I was greeted in opening up this morning's Houston Chronicle with a front page (below the fold) article by Austin Bureau reporter, Lisa Sandberg, entitled: "U.S. ban on horse slaughter means a more gruesome death elsewhere".
All I can say is much of what those few of us on this board and elsewhere in this country who dared venture that perhaps a ban on U.S. based horse slaughter (the electric "captive bolt gun" method of killing a horse for slaughter) that have repeatedly and virulently been shouted down and personally castigated by the 'anti-slaughter' supporters during their 'impassioned campaing to end 'slaughter' saw this coming.
Anti-slaughter advocates here's your chance to celebrate - be my guest.
What a terrible horrifying end has been visited upon the now "nearly 30,000 American horses shipped to Mexican processing plants this year, a 370 percent increase from the number recorded this time last year.". Although the horse slaughter plant in Juarez has a captive bolt gun it is reportedly inoperable about half the time. That's when a method known as "puntilla" takes over. IN this method a worker, wielding a weapon not unlike an icepick makes oft repeated stabs at a horse so confined as to be nearly unable to resist and certainly unable to escape. The worker's goal is to cut the spinal cord, rendering the animal paralyzed - but notabally not unaware or in anyway diminished of mental function. Then the horse's throat is slashed. Unfortunately the horse is still conscious - aware - of his fate. Left to bleed out for about 2 minutes, the horse's hindquarters are then wrapped in chain grabs so his body can be hoisted in the air for the final bleed out. Unfortunately the horse can still be conscious/aware at this point and often is. Only once completely bled out and dead is the horse transferred to an area where his now lifeless carcass is butchered for the ready markets in Mexico, Japan, and Russia.
The horses treated to such a horrific are still sold at local auctions and probabally off the backside of tracks - now for around $60/head for a so-called "salvage market horse" - in Texas (and I'm sure in New Mexico, Arizona and California, possibally in states one tier removed from the border states if they have an auction near a highway and handling sufficient volume to fill a hauler's truck from a single auction, therefore making it worthwhile for the 'kill buyer'. They are transferred by truck to El Paso, then put on another truck to be transferred a short haul across the border, where they are then put on yet another truck, a Mexican truck, and are now Mexican owned horses under Mexican laws/jurisdiction. They may go to the Juarez plant featured in this report or further inland to plants in Zacatecas and elsewhere in Mexico. (Note: the Zacatecas plants serve the European Union that bans the importation of meat from animals that have not been stunned prior to being bled. The European Convention also says large animals canot be suspended or constrained before being stunned.) Those horses that die in transport are tossed in an 'offal' pile with the unwanted parts from the slaughtering, the visibally sick/crippled ones that would have been put down by a vet in a U.S. plant per regulations are instead led/dragged to the head of the line and dispatched first. Their meat will be examined by a vet to determine if it can be sold. Trust me - they were the lucky ones. (Second note: horses slaughtered in Canada are shot with a .22 to the head.)
The kill buyers who buy these U.S. horses to satisfy the market across the border do so at many local auctions in various counties/communities throughout the southwest. They mostly buy older, sick, crippled, unridden/unrideable horses or simply horses no one wants. The buyer featured in this story lives in Kaufman Texas - site of one of the two Texas based plants closed earlier this year and which he used to supply. He now pays only about $60/head at places like Stephenville, then about $100/head in shipping costs to get a truckload from that location the 560 miles to El Paso where he averages about $20 - $50/head "profit" for his efforts.
So, while horse slaughter is about 15,000 fewer horses this year in the U.S. do not fool yourselves into thinking the pain, fear, deprivations and lack of dignity have been ended or in any way assuaged - it is a far worse end these 100,000 or so American horses that are still slaughtered now meet than before.
(Third note, a footnote: Per the article I'm referencing the 'Kill Buyer' said mostly he was buying thoroughbreds at the Stephenville, Tx auction covered by this reporter - but I question whether at $60/head it is economicaly feasible to even buy & haul 'thoroughbreds' from tracks/farms in this state to this town in Texas which is a center for the western performance horses' use and breeding, i.e. rodeoing and ranching. Perhaps some of these 'thoroughbred' horses are actually 'registered/registerable' horses of other breeds but it is sad nonetheless that for the approximate cost of having your horse euthanized/disposed of people would rather haul it to a public auction to take home as little as $60.00. When you add in the cost of fuel, value of your time (hello - reputation in the community anyone?) the $75 - $100 your vet would charge sounds to me about the same and a whole lot more 'humane'.)
