Horse Slaughterers' Strategy Revealed

Just in From Animal Law Coalition: 2/9/09
http://www.animallawcoalition.com/horse-slaughter/article/682

Posted Feb 9, 2009 by lauraallen
Horse Slaughter
State legislators have been introducing pro horse slaughter resolutions on behalf of foreign investors anxious to defeat H.R. 503.

H.R. 503, which is pending in Congress would stop them from using American horses for horsemeat served as a delicacy in fine restaurants primarily in parts of Asia, Europe and South America.

These resolutions are worded almost identically.
The resolutions proclaim that there is an increase in "unwanted" or "unusable" horses, as many as 100,000 or more annually, because of the closing of U.S. horse slaughter facilities in 2007. They claim the closing of U.S. slaughter houses in 2007 had "significant economic impact on the...equine industry". These resolutions call for "processing" or "harvesting" horses, euphemisms for "slaughter", which they describe as "humane". They claim slaughter can be managed through inspections and regulations.

These resolutions, if approved by the state legislatures, would be sent to Congress, as the state's position that H.R. 503 should be defeated.

It is important to voice your opposition to these resolutions. These resolutions are pending in these states:
Arizona, S.C.M. 1001 Find your Arizona legislators here. Contact all Arizona state House and Senate members.

Utah, H.J.R. 7, which has already passed the state House and has been approved by a Senate committee. Contact all Utah state Senators.

Missouri, HCR 19 in the House and SCR 8 in the state senate. These resolutions also call for opening a horse slaughter house in that state. Find your Missouri legislators here. Find all Missouri state representatives and senators. HCR 19 is pending before the state Agri-Business Committee and SCR 8 will be voted on by the state Senate Rules, Joint Rules, Resolutions, and Ethics Committee.

South Dakota, S.C.R. 2 has already passed the state House by a vote of 63-1. A separate, second bill, S.B. 114, asks the South Dakota state legislature to spend $100,000 on a study "of the feasibility, viability, and desirability of establishing and operating an equine processing facility in the state. Find your South Dakota state senators here. Find email addresses for all South Dakota state senators here. Find contact information for all South Dakota state representatives and senators here.

ND S.C.R. 4021 will be heard on Feb. 12, 2009 at 11 a.m. by the Senate Agriculture committee. Fax the committee at 701-328-3615 or email lcouncil@nd.gov A second bill, H.B. 1496 has already been approved by a legislative committee. The committee approved $75,000 in North Dakota for a study of possible markets for horse meat, applicable laws and funding for a horse slaughter facility there. Find all North Dakota state senators here. Find all House members here.

Wyoming, H.J.R. 8 has already passed committee. Find all Wyoming legislators here.

Minnesota, S.F. 133 is currently in the state Senate Agriculture and Veterans Committee. Find your Minnesota state senator and representative. Find all Minnesota state senators and representatives.

Kansas, HCR 5004 Find your Kansas legislators here. Find all Kansas state House and Senate members.

Arkansas H.C.R. 1004, also calls for incentives and support for opening of horse slaughter houses nationally and in the state. This bill has already passed in the state House and is in the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Forestry and Economic Development Find here all Arkansas state senators, including yours if you live there.

In Illinois Rep. Jim Sacia has introduced a bill, as he did last session for the repeal of the 2007 state law banning horse slaughter. That state law helped shut down the horse slaughter facility in Dekalb, Illinois.
Rep. Sacia's bill, H.B. 583, would also allow horses destined for slaughter for human consumption to be shipped into the state for slaughter with no certificate of veterinary inspection contrary to current state law governing horses. 510 ILCS 65/4 The new law would also exempt downed, sick, diseased, lame or disabled horses from the requirements of the Humane Care for Animals Act governing animals in this condition. 510 ILCS 70/5, 7.5
This means Rep. Sacia and the interests he represents in the horse slaughter underworld understand that horse slaughter is brutal and cruel and so would want to exempt their sordid practice from the animal cruelty laws and inspection requirements.
Contact Illinois state House and Senate members and urge them to vote NO on H.B. 583 and keep horse slaughter out of Illinois.

