please do not assume that unwittingly eating horse meat is safe. We do not yet even know the origin of the horse meat in question. In the UK, we breed cattle, sheep and pigs for meat. These animals are bred and managed for the purpose of human consumption and are within a regime of controlled feeding and approved medication for animals going into the food chain. Horses are not under any such regime, in the UK at least. In fact, *many* horses live their later lives under a long term drug regime such as daily doses of very strong painkillers for arthritis and other joint problems, wormers, (absolutely necessary to keep any horse healthy) steroids and other drugs for metabolic illnesses (common in older horses), to name a few.