site.btaSofia Police to Sell 11 Retired Horses as Activists, MEP and Animal-Rights Group Push for Reform of Service-Animal Rules

Sofia’s mounted police unit plans to auction off 11 horses on December 1 because they have grown too old and unfit for service, Chief Commissioner Stoyan Tsenov of the Specialized Police Forces with the Sofia Directorate of the Interior said during a news briefing Wednesday. The announcement has triggered reactions from animal-rights organizations and an MEP, Emil Radev, who argue that Bulgaria urgently needs legal changes to ensure that retired service animals are treated with care and dignity rather than as surplus property.

An animal-rights group, Kazhi, has launched a petition demanding reforms so that decommissioned police horses and service dogs are offered for adoption or lifelong care instead of being sold with no control over what happens with them after that.

At a press conference in Strasbourg, MEP Emil Radev also criticized the current rules, noting that under Ordinance 7 from 1997, retired animals are legally treated as objects and can be sold with no tracking of their fate. He warned that some may end up in inhumane conditions or even slaughtered, and urged that Bulgaria adopt standards similar to other EU countries where service animals are guaranteed a humane retirement.

The Interior Ministry maintains that the horses can no longer perform their duties safely and that the mounted unit lacks staff to care for additional animals. After their sale, the Ministry has no legal obligation to monitor their treatment.