Horses get stoned at Stones gig?

Animal lovers in Serbia are up in arms about plans to sedate more than 300 horses at a racecourse when the Rolling Stones come to town.

Organisers of the July 14 concert plan to drug the horses at the Belgrade racecourse to keep them calm during the gig, which is set to attract over 100,000 fans.

Co-ordinator, Jovanka Prelic said: "Horses differ, the same as people. Some are more nervous, more skittish. If they get too nervous or start to panic during the concert, they'll get sedatives."

But Serbia's biggest animal protection society, ORCA, insisted that holding the concert there would be extremely harmful to the horses, which will be stabled only yards from the stage.

ORCA spokesman, Elvir Burazerovic said: "Research has shown that noise and vibrations are the strongest causes of stress to animals.

"Surely our big city has enough open spaces where even 150,000 people can fit in. We think the Hippodrome should be left to horses."

He warned that if the ORCA failed to convince the organisers to change the concert venue, the organisation would contact the Rolling Stones directly and ask them to use their influence.

The band have never played in Serbia. A 2003 concert was cancelled due to the assassination of then Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic and a 2006 date scrapped after guitarist Keith Richards suffered a head injury while on holiday.

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