Was the captive bolt method really so bad? And yes I know about the issues surrounding use of the captive bolt method and do not regard it as 'ideal' in any way, but certainly it was more humane an alternative than this. In retrospect have the anti-slaughter proponents won the battle and lost the war? The Congressional Bill which had their loud and impassioned, whole hearted support languished in the Senate last session and it's chief pilot in the Congress gives it a 50:50 shot in the coming one. One of it's chief flaws is that it gave no solution to the issue of horses simply being bought and sold for slaughter across the borders.....
P.S. I'll post a link to the online posting of this article shotrly.
Horse Slaughter, the next chapter - you should read this!
Moderators: Roguelet, hpkingjr, WaveMaster
Horse Slaughter, the next chapter - you should read this!
Last edited by jellac on Sun Sep 30, 2007 1:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Discovery
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I literally just read this article 2 minutes ago
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5175642.html
It's terrible, but I'm not sure which is the best way to go about rectifying it. The US slaughter houses could be reopened, then at least they can be monitored...but even with the US method of using the bolt gun there were times it failed to kill with one shock. (Though undoubtedly better than the "ice pick" method).
The US could ban the export of horses for meat, but then the number of unwanted horses would sky rocket and the situation would be just as bad, if not worse.
It's just a horrible cycle.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5175642.html
It's terrible, but I'm not sure which is the best way to go about rectifying it. The US slaughter houses could be reopened, then at least they can be monitored...but even with the US method of using the bolt gun there were times it failed to kill with one shock. (Though undoubtedly better than the "ice pick" method).
The US could ban the export of horses for meat, but then the number of unwanted horses would sky rocket and the situation would be just as bad, if not worse.
It's just a horrible cycle.
Maybe if people took resonsibility for the horses they own things would change. We just became owners of a filly/mare, we had to sign a statement saying if we couldn't keep her in a humane manner and she became a burden for us financially or otherwise, we would call her previous owner and he would take her back.
If more people did this, found a new decent home (life, purpose) for their horses and yet still felt a responsibility for the horse there would be a big change. If you buy a horse at the sale, there should be an affadavit that you will take responsibility for this horse if it becomes not usful for the purpose you have bought it for. You basically are becoming it's life guardian.
Obviously, if you're a pinhooker, you are buying to resell, the new owner will then have the ultimate responsibility of the horse. But if you own and then sell privately a horse this is when you make it be known, if you can't provide for this horse please contact me and I will take posession of it ASAP.
winds
If more people did this, found a new decent home (life, purpose) for their horses and yet still felt a responsibility for the horse there would be a big change. If you buy a horse at the sale, there should be an affadavit that you will take responsibility for this horse if it becomes not usful for the purpose you have bought it for. You basically are becoming it's life guardian.
Obviously, if you're a pinhooker, you are buying to resell, the new owner will then have the ultimate responsibility of the horse. But if you own and then sell privately a horse this is when you make it be known, if you can't provide for this horse please contact me and I will take posession of it ASAP.
winds
Thanks Discovery for posting the link for me - I kept trying to but it just wasn't happening for this non-techie person.
Winds - I think that is very much a part of the answer and an ethic I have followed with my 'homebreds' and their dam, my one and only mare as well as with the Appdx QH I bought privately to race at Sam Houston.
I have 're-careered' every racehorse I've bred owned and raced and the one horse I bought privately. That has meant a considerable investment to get the horse back to the farm where I boarded them, give them time to quiet down and then find the right person to 'buy' them or donate them to. I've now spent 9 months board and several hundred dollars having my broodmare of age 20YO trained to be a trail trustworthy mount for my personal riding horse and have her last foal, a filly, at the track preparing to make her 3rd start - (and break her maiden I hope). This last one will also be 're-trained/re-careered' whether she makes it as a race horse or not, before being let go. I do feel it's the least I owe them even when they've never started in a race. It's a huge - and expensive proposition and one that requires a real commitment of time, resources and desire to see it through - especially if like me (and a lot of race horse owners) you are not a young, athletic and experienced equestrian and/or like me you don't own a farm/ranch. I figure it adds a minimun of $15k to $20k to each horse AFTER the decision to quit racing and/or quit training them to race is made, so from breeding fee to final sale/donation - a small percentage of the total investment per horse but one for which the only 'upside' is to feel good about yourself.
