Suit alleges horses mistreated on 'Luck'

Several of the horses used on HBO's canceled series "Luck" were drugged, underweight and sick during production, an animal rights worker who oversaw conditions on the show alleges in a lawsuit, The Associated Press reports.

Barbara Casey's suit filed Monday says she was wrongfully fired from her post at the American Humane Association after complaining about the conditions horses faced on the show, which starred Dustin Hoffman and was canceled in 2012 after a series of high-profile animal deaths.

The suit claims four horses died during the show's production, not three as previously reported. Horses were "often drugged to perform," and "underweight and sick horses unsuited for work were routinely used" by producers, her lawsuit alleges.

Casey is suing HBO, which has repeatedly denied abusing horses on the show, and the humane association. The association declined to comment, citing the pending lawsuit.

"We took every precaution to ensure that our horses were treated humanely and with the utmost care, exceeding every safeguard of all protocols and guidelines required of the production," HBO wrote in a statement.

Casey's suit states she urged the humane association to report HBO and producers to authorities for possible animal-cruelty criminal charges.

The association "bowed to political and financial pressure and refused to report the production defendants' conduct to the authorities," the lawsuit states.

Casey served as director of the association's Film and Television Unit, which oversees animal welfare and often allows a notice to be attached to the end of films and television shows that says no animals were harmed during production. The nonprofit association's film- and TV-monitoring efforts are paid for through entertainment industry grants, according to the lawsuit.