Pets

Donald Trump's sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, are under investigation in Zimbabwe to determine if their hunting trip -- which made news when photos of the guys posing with dead animals surfaced last week -- was actually legal.

The independent Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force said that Trump's sons used a South African safari firm that is not registered in Zimbabwe during their 2011 hunting trip. They reportedly killed an elephant, an endangered leopard, a buffalo, a crocodile and other "big game" animals.

The task force is currently investigating whether license and trophy fees were paid and if the South African firm had been cleared by Zimbabwe wildlife authorities to operate.

The man who trained the third horse that died on the set of HBO's "Luck" is telling friends ... NO ONE is to blame for the fatality ... insisting the animals received exceptional care, but sometimes "s**t happens."

Sources close to Matthew Chew -- who trained and owned horse #3 -- tell us the people who looked after the horses are some of the best in the business ... who thoroughly examined the animals at least twice a day during production.

Chew has told friends ... the horse was simply playing around when it "misstepped" and fell down Tuesday morning ... suffering a head injury that required it to be euthanized on the set.

4:30 PM PT: The crew was assembled for a meeting where they were just told the show is cancelled. They are pissed because production was supposed to last another 8 months and they were just told they will not be getting any severance.

4:20 PM PT: We've just spoken with on-set sources, who tell us the crew has not been told their show was cancelled. They're learning it from TMZ.

HBO has cancelled "Luck" after the latest horse death.

As TMZ reported, yesterday a third horse died during production of the show, and HBO just made the drastic decision to lower the boom.

HBO released a statement that reads in part, "While we maintained the highest safety standards possible, accidents unfortunately happen and it is impossible to guarantee they won't in the future."

Jeremy Renner suffered a devastating loss last weekend, after his 8-month-old puppy Franklin dropped dead on a baseball field.

Jeremy's friend and business partner Kristoffer Winters was dogsitting the French bulldog last Saturday in Orange County -- and decided to take it to his nephew's little league baseball game.

We're told the dog was running around the field having fun on a very hot day -- near 80 degrees. Then, at around 2 PM, the pup began to vomit and convulse. Kris -- who had left to get a snack -- returned to find Jeremy's dog dead in a woman's arms.

We're told 3 people tried to give the dog mouth-to-mouth to revive the pooch -- to no avail.

French bulldogs notoriously suffer from heart problems, which could be exacerbated by heat.

The cast and crew of HBO's "Luck" didn't miss a beat after a horse died on location today -- they just kept on shooting.

Eyewitnesses tell us ... the horse suffered a fatal injury after rearing up, falling backwards and hitting its head on the ground, breaking its neck. It was then euthanized.

We're told the crew was told to drive themselves from Santa Anita -- where the accident occurred -- to Marina del Rey to continue shooting the show.

As we reported, this is the third horse death on the series. After one of the other horse deaths, HBO stopped production, but apparently horse death has become somewhat routine on "Luck."

There has been another fatal horse accident on the set of the HBO series "Luck" -- a third horse has died, TMZ has learned.

We're told the crew was trying to get a horse out of its stable when it reared and fell back, suffering a head injury. The horse was euthanized at the Santa Anita Race Track in Arcadia.

This is the third time a horse had to be euthanized during the filming of the series, starring Dustin Hoffman.

All three horses that died on the set of HBO's "Luck" were victims of "sloppy oversight" on the part of HBO and the show producers ... and they should all be ASHAMED ... this according to PETA.

The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals are PISSED at HBO after a 3rd horse died during production Tuesday ... and a rep tells TMZ, "All the evidence we have gathered points to sloppy oversight, the use of unfit, injured horses, and disregard for the treatment of race horses."

What's worse ... PETA

Steve Cooley on Monday -- one day before horse #3 died -- asking him to investigate the deadly situation on the set of "Luck" ... but no immediate action was taken.

HBO had released a statement following the death of horse #3 saying, "An American Humane Association Certified Safety Representative was on the premises when the accident occurred, and as always, all safety precautions were in place."

"Celebrity Apprentice" star Lisa Lampanelli is standing firmly behind her TV boss ... telling TMZ she "LOVES" the fact that Donald Trump's sons went on an animal-killing spree in Zimbabwe.

Lampanelli was out in NYC last night ... when we asked about the controversial Trump hunting trip last year ... in which Donald Jr. and Eric killed an elephant, crocodile, waterbuck and more.

Lisa replied, "I love the fact that Mr. Trump and the little other Mr. Trump ... and the other one [approve of hunting] ... I would love it if Ivanka got out there with a bazooka."