Bottom line is this - it takes all kinds of people/institutions and solutions to address all the different personalities and personal drivers/situations and aspects of the equestrian world - whether the issue is decreasing the number of thoroughbreds that end up at this kind of auction or simply decreasing the number of horses at such an auction period. Notice I didn't say - end the auction. I happen to be in that seeming minority who feels that there are ways to make it non-economic and not very attractive to be in the 'Kill Buyer' business, but do not believe in trying to regulate something out of existence when the underlying resource that was being 'harvested' by the "Kill Buyer" is still out there.
All of us in this industry of racing and/or breeding thoroughbreds - whether to race or for other purposes - need to be able sit down with as many of the other/different factions in the equine world to have a civil debate/discussion of the problem and try to foster a multi-faceted plan of action. It's going to take large scale and small scale breeders, breed organizations, racing and other event organizations, tracks, the Jockey Club, the owners, trainers, state-bred organizations, legistlatures, fans and 4-H, Pony Clubbers, the vets, and the rescue organizations and those against horse slaughter, etc. to get the goal accomplished. I admire people's convictions and passion but do not like to see it used like some holier than thou stick with which to browbeat the oppostion into silence. My point is this - we're not "the opposition" , we're all part of the problem and the solutionS too and if you dont' include everyone at the table in the debate you'll at best get a 20% solution. That's what's happened here with the 'Anti-slaughter' movement: they sold a loud constituency on a solution that's really only a 20% solution. Sometimes people who have something to say you don't want to hear might know of what they're talking and sometimes it might be something we all need to hear. They might be able to open eyes to all the possibilities/ramifications of an action that on its' face seems like such a step forward.
Generally I happen to be an optimist overall - and also somewhat of a cynic (now there's a combination foryou!) in that I think most people will step up to the plate to the extent they can or are comfortable doing so. Castigating them, attempting to publicly shame them for not making the same decision you might choose to make is not the answer. It only makes enemies of those you need to ally in order to fully understand and solve the issue. I personally do not have an issue with 'humane slaughter' and do believe it can be achieved. We in the US were a long ways from it but we're now a country removed from it while the oversupply of unwanted US horses continues to be slaughtered, make no mistake of it.
Curiously enough - at least from the racing view point - I think we are on the verge of a critical undersupply of horses: i.e. with all the year round venues to support 'racinos' and more and more of those opening, proposed I think we're rapidy approaching a world of 4 and 5 horse fields in almost all races except the 'cavalry charge Maidens' you'll see in states that have large breeding populations and/or large purses.
Not having enough fast enough horses that stay sound enough long enough is also a big part of the problem as it actually goes to stimulate overbreeding, which in turn focuses on quick return on investment/culling early and often, and there you go ---- more young, used up/sored racehorses going to a local 'Kill Buyer' auction.......
Winds - I think that is very much a part of the answer and an ethic I have followed with my 'homebreds' and their dam, my one and only mare as well as with the Appdx QH I bought privately to race at Sam Houston.
I have 're-careered' every racehorse I've bred owned and raced and the one horse I bought privately. That has meant a considerable investment to get the horse back to the farm where I boarded them, give them time to quiet down and then find the right person to 'buy' them or donate them to. I've now spent 9 months board and several hundred dollars having my broodmare of age 20YO trained to be a trail trustworthy mount for my personal riding horse and have her last foal, a filly, at the track preparing to make her 3rd start - (and break her maiden I hope). This last one will also be 're-trained/re-careered' whether she makes it as a race horse or not, before being let go. I do feel it's the least I owe them even when they've never started in a race. It's a huge - and expensive proposition and one that requires a real commitment of time, resources and desire to see it through - especially if like me (and a lot of race horse owners) you are not a young, athletic and experienced equestrian and/or like me you don't own a farm/ranch. I figure it adds a minimun of $15k to $20k to each horse AFTER the decision to quit racing and/or quit training them to race is made, so from breeding fee to final sale/donation - a small percentage of the total investment per horse but one for which the only 'upside' is to feel good about yourself.
