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Equine Advocates, Inc. HORSE SLAUGHTER AN AMERICAN DISGRACE AN AMERICAN SHAME (www.equineadvocates.com/hs/) You are welcome to print this page in its entirety - with credit intact - and pass it on to anyone who might find it of interest. Please do not copy and paste the text from this page onto another web site - you may quote from it, with a link back. Equine Advocates, Inc. Susan Wagner, President and Founder | P.O. Box 354 | Chatham, NY 12037-0354, U.S. | www.equineadvocates.com
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Since 1980, well over 4 million American horses have been slaughtered in the U.S. and Canada and their meat exported to Europe and Japan for human consumption. Horse slaughter is not a form of humane euthanasia. "Slaughter Horses" are brutally handled . They are forced onto trucks (including in-humane double-decker cattle trailers- illegal in some states), and are often shipped hundreds of miles, sometimes for over 30 hours, without food, water or rest. Arriving at the slaughterhouses, they are driven out (sometimes dragged) into a killing factory and bludgeoned with a four-inch captive bolt gun which drives a spike into their skulls. If that "machinery" is not working properly, horses can be conscious while their throats are being slit. Today, an average of over 100,000 American horses are slaughtered annually at U.S. and Canadian plants. (According to the USDA, the number of U.S.-bred horses sent to Mexico for slaughter is "insignificant". The U.S. Meat Export Federation states that 567 horses were exported to Mexico for slaughter in 1998, as opposed to the 23,152 horses who were shipped to Canada for that purpose.) It is estimated that more than a third of all slaughter-bound horses in the U.S. are bred for racing. They are either no longer competitive or just don't make the grade. Others in-clude: camp, show, "backyard", rental and Amish horses, urban carriage horses, PMU mares and foals, and unwanted pregnant mares and barren broodmares. Aside from the visible high end, most horses sold at auction are bought by "killer buyers" (middlemen for slaughter plants) and go straight to slaughter often without disclosure or the knowledge of the sellers which promotes and often results in consumer fraud and horse theft. Most of the horses your children ride at summer camps, dude ranches and riding acadamies are sold for meat when they can no longer perform. Very little horse meat is used in dog food; it's too expensive with some cuts selling for over US$20.00 per pound. The majority of surviving foals born to the 80,000 PMU mares in North America to produce the estrogen replacement drug, Premarin, are considered by-products, and are sold for slaughter (as are their mothers when no longer productive.) THE ULTIMATE BETRAYAL This is a cultural issue. Horses, an integral part of America's heritage and culture, are favored animals, just like cats and dogs. Americans do not eat horses just as they do not eat cats and dogs. Some cultures do eat cats and dogs, but we would be appalled to supply these countries with such a food source, as opposed to humanely euthanizing animals considered to be our beloved pets and companions. Even those who consume horse meat may be betrayed. Many drugs commonly given to horses can be extremely dangerous to humans. Most "slaughter horses" come from unknown sources. Why then, are we supplying the European and Japanese food markets with our "excess" horses? The reason is that we have an enormous equine over-population problem in the U.S. This inspired foreign interests to start a secretive slaughter industry in the U.S. unbeknownst to most Americans. However, an increasing number of Americans have become aware of this slaughter industry, and over the past ten years, the number of equine slaughter plants in this country has decreased from fourteen to four. That's the good news. The bad news is that there is still an average of over 100,000 American horses being slaughtered here and in Canada annually. This is because the common denominator for every aspect of the horse business is the slaughterhouse. This will continue to be the case until Americans become more educated about this unspeakable practice and begin to take action to stop it. A RECYCLING BIN FOR HORSES Young, old, healthy, sick - they all go. Slaughter gives indiscriminate "backyard breeders" and some people in the horse industry an easy way to get rid of their unwanted horses quickly, and for a profit. We say our horses deserve better than this. We owe it to our horses to have them humanely euthanized rather than subjected to a horrific trip to the slaughterhouse. A NEW TRANS-ATLANTIC BONE On January 31, 2000, the BBC reported on a new controversy regarding Europeans' concern about hormones and other dangerous drugs contained in U.S. meats, including horse meat. The following is Equine Advocates' response to that report: We, at Equine Advocates, have long been aware of the dangerous drugs administered to race and show horses, not to mention just regular worming medications for all horses which are extremely toxic to humans. It is clearly written on every worming medication label, that it should NOT be used in horses slaughtered for human consumption...but we all know that the majority of the horses that are sent to slaughter in and from this country have been wormed because horses are not food animals in the United States. Most are pets, companions and sporting/performance animals who are all wormed regularly. We also know that the origin of most slaughter-bound horses from this country are unknown when they get to the slaughterhouse, but that, in fact, large numbers of them are former race horses, who have had numerous drugs and medications administered to them over long periods of time. Equine Advocates is opposed to the slaughter of horses under any condition for reasons clearly stated in this pamphlet, on our web site and in all our published literature. While we understand the Europeans' concern regarding the safety of the meat, they must be made aware that any ban on horse meat should be directed at ALL OF NORTH AMERICA and NOT JUST THE UNITED STATES. Thousands of U.S.