A POLICE horse that was killed in the line of duty last weekend has been laid to rest at a landfill site, with police saying it was too expensive to cremate him.
WA Police Union president Russell Armstrong has slammed the decision to bury Hercules, a Clydesdale horse that served with the Police Mounted Squad for six years, at a landfill site.

Mr Armstrong said the union offered to pay for the cremation but was told yesterday that it was "too late and couldn't be done".

"We made an offer to the mounted section yesterday to pay for the cremation and we were told what was happening," he told PerthNow today.

"We were told they couldn't afford the $2000 for the cremation and the best way to dispose of the body was to go to landfill.

"We're pretty disgusted... this shows a lack of commitment to the police budget when our officers, especially at the mounted section, are worried about the cost of the cremation of $2000 and say they can't afford it.

Mr Armstrong said the union had been inundated with calls from concerned officers, who believed Hercules deserved much better.

"We've had a lot of calls today and our members are really upset that the police department didn't pay for the cremation," he said.

"Even though Hercules is a horse, the animal was out there with our officers day and night doing a job for the community and they're aboslutely disgusted that a fine animal like this has received no recongition and has gone to landfill."

Hercules died after being electrocuted at the Kalamunda Show last Friday.

Police said last night they could not bury the horse at the Mayland stables where he was previously housed for public health reasons.

They said it was too expensive to cremate him, with some estimates suggesting it would cost around $2000 to cremate the one-tonne animal.

Hercules was buried at a landfill site near Armadale.

Maylands MP Lisa Baker said it was disrespectful and Hercules deserved a better end after dedicating himself to serving the public.

The policeman who rode Hercules will lead the ANZAC Day march carrying his bridle.

http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/western-australia/landfill-burial-for-police-hor...

He should have gone to the meat pie factory like all the other horses 

Grey wrote on Apr 24^th, 2011 at 1:13pm:


That's an outrageous suggestion.  Beer is not a good purpose and is a waste of money.      
 I'll 'ave a Scotch!

This horse, was it dead?  Did it weigh a tonne?  Would it have been pretty 'off' in a couple of days while people collected funds for a big send off?  Did the horse give a bugger about what was happening?
Geez I'd have thrown in to give it a happy retirement but it wasn't about that....it was dead.  The method of disposal doesn't matter, it's the memory and respect of the people who 'knew' it that matters.
Award it a posthumous medal and get on with looking after the live ones.
What do you do with your dead Goldfish, call White Lady funerals for 'em or something?

A horse just does what a horse does, it has no idea it has a country let alone that it is serving its country.

Well..most horses end up being minced up with old dairycows and mixed into meat pies or Maccas Happy Meals so landfill really isnt that bad

well said Cods.

Life_goes_on wrote on Apr 24^th, 2011 at 5:41pm:


Good idea. They could have served some of this:
http://www.theitaliantaste.com/italian-cooking/carne/cavallo/horse_recipe_index....