Bottom line is this - it takes all kinds of people/institutions and solutions to address all the different personalities and personal drivers/situations and aspects of the equestrian world - whether the issue is decreasing the number of thoroughbreds that end up at this kind of auction or simply decreasing the number of horses at such an auction period. Notice I didn't say - end the auction. I happen to be in that seeming minority who feels that there are ways to make it non-economic and not very attractive to be in the 'Kill Buyer' business, but do not believe in trying to regulate something out of existence when the underlying resource that was being 'harvested' by the "Kill Buyer" is still out there.
All of us in this industry of racing and/or breeding thoroughbreds - whether to race or for other purposes - need to be able sit down with as many of the other/different factions in the equine world to have a civil debate/discussion of the problem and try to foster a multi-faceted plan of action. It's going to take large scale and small scale breeders, breed organizations, racing and other event organizations, tracks, the Jockey Club, the owners, trainers, state-bred organizations, legistlatures, fans and 4-H, Pony Clubbers, the vets, and the rescue organizations and those against horse slaughter, etc. to get the goal accomplished. I admire people's convictions and passion but do not like to see it used like some holier than thou stick with which to browbeat the oppostion into silence. My point is this - we're not "the opposition" , we're all part of the problem and the solutionS too and if you dont' include everyone at the table in the debate you'll at best get a 20% solution. That's what's happened here with the 'Anti-slaughter' movement: they sold a loud constituency on a solution that's really only a 20% solution. Sometimes people who have something to say you don't want to hear might know of what they're talking and sometimes it might be something we all need to hear. They might be able to open eyes to all the possibilities/ramifications of an action that on its' face seems like such a step forward.
Generally I happen to be an optimist overall - and also somewhat of a cynic (now there's a combination foryou!) in that I think most people will step up to the plate to the extent they can or are comfortable doing so. Castigating them, attempting to publicly shame them for not making the same decision you might choose to make is not the answer. It only makes enemies of those you need to ally in order to fully understand and solve the issue. I personally do not have an issue with 'humane slaughter' and do believe it can be achieved. We in the US were a long ways from it but we're now a country removed from it while the oversupply of unwanted US horses continues to be slaughtered, make no mistake of it.
Curiously enough - at least from the racing view point - I think we are on the verge of a critical undersupply of horses: i.e. with all the year round venues to support 'racinos' and more and more of those opening, proposed I think we're rapidy approaching a world of 4 and 5 horse fields in almost all races except the 'cavalry charge Maidens' you'll see in states that have large breeding populations and/or large purses.
Not having enough fast enough horses that stay sound enough long enough is also a big part of the problem as it actually goes to stimulate overbreeding, which in turn focuses on quick return on investment/culling early and often, and there you go ---- more young, used up/sored racehorses going to a local 'Kill Buyer' auction.......
Wouldn't it be nice if some new training farms came to be that for a minimal fee would train your horse for a new life. They could have a program for young people to work with the horses with classroom courses included to be certified as instructors etc.
I know that if the horses had been transported to the slaughterhouses more humanely and killed more humanely there probably wouldn't have been such a public outcry. But they were transported on cattle cars, it didn't matter if it was a mare in foal, or a foal, or a horse with a broken leg etc. That was inhumane.
How do they get these horses across the border without proper papers? Is there a possibility the article is wrong?
I'm not being combative, just curious.
winds
I know that if the horses had been transported to the slaughterhouses more humanely and killed more humanely there probably wouldn't have been such a public outcry. But they were transported on cattle cars, it didn't matter if it was a mare in foal, or a foal, or a horse with a broken leg etc. That was inhumane.
How do they get these horses across the border without proper papers? Is there a possibility the article is wrong?
I'm not being combative, just curious.
winds
I knew horses were being slaughtered in Mexico, but did not know their end's were so inhumane.
I've recently bred my first TB mare. I have enough pasture and the financial means to ensure that both she and the resulting foal will have a lifetime home with me if need be. I think those who let their horses be sold at meat prices at auction should be ashamed that they did not better plan for the future lives of their animals.
At any rate, the horse slaughter issue will not be simply solved.
Personally, I have no interest in eating meat that has been dosed with insecticides and medications labeled "not for use in animals intended for consumption."
I've recently bred my first TB mare. I have enough pasture and the financial means to ensure that both she and the resulting foal will have a lifetime home with me if need be. I think those who let their horses be sold at meat prices at auction should be ashamed that they did not better plan for the future lives of their animals.
