Horse-slaughter ban closely watched in U.S. [link]
Laura Rance | May 17, 2008
Are horses livestock or pets, tools or toys?
For most people, the answer to that question lies not in what happens to that horse during its life, but at its end. Most of society has no trouble with the notion of sending livestock to the slaughterhouse. But it's not something most people would do with their pets.
It's a question that divides recreational horse owners from the horse industry and animal welfare advocates from livestock owners.
And it's at the core of a highly controversial debate playing out in the U.S. courts right now with spillover effects for Canada.
U.S. legislators' decision last year to remove federal inspection services for horse-slaughter plants, which effectively eliminates their ability to operate, appears to be headed for the U.S. Supreme Court.
Back in the bad old days when the slaughter plants were operating, between 40,000 and 60,000 unwanted horses were routinely shipped annually to processing plants in that country where they were turned into human or pet food. There were some highly publicized stories about the practice and how some of the racing industry's most famous steeds ended up at the slaughterhouse when their running days were done.
So began the 'save a horse, ban the slaughter' campaign.
The slaughter-ban camp won—at least this round.
But while it seems you can legislate a change in human behaviour, it's a little harder to change human nature.
U.S. horses continue to be shipped to slaughter. Only now they are loaded on trucks and hauled thousands of kilometres to Mexico and Canada, where plants still operate. Surplus foals once produced by the pregnant mare's urine industry made Canada a relatively large exporter of horse meat destined for European and Japanese markets. Those markets still exist.
Canadian Food Inspection Agency officials intervened in several instances last winter in which transport trucks arrived at the Canadian border carrying U.S. horses on trailers not designed for horses. Inspectors refused to allow them entry, which didn't help the overcrowded horses much, but sent a clear message to the trucking industry.
Another more insidious trend has emerged in the United States. The horse meat market has traditionally set a the floor price for horses. A horse that had any use at all would sell for a premium over the meat price. The absence of the meat buyer has pulled that floor away. Sometimes no one, not even the owner who brought it to the sale, is willing to take it home. They don't want to pay the sales commission on a horse that didn't sell or that didn't fetch an adequate price, either.
The U.S. Livestock Marketing Association, whose members often served as the middlemen in the slaughter process, is among the groups fighting to have the slaughter reinstated.
There are reports emerging of horses left to starve or fend for themselves by owners who are unwilling or unable to continue caring for them. USDA officials are quoted in a Reuters report as having to investigate a rising number of cases in which horses have been taken to public lands and either turned loose or shot and left to rot.
The idea of a horse running wild and free may be romanticized in the movies, but in reality, it's a pretty tough outcome—especially if an animal has been raised in captivity and cultured to be dependent on humans. "Nothing has changed for the horse; they are just dying and suffering in a different way," says Shanyn Silinksi, executive director of the Manitoba Farm Animal Care Council. "Don't make a horse suffer to make a person feel better."
Some say horse owners should euthanize a horse like they would a dog. The problem, however, is disposal. It's neither easy nor advisable to bury a 500-kilogram animal at the back of the garden. Paying for disposal can be costly.
There is growing pressure on U.S. lawmakers to reconsider their decision. Some want the slaughter ban lifted. Others want the ban expanded to make it illegal to export horses for slaughter, a move that would be difficult to enforce once the horse is beyond American borders.
The U.S. debate is far from over. But it's being closely watched.
Horses, with both their functional and emotional connection to humans, have become a bellwether of sorts for how our society's relationship with animals is evolving. "It's not a welfare agenda. It's a political agenda to change how we view animals," Silinski says.
XP—When animal rights propaganda triumphs over common sense and the American people's right to choose, none of us win ... least of all, the horses. I think each of the politicians who helped pass the ban should have about 5,000 unwanted horses delivered to their nicely manicured front lawn.
May 17, 2008
May 13, 2008
Export ban hard to enforce, will add to problems here
Horses abandoned in West as feed prices rise [link]
Laura Zuckerman | May 13, 2008
SALMON, Idaho (Reuters) -- In the classic Hollywood western, a cowboy portrayed by John Wayne gallops across the sagebrush steppe and rocky ridges of the American West with only his horse for a companion.
What the films don't show is the cowboy buying and hauling hay for his horse, or what happens to the horse when it is too aged, infirm or irascible to ride.
Those more mundane details are at the heart of a debate about growing cases of mistreatment of horses in the United States, at a time when hay and grain prices are skyrocketing and when options for disposing of unwanted horses are dwindling.
Just a year ago, the sale of an average horse suitable for recreation—one with neither prized bloodlines nor a performance record to heighten its status—would have fetched several thousand dollars.
Today, prices in some cases have dropped to just hundreds of dollars, largely because of higher costs for their maintenance and transport.
The situation for marginal horses—horses whose poor physical condition or disposition makes them targets for slaughter—is even worse, after a court ruling sought by animal-rights groups effectively shut down the U.S. horse slaughter industry last year.
The result is that a growing number of unwanted horses are being starved or turned loose to fend for themselves in the U.S. West, according to animal welfare advocates.
"What concerns me is a fate worse than slaughter," said Temple Grandin, professor of animal science at Colorado State University and an authority on the handling of livestock such as horses. "We've got people turning horses loose in fields, dropping horses off in the night—my worst nightmares are coming true."
Such images have strong resonance in the West, the land of the rider on the range immortalized in art by Frederic Remington and in popular culture by actors such as the late President Ronald Reagan.
Far from Kentucky, where thoroughbreds race the Churchill Downs, owning a horse in the West is a middle-class occupation. The average horse owner rides for recreation and keeps their horse on their own land or land rented for the purpose, rather than at a commercially run barn.
Horses eat hay made from either grass or alfalfa, or a mix of both, and a modest amount of grain. Prices fluctuate, but in east central Idaho, hay prices have risen to $145 from $120 per ton a year ago, a jump of 21 percent. In northern Idaho it costs $220 per ton and as much as $300 per ton in parts of California. Feeding a horse can cost $2,000 a year or more.
TURNED LOOSE
The West is also the region where the historic practice of releasing domesticated horses into the wild—first by Spanish explorers and last by ranchers—gave rise to the herds of Mustangs, or feral horses, that still inhabit the vast public lands of Western states.
But the romantic concept of freeing a tamed horse to roam the West's wide open spaces bears no resemblance to the reality, said Kirk Miller, livestock investigator in Idaho and Montana for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
"They have no survival instinct in the wild, no clue as to what's dangerous to eat, no knowledge of how to grub for food under the snow," he said.
Miller and Colorado State's Grandin are among animal experts who say the campaign led by the Humane Society of the United States to end domestic horse slaughter was well-intentioned but misguided.
Now the tens of thousands of American horses marked for slaughter are shipped to Canada and Mexico, where long, stressful journeys end in what some horse advocates say can be unduly painful deaths.
Most horses are slaughtered for human consumption, with Europe and Asia providing markets for their meat.
Some horse associations are siding with the Humane Society in its fight to end export of horses for slaughter altogether. But others are seeking to re-establish processing in the United States to broaden the outlet for unwanted horses and to ensure the animals are killed by a mechanical method approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Keith Dane, director of equine protection for the Humane Society, said for Americans to have their horses killed for their meat would be akin to sending their pet dogs to slaughter for human consumption.
But unlike its canine counterpart, a horse weighs an average of 1,000 pounds and disposal of its carcass after Humane Society-recommended euthanasia has become burdensome. Where permitted by law and where able, owners can bury carcasses on their own land or pay several hundred dollars in assorted fees to deposit the remains at a local landfill.
Those complications may be behind what state livestock officials and federal land managers in the West say is a spike in the number of horses shot dead and dumped on public lands.
Scot Dutcher, animal protection chief with the Colorado Department of Agriculture, said the abandoned horse cases officials are addressing now is a ripple compared to the wave that may come.
"If it becomes illegal to export horses for slaughter, we'll be dealing with an equine tsunami," he said.
Meanwhile, officials at some sale barns in Montana are asking owners of especially old or underweight horses to pay the auction house if the animals do not bring a sufficient price.
