- A horse named Shanghai was hobbled (his legs were tied together so that he couldn’t move) and left on the ground for three hours because he was too energetic for his rider. Afterward, in order to hide his rope burns for filming, his legs were covered with makeup and hair. Hobbling is an outright violation of the American Humane Association’s (AHA) guidelines.
- One horse was killed and another horse was injured after being placed with two highly strung geldings, despite concerns that the geldings would be too aggressive.
- Another horse was killed after falling off an embankment in a severely crowded paddock.
- When the horses were moved to the stables, another horse died after being fed large amounts of food that he wasn’t used to. The horse had shown signs of colic, an extremely painful illness.
- When the horses were moved back to the paddocks after this incident, another horse had the skin and muscles of her leg torn away by wire fencing.
- Several goats and sheep died from worm infestations and from falling into the sink holes that covered the farm.
- Numerous chickens were mauled and killed by unsupervised dogs or trampled by other animals when left unprotected.
“In a movie that features CGI dragons, ogres, and hobbits, CGI animals would have fit in perfectly,” PeTA said. “Jackson could have made The Hobbit without using a single animal—and he should have.” In response Jackson sent along this press release:
The producers of The Hobbit take the welfare of all animals very seriously and have always pursued the highest standard of care for animals in their charge. Any incidents that occurred that were brought to their attention as regards to this care were immediately investigated and appropriate action taken. This includes hundreds of thousands of dollars that were spent on upgrading housing and stable facilities in early 2011.
The producers completely reject the accusations that twenty seven animals died due to mistreatment during the making of the films. Extraordinary measures were taken to make sure that animals were not used during action sequences or any other sequence that might create undue stress for the animals involved. Over fifty five per cent of all shots using animals in The Hobbit are in fact computer generated; this includes horses, ponies, rabbits, hedgehogs, birds, deer, elk, mice, wild boars, and wolves.
The American Humane Association (AHA) was on hand to monitor all use of animals by the production. No animals died or were harmed on set during filming.
We regret that some of these accusations by wranglers who were dismissed from the film over a year ago are only now being brought to our attention. We are currently investigating these new allegations and are attempting to speak with all parties involved to establish the truth.
PeTA has called for a protest of the film during the film’s premieres in New Zealand, the U.S., and the U.K.
Now I’ll be the first to say I would never, NEVER condone harming any living creature. Yes, I understand I enjoy a steak or chop like the next person but that’s something hard coded into my DNA; if anyone wants to tell you the human species was able to evolve without the proteins contained in meat products they’re probably sitting around on evenings every December 24th waiting for Santa Claus’s arrival. The hard fact is we, mostly, consume livestock for our sustenance. Knowing that, I’m certainly not lining up to find employment at a slaughterhouse. As I write this I have one cat, Smokey, laying on my lap while another, Bandita, is curled at my feet so it’s not as if I don’t have an invested interest in the welfare of animals – or cats at the very least – which is probably more than I can say for the folks who run the show at PeTA. You see if either one of my cats had found themselves in the care of PeTA they’d have shuffled on to that great litter box of the great beyond before I ever had the wonderful pleasure of making their acquaintance.
It’s abhorrent these animals died during the filming of The Hobbit and I believe there were some animal deaths although more than likely not to the extent the dismissed wranglers claim as Jackson himself is indicating there were issues with the locations the animals were stabled. That be the case, I’d hope to see criminal charges brought against the people who were culpable for these deaths. Yet for PeTA, an organization which is well documented killing tens of thousands of animals on a yearly basis, to cry out about the unfortunate deaths of approximately 27 animals (including chickens – not that I have anything against chickens as I dig a good chicken kiev as much as the next guy) while they euthanize well over 85% of the animals -mainly cats and dogs – brought into their shelters within 24 hours and provide an adoption rate right in the vicinity of about 2% isn’t only laughable, it’s stomach churningly sickening. Add to this the fact although these deaths took place during the filming PeTA only now is bringing the negligence claims to the fore, as The Hobbit prepares to hit theaters in less than a month, only drives home the fact PeTA has no concern over the welfare of animals but only in keeping itself in the spotlight and suckering you out of your hard earned dollars and cents to add to their $50 million plus yearly coffers.
Could it be we pet lovers would be better served – as would the creatures we love – by condemning the actions of the folks in charge of the animal stock of The Hobbit while at the same time looking to ostracize the glad handing, hypocritical, terror group financing, animal genocidal, money grubbers at PeTa quite a lot more…
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Well I can’t say I know a thing about keeping animals, but some of this sounds like standard fare when a large number of animals are present. Anything that isn’t, would be the direct result of how the handlers decided to care for the animals. Do you really think Peter Jackson had any hand in how the horses were taken care of? Do you REALLY think the actors and directors are concerned with if the chickens get eaten by dogs? Absolutely not, because it isn’t their job. That is why the put into the producing budget a section to pay those wonderfully skilled animal handlers, who I am sure received a tidy sum for the large amount of work they needed to perform. IF any of the animals died due to direct negligence or misconduct, which I doubt, these animal handlers would not only be the ones to blame, but would also be the ones most critical about the conditions and results. Who loves animals, knows more about them, or is more aware of what can result in injury than those who professionally care for them? So peta, whatever the hell they believe they are protesting, is barking up the wrong tree as usual. Talk to the animal handlers union, and let them sort it out.