At any rate, the horse slaughter issue will not be simply solved.
Personally, I have no interest in eating meat that has been dosed with insecticides and medications labeled "not for use in animals intended for consumption."
It it's illegal in the US, then it should be illegal to export them. So, it should be against the law to have a USDA vet sign any papers for such purpose.
So, in order to get across the border, they should have any of the paper work needed to cross the border.
Now if it's not illegal for a USDA vet to sign those papers, then something needs to be done about it.
winds
So, in order to get across the border, they should have any of the paper work needed to cross the border.
Now if it's not illegal for a USDA vet to sign those papers, then something needs to be done about it.
winds
My friend who is an attorney likes to say "There will always be a loophole for everything". The horse slaughter ban was to me, a feel good measure...with it's loop hole. WE can say WE are not slaughtering horses here in the US because it's banned, only to then discover the "loophole(s)".
I know ppl who were adamant about horse slaughter ending and yet they were breeding more horses. Not because there aren't enough of their particular breed or that they were absolutely exquisite. It was bc they could and it paid them well. That is the type of #$% that burns my hide.
Same thing for regular old pets. $$$$$$$$$ is all that seems to motivate most ppl anymore and it's gotten downright sad. (And please don't think I don't appreciate the dollar, I do very much, but there comes a time where you have to bear the responsibility that comes along with it....) 
I know ppl who were adamant about horse slaughter ending and yet they were breeding more horses. Not because there aren't enough of their particular breed or that they were absolutely exquisite. It was bc they could and it paid them well. That is the type of #$% that burns my hide.
Same thing for regular old pets. $$$$$$$$$ is all that seems to motivate most ppl anymore and it's gotten downright sad. (And please don't think I don't appreciate the dollar, I do very much, but there comes a time where you have to bear the responsibility that comes along with it....) trying to come up with something brillant..... this may take a while. 
Well, I've worked for breeders and I'm about to embark on my own breeding operation. For money, I can't lie, yes. But I'm also breeding for a purpose, to produce a racehorse. I want my foal (yearling) to be a racehorse . I'm not breeding a mare with absolutely no black type until you get to the 5th dam like some cataloug pages I see.
I also breed dogs. We have two females and one male that we breed. When we sell the puppies, we give out my business card (the one for my consulting business) and tell them, that if for any reason at any time they have to find a new home for the puppy to contact us and we will take it back. We've had numerous people bring the puppies (now dogs) over to visit and they tell us how much they love the dogs. They've had them spayed or nutuered and are doing wonderful.
We do our part in taking care of what we produce. We also don't breed them on every heat cycle. So, there are people who do care about their animals and will take care of them if not wanted.
winds
I also breed dogs. We have two females and one male that we breed. When we sell the puppies, we give out my business card (the one for my consulting business) and tell them, that if for any reason at any time they have to find a new home for the puppy to contact us and we will take it back. We've had numerous people bring the puppies (now dogs) over to visit and they tell us how much they love the dogs. They've had them spayed or nutuered and are doing wonderful.
We do our part in taking care of what we produce. We also don't breed them on every heat cycle. So, there are people who do care about their animals and will take care of them if not wanted.
winds
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ratherrapid
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jellac, a couple of kudos. that's as intelligent compilation of the situation as I've read! Myself, i'd sworn to stay out of the slaughter thing as I've enough other battles. Yet, this affects every horse person, and, regrettably the legislatures seem to have the ear of those who profit on the issue of anti-slaughter and the well meaning but mindless cabal they recruit.
Surely most horse people, as animal people everywhere, understand that an unwanted horse is no different than a stray dog or cat. Regrettable as it is for those of us who want to avoid harm to any animal, humane disposal is part of the deal.
While I understand "retraining", one side effect of anti-slaughter will be that you will be unable to give a horse away. And, we all know that the 12 year olds who take a few of them quickly put them back on the market, generally thank goodness for the horse stuck in the dark at the back of the show barn munching on its shavings in its 10x10 stall/prison.
Somebody needs to turn this thing around, and I'd wish for those who spend energy on anti-slaughter to start thinking in terms of human disposal before this thing with horse neglect really hits the wall.