And horse rescues, nonprofit groups that rehabilitate and place unwanted and often abused horses, are reporting a rise in the number of calls they are fielding and the number of horses they turn away for lack of resources.
"I could have 500 horses here tomorrow," said Brent Glover, head of Orphan Acres, an Idaho rescue operation that can maintain a maximum of 130 horses.
XP—Yes, the auction prices are so bad that some horses do not fetch a high enough bid to cover the cost of consignment, leaving certain desperate owners who could not afford to feed the horse in the first place with yet another debt. There is no longer a need in many areas to "outbid the kill buyer" to keep the better horses from shipping, so there is no median value for the gentle or the untamed. Only the finest horses with proven records and quality training are fetching consistently high bids. The mixed breed green broke colt that came about so that someone's kids could witness "the miracle of birth" may not even fetch $25 today.
Laura Zuckerman | May 13, 2008
SALMON, Idaho (Reuters) -- In the classic Hollywood western, a cowboy portrayed by John Wayne gallops across the sagebrush steppe and rocky ridges of the American West with only his horse for a companion.
What the films don't show is the cowboy buying and hauling hay for his horse, or what happens to the horse when it is too aged, infirm or irascible to ride.
Those more mundane details are at the heart of a debate about growing cases of mistreatment of horses in the United States, at a time when hay and grain prices are skyrocketing and when options for disposing of unwanted horses are dwindling.
Just a year ago, the sale of an average horse suitable for recreation—one with neither prized bloodlines nor a performance record to heighten its status—would have fetched several thousand dollars.
Today, prices in some cases have dropped to just hundreds of dollars, largely because of higher costs for their maintenance and transport.
The situation for marginal horses—horses whose poor physical condition or disposition makes them targets for slaughter—is even worse, after a court ruling sought by animal-rights groups effectively shut down the U.S. horse slaughter industry last year.
The result is that a growing number of unwanted horses are being starved or turned loose to fend for themselves in the U.S. West, according to animal welfare advocates.
"What concerns me is a fate worse than slaughter," said Temple Grandin, professor of animal science at Colorado State University and an authority on the handling of livestock such as horses. "We've got people turning horses loose in fields, dropping horses off in the night—my worst nightmares are coming true."
Such images have strong resonance in the West, the land of the rider on the range immortalized in art by Frederic Remington and in popular culture by actors such as the late President Ronald Reagan.
Far from Kentucky, where thoroughbreds race the Churchill Downs, owning a horse in the West is a middle-class occupation. The average horse owner rides for recreation and keeps their horse on their own land or land rented for the purpose, rather than at a commercially run barn.
Horses eat hay made from either grass or alfalfa, or a mix of both, and a modest amount of grain. Prices fluctuate, but in east central Idaho, hay prices have risen to $145 from $120 per ton a year ago, a jump of 21 percent. In northern Idaho it costs $220 per ton and as much as $300 per ton in parts of California. Feeding a horse can cost $2,000 a year or more.
TURNED LOOSE
The West is also the region where the historic practice of releasing domesticated horses into the wild—first by Spanish explorers and last by ranchers—gave rise to the herds of Mustangs, or feral horses, that still inhabit the vast public lands of Western states.
But the romantic concept of freeing a tamed horse to roam the West's wide open spaces bears no resemblance to the reality, said Kirk Miller, livestock investigator in Idaho and Montana for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
"They have no survival instinct in the wild, no clue as to what's dangerous to eat, no knowledge of how to grub for food under the snow," he said.
Miller and Colorado State's Grandin are among animal experts who say the campaign led by the Humane Society of the United States to end domestic horse slaughter was well-intentioned but misguided.
Now the tens of thousands of American horses marked for slaughter are shipped to Canada and Mexico, where long, stressful journeys end in what some horse advocates say can be unduly painful deaths.
Most horses are slaughtered for human consumption, with Europe and Asia providing markets for their meat.
Some horse associations are siding with the Humane Society in its fight to end export of horses for slaughter altogether. But others are seeking to re-establish processing in the United States to broaden the outlet for unwanted horses and to ensure the animals are killed by a mechanical method approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Keith Dane, director of equine protection for the Humane Society, said for Americans to have their horses killed for their meat would be akin to sending their pet dogs to slaughter for human consumption.
But unlike its canine counterpart, a horse weighs an average of 1,000 pounds and disposal of its carcass after Humane Society-recommended euthanasia has become burdensome. Where permitted by law and where able, owners can bury carcasses on their own land or pay several hundred dollars in assorted fees to deposit the remains at a local landfill.
Those complications may be behind what state livestock officials and federal land managers in the West say is a spike in the number of horses shot dead and dumped on public lands.
Scot Dutcher, animal protection chief with the Colorado Department of Agriculture, said the abandoned horse cases officials are addressing now is a ripple compared to the wave that may come.
"If it becomes illegal to export horses for slaughter, we'll be dealing with an equine tsunami," he said.
Meanwhile, officials at some sale barns in Montana are asking owners of especially old or underweight horses to pay the auction house if the animals do not bring a sufficient price.
And horse rescues, nonprofit groups that rehabilitate and place unwanted and often abused horses, are reporting a rise in the number of calls they are fielding and the number of horses they turn away for lack of resources.
"I could have 500 horses here tomorrow," said Brent Glover, head of Orphan Acres, an Idaho rescue operation that can maintain a maximum of 130 horses.
XP—Yes, the auction prices are so bad that some horses do not fetch a high enough bid to cover the cost of consignment, leaving certain desperate owners who could not afford to feed the horse in the first place with yet another debt. There is no longer a need in many areas to "outbid the kill buyer" to keep the better horses from shipping, so there is no median value for the gentle or the untamed. Only the finest horses with proven records and quality training are fetching consistently high bids. The mixed breed green broke colt that came about so that someone's kids could witness "the miracle of birth" may not even fetch $25 today.
What's missing? Common sense.
Congress hears results of U.S. horse slaughter ban [link]
Bryan Salvage | May 13, 2008
KANSAS CITY, MO. ― Participants in the Livestock Marketing Association’s fourth annual Washington, D.C. Fly-In said members of Congress are realizing the unintended consequences of closing the last three horse slaughter plants in the U.S.
Jim Santomaso, L.M.A. president, said the industry is seeing "more and more reports of abandoned horses and of horses turned out and left to starve because owners can’t afford their upkeep or have the means to properly dispose of them," after a series of legislative actions closed the three remaining U.S.-based plants in recent years.
Cavel International Inc., DeKalb, Ill., was the final plant to close this past year. State officials closed the plant, and a legal battle to reopen has led Cavel officials to the U.S. Supreme Court. In February, L.M.A. filed an "amicus curiae" (friend of the court) brief with the Supreme Court, asking it to overturn the Illinois law banning horse slaughter and the federal appeals court decision upholding that law. That law, and the subsequent appeals decision, effectively exempted 40,000-60,000 horses from humane slaughter, the brief said. The Cavel plant slaughtered that many horses annually, all under the provisions of the federal Humane Slaughter Act, which applies only to U.S. plants.
"[Lawmakers] are ready to listen to the argument that banning slaughter is creating huge problems," said Mr. Santomaso. "The ban takes away individual property rights, when you tell a horse owner what he can and cannot do with an animal that may be at the end of its useful life."
L.M.A. representatives made these points during meetings with the chairman and staff members of panels of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees, and lawmakers from the members’ home states. During a trip to Washington April 27-30, the group also met with the chair of the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., to discuss the unintended consequences of using the appropriations process in removing a humane method of disposal for tens of thousands of unwanted horses.
The "terrible result" of legislation banning this slaughter, he said, "is to close legitimately operated food-processing plants based solely on cultural and emotional arguments. And that sets a very dangerous precedent of banning a legitimate meat product for reasons other than food safety or public health."
"We are cautiously optimistic that the people we met on Capitol Hill will keep our position in mind as Congress moves forward on this key issue," he said.
XP—That's what I've been saying. To us, horse meat may be revolting, to others a hamburger made of beef is just as unsavory. But who are we to police our neighbor's dinner plates?
