Woman explains why she gave daughter’s pony to zoo to be eaten by lions

A mother has revealed why she chose to feed her daughter's pony to lions at a local zoo.

In what would surely be a traumatic sight to pet owners all around the world, mum Pernille Sohl decided not to take her teenage daughter's poorly pony to the vet.

Instead, the Dane decided to bring the pony to Aalborg Zoo, one of the biggest tourist attractions in the country.

She had decided that, as the pony was in excruciating pain, he needed to be put down, and chose for him to be euthanised and fed to the lions at the zoo.

The 44-year-old has now explained her decision, following a controversial statement from the zoo itself on Facebook, calling for any healthy small pets to be donated, as they would be 'gently euthanised' and fed to predators.

Aalborg zoo called for pet donations to be fed to its predators (Peter Bischoff/Getty Images)

The zoo stated that it was crucial to 'imitate the animals’ natural food chain' for their health and welfare.

After asking for willing chicken, guinea pig, and rabbit owners to send their ailing pets in to be eaten, it added: "If you have a healthy animal that needs to be put down for various reasons, you are welcome to donate it to us.

"The animals are gently euthanised by trained staff and then used as food. That way, nothing goes to waste – and we ensure natural behaviour, nutrition and wellbeing of our predators."

Sohl has now shared her side of things, explaining to The Sunday Times: “It might sound very dramatic and bizarre that you would feed your pet to animals in the zoo,

“But they are going to be put down anyway, and it is not like they are alive when they are given to the predators.”

She's not alone, as Aalborg Zoo has received 137 rabbits, 53 chickens, 22 horses, and 18 guinea pigs.

They have been fed to species such as lions, European lynxes, and tigers, to name a few, with other Danish zoos also welcoming donated pets if they reach a certain health critera.

Sohl wasn't the only one who responded to the zoo's call (Aalborg Zoo)

Back in 2020, Sohl decided that Chicago 57, a German riding pony, needed to be put down as a result of severe eczema triggered by mosquito bites that caused open wounds.

An animal enthusiast herself, Sohl runs a small farm in southwest Denmark where children with mental health problems can play with horses.

She let her teenage daughter decide what to do with the 22-year-old steed, revealing that she 'chose the one with the zoo, because it made the most sense'.

“She had previously watched one of my horses being taken away by the vet to be euthanised, and it was a bad experience for her," Sohl said of the 13-year-old.

"She said that this time she wanted to follow the food chain. She wanted Chicago 57 to benefit other animals."

The mum also said that she wouldn't have done the 150-mile drive if Chicago 57 was 'a horse that wasn’t used to being carried around in a trailer'.

The teenager decided to send the pony to the zoo to be euthanised (Getty Stock Image)

Sohl was there when the pony was killed with a bolt gun, as she recalled: “There was a zookeeper standing there cuddling and kissing him, as if it was me standing with him.

“I got to say a final goodbye.”

Lions devoured the carcass, but Sohl was so impressed that she brought another one of her horses, Quantus, to the zoo in 2024.

Unfortunately, he was turned down as he exceeded the maximum height of 147cm to fit in their fridge, so he was turned into dog food.

While the mum got no money for her donations, she discovered she could get a tax rebate of up to DKK100 (£11.60) for each small animal and DKK5 (58p) for each kilogram of horse.