The horse slaughterers' strategy
These resolutions and bills are a not-so-subtle ploy by the foreign investors that own horse slaughter houses to defeat H.R. 503 which would ban the sale, transport, and possession of horses in interstate and foreign commerce for slaughter for human consumption.
Even without H.R. 503, horse slaughter cannot occur legally in the U.S. There is no point in states appropriating tax dollars for studies when currently horse slaughter for human consumption is not allowed in the U.S. These resolutions will simply insure horse slaughterers can continue to take American horses to Mexico or Canada for slaughter.
There is also another goal: to make horse slaughter acceptable to Americans and, in fact, create a market in the U.S. for the consumption of horsemeat. The resolution proposing the North Dakota study says as much. If Americans begin eating horsemeat, the theory is that Congress will be forced to fund ante-mortem inspections. Under current law because these required inspections are not funded, horse slaughter is not legal in the U.S. For more on this.....
Keep in mind when the remaining 3 horse slaughter houses in the U.S. closed in 2007, they were owned by foreign companies, Dallas Crown, Inc.; Cavel International, Inc. and Beltex Corp., which now operates a horse slaughter house in Mexico, Empacadora de Carnes de Fresnillo.
Even when there were horse slaughter houses in the U.S., they were part of a horse meat industry that was only 0.001% of the U.S. meat industry. The foreign-owned U.S. horse slaughterhouses paid little in income taxes. One facility paid $5 in federal taxes on $12 million in sales. These slaughter houses paid no export taxes, meaning the U.S. government effectively subsidized the sale of horse meat to consumers generally in parts of Asia, South America and Europe.
The profits went to the foreign investors. The communities where horse slaughter houses were located were left with horrific odors of dying and dead horses, blood literally running down the streets, and illegally dumped waste. There is no economic or other benefit to these states in subsidizing horse slaughter. Just the opposite. It is akin to supporting dog fighting rings.
Horse slaughter is also not a means of controlling numbers of "unwanted horses". This is a myth perpetuated by the horse slaughter industry that is simply repeated over and over again as in these resolutions. Horse slaughter is a multi million dollar a year business that is driven by a demand for horse meat. Kill buyers buy horses at auction for slaughter, and the USDA has said over 92% of American horses slaughtered, are healthy, not old, sick, injured, or neglected. These horses were not unwanted; they were simply sold at auction, and their owners had no control over who purchased them. Without the kill buyers who skulk around horse auctions, looking for the best potential horse meat, most of these horses would be purchased by others or end up in rescues or sanctuaries.
As John Holland, a free lance writer and researcher on horse slaughter and consultant for Americans Against Horse Slaughter, has explained, "Kill buyers do not go around the country like dog catchers gathering ‘unwanted horses' as a public service."
As Americans Against Horse Slaughter points out, "Just over 100,000 horses were slaughtered in the U.S. in 2006. If slaughter were no longer an option and these horses were rendered or buried instead, it would represent a small increase in the number of horse being disposed of in this manner - an increase that the current infrastructure can certainly sustain. Humane euthanasia and carcass disposal is highly affordable and widely available. The average cost of having a horse humanely euthanized and safely disposing of the animal's carcass is approximately $225, while the average monthly cost of keeping a horse is approximately $200."
Also, the horse slaughter industry actually encourages the over breeding of horses. Because owners can make money from the brutal slaughter of their horses, they have an incentive to over breed. As Paul Sorvino put it, "37% of those horses are going to be slaughtered because they couldn't run fast enough....So, it's run for your life." If the slaughter of horses for human consumption is illegal, there is no reward for over breeding.
Sadly, pro-slaughter groups have disseminated disinformation in the media to convince the public that without horse slaughter, there will be large numbers of abandoned, abused and neglected horses. (Even if that were true, which it is not, it is not clear how substituting one form of cruelty for another is somehow a solution.)
Indeed, these reports in the media have proven to be unfounded. A study released last year showed a decrease in horse abuse and neglect cases following closure of the last U.S. horse slaughter house in 2007. Any abandoned or neglected horses are not a result of a lack of horse slaughter houses.
Historically, there have not been increases in abandoned, neglected or abused horses following closures of horse slaughter houses. In 2002 the Illinois slaughter house burned to the ground and was out of commission for some time. Reports of abandoned, abused and neglected horses in the Illinois area were actually on the rise in the 2 years before the fire but decreased afterwards.
Remember the number of horses slaughtered in the U.S. dropped significantly from over 300,000 annually in the 1990s to 66,000 in 2004. There was no notable increase during that time of abandoned, abused or neglected horses.
When California banned horse slaughter in 1998, there was no rise in cases of cruelty or neglect to horses. In fact, there was a 39.4% decrease initially and that rose to 88% eventually in horse thefts. (What does that tell you about this "business"?)
Also, from 2004-2007 5000 horses were imported into the U.S. for slaughter. If horse slaughter occurs because of all the unwanted horses, why would these horse slaughter businesses need to import them? The answer is, of course, they wouldn't. Horse slaughter has nothing to do controlling numbers of unwanted horses. It is a business driven by a demand for horse meat primarily as a delicacy in foreign countries.
As Americans Against Horse Slaughter puts it, "The ‘surplus horse population' [argument] is a scare tactic."
Horse slaughter is also in no sense humane euthanasia. That much has been established by documents recently released in response to a FOIA request. The captive bolt gun used in the U.S. slaughterhouses did not typically render horses senseless before slaughter. The slaughter houses never bothered to restrain the horses' heads or use only trained personnel to operate the gun.
As John Holland has explained, "In its 2000 report on methods of Euthanasia, the AVMA stated that the captive bolt gun should not be used on equines unless head restraint could be assured. This is because of the relatively narrow forehead of equines, their head shyness and the fact that the brain is set back further than in cattle for which the gun is intended. It is difficult for an operator to assure proper placement of the gun.
"No slaughter house ever found a practical way to restrain the heads of the horses, so by the AVMA's very definition, the process was not acceptable. The result was a very large number of ineffective stuns. These misplaced blows undoubtedly caused severe pain until a stunning or fatal blow was delivered. "
Imagine the pain and terror experienced by horses as bolts were repeatedly fired at their heads many times by untrained operators. Many times horses were still conscious when they were then hoisted upside down for slaughter. For more information on the brutality of horse slaughter in the U.S., click here to read the July 25, 2006 testimony of Christopher J. Heyde, Deputy Legislative Director for Animal Welfare Institute, before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection. Click here to read testimony offered during a Congressional hearing in 2008 about the cruelty of horse slaughter.
Also, listen here to a discussion on WFL Endangered Stream Live Talk Radio about horse slaughter by Laura Allen, Executive Director of Animal Law Coalition; John Holland, journalist and consultant for Americans Against Horse Salughter; Dr. Nena Winand, DVM with Veterinarians for Equine Welfare and Paula Bacon, former mayor of Kaufman, Tx and leader of the fight to shut down the horse slaughter facility that operated there until 2007. (Download this broadcast!)
Then contact your U.S. representative and urge him or her to vote YES on the Conyers-Burton Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2009, H.B. 503.
Also, tell your representative to vote YES on H.R. 305, the Horse Transportation Safety Act, which will put an end to all transports of horses on double decked trailers.
Where You Can Find More Information on Horse Slaughter
Read Frequently Asked Questions About Unwanted Horses and the AVMA's Policy on Horse Slaughter
Read Veterinarians for Equine Welfare's Horse Slaughter - Its Ethical Impact and Subsequent Response by the Veterinary Profession