Bryan Salvage | May 13, 2008
KANSAS CITY, MO. ― Participants in the Livestock Marketing Association’s fourth annual Washington, D.C. Fly-In said members of Congress are realizing the unintended consequences of closing the last three horse slaughter plants in the U.S.
Jim Santomaso, L.M.A. president, said the industry is seeing "more and more reports of abandoned horses and of horses turned out and left to starve because owners can’t afford their upkeep or have the means to properly dispose of them," after a series of legislative actions closed the three remaining U.S.-based plants in recent years.
Cavel International Inc., DeKalb, Ill., was the final plant to close this past year. State officials closed the plant, and a legal battle to reopen has led Cavel officials to the U.S. Supreme Court. In February, L.M.A. filed an "amicus curiae" (friend of the court) brief with the Supreme Court, asking it to overturn the Illinois law banning horse slaughter and the federal appeals court decision upholding that law. That law, and the subsequent appeals decision, effectively exempted 40,000-60,000 horses from humane slaughter, the brief said. The Cavel plant slaughtered that many horses annually, all under the provisions of the federal Humane Slaughter Act, which applies only to U.S. plants.
"[Lawmakers] are ready to listen to the argument that banning slaughter is creating huge problems," said Mr. Santomaso. "The ban takes away individual property rights, when you tell a horse owner what he can and cannot do with an animal that may be at the end of its useful life."
L.M.A. representatives made these points during meetings with the chairman and staff members of panels of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees, and lawmakers from the members’ home states. During a trip to Washington April 27-30, the group also met with the chair of the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., to discuss the unintended consequences of using the appropriations process in removing a humane method of disposal for tens of thousands of unwanted horses.
The "terrible result" of legislation banning this slaughter, he said, "is to close legitimately operated food-processing plants based solely on cultural and emotional arguments. And that sets a very dangerous precedent of banning a legitimate meat product for reasons other than food safety or public health."
"We are cautiously optimistic that the people we met on Capitol Hill will keep our position in mind as Congress moves forward on this key issue," he said.
XP—That's what I've been saying. To us, horse meat may be revolting, to others a hamburger made of beef is just as unsavory. But who are we to police our neighbor's dinner plates?
Apr 9, 2008
Horses suffer when rescues full, no takers on free horses
Horse owners feel pain of rising supply prices [link]
Lindsey Henley | April 9, 2008
Peaches is the newest addition to the Roanoke Valley Horse Rescue (RVHR).
While there’s no question she’s cute, the Horse Rescue – already with more than 50 horses – is running out of room.
The problem is more and more people want to give up their horses.
“I usually get at least one call a day and three or four emails a day of people looking to place their animals with us,” said Patricia Muncy with RVHR. “It’s just a sad situation.”
It’s a situation Muncy mostly blames on the rising cost of things like hay and grain.
“The hay is the biggest thing right now. It’s causing a lot of problems for owners,” she said.
In some places, the price has gone from $2.50 per square bale, to as high as $10.00 per square bale. Those high prices are leading to malnourished and abandoned horses.
Even worse, some owners are having to euthanize their horses, because they simply can’t afford to take care of them.
“It’s just turning into a very vicious circle for everybody,” Muncy said.
We checked with the Roanoke Valley Equine Clinic today. They’ve been receiving a lot of calls from people who are trying to place horses with them, because the horses’ owners can no longer afford them.
When it comes to euthanizing an animal, it is the owner’s decision. Veterinarians at the Roanoke Valley Equine Clinic have been doing everything they can to try to intervene, and find the horse a home.
Lindsey Henley | April 9, 2008
Peaches is the newest addition to the Roanoke Valley Horse Rescue (RVHR).
While there’s no question she’s cute, the Horse Rescue – already with more than 50 horses – is running out of room.
The problem is more and more people want to give up their horses.
“I usually get at least one call a day and three or four emails a day of people looking to place their animals with us,” said Patricia Muncy with RVHR. “It’s just a sad situation.”
It’s a situation Muncy mostly blames on the rising cost of things like hay and grain.
“The hay is the biggest thing right now. It’s causing a lot of problems for owners,” she said.
In some places, the price has gone from $2.50 per square bale, to as high as $10.00 per square bale. Those high prices are leading to malnourished and abandoned horses.
Even worse, some owners are having to euthanize their horses, because they simply can’t afford to take care of them.
“It’s just turning into a very vicious circle for everybody,” Muncy said.
We checked with the Roanoke Valley Equine Clinic today. They’ve been receiving a lot of calls from people who are trying to place horses with them, because the horses’ owners can no longer afford them.
When it comes to euthanizing an animal, it is the owner’s decision. Veterinarians at the Roanoke Valley Equine Clinic have been doing everything they can to try to intervene, and find the horse a home.
XP—Who predicted this would happen?
Desperate measures
Officals Search For Person Who Dumped Horse [link]
Jim Konkoly | April 9, 2008
SEBRING – An old horse that was dumped out of a trailer near Lake Placid is being cared for by Highlands County Animal Control.
Darryl Scott, director of the county agency, has posted the horse's picture on the Animal Control Web site, in the "lost and found" link, in hopes of identifying the person who abandoned the horse.
On March 20, after 10 p.m., a person living on County Road 29 near Lake Placid, called Animal Control and reported that a horse had been abandoned near his residence.
Scott said the caller reported the following:
He heard a truck stop on the road, then heard the sound of a trailer gate opening. Moments later he heard the trailer gate slammed shut, then heard the truck drive off. The resident then saw a horse in his front yard and called Animal Control.
Scott said the horse was in "poor" condition and, from the caller's account, obviously was abandoned in the road.
XP—Such a desperate measure. What else can you do if your financial situation changes and you cannot afford to feed your horse or euthanize it?
Jim Konkoly | April 9, 2008
SEBRING – An old horse that was dumped out of a trailer near Lake Placid is being cared for by Highlands County Animal Control.
Darryl Scott, director of the county agency, has posted the horse's picture on the Animal Control Web site, in the "lost and found" link, in hopes of identifying the person who abandoned the horse.
On March 20, after 10 p.m., a person living on County Road 29 near Lake Placid, called Animal Control and reported that a horse had been abandoned near his residence.
Scott said the caller reported the following:
He heard a truck stop on the road, then heard the sound of a trailer gate opening. Moments later he heard the trailer gate slammed shut, then heard the truck drive off. The resident then saw a horse in his front yard and called Animal Control.
Scott said the horse was in "poor" condition and, from the caller's account, obviously was abandoned in the road.
XP—Such a desperate measure. What else can you do if your financial situation changes and you cannot afford to feed your horse or euthanize it?
Apr 5, 2008
Horse rescues overwhelmed with requests
Burden falls on horse sanctuary [link]
Janet O’Neill | April 5, 2008
Owners give up animals as costs run high in weak economy
COTTONWOOD -- America’s dreary economy is claiming a passel of four-legged, shaggy-tailed victims.
Linda Richards, owner of Safe Haven Horse Rescue and Sanctuary on West Anderson Drive, is getting calls every day from people who just can’t afford to keep their equine companions. The current horse population on her 25-acre spread is “way too many,” she said.
Translated, that number is something in the neighborhood of 40.
“We are overwhelmed right now,” Richards said Thursday. “We’re looking for serious foster homes. It’s the economy.”
Recently, she took in a horse from an elderly couple because the husband was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. She was more than happy to save it from being euthanized. But other stories are starting to repeat.
“People are losing their homes,” Richards said. “They’ve lost their jobs. It’s the cost of living.”
And the cost of owning a horse is going up with everything else.
A bale of hay costs between $15 and $18, Richards said, an expense she calls “outrageous” and the highest she’s seen. A horse can devour that in a week.
It follows that Safe Haven’s expenses are up along with everyone else’s. The sanctuary goes through 2 tons of alfalfa hay a week—that doesn’t include the special mush some of the animals require—and at $240 a pop, it adds up.
Horse lovers like Lisa Lashaway, who lives outside Los Angeles, are trying to help. She sponsors an Arabian mare named Beauty at Safe Haven for a tax-deductible $65 a month. She also volunteers for the nonprofit sanctuary.
“A lot of horses that would be going to slaughter are saved,” Lashaway said of the sanctuary.