-bred horses are transported live to Canada annually for slaughter.This has been going on for years. In addition, while Canada does slaughter thousands of its own horses every year as a result of the PMU (pregnant mares' urine) industry (who may not receive as many drugs as pet horses and sporting equine), that country does have its own racing and show horse industries, in addition to thousands of pleasure horses, all of whom receive drugs and medications which are toxic to humans. Those horses are also being slaughtered in Canada. (NOTE: Very few U.S.-bred horses are being transported live to Mexico for slaughter anymore mainly because of Europeans' fear of "...trichinosis and unsanitary conditions at Mexican plants..." ) It is only a matter of time before horse slaughter becomes illegal in the Unied States, and the horse meat industry in this country knows it. The latest news is that Cavel International, the equine slaughter plant in DeKalb, Illinois, is planning to relocate to Canada. As horse slaughter becomes more unpopular in the United States, and more U.S. equine slaughter plants close their doors to possibly relocate, the Europeans need to realize that if more American horses are transported live to Canada for slaughter, they will be still be importing and consuming much of the same horse meat from the very same horses with the same toxic drugs and medications in their systems. Horse slaughter for human consmption has already been outlawed in California. That legislation also includes language that prohibits any California horse from being shipped out of the state for the purpose of slaughter for human consumption. Hopefully, in time, federal legislation will be passed so that NO U.S.-bred horses will ever be allowed to be slaughtered again for any reason or transported live to any other country for the purpose of slaughter. Horse slaughter will probably be outlawed in several additional states before a federal bill is finally introduced. Until the day comes, where no U.S.-bred horse can be transported live over U.S. borders for the purpose of slaughter, THE EUROPEANS MUST BROADEN THEIR BAN TO INCLUDE HORSES FROM ALL OF NORTH AMERICA.CALIFORNIA SAYS NO ! In 1998, California became the first state to ban horse slaughter. Californians voted overwhelmingly to pass "Proposition 6", a state initiative to prohibit horse slaughter for human consumption, punishable as a felony. Hopefully, other states will soon follow Calfornia's historic lead. (NOTE: This legislation has had no bearing on the taxation or licensing of horses, despite propaganda from the "opposition".) AMERICANS SAY NO! State and nationwide polls have shown that the vast majority of Americans are strongly opposed to horse slaughter: In 1995 - A national call-in TV poll resulted in 93% of callers demanding that "the killing of horses for meat be banned". In 1997 - A state-wide poll taken in California revealed that 88% of those questioned were opposed to horse slaughter. In 1999 - A poll conducted in New York State yielded the following results:
If horse slaughter is so unpopular, then why do we still have it? Horse slaughter exists because most Americans are still not aware of it. According to official polls, the more educated and aware Americans become about horse slaughter, the more opposed they are to it. What do we do with carcasses of horses that have been humanely euthanized? Outside of burial (where permitted) or cremation (when possible), rendering plants will pick up equine carcasses for a fee. Also, there are landfills that will accept large animal carcasses. The vet who euthanizes your horse should be able to provide you with that information, but you can also obtain it by contacting your appropriate state agencies. BOGUS STUDIES - INADEQUATE REGS Inadequate federal guidelines by the USDA regarding the transportation of horses to slaughter are being adopted despite protests from numerous equine and animal protection groups all over the United States. Studies which we feel are bogus, as they were mostly conducted by horse slaughter proponents, were used as the basis for some of these "guidelines" which include the continued use of inhumane double-decker cattle trailers and allowing horses to travel for more than 28 hours without food, water or rest. With this new legislation, the government has essentially legalized the continued suffering and barbaric treatment of these animals. WE KNOW FROM 1980 TO 1998 WELL OVER 4,000,000 AMERICAN HORSES WERE SLAUGHTERED AT U.S. & CANADIAN PLANTS FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION Statistics of U.S. horses shipped live over the border to Canada were only available to us from 1990 to 1998. WE BELIEVE FROM THE EARLY 70's AS MANY AS 6,000,000 OR MORE AMERICAN HORSES HAVE BEEN SLAUGHTERED AT U.S. & CANADIAN PLANTS FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION Although we do not have complete statistics prior to 1980, we do know that according to the USDA, from 1977 to 1979, nearly a million horses were slaughtered at U.S. plants alone. HOWEVER, FROM 1990 TO 1998, A DECREASING TREND IN HORSE SLAUGHTER RESULTED IN 1,866,162 AMERICAN HORSES BEING SLAUGHTERED AT U.S. & CANADIAN PLANTS FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION AS SHOWN IN THE STATISTICS BELOW
NOTE: Not included in any of the above statistics are
certain unavailable numbers of stolen horses, non-freeze branded wild horses ("Slicks"), and horses transported live
to Mexico and the Orient.