Surely most horse people, as animal people everywhere, understand that an unwanted horse is no different than a stray dog or cat. Regrettable as it is for those of us who want to avoid harm to any animal, humane disposal is part of the deal.
While I understand "retraining", one side effect of anti-slaughter will be that you will be unable to give a horse away. And, we all know that the 12 year olds who take a few of them quickly put them back on the market, generally thank goodness for the horse stuck in the dark at the back of the show barn munching on its shavings in its 10x10 stall/prison.
Somebody needs to turn this thing around, and I'd wish for those who spend energy on anti-slaughter to start thinking in terms of human disposal before this thing with horse neglect really hits the wall.
Thank you jellac for being a voice of reason.
I will point out though, for me in the city, it would cost at least $500 to euth and render a horse. My thought is that instead of retirement funds (which can be subject to incredible abuse by people who want to fund their own property/horses with other people's money), we have a euthanasia fund so we don't have the $200 in versus $500 out argument and a dignified end for an unwanted animal.
I will point out though, for me in the city, it would cost at least $500 to euth and render a horse. My thought is that instead of retirement funds (which can be subject to incredible abuse by people who want to fund their own property/horses with other people's money), we have a euthanasia fund so we don't have the $200 in versus $500 out argument and a dignified end for an unwanted animal.
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Cathyleabo
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As the problem created by the anti-slaughter bill gets progressively worse, is anyone else thinking that controls on breeding is a good idea?
I would be more than happy to register as a breeder and apply for breeding privledges. If we could eliminate the backyard breeders churning out poorly bred and unhealthy horses we could begin to eliminate the need for shelters and rescues.
We will never get away from the necessary evil of horse slaughter. But we could limit the scope and control the process.
I would be more than happy to register as a breeder and apply for breeding privledges. If we could eliminate the backyard breeders churning out poorly bred and unhealthy horses we could begin to eliminate the need for shelters and rescues.
We will never get away from the necessary evil of horse slaughter. But we could limit the scope and control the process.
Well behaved women rarely make history.
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I'm actually one of those people that think that blaming breeders is a complete red herring.
The stats I've seen puts the average age of a horse slaughtered at about ten. In all probability, the person who trashed the horse and then threw him away was not the breeder and that person or someone like him or her will go and do it again with another horse.
We need to be stewards of our animals. There is way too much ignorance about care, training, and general husbandry out there--especially in back yards with pet horses.
The stats I've seen puts the average age of a horse slaughtered at about ten. In all probability, the person who trashed the horse and then threw him away was not the breeder and that person or someone like him or her will go and do it again with another horse.
We need to be stewards of our animals. There is way too much ignorance about care, training, and general husbandry out there--especially in back yards with pet horses.
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summerhorse
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It is a problem without the borders being closed. That's why it is so vital to get a federal ban passed to prohibit transport for slaughter.
While there will be a few that sneak across or that are imported for legitimate reasons and someday end up in a slaughterhouse the numbers will be vastly reduced because there will be no profit margin in sending them to slaughter while paying riding or breeding horse fees (that are more than the horse meat is worth).
it is important to note that this plant in Juarez does not slaughter for the European market or it would HAVE to use the bolt gun which is actually less humane than simply cutting their throats in the method used for Halal slaughter in other species (horses are not killed this way because they are not considered food animals by Judaism). Halal slaughter done properly causes less pain and faster death in horses than a bolt gun which causes great pain even in properly restrained animals which of course horses NEVER ARE and even worse horses regain consciousness within 30 seconds or so of the blow and thus are often aware of being hung up and having their throats cut.
In the videos I have seen the horse's cord was cut up close by the head which SHOULD render it at least paralyzed from that point down I think (not sure which nerve/vetebrae govern what in horses). But it still is terrified and the head of course can feel just fine. It is rather ridiculous they use this method which they do not have many trained people for and rarely can be done in one blow. (note that the bolt gun usually requires at least 2 shots also because the horses are not restrained properly).
But other slaughter houses in Mexico use the same methods our plants did and others shoot the horses. I'm not sure about Canada. The one I saw where the horse was simply shot was the most humane except there were horses behind it which could have been winged had the shot not hit correctly. So if they changed that so only one horse was in the room that would be certainly preferred and much more humane than any other method (well provided they have good marksmen!!). The horses were not unduly upset and dropped instantly and of course were dead for the rest.