In addition to donations, Safe Haven relies heavily on an annual fundraiser to keep afloat. Its Spring Playday is scheduled for April 13 at Bobby Jones Arena in Cottonwood.
Also entertaining for spectators, it’s open to riders of all levels of experience who compete for prizes. Among the eight events are barrel racing, pole bending and other gymkhana-type contests. Food, raffle tickets and Safe Haven merchandise will be available for sale.
Richards hopes to hold two play days this year, as opposed to last year’s one, so she can continue to care for abused and orphaned horses until new homes are found. She says one thoroughbred who went from 700 to 1,000 pounds in her care is typical of the rewards of her work.
“She’s healthy; she’s happy,” Richards said. “We adopt out a lot of good horses.”
Janet O’Neill | April 5, 2008
Owners give up animals as costs run high in weak economy
COTTONWOOD -- America’s dreary economy is claiming a passel of four-legged, shaggy-tailed victims.
Linda Richards, owner of Safe Haven Horse Rescue and Sanctuary on West Anderson Drive, is getting calls every day from people who just can’t afford to keep their equine companions. The current horse population on her 25-acre spread is “way too many,” she said.
Translated, that number is something in the neighborhood of 40.
“We are overwhelmed right now,” Richards said Thursday. “We’re looking for serious foster homes. It’s the economy.”
Recently, she took in a horse from an elderly couple because the husband was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. She was more than happy to save it from being euthanized. But other stories are starting to repeat.
“People are losing their homes,” Richards said. “They’ve lost their jobs. It’s the cost of living.”
And the cost of owning a horse is going up with everything else.
A bale of hay costs between $15 and $18, Richards said, an expense she calls “outrageous” and the highest she’s seen. A horse can devour that in a week.
It follows that Safe Haven’s expenses are up along with everyone else’s. The sanctuary goes through 2 tons of alfalfa hay a week—that doesn’t include the special mush some of the animals require—and at $240 a pop, it adds up.
Horse lovers like Lisa Lashaway, who lives outside Los Angeles, are trying to help. She sponsors an Arabian mare named Beauty at Safe Haven for a tax-deductible $65 a month. She also volunteers for the nonprofit sanctuary.
“A lot of horses that would be going to slaughter are saved,” Lashaway said of the sanctuary.
In addition to donations, Safe Haven relies heavily on an annual fundraiser to keep afloat. Its Spring Playday is scheduled for April 13 at Bobby Jones Arena in Cottonwood.
Also entertaining for spectators, it’s open to riders of all levels of experience who compete for prizes. Among the eight events are barrel racing, pole bending and other gymkhana-type contests. Food, raffle tickets and Safe Haven merchandise will be available for sale.
Richards hopes to hold two play days this year, as opposed to last year’s one, so she can continue to care for abused and orphaned horses until new homes are found. She says one thoroughbred who went from 700 to 1,000 pounds in her care is typical of the rewards of her work.
“She’s healthy; she’s happy,” Richards said. “We adopt out a lot of good horses.”
XP—What is "happy to save it from being euthanized" about anyway? I thought chemical euthanasia was the great and wise solution to the problem? (Sorry, I don't agree with that wasteful and environmentally unfriendly option.)
Apr 4, 2008
Sadly, ban opponents predictions coming true
Activists fight horse exports to Mexico [link]
Mateusz Perkowski | April 4, 2008
As slaughter drops off in U.S., attention shifts to live exports
A "puntilla" boning knife stabs the horse in the back of the neck, severing the spinal cord.
Rendered immobile, the animal nonetheless remains conscious as it's hung by its hind legs and its throat is slit.
"It's an older, more barbaric practice" that is probably common in Mexico, said Keith Dane, director of equine protection for the Humane Society of the United States.
These methods were filmed by an investigator in a Mexican horse slaughterhouse, and the group is now using the footage to gain support for a federal ban on slaughtering horses or exporting them for slaughter.
"We're very confident we've got the votes," Dane said, referring to the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act currently before the House and Senate.
The irony is that more horses are now being shipped to Mexico as the result of horse slaughter bans in several U.S. states, said Tom Lenz, a veterinarian, past president of the American Association of Equine Practitioners and chair of the Unwanted Horse Coalition.
"What's going on today is exactly what we predicted," he said.
Horse slaughter isn't banned at the federal level, but bans in Illinois and Texas effectively shut down the last three remaining plants in the U.S. last year. Since then, exports of horses for slaughter have surged, Lenz said.
About 10,900 horses have been sent to Mexico for slaughter so far in 2008, up from about 4,900 at the time last year—more than a twofold increase, according to the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service.
"Once they cross the border, they're no longer under our federal veterinary supervision," said Lenz.
That is exactly why the Humane Society wants Congress to pass the federal ban, said Dane. Since there are no horse slaughterhouses left in the U.S., passing the act would not change the situation in this country, he said.
"The only real impact of the bill is to stop the export," said Dane. "The ban is the answer."
Groups that oppose the bill, including the AAEP and the American Veterinary Medical Association, may be counting on new horse slaughter facilities starting up in states with no horse slaughter ban, he said.
However, this isn't likely to happen even if the federal ban fails in Congress, he said. The ire such plants would draw from the society and other animal rights groups would scare investors away, Dane said.
"It's probably not a wise business move to open another one in another state," he said.
The AVMA is not "pro-slaughter," but the association also doesn't believe slaughter bans are realistic, said Angela Demaree, a veterinarian and assistant director of governmental relations for the group.
"There's no quick fix to the problem," she said.
Just because the Congress prohibits horse exports for slaughter doesn't mean the animals will cease traveling to Mexico, Demaree said. There's a possibility that horses sent to that country supposedly for breeding or showing will actually be processed for meat, she said.
"The point is nobody has looked into exports under false premises," said Demaree.
Export statistics cause Demaree to suspect this may already be happening. At 1,100 horses, the number of animals sent to Mexico for breeding so far in 2008 is 10 times greater than at this point last year, according to AMS.
"Our concern is, if the bill passes, we could see those numbers escalate even further," said Demaree.
Proponents of the bill discount this argument, since existing rules could be subverted as well, said Dane.
"There's always the possibility that someone will lie and break the laws," he said. "That happens every day on multiple levels."
Federal oversight would need to be stepped up to reduce the prevalence of sham horse exports, Dane said. The society would also launch investigations to ensure the law was enforced, he said.
What troubles veterinary groups like the AAEP and AVMA is that the bill doesn't provide any funding for the care of unwanted horses, said Lenz.
Owners of the 100,000 or so horses that are usually slaughtered each year would need to seek out other options, he said.
Wealthy horse owners can afford the $60 to $100 it costs to euthanize a horse and the $200 to $300 more it costs to dispose of the carcass, he said. For poorer owners, selling the animal for slaughter is often the only financially feasible choice, said Lenz.
"There's a lot of people at the lower end of the horse business that are having a tough time right now," said Lenz, noting that the high cost of hay, feed and fuel aggravates the problem.
"Those are the people who are on the borderline economically," he said.
With so many unwanted horses, Lenz worries that the animals would be neglected, abandoned or abused.
Such concerns are not backed up by the facts, according to Veterinarians for Equine Welfare, a group opposing horse slaughter. The horse slaughter industry depends mostly on healthy animals, not old or sickly ones that need to be euthanized, the group said in a white paper earlier this year.
"No increase in the abandonment or neglect of horses has been documented since the closure of the three domestic slaughter plants in the earlier part of 2007," stated the paper.
It is true that many horses headed for slaughter are outwardly healthy, but many have temperamental problems or become lame only when subjected to weight, Lenz said. Otherwise, it wouldn't make economic sense for owners to sell them for slaughter, given the much lower selling price for meat horses, he said.
"Nobody is raising horses in this country to be processed. ... These are just discarded horses," said Lenz. "If there were no longer horses being discarded, there would be no horse slaughter in this country."
Mateusz Perkowski | April 4, 2008
As slaughter drops off in U.S., attention shifts to live exports
A "puntilla" boning knife stabs the horse in the back of the neck, severing the spinal cord.
Rendered immobile, the animal nonetheless remains conscious as it's hung by its hind legs and its throat is slit.