She added, "Hunt all you want g*d d*mmit."

The gruesome photos of Donald Trump's sons posing triumphantly with mutilated animal corpses in Africa isn't going over too well with the animal rights groups ... duh ... and now, they're firing back ... bashing the Trumps as "pitiful" bloodthirsty morons.

TMZ spoke with Jack Carone from In Defense of Animals ... who said, "Would any intelligent person feel moved to murder a magnificent elephant, then further insult and desecrate by hacking off his or her tail as an additional gesture of dominance?"

He added, "Privilege has clearly not bought them the sensitivity or wisdom to view the world as anything but their personal playground, including the imagined entitlement to end the lives of sensitive and social animals for mere amusement."

"This is truly a pitiful testimony to their lack of character and compassion, at the ultimate expense of their innocent fellow Earthlings."

Aubrey O'Day's decision to let her dogs rub their butts all over the table at a popular L.A. eatery last week has triggered a Health Dept. investigation ... TMZ has learned ... because, quite frankly, it's disgusting.

TMZ broke the story ... the "Celebrity Apprentice" star let her puppies wag their naked asses all over her table at Toast for several minutes ... before finally putting the poochies on the ground.

Gross.

Now, a rep for the L.A. Public Health Dept. tells TMZ ... a health inspector has visited the restaurant to remind employees about pet guidelines ... specifically the one that reads, "Pets shall not be allowed on chairs, seats, benches and tables."

The rep adds, "The Health Dept would like people to enjoy eating with their pets ... but we also want people to be respectful to other people."

We're told the staff was quite receptive to the official ... and no citations or warnings were issued.

Donald Trump Jr. says he bears NO SHAME for slaughtering a bunch of exotic animals in Africa last year ... claiming all of his kills were used to feed local villagers.

TMZ broke the story ... DTJ is coming under fire for a series of pics which show him posing with his brother in front of several dead animals after a hunt last year -- even showing off a severed elephant tail.

Now, Trump Jr. is DEFENDING the hunt on Twitter ... writing, " I have no shame about [the pics]. I HUNT & EAT game ... I'm a hunter, for that I make no apologies."

He explained, "I can assure you it was not wasteful ... the villagers were so happy for the meat which they don't often get to eat. Very grateful."

"These are not endangered animals as an fyi."

Donald Trump's two sons went on a big game hunt in Africa, and the carnage they wrought has triggered outrage by wildlife enthusiasts.

Donald's sons -- Donald Jr. and Eric -- went on a hunting safari in Zimbabwe a year ago this month, and proudly showed off their trophy kills -- including an elephant, crocodile, kudu, civet cat and water buck.

In one shot, Donald Jr. is holding a dead elephant's tail in one hand and a knife which appears to have cut off the tail in another.

A wildlife enthusiast's website has just created a YouTube video of the slaughter expressing outrage.

As for Donald Trump, he tells TMZ, "My sons love hunting. They're hunters and they've become good at it. I am not a believer in hunting and I'm surprised they like it."

Trump added, "I know that anything they did was 100% OK in terms of the hunting community."

Justin Bieber now has one fewer snake to hold on a daily basis -- because the legless reptile-turned-fashion accessory he carried around at the VMAs last year has found a new home ... in a Minnesota zoo (below).

A rep for the Rad Zoo in Owatonna, MN tells TMZ, they received the small boa constrictor -- aptly named "Johnson" -- as a gift from a good Samaritan ... who purchased the snake at an auction following the MTV award ceremony.

According to the rep, the benefactor wanted Johnson to have a good home ... and thought Rad would be the perfect place.

Eddie van Halen says he's NOT ASHAMED by his fragile, cutesy-wootsy little pomeranian doggie ... despite his macho rock-god image ... telling TMZ he loves the little guy, no matter what other people think.

EVH was out in NYC last night ... cradling his poochie Kody on the way from his hotel to a waiting tour bus. The footage shocked some of the people in our newsroom who expected the rocker to own something a little less ...um ... Paris Hiltony.

But sources close to the dog tell TMZ ... Eddie has a strong bond with Kody ... and takes great care of his pet ... walking him, feeding and loving him every day.

Talk about ingratitude. Harvey made a passionate case for Uggie -- the dog that stole the show in "The Artist" -- to walk the red carpet at the Oscars. In case you didn't know, he's been snubbed by the Academy.

Jack Osbourne's dog Lola passed away at the respectable age of 12 -- so we decided to throw up a few of her greatest moments. God better have a strong garden hose up there.