I'm not sure why they even bother to slaughter the horses at some border crossings where the horses have been reported to be in such bad condition because there can't be much useable meat on "shells". Could it be possible that those horses were actually left there BECAUSE they were in such bad condition and it was not worth it for them to even come back for them except with a rendering truck every few days. It should certainly be required on both sides that the animals get adequate hay and water or get killed (humanely) right away and removed. There is no excuse for that on either side. If they aren't going to take them right away they should refuse them at the border.
Even though the numbers seem large the % of horses in the country that get sent on the auction/slaughter trail is MINISCULE compared to the horses that do not. So while overbreeding (esp with the stock horses) and greedy owners (wanting that last $200 out of a horse rather than spend that or give it away) are a problem it is still a tiny industry. At last estimate there were some 7 MILLION horses (7-9 million is what I read) and 100,000 or so have gone to slaughter the last couple of years (higher than in previous years partially because of the wars to stop it, the KBs and plants were in a frenzy to kill as many as they could before shutting down! It can't be demand because the demand has actually gone DOWN in the last couple of years). So abouit 0.14% of the US horse population ends up at slaughter and the horses killed are about 1% of the horses that die annually in the US by all other causes. While a certain % of these that are slaugheted should be put down because of age, behavior or injuries the vast majority of the horses killed are in good shape, younger and could be useable (many ARE untrained). They are also not exactly Unwanted since almost every single one required the KB to BUY them often outbidding private buyers at auctions or buying them cheap from sale ads from people who may not have a clue about the slaughter trail.
At the Fairmount paddock sale the KB picked up about a dozen horses (pretty much everything that went for $200-300). One was bought back (at almost double the price) by some rescue people and several were bought back by their owners/trainers realized the KB had bought them. Putting a reserve on them of $450 would have probably kept them out of the KB's hands at all. And saved them $200-300 to buy their own horse back! (about the cost of euthanasia!)
People worry about what will happen to the horses stuck in feedlots if the borders close (they'll be sold, given away or euthanized) it is also important to remember that the slaughter trade is what gathered these horses in such numbers in the first place. These horses go from auction to auction or are picked up at auctions and trucked to these feedlots to be sorted for shipment. A horse in Miami might end up at the MT feedlot (Shelby?) after days or weeks of transport where it might wait in large herds crammed together for shipment to Canada. Without the KBs collecting these horses they will stay in their own areas where it is much easier to find homes for a handful of horses (or put them down) than it would be to find homes for 200 horses in a single holding pen in an area that is probably pretty full of horses already.
Still too many racehorses are ending up in kill pens. It is up to the industry to step in and make it easier for owners and trainers to put down injured horses cheaply (at the track or training centers), encourage better care of horses and use of adoption programs and trainer sale listings (for realistic prices) and stop letting trainers run horses into the ground so they are then useless for another career. Owners and trainers need to be realistic too about prices. You'll see a horse sit on the listings for $1,500 or $2,000, sometimes they get reduced a bit even to $600-800 and then one day suddenly they cannot keep that horse ONE MORE DAY and on the meat truck he goes for $300 without notice. It's frustrating.
They could have sold that horse for $300-500 right off or donated it to an adoption program. If the horse is really really unsound the track should furnish a low cost euthanasia and disposal system.
but in the end people that make their living off animals need to step up and take responsibility for the fact these are living breathing things and should be treated with a modicum of respect and decency. If somebody doesn't want to do that perhaps they can find a business where they work with inanimate objects where it doesn't matter if they are just thrown at when they are done with them.
While there will be a few that sneak across or that are imported for legitimate reasons and someday end up in a slaughterhouse the numbers will be vastly reduced because there will be no profit margin in sending them to slaughter while paying riding or breeding horse fees (that are more than the horse meat is worth).
it is important to note that this plant in Juarez does not slaughter for the European market or it would HAVE to use the bolt gun which is actually less humane than simply cutting their throats in the method used for Halal slaughter in other species (horses are not killed this way because they are not considered food animals by Judaism). Halal slaughter done properly causes less pain and faster death in horses than a bolt gun which causes great pain even in properly restrained animals which of course horses NEVER ARE and even worse horses regain consciousness within 30 seconds or so of the blow and thus are often aware of being hung up and having their throats cut.