"It's an older, more barbaric practice" that is probably common in Mexico, said Keith Dane, director of equine protection for the Humane Society of the United States.
These methods were filmed by an investigator in a Mexican horse slaughterhouse, and the group is now using the footage to gain support for a federal ban on slaughtering horses or exporting them for slaughter.
"We're very confident we've got the votes," Dane said, referring to the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act currently before the House and Senate.
The irony is that more horses are now being shipped to Mexico as the result of horse slaughter bans in several U.S. states, said Tom Lenz, a veterinarian, past president of the American Association of Equine Practitioners and chair of the Unwanted Horse Coalition.
"What's going on today is exactly what we predicted," he said.
Horse slaughter isn't banned at the federal level, but bans in Illinois and Texas effectively shut down the last three remaining plants in the U.S. last year. Since then, exports of horses for slaughter have surged, Lenz said.
About 10,900 horses have been sent to Mexico for slaughter so far in 2008, up from about 4,900 at the time last year—more than a twofold increase, according to the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service.
"Once they cross the border, they're no longer under our federal veterinary supervision," said Lenz.
That is exactly why the Humane Society wants Congress to pass the federal ban, said Dane. Since there are no horse slaughterhouses left in the U.S., passing the act would not change the situation in this country, he said.
"The only real impact of the bill is to stop the export," said Dane. "The ban is the answer."
Groups that oppose the bill, including the AAEP and the American Veterinary Medical Association, may be counting on new horse slaughter facilities starting up in states with no horse slaughter ban, he said.
However, this isn't likely to happen even if the federal ban fails in Congress, he said. The ire such plants would draw from the society and other animal rights groups would scare investors away, Dane said.
"It's probably not a wise business move to open another one in another state," he said.
The AVMA is not "pro-slaughter," but the association also doesn't believe slaughter bans are realistic, said Angela Demaree, a veterinarian and assistant director of governmental relations for the group.
"There's no quick fix to the problem," she said.
Just because the Congress prohibits horse exports for slaughter doesn't mean the animals will cease traveling to Mexico, Demaree said. There's a possibility that horses sent to that country supposedly for breeding or showing will actually be processed for meat, she said.
"The point is nobody has looked into exports under false premises," said Demaree.
Export statistics cause Demaree to suspect this may already be happening. At 1,100 horses, the number of animals sent to Mexico for breeding so far in 2008 is 10 times greater than at this point last year, according to AMS.
"Our concern is, if the bill passes, we could see those numbers escalate even further," said Demaree.
Proponents of the bill discount this argument, since existing rules could be subverted as well, said Dane.
"There's always the possibility that someone will lie and break the laws," he said. "That happens every day on multiple levels."
Federal oversight would need to be stepped up to reduce the prevalence of sham horse exports, Dane said. The society would also launch investigations to ensure the law was enforced, he said.
What troubles veterinary groups like the AAEP and AVMA is that the bill doesn't provide any funding for the care of unwanted horses, said Lenz.
Owners of the 100,000 or so horses that are usually slaughtered each year would need to seek out other options, he said.
Wealthy horse owners can afford the $60 to $100 it costs to euthanize a horse and the $200 to $300 more it costs to dispose of the carcass, he said. For poorer owners, selling the animal for slaughter is often the only financially feasible choice, said Lenz.
"There's a lot of people at the lower end of the horse business that are having a tough time right now," said Lenz, noting that the high cost of hay, feed and fuel aggravates the problem.
"Those are the people who are on the borderline economically," he said.
With so many unwanted horses, Lenz worries that the animals would be neglected, abandoned or abused.
Such concerns are not backed up by the facts, according to Veterinarians for Equine Welfare, a group opposing horse slaughter. The horse slaughter industry depends mostly on healthy animals, not old or sickly ones that need to be euthanized, the group said in a white paper earlier this year.
"No increase in the abandonment or neglect of horses has been documented since the closure of the three domestic slaughter plants in the earlier part of 2007," stated the paper.
It is true that many horses headed for slaughter are outwardly healthy, but many have temperamental problems or become lame only when subjected to weight, Lenz said. Otherwise, it wouldn't make economic sense for owners to sell them for slaughter, given the much lower selling price for meat horses, he said.
"Nobody is raising horses in this country to be processed. ... These are just discarded horses," said Lenz. "If there were no longer horses being discarded, there would be no horse slaughter in this country."
XP—You won't stop the export of horses for slaughter by criminalizing it, you'll drive the market underground, but as long as there is still a demand for horsemeat, there WILL be slaughter. We were better off when we could control the conditions here in the U.S. and had government oversight—it was a more humane end for unwanted horses than what the ban has created.
Mar 30, 2008
Horse yard ornaments recently a status symbol, now discarded
Too many horses, too few homes [link]
DARRYN BENNETT | March 29, 2008
NORTH COUNTY -- Too old, too lame, too expensive to care for any more.
Those are the typical complaints that Nicki Branch, a Valley Center rescuer of horses, has been hearing recently from overwhelmed horse owners asking her for help.
Branch owns FalconRidge Ranch Equine Rescue, a 7-acre nonprofit ranch tucked away in Valley Center where she cares for about 60 horses that former owners had to give up.
In the last few years, horse sanctuaries such as FalconRidge have been housing too many abandoned horses and seeing too little demand for adoptions, which is their ultimate goal for the horses they take in.
In recent interviews with equine associations, industry leaders and horse enthusiasts, the consensus was that the problem stems from the faltering economy, rising hay prices and recent legislation that shut down the nation's three remaining slaughterhouses.
Branch and other equine experts said the result is a market flooded with horses, which has led to widespread neglect and a growing population of unwanted horses—those with owners who won't or can't properly care for them.
Although figures for San Diego County weren't available, industry estimates suggest that across the nation, there are as many as 100,000 unwanted horses.
Web sites for Branch's sanctuary and some others feature pages of photos of horses, many severely underweight or suffering with cracked hooves and rotting coats, that need homes.
"Even a healthy horse can't get adopted out right now," Branch said last week. "I can't give them away."
Branch's normal adoption fee for a horse at FalconRidge is $500, but she said she is often willing to waive it if she can find a responsible owner.
With as many as 60 horses coming to FalconRidge each year, Branch said she found homes for less than 10 last year.
"We are in desperate need of equine sanctuaries and more rescue facilities," she said.
A horse in every yard
Americans today own more than 9 million horses, up from 6 million in the mid-1990s, according to the American Horse Council, a national lobbying group for the industry. Furthermore, of the more than 2 million Americans who own horses, roughly one-third have a household income of less than $50,000.
Many professional breeders and trainers contend that good economic times that began a decade ago led to an unprecedented number of people buying horses for the first time.
"All of a sudden everyone wanted Black Beauty in their yard," Branch said.
Retirees and families enjoying extra income purchased large homes with acreage and began buying horses in record numbers. But then the housing market slumped, money got tight and they couldn't afford to care for the horses or bring them along when they were forced to downsize to smaller quarters.
Add to that the price of hay, the staple food for horses, which has more than doubled over the last year.
The surge in hay prices has been blamed on droughts and the rising cost of the fuel necessary to grow and transport the crop. A 50-pound bale of horse hay that cost less than $3 a couple of years ago costs about $6 today.
Branch estimated that the average horse at FalconRidge eats at least 25 pounds of hay a day. She said she spends about $4,000 a month to feed her horses.
The estimated annual cost of providing basic care for a horse is about $2,400, according to the Unwanted Horse Coalition, an alliance of equine organizations.
"The economy is the main problem," said Branch. "Money is tight, people are out of work or losing their jobs. People bought these horses and now they can't afford them."
For example, one family told Branch last year it was facing foreclosure and was forced to move out of upscale Rancho Santa Fe where they'd had room for horses. They called Branch to ask if she would take two underweight horses they wouldn't have room for at their new home.
"They just owned (the horses) because they wanted something pretty in their yard," Branch said. "They were sad to let them go, but they did it."
Dividing the equine community
Until last year, a market for unwanted horses existed at slaughterhouses.
According to data from the nonprofit American Welfare Institute, an estimated 65,000 horses were killed each year at domestic slaughterhouses.