Meet "Paula" Rescued from slaughter by Equine Advocates, she is now mascot and "poster child" for its national campaign against horse slaughter. THE STORY OF "PAULA" In May of 1999, Equine Advocates received a call from a "Good Samaritan" in a remote Pennsylvania town regarding a horse sale scheduled to take place in that area. This was going to be a "slaughter auction" - "killer buyers" would be there. Equine Advocates quickly raised the needed money, and called other groups and individuals to attend the sale and help outbid the killer buyers. There were 23 horses for sale, but one pathetically crippled and emaciated standardbred mare was highly sought after by the four killer buyers present. She was large, but would come cheap due to her poor condition. Susan Wagner, Equine Advocates' president, was alone in bidding for her against the killers. "She was a gentle creature who had been relentlessly driven as a 'buggy horse' until profoundly lame - then no longer useful, discarded by her handlers for a 'final' profit and an unspeakable death," explained Wagner. "She seemed resigned to her fate - there was no way I was going to let the killers have this mare or any of the other horses." (When the bidding ended, Equine Advocates had purchased 13 horses, including the crippled mare. Another group had obtained 4, and the remaining 6 went to private homes.) "The killers were completely shut out - mission accomplished." Wagner named the mare, "Paula" . Paula has since undergone a risky surgical procedure to remove a bone chip from her foot. Although she is still not walking normally, her prognosis is good and she is receiving the best of care. She has regained her health and her weight is now normal. Paula is currently living with that same "Good Samaritan" who is providing the loving home that she never had, but so well deserved. "Horses like this are the reason we do what we do", Wagner added. "No horse deserves slaughter - and surely not one like Paula, who had labored tirelessly serving humans." "Paula" has since become Equine Advocates' mascot and "poster child" for its national campaign against horse slaughter. HOW YOU CAN HELP (*) Don't patronize businesses that over-breed horses and then send their unwanted equines to slaughter. (*) Check out riding acadamies and camps - find out where their "used-up" horses go. There are humane operations - take the time to find them. (*) For estrogen replacement therapy, ask your doctor about one of numerous alternatives to Premarin, including Cenestin ("synthetic Premarin)" a new plant-based form of conjugated estrogens by Duramed Pharmaceuticals. (*) Don't breed your horse: rescue one - from camps, riding acadamies, race tracks, etc. You could save a horse from ending up as "dinner", while GAINING a new "Best Friend". (*) Don't buy articles made from horse hide, i.e., "Corinthian Leather" (some auto upholstery), clothing and accessories made from "Pony Skin", and brushes and other items made from horse hair. (*) Before attending an auction, familiarize yourself with all animal health, transportation and cruelty laws in your state. Document all violations effectively and report them to law enforcement. Getting the laws enforced will cost the offenders money and help prevent suffering (*) Support efforts in your state to oppose horse slaughter. If several states prohibit it, a federal ban would then be possible. (*)Spread the word about horse slaughter. Thanks to the efforts of pioneers like newspaper reporter Ross Peddicord (for his groundbreaking expose' "The Last Ride" in the Baltimore Sun in 1989 ), TV journalist Christine Lund (for her award-winning series on Eye Witness News in 1992), the now defunct show, HARD COPY, for its shocking and award-winning report, "Save The Horses" (which was repeated over and over in 1995 and '96), and Cathleen Doyle, the originator and main motivating force behind the historic passage of California's "Prop 6" in 1998 (the first anti-horse-slaughter legislation in the nation), horse slaughter is now on the decline. Join those who have already made a huge difference by educating people you know about slaughter auctions and the horse slaughter industry. (*) Make a tax deductible donation to Equine Advocates. Your financial support will help us rescue horses in need, conduct important investigations into equine abuse, and intensify our fight and opposition to horse slaughter. *** ABOUT EQUINE ADVOCATES ****
Our mission is to rescue, protect and prevent the abuse of horses through education, investigation, rescue operations, and the dissemination of information to the public.
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