In the videos I have seen the horse's cord was cut up close by the head which SHOULD render it at least paralyzed from that point down I think (not sure which nerve/vetebrae govern what in horses). But it still is terrified and the head of course can feel just fine. It is rather ridiculous they use this method which they do not have many trained people for and rarely can be done in one blow. (note that the bolt gun usually requires at least 2 shots also because the horses are not restrained properly).
But other slaughter houses in Mexico use the same methods our plants did and others shoot the horses. I'm not sure about Canada. The one I saw where the horse was simply shot was the most humane except there were horses behind it which could have been winged had the shot not hit correctly. So if they changed that so only one horse was in the room that would be certainly preferred and much more humane than any other method (well provided they have good marksmen!!). The horses were not unduly upset and dropped instantly and of course were dead for the rest.
I'm not sure why they even bother to slaughter the horses at some border crossings where the horses have been reported to be in such bad condition because there can't be much useable meat on "shells". Could it be possible that those horses were actually left there BECAUSE they were in such bad condition and it was not worth it for them to even come back for them except with a rendering truck every few days. It should certainly be required on both sides that the animals get adequate hay and water or get killed (humanely) right away and removed. There is no excuse for that on either side. If they aren't going to take them right away they should refuse them at the border.
Even though the numbers seem large the % of horses in the country that get sent on the auction/slaughter trail is MINISCULE compared to the horses that do not. So while overbreeding (esp with the stock horses) and greedy owners (wanting that last $200 out of a horse rather than spend that or give it away) are a problem it is still a tiny industry. At last estimate there were some 7 MILLION horses (7-9 million is what I read) and 100,000 or so have gone to slaughter the last couple of years (higher than in previous years partially because of the wars to stop it, the KBs and plants were in a frenzy to kill as many as they could before shutting down! It can't be demand because the demand has actually gone DOWN in the last couple of years). So abouit 0.14% of the US horse population ends up at slaughter and the horses killed are about 1% of the horses that die annually in the US by all other causes. While a certain % of these that are slaugheted should be put down because of age, behavior or injuries the vast majority of the horses killed are in good shape, younger and could be useable (many ARE untrained). They are also not exactly Unwanted since almost every single one required the KB to BUY them often outbidding private buyers at auctions or buying them cheap from sale ads from people who may not have a clue about the slaughter trail.
At the Fairmount paddock sale the KB picked up about a dozen horses (pretty much everything that went for $200-300). One was bought back (at almost double the price) by some rescue people and several were bought back by their owners/trainers realized the KB had bought them. Putting a reserve on them of $450 would have probably kept them out of the KB's hands at all. And saved them $200-300 to buy their own horse back! (about the cost of euthanasia!)
People worry about what will happen to the horses stuck in feedlots if the borders close (they'll be sold, given away or euthanized) it is also important to remember that the slaughter trade is what gathered these horses in such numbers in the first place. These horses go from auction to auction or are picked up at auctions and trucked to these feedlots to be sorted for shipment. A horse in Miami might end up at the MT feedlot (Shelby?) after days or weeks of transport where it might wait in large herds crammed together for shipment to Canada. Without the KBs collecting these horses they will stay in their own areas where it is much easier to find homes for a handful of horses (or put them down) than it would be to find homes for 200 horses in a single holding pen in an area that is probably pretty full of horses already.
Still too many racehorses are ending up in kill pens. It is up to the industry to step in and make it easier for owners and trainers to put down injured horses cheaply (at the track or training centers), encourage better care of horses and use of adoption programs and trainer sale listings (for realistic prices) and stop letting trainers run horses into the ground so they are then useless for another career. Owners and trainers need to be realistic too about prices. You'll see a horse sit on the listings for $1,500 or $2,000, sometimes they get reduced a bit even to $600-800 and then one day suddenly they cannot keep that horse ONE MORE DAY and on the meat truck he goes for $300 without notice. It's frustrating.
They could have sold that horse for $300-500 right off or donated it to an adoption program. If the horse is really really unsound the track should furnish a low cost euthanasia and disposal system.
but in the end people that make their living off animals need to step up and take responsibility for the fact these are living breathing things and should be treated with a modicum of respect and decency. If somebody doesn't want to do that perhaps they can find a business where they work with inanimate objects where it doesn't matter if they are just thrown at when they are done with them.
Every mighty oak was once an acorn that stood its ground.