Although horse slaughter is still legal in the United States, the last three factories, in Texas and Illinois, were closed by court order last year.
Also, under mounting pressure from animal activist groups, the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, a federal bill that stalled in 2006, is moving through Congress again with strong bipartisan support. If enacted, the bill would ban domestic slaughter and bar the exportation of horses being sold to factories for their meat.
The bill has divided the equine community.
Opponents, including the American Veterinary Medical Association, argue that overpopulation will become a bigger problem without slaughterhouses. They say the result will be less economically valuable horses that will be at greater risk of neglect and abandonment.
Proponents of the bill, including the Humane Society of the United States and equine rescuers, say slaughterhouses are profit-driven operations that don't improve the bleak situation horses are facing.
They say healthy horses without homes and lame horses that can't be rehabilitated should be euthanized.
The federal bill would also make it illegal for horses to be transported to slaughterhouses in Mexico and Canada for human consumption in Europe and Asia, where their meat is considered a delicacy.
Shirley Puga, of the Ramona-based Emergency Rescue Team, raises money to buy slaughter-bound horses and transport them to rescue ranches.
She said she buys horses "by the pound" to save them from "killer buyers"—people buying horses dirt cheap to truck across the borders to be slaughtered.
She said foreign demand for horse meat—not a massive influx in unwanted horses—is exacerbating the practice.
"(Slaughterhouses) aren't an American business," she said. "(Americans) don't eat horses. We're vehemently against it because we have always considered them companion animals."
DARRYN BENNETT | March 29, 2008
NORTH COUNTY -- Too old, too lame, too expensive to care for any more.
Those are the typical complaints that Nicki Branch, a Valley Center rescuer of horses, has been hearing recently from overwhelmed horse owners asking her for help.
Branch owns FalconRidge Ranch Equine Rescue, a 7-acre nonprofit ranch tucked away in Valley Center where she cares for about 60 horses that former owners had to give up.
In the last few years, horse sanctuaries such as FalconRidge have been housing too many abandoned horses and seeing too little demand for adoptions, which is their ultimate goal for the horses they take in.
In recent interviews with equine associations, industry leaders and horse enthusiasts, the consensus was that the problem stems from the faltering economy, rising hay prices and recent legislation that shut down the nation's three remaining slaughterhouses.
Branch and other equine experts said the result is a market flooded with horses, which has led to widespread neglect and a growing population of unwanted horses—those with owners who won't or can't properly care for them.
Although figures for San Diego County weren't available, industry estimates suggest that across the nation, there are as many as 100,000 unwanted horses.
Web sites for Branch's sanctuary and some others feature pages of photos of horses, many severely underweight or suffering with cracked hooves and rotting coats, that need homes.
"Even a healthy horse can't get adopted out right now," Branch said last week. "I can't give them away."
Branch's normal adoption fee for a horse at FalconRidge is $500, but she said she is often willing to waive it if she can find a responsible owner.
With as many as 60 horses coming to FalconRidge each year, Branch said she found homes for less than 10 last year.
"We are in desperate need of equine sanctuaries and more rescue facilities," she said.
A horse in every yard
Americans today own more than 9 million horses, up from 6 million in the mid-1990s, according to the American Horse Council, a national lobbying group for the industry. Furthermore, of the more than 2 million Americans who own horses, roughly one-third have a household income of less than $50,000.
Many professional breeders and trainers contend that good economic times that began a decade ago led to an unprecedented number of people buying horses for the first time.
"All of a sudden everyone wanted Black Beauty in their yard," Branch said.
Retirees and families enjoying extra income purchased large homes with acreage and began buying horses in record numbers. But then the housing market slumped, money got tight and they couldn't afford to care for the horses or bring them along when they were forced to downsize to smaller quarters.
Add to that the price of hay, the staple food for horses, which has more than doubled over the last year.
The surge in hay prices has been blamed on droughts and the rising cost of the fuel necessary to grow and transport the crop. A 50-pound bale of horse hay that cost less than $3 a couple of years ago costs about $6 today.
Branch estimated that the average horse at FalconRidge eats at least 25 pounds of hay a day. She said she spends about $4,000 a month to feed her horses.
The estimated annual cost of providing basic care for a horse is about $2,400, according to the Unwanted Horse Coalition, an alliance of equine organizations.
"The economy is the main problem," said Branch. "Money is tight, people are out of work or losing their jobs. People bought these horses and now they can't afford them."
For example, one family told Branch last year it was facing foreclosure and was forced to move out of upscale Rancho Santa Fe where they'd had room for horses. They called Branch to ask if she would take two underweight horses they wouldn't have room for at their new home.
"They just owned (the horses) because they wanted something pretty in their yard," Branch said. "They were sad to let them go, but they did it."
Dividing the equine community
Until last year, a market for unwanted horses existed at slaughterhouses.
According to data from the nonprofit American Welfare Institute, an estimated 65,000 horses were killed each year at domestic slaughterhouses.
Although horse slaughter is still legal in the United States, the last three factories, in Texas and Illinois, were closed by court order last year.
Also, under mounting pressure from animal activist groups, the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, a federal bill that stalled in 2006, is moving through Congress again with strong bipartisan support. If enacted, the bill would ban domestic slaughter and bar the exportation of horses being sold to factories for their meat.
The bill has divided the equine community.
Opponents, including the American Veterinary Medical Association, argue that overpopulation will become a bigger problem without slaughterhouses. They say the result will be less economically valuable horses that will be at greater risk of neglect and abandonment.
Proponents of the bill, including the Humane Society of the United States and equine rescuers, say slaughterhouses are profit-driven operations that don't improve the bleak situation horses are facing.
They say healthy horses without homes and lame horses that can't be rehabilitated should be euthanized.
The federal bill would also make it illegal for horses to be transported to slaughterhouses in Mexico and Canada for human consumption in Europe and Asia, where their meat is considered a delicacy.
Shirley Puga, of the Ramona-based Emergency Rescue Team, raises money to buy slaughter-bound horses and transport them to rescue ranches.
She said she buys horses "by the pound" to save them from "killer buyers"—people buying horses dirt cheap to truck across the borders to be slaughtered.
She said foreign demand for horse meat—not a massive influx in unwanted horses—is exacerbating the practice.
"(Slaughterhouses) aren't an American business," she said. "(Americans) don't eat horses. We're vehemently against it because we have always considered them companion animals."
XP—Honestly, how could anyone believe that 100,000 unwanted horses would just disappear? The issue remains that there are too many horses and not enough viable options for solving the crisis. (By the way, Ms. Puga—not true. Horses have long been American table fare. Don't want to eat them? Then don't. No one will force you to. So, why would you force someone else to adhere to your voluntary dietary restrictions?)
Mar 24, 2008
Slaughter in U.S. was a better fate than many horses face now
U.S. shelters saddled with unwanted horses [link]
Oren Dorell | March 24, 2008
The forced closure of the last horse-killing facilities in the USA, done at the urging of animal rights activists, has caused a herd of unwanted horses in animal shelters nationwide, according to breeders, ranchers and horse rescuers.
The surplus threatens to worsen if Congress passes a bill to ban the selling of unwanted horses to slaughterhouses in Canada and Mexico.
"It used to be I could take a horse that is unbreedable, untrainable, injured or unwanted and sell it for anywhere between $200 to $700," says Sheila Harmon, who has bred Arabian horses in Eagle, Idaho, for 28 years. "Now I have to pay a euthanasia fee to a veterinarian and a disposal fee to have the animal taken away."
A ban on selling animals to a meat processor will "drive another nail in the coffin" of her business, Harmon says.
Animal activists and some horse lovers say that's regrettable but that the issue is a moral one, not economic. Horses are pets, not an entree, says Julie Caramante of Habitat for Horses, a large horse rescue operation south of Houston.
"There is a global market for dog meat, (but) we wouldn't even dream of selling our pets for that," Caramante says.
For decades, horse farms sold unwanted animals to slaughterhouses that shipped the meat overseas to places such as France and Japan, where horse meat is an accepted meal, even a delicacy. In 2006, close to 140,000 horses were sold this way, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.
