(24 June 2013)

The IHP lawyers have presented a complaint to the Rome NAS (special branch of the Carabinieri which investigates these matters-translator’s note) for a suspected case of ill treatment of two horses on the premises of the Tor di Valle hippodrome. Last March our Association received a report from a private citizen concerning the condition of two horses seemingly totally abandoned: they were in a small paddock, seriously thin and poor looking, with no food, no shelter and no apparent custodian – all factors substantially incompatible with their basic needs, not to mention a cause of acute suffering.

The horses had been living in these conditions for at least six weeks, at a time of year when the weather was particularly cold and wet: this was confirmed by another person who, out of pity, every now and then during this time, took food and water to them.

Our investigations revealed that at the end of January the two horses had been sold by a trainer in Rome to a trainer in Palermo and that the latter had engaged someone to look after them until they were moved on to Sicily. However the new owner ‘forgot’ both to pay this person, and to ascertain the conditions in which the horses were living. The horses therefore were effectively totally abandoned for more than six weeks.

All this was checked out by our volunteers who went to the place to investigate and verify the report, at which time they also discovered that access to that area of the hippodrome was completely without any form of supervision.

We were subsequently informed that within a few hours of our visit, the horses had been put into stables and transport to Palermo had been arranged for 21 March. We have attempted to obtain further details of the destination of the horses, and whether the correct procedures for transfer of animals were followed. We sent an urgent notification of the matter to ASSI/UNIRE–Veterinary and Animal Welfare Sections.
However, in spite of a follow-up to this notification, we have to date received no response from them.