When a beloved family pet falls ill, most parents prepare for a tearful goodbye at the vet’s office. But in Denmark, one mother made a decision so startling it’s left people around the world stunned – she took her daughter’s ailing pony not to the vet, but to a zoo…where it became “fodder” for hungry predators.
On July 31, the Aalborg Zoo in Denmark – home to more than 1,500 animals across 126 species – launched a “food drive,” asking people to donate smaller pets to feed their predators. The initiative, according to the zoo, is to provide whole prey for predators, replicating their natural diets.
“Chickens, rabbits and guinea pigs make up an important part of the diet of our predators –especially in the European locust, which needs whole prey, which is reminiscent of what it would naturally hunt in the wild,” the zoo shared in a Facebook post. “In zoos we have a responsibility to imitate the natural food chain of the animals – in terms of both animal welfare and professional integrity.”
The post adds, “If you have an animal that has to leave here for various reasons, feel free to donate it to us.”
‘Putting a dead pet on a plate’
Despite confirming that all animals are “gently euthanized by trained staff” before being given “as fodder” to predators, the wildlife park sparked immediate backlash from the online community, slamming the zoo for “putting a dead pet on a plate for a caged animal.”
“A deeply perverse and degrading mindset that is behind this sick invention…Imagine giving away your pet/animal as fodder, it hardly gets more disrespectful and unworthy than that,” shares one netizen in the comment section of the zoo’s post.
“It [is] a bad signal to send from a Zoo that you can just throw away your animals that way, fast and easy and convenient, but unfortunately zoos are not always the animals’ best friend either,” writes a second.
“How is putting a dead pet on a plate for a caged animal anything close to reenactment of the nature?” asks a third, while another joked, “Can I also donate my healthy but annoying neighbourhood children? Is there an age limit?”
Responding to the “international interest,” the zoo closed down the comment section, explaining that they “understand that the post awakens feelings and interest, but hateful and malicious rhetoric is not necessary.”
‘Put down anyway’
But one woman, Pernille Sohl, saw the food drive as an opportunity.
The 44-year-old – who runs a small farm in southwest Denmark where children with mental health challenges spend time with horses – said she appreciates that the move might sound “dramatic and bizarre,” but insists it was the right choice.
“But they are going to be put down anyway and it is not like they are alive when they are given to the predators.” Stohl told the Times, per the Mirror.
Her daughter’s 22-year-old German riding pony, Chicago 57, had been suffering from severe eczema caused by mosquito bites, leaving painful open wounds. When it became clear the animal couldn’t be saved, Sohl let her then-13-year-old daughter decide what should happen.
“I gave Angelina the various options and she chose the one with the zoo, because it made the most sense,” Sohl told the outlet of the decision made a few years agol
“She had previously watched one of my horses being taken away by the vet to be euthanized, and it was a bad experience for her. She said that this time she wanted to follow the food chain,” Sohl said adding that daughter wanted the horse “to benefit other animals.”
150-mile drive to the lions’ den
Sohl decided it was the most meaningful end for Chicago 57 and drove 150 miles to the zoo, stressing she wouldn’t have done it if the horse “wasn’t used to being carried around in a trailer.”
Once there, trained staff humanely euthanized the pony with a bolt gun while zookeepers stroked and kissed it in its final moments.
“There was a zookeeper standing there cuddling and kissing him, as if it was me standing with him,” Stohl said, adding that before Chicago 57 was fed to the lions, she “got to say a final goodbye.”
Dog food
The experience left the mother so satisfied that in 2024 when another of her horses, Quantus, passed away, she once again reached out to the zoo. But this time, her offer was rejected – not for ethical reasons, but because Quantus was simply too large to fit inside the zoo’s fridges. Instead, the animal was sent off to be processed into dog food.
‘Fur, bones and organs’
According to the zoo, dozens of owners have donated animals, including 22 horses, 53 chickens, 137 rabbits, and 18 guinea pigs.
“Predators need whole prey – including fur, bones and organs – as it contributes to enrichment, nutrition and well-being. By allowing necessary kills to become part of the food chain, we avoid waste and instead create a meaningful farewell where the animal can benefit both garden predators and nature,” the zoo explains on its website.
Would you ever donate your pet – for many a member of the family – to feed predators? Please share your thoughts with us in the comment section below and then share this story with your friends so we can get the conversation started!
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