But last year, under pressure from animal activists, courts in Texas and lawmakers in Illinois made butchering horses for human consumption illegal. That forced the shutdown of the last three horse slaughterhouses in those states — and the USA.
Although it remains legal to ship horses to Mexico or Canada for slaughter (in 2007, about 80,000 animals followed this route), there is a move in Congress to close that off as well. Breeders and ranchers say such a move would destroy an important export market they need to stay afloat.
"They've done away with the ability to get rid of inventory that has no other good place to go," Harmon says.
'Kicked to the side'
Owners spend between $125 and $600 for euthanasia and burial or to pay someone to haul away a carcass for animal-feed ingredients or the chemical industry. That can add up for breeders who supply hundreds of thousands of horses every year to the race industry, ranches and the riding crowd.
Paxton Ramsey's family has raised cattle for more than a century in east Texas and breeds quarter horses primarily for ranch hands. Ramsey, who represents the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, says the shutdown of slaughterhouses has led to stray horses showing up in higher numbers on public land and private property. If the USA has to care for tens of thousands of unwanted horses a year, he says, it won't be long before the public will be forced to foot the bill for a half-million horse herd at $2,400 a horse per year.
"There are other things that can be done with government land other than maintain unwanted horses," he says.
Neglected animals are showing up across the country. While some shelters say they have room for more horses, shelters in Virginia, Tennessee and Illinois say they are full.
"I've seen a tremendous increase in the number of people pleading with us to take their horses and we absolutely cannot," says Donna Ewing, founder of Hooved Animal Rescue and Protection Society in Barrington Hills, Ill.
At Roanoke Valley Horse Rescue in southwestern Virginia, Pat Muncy rubs the neck of a brown thoroughbred named Prince that was among 21 horses she has received since September. The yearling's protruding ribs still show the effects of starvation two months after Loudoun County officers seized the horse along with 46 others from a Virginia farm.
Some of the seized horses are thought to be descendants of Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew that "got kicked to the side," she says.
Activists say that no matter the situation it's wrong to kill horses for meat and that industry predictions are exaggerated.
"We are Americans and we oppose horse slaughter," said Paula Bacon, former mayor of Kaufman, Texas, who fought to close a slaughterhouse there.
Bacon says breeders produce too many horses and don't try to improve them before sale.
Tom Lenz, chairman of the Unwanted Horse Coalition, a horse breeders group, says Bacon's assertion makes no sense.
"It costs anything between $1,900 to $2,400 to feed a horse for a year," Lenz says. "Why would you put all that effort into a horse and sell it for $300 (for slaughter)?"
Slaughter vs. risk of neglect
Chris Heyde, deputy legislative director with the Animal Welfare Institute, says the country can handle more horses. Heyde helped write the legislation that would ban the sale of U.S. horses to slaughterhouses. The bill is still being hashed out in committees.
"You can find a home for these horses," Heyde says. "Most people do."
Stephen "Doc" Vangyija, founder of the Equine Rescue & Protection Humane Society, does not support horse slaughter but worries there will be more neglected horses if the bill passes. Slaughter that is supervised and humane is better than allowing horses to starve, he says.
Many Americans seem indifferent to the issue, according to a USA TODAY poll. Asked if U.S. ranchers should be allowed to sell horse meat to food distributors overseas, 45% of Americans had no opinion, 30% said no, and 25% said yes.
"People in the horse business think that people should be able to do what their conscience guides them," says Mike Jennings, co-owner of Professional Auction Services in Berryville, Va.
XP—With the cost of euthanasia and disposal in excess of $500 in many areas, of course many owners will put that last available money into hay, feed and care as they hope for a change in circumstances when the supplies run out. When that doesn't happen, they have a horse that still can't be sold and face additional expenses even if an auction barn agrees to attempt to sell the horse. Fuel to transport a horse to auction may exceed $50-100 depending on location, there is a consignment fee that sometimes is higher than the final bid when the gavel falls. No wonder some resort to abandonment in desperation.
Oren Dorell | March 24, 2008
The forced closure of the last horse-killing facilities in the USA, done at the urging of animal rights activists, has caused a herd of unwanted horses in animal shelters nationwide, according to breeders, ranchers and horse rescuers.
The surplus threatens to worsen if Congress passes a bill to ban the selling of unwanted horses to slaughterhouses in Canada and Mexico.
"It used to be I could take a horse that is unbreedable, untrainable, injured or unwanted and sell it for anywhere between $200 to $700," says Sheila Harmon, who has bred Arabian horses in Eagle, Idaho, for 28 years. "Now I have to pay a euthanasia fee to a veterinarian and a disposal fee to have the animal taken away."
A ban on selling animals to a meat processor will "drive another nail in the coffin" of her business, Harmon says.
Animal activists and some horse lovers say that's regrettable but that the issue is a moral one, not economic. Horses are pets, not an entree, says Julie Caramante of Habitat for Horses, a large horse rescue operation south of Houston.
"There is a global market for dog meat, (but) we wouldn't even dream of selling our pets for that," Caramante says.
For decades, horse farms sold unwanted animals to slaughterhouses that shipped the meat overseas to places such as France and Japan, where horse meat is an accepted meal, even a delicacy. In 2006, close to 140,000 horses were sold this way, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.
But last year, under pressure from animal activists, courts in Texas and lawmakers in Illinois made butchering horses for human consumption illegal. That forced the shutdown of the last three horse slaughterhouses in those states — and the USA.
Although it remains legal to ship horses to Mexico or Canada for slaughter (in 2007, about 80,000 animals followed this route), there is a move in Congress to close that off as well. Breeders and ranchers say such a move would destroy an important export market they need to stay afloat.
"They've done away with the ability to get rid of inventory that has no other good place to go," Harmon says.
'Kicked to the side'
Owners spend between $125 and $600 for euthanasia and burial or to pay someone to haul away a carcass for animal-feed ingredients or the chemical industry. That can add up for breeders who supply hundreds of thousands of horses every year to the race industry, ranches and the riding crowd.
Paxton Ramsey's family has raised cattle for more than a century in east Texas and breeds quarter horses primarily for ranch hands. Ramsey, who represents the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, says the shutdown of slaughterhouses has led to stray horses showing up in higher numbers on public land and private property. If the USA has to care for tens of thousands of unwanted horses a year, he says, it won't be long before the public will be forced to foot the bill for a half-million horse herd at $2,400 a horse per year.
"There are other things that can be done with government land other than maintain unwanted horses," he says.
Neglected animals are showing up across the country. While some shelters say they have room for more horses, shelters in Virginia, Tennessee and Illinois say they are full.
"I've seen a tremendous increase in the number of people pleading with us to take their horses and we absolutely cannot," says Donna Ewing, founder of Hooved Animal Rescue and Protection Society in Barrington Hills, Ill.
At Roanoke Valley Horse Rescue in southwestern Virginia, Pat Muncy rubs the neck of a brown thoroughbred named Prince that was among 21 horses she has received since September. The yearling's protruding ribs still show the effects of starvation two months after Loudoun County officers seized the horse along with 46 others from a Virginia farm.
Some of the seized horses are thought to be descendants of Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew that "got kicked to the side," she says.
Activists say that no matter the situation it's wrong to kill horses for meat and that industry predictions are exaggerated.
"We are Americans and we oppose horse slaughter," said Paula Bacon, former mayor of Kaufman, Texas, who fought to close a slaughterhouse there.
Bacon says breeders produce too many horses and don't try to improve them before sale.
Tom Lenz, chairman of the Unwanted Horse Coalition, a horse breeders group, says Bacon's assertion makes no sense.
"It costs anything between $1,900 to $2,400 to feed a horse for a year," Lenz says. "Why would you put all that effort into a horse and sell it for $300 (for slaughter)?"
Slaughter vs. risk of neglect
Chris Heyde, deputy legislative director with the Animal Welfare Institute, says the country can handle more horses. Heyde helped write the legislation that would ban the sale of U.S. horses to slaughterhouses. The bill is still being hashed out in committees.
"You can find a home for these horses," Heyde says. "Most people do."
