I live in New Mexico. We have been in the midst of a terrible drought; that along with high price of hay, when you can find it,no pasture land and the poor economy has created a large number of unwanted horses. One cannot find a buyer or even give away many of these animals....so a great number are being hauled off to the middle of nowhere and left to die of thirst. Humane slaughter would probably be a much better end to this slow death.
I think that stiffer penalties should be laid upon the racing industry. they are guilty of over breeding and tossing away what they don't see potential in. Horse racing is the number one culprit in California. And since California is closer to the boarders of Mexico and Canada where horse slaughter is legal should be regulated. Show barns aren't innocent in this problem.
In our town horses aren't abandoned much. We have a lot of animal shelters and a lot of horse owners. Sadly, instead of this, a lot of pets are killed by cars. Just last week, a horse named Smarty, a really nice, trusting horse was hit and died later that night.
THANKS FOR ALL THE COMMENTS. I TRULY ENJOY READING THEM! NANCY, YOU BRING UP A VALID POINT: HUMANE SLAUGHTER MAY INDEED BE A BETTER OPTION THAN JUST ABANDONING A HORSE TO STARVE OR DIE OF THIRST. BUT AT THIS TIME, THE WAY HORSES ARE SLAUGHTERED-- MECHANICALLY, IN A PRODUCTION LINE-- IS NOT HUMANE. NEITHER IS THE MANNER IN WHICH THEY ARE TRANSPORTED TO THE SLAUGHTER HOUSE. CONNIE, YOU MENTIONED THE HORSE RACING INDUSTRY... YES, HORSES ARE SEEN TOO OFTEN AS A BY-PRODUCT. YEARS AGO, HORSES OFF THE TRACK WERE SNAPPED UP AS "PROJECT HORSES" FOR ASPIRING HUNTER/JUMPER/DRESSAGE/EVENTING RIDERS. NOWADAYS, EVERYONE WANTS A WARMBLOOD. AS A HUNTER JUDGE, I CAN ATTEST TO THIS. RARELY DO I SEE A NICE TB IN THE HUNTER RING ANYMORE; THEY'RE ALL SOME KIND OF WARMBLOOD OR WB-CROSS. SO WHERE ARE ALL THESE TB'S THAT CAN'T RUN GO? SOME DO GET RE-TRAINED FOR NEW JOBS. MANY GET PUT INTO RESCUE OR ADOPTION FACILITIES. BUT TOO MANY END UP GOING TO SLAUGHTER. THERE IS A MOVEMENT ON TO COERCE TB OWNERS TO PAY INTO A RETIREMENT FUND, PERHAPS EVEN UPON REGISTERING A FOAL WITH THE JOCKEY CLUB. AND THEN THERE ARE CERTAIN HIGH-PROFILE TRAINERS WHO OPENLY SUPPORT FINDING SECOND CAREERS AND RETIREMENT HOMES FOR THEIR EX-RACERS. BUT FOR THOUSANDS OF OTHER THOROUGHBREDS, THEIR LIFE HAS BUT ONE SAD ENDING. PLEASE KEEP SUBMITTING YOUR COMMENTS. I READ THEM ALL!
There has got to be a better way -- Here in Ny I don't hear of abandoned horses -- BUT the horse auctions are quite common and the meat buyers leave with hundreds of horses. It is terrible. we have many rescue groups, who try to buy a few each time and save them- but they can only save so many- If I could, I would save them all- I already have 4 horses and only 3 stalls. There is a web site out of NJ - camelot auction where a group of people take photos of the horses in the meat buyers pen and post them- they have worked a deal with the buyer to let them find homes for the horses for 50$ more than he paid for them-- It breaks my heart every time I see them... In a perfect world we would all be responsible horse lovers......I can't understand those that aren't. My horses always eat before I do and their stalls are cleanier than my house..(ask my non horsey husband--lol) we each need to do the best we can and support the rescues that are out there - instead of breeding more horses- check out a rescue website -----
VERY gr8 article! at the stable where i work, there is an old blind mare that nobaody pays any attention to and another half-blind on that nobody rides either. they just sit in thier stalls, wasting hay and wasting away themselves!! i pity them soooo bad! and yes people should STOP breeding thier horses so much!!! my older friend has at least 4 babies each year, but there's always willing buyers.(?)yes i't's gr8 that the slaughter has stopped, but dont you think that if we at least transport them humanely and kindly then it would be better then getting shipped farthe to mexico and canada........those are my opions.
It's just horrible what the horses have to go through because humans decide that 'more is better.' Warmbloods have pushed Thoroughbreds out of potentially good homes. Stock horse breeders are breeding multiple babies from one mare a year with embryo transfer. The racing industry is still breeding too much quantity and not enough quality in the horses and it winds up hurting the horses in the end. If, after a certian amount of time I could not find a good home for a horse I would bite the bullet and have the horse put down, I'd rather spend several hundred dollars to have peace of mind than to think the horse would wind up as dinner in a foriegn country.
Excellent blog, Cindy, especially on a difficult issue to address. I admit to being very conflicted about the subject. Apologies in advance for the length of what follows. **If** slaughter were humane for horses, I would probably be less against it. But it is not. From transporting to ill-fitting cattle halters to the run-through chutes to the kill floor, none of it is "designed" for horses; it's designed for slower-moving animals who have had far less contact with humans. We owe better to our horses. Humane euthanasia can and should be made more affordable, along with disposal. So-called low-cost euthanasia clinics have been held with success; there should be more, perhaps under the auspices of city/county animal control. Laws forbidding transporting out of state (which is on the books in California) or out of the country (which is before Congress) are useless without enforcement. Many of us thought that when the European Union and Asia began forbidding meat from animals that had been given Bute and other medications, the market for U.S. horse meat would dry up. But it's clear none of the horses -- alive or dead -- are being tested, since pretty much every horse has, at some time in its life, been dewormed, vaccinated, had Bute or any number of other drugs on the banned list. Registries should STOP rewarding people for breeding more horses. The AQHA is the leader of that pack, handing out incentives to its biggest breeders right and left. The more heinous sin on the AQHA's part is being perhaps the most PRO slaughter registry in the world, the "leadership's" opinion being how else will all those breeders producing hundreds of foals a year be able to get rid of their culls? That's an unspeakable attitude. While the Thoroughbred breeders and owners are not guilt-free, at least the Jockey Club and the tracks themselves are trying to help the horses. The Jockey Club has Thoroughbred Connect, where owners can find second homes for their retiring horses; breeders, owners and trainers can place stickers and other notifications on a horse's papers to help ensure it "comes home" after its racing days; there are dozens and dozens of industry-supported retraining, rehoming and retirement programs; many tracks now expressly forbid and will ban owners and trainers who sell horses for slaughter; several states now take out a small, set percentage from bets and purses to support TB retirement programs. So while the TB world is not perfect, it does far, far more for its horses than the AQHA, Paint, Arabian, Appaloosa, Standardbred ... well, you get the idea ... registries do for theirs. It's on all of us to do more, do better. People need to stop breeding low-quality horses. They need to give the horses they do have A JOB. They need to get training on their horses so they have a use other than filling a dinner plate in France.
this was very good, and i found it the best because it has a easygoing opinion that is not offending to some people. well written.