made for shocking viewing and the IRTA will be more than happy to lend whatever support is necessary to the HRI in the fallout."

The Department of Agriculture said that it does not have jurisdiction over the lairage shed at the facility, despite it having a regulatory presence at the slaughterhouse on kill days. Charlie McConalogue, Minister for Agriculture, told RTE radio show Morning Ireland that an investigation has been launched in relation to the findings of the documentary.

He said: "The scenes and treatment we saw of those horses was abhorrent and distressing. Horses are beautiful, sensitive animals. It's certainly not representative of how people across this country and those within the industry treat and care for horses.

"We already have commenced an investigation in the Department of Agriculture alongside the Gardai after we received the initial evidence. We have requested all the footage that RTE has and any other evidence to be made available to the investigation team. I can assure the public that this will be investigated and the full rigour of the law will be applied."

It is the first documentary made on the subject of racehorses being sent to slaughterhouses since a BBC Panorama investigation in 2021 which was titled The Dark Side Of Horse Racing and reported 4,000 former racehorses were slaughtered in Britain and Ireland in a two-year period between 2019 and 2021.

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) also issued a statement on Wednesday morning in response to the programme, in which it emphasised the need to continue to lobby government for the introduction of digital equine ID. 

It said: "We share in the shock and dismay regarding the images of abhorrent abuse and malpractice from an abattoir in Ireland which was broadcast on RTE last night.  

“Urgent steps must be taken by the appropriate bodies to improve standards for all horses sent to this facility, and sanctions imposed on anyone found to have committed illegal acts or broken regulatory requirements. 

“We are aware of the illegal tampering of horse passports and believe the introduction of a digital-only system for equine ID is essential to stop this practice. British racing, alongside other equestrian sports and welfare bodies, has repeatedly lobbied Government to introduce digital ID. We will continue to make it a core ask of the new administration. 

"Our code of practice for euthanasia emphasises that horses must be allowed to retain their dignity to the end of their lives and if euthanasia is the only option, it should be performed at home or in suitable surroundings."

A follow-up special report on the latest investigation will be aired on Prime Time on Thursday night at 9.35pm on RTE1.

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