A picture of tranquility wherein lies depravity (Obrova Croatia)

A picture of tranquility
sunlight, blossoms singing birds
butterflies in fact we see
a peaceful little sojourn, words
possibly from another time
awoken to a frenzy
where the denizens now climb
into an enclosure
where two horses strapped
now stand
one has fallen over
which may not have been planned
but it has happened
weakened by the lack of food, no doubt
enter two thin ravaged hounds
who know what they’re about
a sickly horse lies motionless
unable to stand
hungry hounds apparently
as their stomachs pound
ingloriously attempt to
feed upon the poor horse there
entering its orifice
its flesh and blood to share
that smell of fresh blood
clearly excites the hounds and they
begin the gory grisly task
of engorging, a display
of such egregious nature
filmed by someone who
was party to this torture
and could have stopped it too

in the background laughter rings out
voices can be heard
and whist these hounds are
feeding
on what seems so absurd
where’s the justification
to be filming such an act
when this could be reported
and stopped
how I react

to what I see
its incredulous to think
that as the camera records this
as the hounds now drink
the blood of this live offering
whose abject agony
is obvious to all our eyes
its complete depravity

there are no words to describe this
its an evil where remorse
apparently
was set aside
the safety of that horse
the welfare of a sentient
was left to canter on
into a dark adversity
where sanity had gone

a certain Mr Borkovic
is implicated here
it appears he ran this animal place
a disturbing place where fear
and negligence seem commonplace
for close to where it occurred
we can hear a sort of commentary
almost every word

to imagine being eaten
alive by rabid dogs
ribs protruding skin and bone
themselves wild canine troggs
starving yet were able
to get into the space
where 2 horses were clearly strapped up
there but for god’s grace

the other horse could have also
become a victim to these hounds
after several minutes
the barbarity astounds
even the hardened criminal
even the strongest heart
for the severity was terrible
such violence from the start

and what plays on my mind
was it was preventable, and so
the camera man was clearly implicated too
I know he probably felt the need
to collect the evidence. but he
should have stopped this straight away
and reduced the agony

I hope to God
the authorities will step in here and see
that this place is closed down at once
for the sheer depravity
of all involved however that let
the camera’s roll
let the dogs into this place
that clearly lost control

the poor horse
we can only feel
how it felt, this abuse
being eaten and pulled about
the anger it did loose
the pain inside of all us
who may have shared it too
we hope we dearly hope those implicated
here will do

a long stint in some prison
and be reminded they
were guilty of such negligence
and for that a horse did pay
such agony its lamentable, really the worst way
to leave any world
to just be hurled
and be expected to obey