• New footage shows notorious kill-buyer Peter Loffel using a rifle to brutally slaughter ex-racehorses on his unlicensed property near Shepparton, Victoria
• Some horses manage to stand after being shot, with one taking four shots to be killed
• Horses killed were identified as thoroughbreds and standardbreds, including horses who had won tens of thousands of dollars in prize money

Farm Transparency Project has published new footage, captured last month using drones and hidden cameras, revealing infamous horse dealer Peter Loffel illegally shooting ex-racehorses (thoroughbreds and standardbreds) on his property at 140 Toolamba Road in Mooroopna, Victoria.

Horses identified as former flat and harness racers are filmed being shot in a small pen, while those around them panic and attempt to escape. One horse, an ex-racing thoroughbred identified as Lady Poppy, attempted to stand and escape after being shot in the head. She was eventually shot again and lay struggling on the ground as she died.

Another, an unidentified standardbred, managed to stand after being shot the first time. He crawled along the floor of the pen and struggled to his feet. Loffel then shot him again, bringing him to his knees but still not ending his life. He continued to struggle for two more shots until eventually falling still.

Thoroughbred horses killed by Peter Loffel were identified using brands and microchips. They included Can Get A Witness, a 13-year-old mare who had won $47,000 during her time racing. She was collected by Peter Loffel from Seven Creek Equine Veterinary Clinic, which specialises in breeding and embryo transfer. Also collected from the same location were the thoroughbred mares Lady Poppy, Solo Flight and a fourth, unidentified mare. Loffel was also filmed shooting Deseronto, a 12-year-old thoroughbred gelding who was bought by Cox plate-winning trainer Greg Eurell in 2016. As a racehorse, he had won almost $40,000 in prize money.

Loffel also kills harness racing standardbreds who he collects from studs and racetracks. While their neck brands had been shaven to make identification difficult, investigators were able to use microchip information to identify some of these horses as ex-racing and breeding standardbreds. Abettawaytodoit was a seven-year-old filly and ex-harness racer who had won over $17,000 for her owners. She was shot by Loffel in September 2026, just one month before she would turn eight. She was killed in the same group as Loyola Zoe Em, a six-year-old standardbred broodmare and two more unidentified standardbreds.

Farm Transparency Project spokesperson Harley McDonald-Eckersall says that the footage captured by investigators is the hidden reality behind every race.

"Each year thousands of racehorses 'disappear,' quietly sold by owners and trainers to men like Peter Loffel. Despite assurances from the racing industry that they care about their horses, the reality is that even winners are only valued for as long as they make money. After that they are discarded, sent to be brutally slaughtered and cut up to feed racing greyhounds."

"Peter Loffel should be condemned for his savage treatment of these horses, but the true blame falls squarely on the flat and harness racing industries. Horse racing has no place within a society that cares about animals."

Slaughtered horses are loaded onto a truck and driven ten minutes down the road to Peter Loffel's knackery, Goulburn Valley Stock Removers, on Daldy Road in Shepparton. Here, he cuts up horses and cows that have been shot and turns them into pet food, which is commonly bought by greyhound trainers. As well as racehorses, Loffel processes dozens of dairy cows, many who are pregnant when they are killed. Their calves are pulled from them and dumped in the offal bins. While the Daldy Road facility is licensed, it's illegal to slaughter animals for commercial purposes on an unlicensed property, and in clear breach of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986 (Vic).

Horses, generally racehorses, who have died from other causes are also processed at the knackery. One of these was Aspetta, a nine-year old thoroughbred broodmare who had already had three foals, one who had died at birth in 2024. Aspetta was sold to Daisy Thoroughbreds in July 2025. She was impregnated again in November and died of a massive prolapse while giving birth. Her body and the body of her foal ended up at the knackery, cut up and dumped to be sent to the rendering plant.

Photos and footage: www.farmtransparency.org/campaigns/illegal-racehorse-slaughter