Horse Slaughter
The Fate of America's Unwanted Horses
The United States closed the last slaughterhouse used for horses in 2007. Americans thought that this closure meant the end to the cruel industry of slaughtering U.S. horses for meat. Unfortunately, the industry did not shut down, it just moved across the borders to Mexico and Canada.
Unwanted Horses
Horses are intelligent companion animals with unique personalities making them a popular choice for many Americans, however they are extremely expensive to take care of. The cost of horse care combined with the struggling economy has forced many horse owners to give away their equine friends.
Some lucky horses are saved by equine rescue organizations. Others are sold at auctions, where their owners hope that another loving family will adopt them. These owners are unaware that the auctions are full of well-funded buyers working directly for horse slaughterhouses. A few owners foolishly donate their horses directly to slaughterhouses because they feel it is more humane than letting them starve to death.
The Road to the Slaughterhouse
After horses are purchased at auctions, sold by owners, or even stolen, they begin the sad journey to their gruesome end.
Horses are crammed into transports that are used for cows and pigs, too short for horses to stand up comfortably. Horses are not given food or water during their long and uncomfortable journey through the United States and across the borders into Canada or Mexico.
Many horses do not survive long enough to reach their final destinations, and those who do face a new torment when they exit the transports. When the horses arrive at the slaughterhouses, they are forced into narrow chutes that lead into tiny stalls. Horses are unwilling to move voluntarily through the chutes because they can smell the blood of other horses and are scared. The slaughterhouse workers use cattle prods and metal rods to motivate the frightened creatures through the chutes.
When the horses are finally corralled into the tiny stalls, the workers use a variety of cruel methods to stun or paralyze the horses. Some use a gun to shoot bolts into the horse’s brain, while others use a knife to stab the horse in the back of the neck numerous times until the spinal cord is severed and the horse is paralyzed.
Once the horses are incapacitated, the workers hang them by their hind legs, cut their throats and bleed them to death. They are then processed, and their meat is sold to Japan and European Countries.
Conyers-Burton Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act
Fortunately, there is hope for American horses. House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers and representative Dan Burton have created the “Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act” to combat the horse slaughter industry. The bill will prohibit the use of American horses for meat, and will make it a crime to transport horses across the borders for this purpose. The Humane Society of the United States, animal welfare groups, equine rescue organizations, veterinarians, and horse industry groups around the country are supporting the passing of this bill.
Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States voiced the opinion of many horse lovers: "The horse is an American icon, and it is a betrayal of our responsibility to these animals to treat them like cheap commodities and send them across our borders for slaughter.”
Unfortunately, several states have an interest in maintaining the horse slaughter industry. Arizona, Arkansas, Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, and Wyoming are currently trying to pass resolutions that would give them the right to continue transporting horses across the border.
Citizens who would like to see the slaughter of U.S. horses prohibited are encouraged to contact their local representatives and ask them to support the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act.
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