March 28, 2010
"Unwanted Horses" are really "Inconvenient Horses" says Equine Advocates.
Equine Advocates is launching a new campaign to counter what it believes are inaccurate claims by The Unwanted Horse Coalition and pro-horse slaughter fringe groups with respect to "unwanted horses," a term which the organization says is both degrading and misleading. Equine Advocates has been working to end horse slaughter since it was founded in 1996 and has participated in numerous investigations both on TV and in print to expose what once was a secretive foreign-owned and operated industry.
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The late, great horseman, John Hettinger was also an activist against the cruel and unpopular practice of horse slaughter which is opposed by over 70% of Americans. Sadly, Mr. Hettinger passed away in 2008 before his dream to see a federal ban on horse slaughter become the law of the land (It still is not law and has been continuously blocked by special interests, despite a historic start in 1998 when the California electorate passed the first state initiative in the nation,"Prop 6," banning the slaughter of horses for human consumption.) Equine Advocates honored John Hettinger in 2004 for his work to end horse slaughter. Here is a brief passage from some of his remarks:"I believe there is one catch phrase which is contributing greatly to the confusion surrounding the present dialogue on horse slaughter. That phrase is 'unwanted horses.' They wanted them when they bought them, didn't they?...Horses are the responsibility of their owners who owe them kindly treatment through life and a peaceful death administered by caring hands. Period!...Those individuals and agencies who justify casting a horse off like a piece of detritus at the end of that animal's usefulness, are doing a great disservice to the concept of personal responsibility. Enabling a callous and irresponsible person to walk away from a problem, pocket a few hundred dollars and feel good about it is a disservice to our industry and the animals they profess to care about. In this they are helped by the enablers who refer to 'processing' rather than slaughter and 'plants' rather than slaughterhouse..."
"Those words are as true today as when John Hettinger said them nearly six years ago," says Equine Advocates President, Susan Wagner. "We believe there is no such thing as an unwanted horse. Rather, there are inconvenient horses belonging to irresponsible owners and indiscriminate breeders who would do the unthinkable and go against American culture to slaughter them for human consumption as delicacies for export. That would be like slaughtering dogs and cats and exporting them to foreign markets for food. Horses are considered sporting, pleasure and companion animals in this society. Slaughtering them for food is unthinkable and completely unaccetpable. We will not rest until we see an end to this barbaric practice. Over-breeding is the main cause of the problem, combined with those people who want the convenience of getting rid of horses quickly and for a profit, rather than taking the time and responsibility to find them a kind home or spending a small amount of money to put them down humanely. We do that for our dogs and cats and we have an obligation to do that for our horses."
Equine Advocates will be carrying out its campaign in several phases. Education and public awareness will play a major role in it.
"There are millions of Americans who are frustrated, exasperated and completely disgusted at the failure of our government to carry out the will of the people on this issue," Wagner continued. "We're extremely disappointed, especially because we expected a real change when Obama became President. As a US Senator from Illinois, he was a co-sponsor of The American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act which passed the House in 2006. Former Idaho Senator, Larry Craig and other special interests blocked it from reaching the Senate floor and so the bill died. Everyone thought the Obama Administration would have the desire and the will to get this legislation back on track. Instead Ken Salazar, a known horse slaughter proponent, was picked to head the Department of the Interior. That was a disappointing selection over Rep. Raul Grijalva who has a much different view about how wild horses should be managed and who most horse protectionists favored over Salazar." (Wild horses had their protection stripped away in 2004 with the Burns Amendment which allows them to be sold for commercial purposes, including slaughter.)
Over the coming months, Equine Advocates will make it easy for those who care about the protection of horses to see which lawmakers, organizations and industries are pro-horse slaughter. Easy-to-read charts and other information will be made available so that people can understand who is for or against horse slaughter and other inhumane practices involving equines.
"People need to become more pro-active because these special interests have tremendous resources and high-paid lobbyists representing them," Wagner added. "With that said, it has been documented that most horses in this country are owned by private people who would never dream of sending their horses to auction or place them in positions where they could be sold for slaughter. These people have no real voice, in addition to the tens of millions of Americans who are horse lovers and are opposed to horse slaughter and Wild Horse round-ups. We have all been raised learning about the significance that horses have played in our history and the roles they play today which are just as important as ever. To the vast majority of Americans, the cruel fate that 100,000 US horses meet in slaughterhouses every year is un-American and a monumental betrayal of an animal that helped make this country great."
Here's the latest:
- At the beginning of 2010, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency issued new health requirements for all equines bound for slaughter in Canada. Horses found to have any of 55 specific drugs and substances that are toxic to humans in their systems, including the popular and common anti-inflammatory drug, phenylbutazone ("Bute") will not pass inspection for slaughter for human consumption. A full list can be found on the CFIA website, www.inspection.gc.ca. The new requirements take effect on July 31, 2010.
- In March 2010, Illinois killed H.R. 1022, a bill introduced by horse slaughter proponent State Senator James Sacia, to reverse a ban on horse slaughter passed in 2007. Sacia pulled the bill when he saw it did not have the votes in an attempt to protect his colleagues and special interests that were trying to bring horse slaughter back to Illinois.
- Special interests in Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, Nevada, South Dakota, Idaho, Missouri, Oklahoma and Kentucky are trying to pass laws allowing for the construction of horse slaughterhouses in those states. We'll keep you updated. For more information, visit www.animallawcoalition.org.