Horse slaughter

[RichZ]

This is the kind of debate I love, Richard. We're both trying to save horses, from different ends of the spectrum.

Actually, when all was said and done, I paid $1425 for these two horses. They were actually from an auction in central NY, where representatives from meat markets buy horses. I don't know where the meat markets are. They could be Texas, but more likely Canada.

I had to reimburse the rescue group for the auction price, vet bills and transportation. I hope to do this again many times, and plan on getting involved with the rescue group to save more horses. I see no good reason for horses to die, if good homes can be found for them. Although I like to ride, I love horses, and have no problem keeping horses that can never be ridden. Horses can make wonderful companion animals. I spend more time playing and "hanging out" with my horses than I ever will riding them. I know many other people like myself, and plan on working with the rescue group to find homes for many horses. I think we can all agree that that is a good thing!

My vet is coming over Monday to examine these two horses, and if they need hundreds or thousands of dollars worth of vet bills, so be it. They are my animals now, and I'm responsible for them. Whatever they need, they will get, even if I have to put their treatment on a credit card and pay it off slowly. I did that for one of my dogs, and I'd do it for any of my animals.

I intend to get more horses. They will all be obtained through the same rescue group. Buying a helathy horse is fine, and I support people doing that. But if I, and many other people like me can find homes for horses that need them, then we will save a lot of equine lives. That's what I hope to do![img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Ok that's what I suspected Rich. Really there's no way to tell where these horses would have gone then. Very likely someone at the auction could have bought them and done the same thing as you are doing. That's great what you're doing.

Now let's address the real problem. It's not buying horses that are half starved at a regular auction. That's commendable and I won't say anything wrong about that but will pat you on the back. What I'm talking about is what about the crippled horses that are out there? What about the sick horses? What about the horses that are on their last legs becuase of age, etc.? What do we do with those horses? And what about the horses that you can't save on your farm? What happens to them? Guys like yourself that would spend thousands of dollars to help a horse that has no use other than as a pet are VERY few and far between. What do we do with all the horses that you can't take in? A horse isn't like a dog and very few people have the resources to take care of one or secondly even fewer people have a place to put them.

[beenthere]

Behind you 100%. I also don't understand how so few can control what is going on.
If they don't like slaughtering horses, then they shouldn't slaughter them. I won't care if they don't.

But I think they should stay out of the face of those who think this is a valid business. Certainly there are
those who don't want to compete at the market place and pay the prices above and beyond what the
slaughter houses will pay.

I didn't realize there were so few slaughter houses for horses. I thought there was a big one in Milwaukee.
Maybe not any more.

[RichZ]

Thanks, Richard, but I'm not doing it for a pat on the back, I'm doing it because I love horses.

The auction my horses came from is known for selling to meat markets, probably in Canada.

I agree that there are many horses that are suffering and must be put down. That's what euthanasia is for. One of the horses that my rescue group bought at the last auction was a 28 year old mare that had a large tumor on her rear. She had been a family pet all her life. The family decided that instead of paying to have her euthanized and buried, they'd have her sold at the auction! I can't understand how someone could do that to a family pet! The director of the rescue group bought her to bring her home and have her euthanized, so she could die in the dignified manner that she deserved. When the vet came to euthanize her, he said he could remove the tumor, and she could probably have quite a few good years. This horse is a beautiful gray mare, she is friendly smart and very lovable. And she's alive, no thanks to her original family.

I'm sorry Richard, I can't feel that killing horses for meat is right, just as I don't think killing dogs or cats for meat is right. I think laws about the humane treatment of animals is the answer. No animal should be allowed to needlessly suffer, but I don't think the meat market is the answer.

[JohnMiller3]

<font color="blue">...dogs or cats for meat...</font color>

Hi Richie...

A couple of three or four days ago when I was younger...[img]/forums/images/icons/blush.gif[/img]

My first time in Tijuana, Mexico... us sailors got hungry and ran into a street vendor with a push cart selling "soft shell" tacos... I'm a taco fanatic from the get go... so I got a few of them...

Actually, they tasted pretty good, but I just couldn't put my finger on it... they did taste different...

Later, I was told I was eating "cat &amp; dog" meat... so to make a long story shorter... I agree... I'll stick with "beef" or "chicken" or something "normal"...? [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[RichZ]

Well, John, I'm not gonna tell your Golden that story!! You're having enough trouble training him, without him knowing about that!

[s1120]

<font color="red">Well, John, I'm not gonna tell your Golden that story!! You're having enough trouble training him, without him knowing about that!
</font color>

Think about it Rich. It may help. [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Put a little fear in the dog, and all. [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

I certainly understand your sentiment Rich but what do we do to solve the problem? Many people, myself included, are in this for a business. When it comes to your bottom line and you can either make $500 or so on an animal or you can spend $500 on an animal that is going to die then what? If you were in the position of alot of these people do you spend that $1000 or so on your family or do you spend it on the horse for which there are options? As far as humane euthanasia it doesn't get any better than the meat packers.

Also it costs anywhere from $600-1000 to have a vet euthanize a horse. Then you also have to bury the horse. Many places prohibit this so your only recourse is to call the rendering plant. They take the horses and grind it up and make all kinds of things, other animal food being the top one!! Are you also against this?

In a perfect it works like you've said it works but we can't even take care of people like you are talking about. That's what baffles me is that we have homeless, starving, and people with no medical care in this country and it's growing!@! Yet people will spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to break up a very viable service to the horse industry.

As far as laws go there already are laws for the humane treatment of animals. That is what I am talking about!!! Take a trip to Mexico and look at how it goes on down there. Down there they just slit the throat and let them bleed out on dirty floors. The animals are not cared for before they are put down either. In the US the animals are not alive when the butchering process is started. The places are immaculately clean. It's a very humane process. When the horses are brought in they are kept on full feed, water, etc. You aren't going to stop it. Other countries are going to have their horse meat. In other countries it's against their religion to eat cattle. Does that mean in the US we should all stop eating meat? Of course not. It's just a way of life. The indians have always eaten horse meat. Does that mean that they are bad people? Many tribes still do eat horse meat. Does that mean we should ban them from doing that?

The most important thing to me is that the cattle market is next. Once the horse packing industry is gone they fully expect to turn their efforts towards getting rid of cattle packing plants. You may laugh but 20 years ago the thought of horse packing plants being illegal was laughable as well.

I certainly don't expect to change your mind or anything that way. But so far besides sentiment you have given no viable alternatives that work in a real world situation. We already have more laws than can be counted.

[RichZ]

You're right, Richard, I don't have a solution. I just feel that there's got to be a better way, but I don't have an answer. I understand that animals are killed for food, I'm not a vegetarian, so I certainly understand that. I just hate the thought of it happening to horses. That may be an emotional response, but that's the way I am.

I'm hoping that someone out there, someday will have a better solution.

[edt]

Doc a question for you how do the horses get killed in the slaughter house the wife seems to think it is harsh on them please educate me thanks
EDT