Late Wednesday afternoon, HBO announced they were pulling the plug on "Luck," after coming under fire for how the horses in the racetrack-centered drama were faring on set. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is, unsurprisingly, delighted with the news.
"Horses and people who care about them can rest a little easier," they remark on their site in a story about the third horse's death in an update about the show's cancellation.
Just a day before a third horse died on the set of "Luck," People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) sent a letter to Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley, asking his office to "investigate and take appropriate action" in regards to the show and the production's ability to properly handle the animals used in the show.
Here's what else PETA had to say:
Even before filming on Luck started, PETA contacted David Milch, Michael Mann, and others associated with the production to suggest ways to protect horses, including the use of stock racing footage instead of using live animals. After the first two horses died—and the producers began stonewalling—PETA revealed the deaths publicly and obtained information from whistleblowers as well as necropsy reports from the racing board, which led to the disclosure that older, arthritic horses had been used in dangerous (and deadly) racing sequences and that the horses appeared not to have been provided with adequate protection. Beyond keeping the horses' plight in the public eye, PETA has also pressed law enforcement to investigate the deaths of the horses used on the set and to bring charges as appropriate.
A huge debt of gratitude is owed to the whistleblowers who refused to let these horses' deaths go unnoticed. If Milch, Mann, and HBO ever decide to start the series up again, PETA will again be calling on them to use stock footage, rather than putting horses' lives at risk.