Stephen "Doc" Vangyija, founder of the Equine Rescue & Protection Humane Society, does not support horse slaughter but worries there will be more neglected horses if the bill passes. Slaughter that is supervised and humane is better than allowing horses to starve, he says.
Many Americans seem indifferent to the issue, according to a USA TODAY poll. Asked if U.S. ranchers should be allowed to sell horse meat to food distributors overseas, 45% of Americans had no opinion, 30% said no, and 25% said yes.
"People in the horse business think that people should be able to do what their conscience guides them," says Mike Jennings, co-owner of Professional Auction Services in Berryville, Va.
XP—With the cost of euthanasia and disposal in excess of $500 in many areas, of course many owners will put that last available money into hay, feed and care as they hope for a change in circumstances when the supplies run out. When that doesn't happen, they have a horse that still can't be sold and face additional expenses even if an auction barn agrees to attempt to sell the horse. Fuel to transport a horse to auction may exceed $50-100 depending on location, there is a consignment fee that sometimes is higher than the final bid when the gavel falls. No wonder some resort to abandonment in desperation.
Mar 12, 2008
Horses for $5, $10 at auction
'It's 200 times worse' [link]
Karen Binder | March 12, 2008
Horse owners confronted with high hay costs, low horse sale prices and no more domestic horse slaughtering are saddled with a bigger problem—what to do with the unwanted 1,000-pound animals.
"Ideally, there'd be no unwanted horses, but we're already in a sad state of affairs with cats and dogs. It's 200 times worse with horses," Dr. Nancy Kucera, an equine veterinarian, said. "It's pathetic. The poor horses are the ones suffering."
It's a growing problem in Southern Illinois, which contributes to the state's estimated $3.8 billion equine industry, the fourth largest nationwide. There were 77,000 horse owners, 213,000 horses and 15,000 full-time jobs associated with them in Illinois last year, according to the Horsemen's Council of Illinois.
Hay is selling as high as $8 for the smaller square bales and up to $75 for the larger round bales—nearly twice the usual price—thanks to last year's killer freeze that affected most Southern Illinois agriculture. Considering a typical horse eats about 2 percent of its body weight daily, it would cost about $60 a month just for hay, Kucera estimated. This doesn't include grain, pasture or other feed additives. Many horse owners say they simply cannot afford to feed their horses anymore, she added.
Selling them isn't a viable option either these days.
Some horses recently up for sale at the Southern Illinois Equine Sale Barn in Goreville were going for $5 and $10, Garry Jenkins said. Not only is he the sale barn coordinator; he's also the Williamson County Farm Bureau manager.
"Do you know what this means? Those horse owners have to pay us to sell their horses by the time they pay the $25 sale fee," Jenkins said. "And you can't give them away. What are we going to do with 100,000 horses? Who's going to pay for them? You are."
Jenkins was referring to the 100,000 horses a year that were "harvested" in horse slaughter houses nationwide last year. The last three facilities that exported the processed horse meat to foreign countries were shut down by respective state laws in late 2007, including Cavel International in DeKalb.
The state Horsemen's Council also noted the trend.
"Many of the horse community's concerns are basically the same as that of most Americans—the current economy, taxes, the environment, government restrictions and risk management (liability)," HCI President Frank Bowman noted on the council Web site.
Leading economic issues Bowman cites on the Web site include the high cost of fuel and feed, particularly hay because of its scarcity, and the low selling prices for horses.
"Couple these with government policies that are forcing many professionals and top amateurs to move their operations out of Illinois to more horse-friendly states and you have a good idea of what's troubling Illinois horsemen," Bowman said.
On the matter of unwanted horses, Bowman stated that many horsemen, particularly those in the southern part of the state, are reporting instances of horses being turned loose to fend for themselves on public lands and in forested areas.
However, representatives for the Shawnee National Forest and the Land Between the Lakes Federal Lands earlier this week reported no cases of stray horses.
Kucera added that the nearest rescue facility accepting horses she's aware of is in the suburban Chicago area.
She, too, has heard stories about horse owners letting horses loose in the wild.
"There's pretty much no option for a lot of people," Kucera said. "I have no doubt in my mind this will happen. I'm surprised the insurance people haven't gotten on the bandwagon. We all know what it's like to hit a 200-pound deer. Try hitting a 1,000-pound animal."
XP—Ban advocates: take note. Look what you have helped create. People can't sell horses now. They can't GIVE them away. Rescues are full and turning people away. Yet, many can't afford to feed them. Horses are still being slaughtered, but face unknown trauma outside of the U.S. now. In addition, they are being neglected here in the U.S. in sickening numbers. The answer to many of these problems is to immediately reinstate legal horse slaughter for human consumption in the U.S. with government oversight of the industry.
Karen Binder | March 12, 2008
Horse owners confronted with high hay costs, low horse sale prices and no more domestic horse slaughtering are saddled with a bigger problem—what to do with the unwanted 1,000-pound animals.
"Ideally, there'd be no unwanted horses, but we're already in a sad state of affairs with cats and dogs. It's 200 times worse with horses," Dr. Nancy Kucera, an equine veterinarian, said. "It's pathetic. The poor horses are the ones suffering."
It's a growing problem in Southern Illinois, which contributes to the state's estimated $3.8 billion equine industry, the fourth largest nationwide. There were 77,000 horse owners, 213,000 horses and 15,000 full-time jobs associated with them in Illinois last year, according to the Horsemen's Council of Illinois.
Hay is selling as high as $8 for the smaller square bales and up to $75 for the larger round bales—nearly twice the usual price—thanks to last year's killer freeze that affected most Southern Illinois agriculture. Considering a typical horse eats about 2 percent of its body weight daily, it would cost about $60 a month just for hay, Kucera estimated. This doesn't include grain, pasture or other feed additives. Many horse owners say they simply cannot afford to feed their horses anymore, she added.
Selling them isn't a viable option either these days.
Some horses recently up for sale at the Southern Illinois Equine Sale Barn in Goreville were going for $5 and $10, Garry Jenkins said. Not only is he the sale barn coordinator; he's also the Williamson County Farm Bureau manager.
"Do you know what this means? Those horse owners have to pay us to sell their horses by the time they pay the $25 sale fee," Jenkins said. "And you can't give them away. What are we going to do with 100,000 horses? Who's going to pay for them? You are."
Jenkins was referring to the 100,000 horses a year that were "harvested" in horse slaughter houses nationwide last year. The last three facilities that exported the processed horse meat to foreign countries were shut down by respective state laws in late 2007, including Cavel International in DeKalb.
The state Horsemen's Council also noted the trend.
"Many of the horse community's concerns are basically the same as that of most Americans—the current economy, taxes, the environment, government restrictions and risk management (liability)," HCI President Frank Bowman noted on the council Web site.
Leading economic issues Bowman cites on the Web site include the high cost of fuel and feed, particularly hay because of its scarcity, and the low selling prices for horses.
"Couple these with government policies that are forcing many professionals and top amateurs to move their operations out of Illinois to more horse-friendly states and you have a good idea of what's troubling Illinois horsemen," Bowman said.
On the matter of unwanted horses, Bowman stated that many horsemen, particularly those in the southern part of the state, are reporting instances of horses being turned loose to fend for themselves on public lands and in forested areas.
However, representatives for the Shawnee National Forest and the Land Between the Lakes Federal Lands earlier this week reported no cases of stray horses.
Kucera added that the nearest rescue facility accepting horses she's aware of is in the suburban Chicago area.
She, too, has heard stories about horse owners letting horses loose in the wild.
"There's pretty much no option for a lot of people," Kucera said. "I have no doubt in my mind this will happen. I'm surprised the insurance people haven't gotten on the bandwagon. We all know what it's like to hit a 200-pound deer. Try hitting a 1,000-pound animal."
XP—Ban advocates: take note. Look what you have helped create. People can't sell horses now. They can't GIVE them away. Rescues are full and turning people away. Yet, many can't afford to feed them. Horses are still being slaughtered, but face unknown trauma outside of the U.S. now. In addition, they are being neglected here in the U.S. in sickening numbers. The answer to many of these problems is to immediately reinstate legal horse slaughter for human consumption in the U.S. with government oversight of the industry.
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