‘Flicka’ deaths unavoidable

The deaths of two horses last month during the filming of a 20th Century Fox film called “Flicka” were unpreventable accidents, the American Humane Assn. said.

In the first incident on April 11, a quarter horse misstepped and broke one of its back legs while being filmed cantering at the Big Sky Ranch in Simi Valley. The horse was put down after a veterinarian on the movie set determined the injury was untreatable. Another horse died April 25 when it broke its neck after breaking away from handlers and tripping on its lead rope at the Hansen Dam Equestrian Center in the San Fernando Valley.

Sara Spaulding, spokeswoman for the Humane Assn., said in a statement this week that the fact that nothing could be done to save the horses “does not lessen our sadness.” The group is reviewing additional restrictions on horse action.