Horse-racing bosses condemn abattoir practices
Published
media captionInside the abattoir slaughtering racehorses
Irish and British horse-racing authorities have condemned footage that revealed evidence of a UK abattoir breaking welfare rules when slaughtering former racehorses.
Horse Racing Ireland said the footage - which featured in a BBC Panorama investigation - was abhorrent.
The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) met welfare experts earlier to discuss the issue as a matter of urgency .
The abattoir told the BBC it did not accept any form of animal abuse.
The covert footage, recorded by the anti-horse racing campaign group Animal Aid, showed horses being killed in front of each other and being shot from a distance at Drury and Sons - one of the UK s biggest abattoirs and one of the few licensed to slaughter horses.
Horse-racing bosses hold talks on abattoir images
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British Horseracing Authority holds talks after slaughterhouse investigation
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BBC News
By Darragh MacIntyre
image captionUndercover footage filmed by campaign group Animal Aid, at Drury and Sons abattoir
Thousands of racehorses are being sent to slaughterhouses in Britain and Ireland, a BBC Panorama investigation has found.
Some of the slaughtered animals were once owned and trained by some of the biggest names in racing.
Covert recording also showed how rules designed to protect horses from a cruel death appear to be regularly ignored at one of the UK s biggest abattoirs.
The abattoir told the BBC it did not accept any form of animal abuse.
One expert described the covert footage, from cameras installed by the campaign group Animal Aid, as evidence of clear breaches of the regulations.