State Opens Criminal Investigation Into Deaths of Polo Ponies

April 21, 2009— -- Florida authorities have opened a criminal investigation into the mysterious deaths of 21 horses that became ill Sunday shortly before they were scheduled to be in a polo match.

State veterinarians are still running tests to determine what killed the horses from the Venezuelan-owned team Lechuza Caracas. It could take several days before a cause of death is known, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture.

The horses began collapsing Sunday afternoon as they were unloaded from trailers at the International Polo Club Palm Beach, in Wellington, Fla., where they were scheduled to play in the U.S. Polo Open.

Several died at the scene; the others died later that night or early Monday morning, at veterinary clinics or at the team stables.

Veterinarians who treated some of the animals, worth roughly $100,000 each, said Monday they believed the horses were probably killed by some sort of toxin in their feed or vitamin supplements.

"We want to get to the bottom of this and find out what happened," said Peter Rizzo, director of the U.S. Polo Association.

The criminal investigation is being conducted by the state Department of Agriculture and the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office.

No Evidence Polo Horses Intentionally Poisoned

A department spokesman said there was nothing to indicate that the horses were intentionally poisoned.

"We want to make sure that there were no violations of Florida law in connection with anything these animals were fed or administered injection-wise," said Terence McElroy, a spokesman for the Department of Agriculture.

McElroy said the inquiry would look into animal mistreatment laws and make sure the horses were not given narcotics and were not prescribed any chemicals by anyone other than a licensed veterinarian.

"We just want to find out what happened to the horses," said Capt. Greg Richter of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office. "At this point, there's nothing to indicate any criminal intent or wrongdoing."

The horses were reportedly showing no signs of illness Sunday morning, according to the Department of Agriculture. By the time they were offloaded for the match, some of the animals were dead and the rest were showing signs of dizziness and having trouble breathing.

Vets: Toxic Substance Likely to Blame for Horse Deaths

Seven horsesdied at the club; a total of 14 from the Venezuelan team died Sunday. The rest died overnight or early Monday morning.

Scott Swerdlin, one of the veterinarians who treated the horses, said on Monday they died after they developed pulmonary edema, a buildup of fluid in the lungs, which sent them into shock.

"I've never seen anything like this," Swerdlin said. "Not only is it frustrating, it's tragic. We're emotionally drained too. It was just horrible."

Vet: Toxic Substance Likely Cause

Swerdlin said it was likely that an unidentified toxin in the animals' feed, vitamins or supplements could have killed them.

Rob Boswell, another veterinarian at the Palm Beach Equine Clinic near the polo club, who did not treat the horses, also said "a toxic substance would be very high on your list" of possible causes of death.

"It's probably some sort of a toxin, a chemical, something that got into their system," he said. "It could be a food additive, something in the hay, it's hard to say at this time."

"I haven't seen anything like this in 25 years of practice."

A team veterinarian who was at the scene said tests will need to determine the trigger for what he believed was heart failure among the horses.

The horses died "almost certainly of an intoxication of some sort that they consumed," veterinarian James Belden told the Palm Beach Daily News.

Belden said it remains to be seen "whether it's something in the environment or something that the horses were exposed to," but added it was unlikely that the horses were given steroids or tainted medication.

Boswell also said that though competitive polo is less regulated than horse racing, he thought it was unlikely that the horses were given dangerous performance-enhancing drugs.

"There probably are things that are given to horses to enhance their performance. I'm just not aware of any in this situation," he said.