24 hours after contacting the list of people/organisations/authorities in the first update regarding the slaughter of 300 ponies in Jeparit, Victoria, I have received only 2 replies!

ABC Four Corners thanked me for the submission and is passing it to their investigation team to assess and see whether they will pursue or not. So not much on that front.

RSPCA Victoria (media Coordinator Tim Pilgrim) has sent a very good response stating they were not involved and the article in the Herald Sun was misleading.

Here is their reply:

Hello Cass,

Thank you for taking the time to email me.

Like you, many people have contacted the RSPCA to voice their concerns and grievances with regard to the ponies in Jeparit. It is an extremely sad situation for the horses and for the many horse lovers who have been affected by the matter. Unfortunately the Herald Sun journalist did not contact the RSPCA to confirm our involvement in the case however, and has incorrectly reported that the RSPCA was consulted regarding the euthanasia of these horses.

The RSPCA believes that the Department of Primary Industries has been working with this particular owner for some months now, and the decision to euthanise these horses was made independently by the DPI on humane grounds following expert advice from their team of vets. The DPI has publicly stated that many of the horses were in pain and suffering from a host of ailments. The RSPCA is not privy to the information contained in these vet reports, so we are unable to shed any light on the matter for you in this regard.

In this particular case, we also believe a Ministerial Order was handed down by the Minister which allowed for the euthanasia of the horses to be carried out. The RSPCA does not have the authority to intervene in these situations. The RSPCA was not consulted with regard to the euthanasia of the horses and did not have involvement in the application for the order.

If you or other members of the public have concerns with regard to the way the case was handled, you can contact the DPI to voice these concerns. There are avenues that can be called upon for an independent review of the case by the State’s Ombudsman.

Please let me know if you have any further questions.

Best regards,

Tim Pilgrim

RSPCA Victoria

So I will now contact the Ombudsman, Victoria