http://aahsbloggingupdates.blogspot.com/

Pro-Slaughter "Lobbiests" @ work in Kansas, Cutting Fences, Loosening Horses

Because of all the rumors about abandoned horses, the AWI has created an "Abandoned Horse Reward Fund."

http://tinyurl.com/d4ytps

Lots of these "abandoned horses" have been proven to be rumors, falsehoods and plain out and out untruths & lies generated by pro-slaughter supporters and lobbiests.. Right now there is a truck going round in Kansas cutting fencing and loosning horses all over the state. The next thing they do is call the press to tell them about"loose and abandoned horses." In one state, pro-slaughter lobbiests even purchased an "old nag" at auction and turned it loose in the streets.....

Here is the blurb from a concerned horse owner in Kansas;
(timing is funny here as the Kansas state legislature is just now proposing to bring back horse-slaughter)

FYI, pro-slaughters at work in Kansas - loosening horses
from Craiglist;

"...I am looking for the driver of a bright red or cherry red truck believed to be a flat bed with bright yellow running lights all across the back or the top of the cab. It looks either new or new paint job.
This person is stalking and cutting fence so horses can get out and get hit. Please contact me or the Johnson County, Mo. Sheriff's office..."

WE NEED YOUR HELP ON THIS...................
Location: Holden, Warrensburg

Click on title above to see ad:
http://kansascity.craigslist.org/wan/1026409075.html

Please just bear this in mind when you hear stories of loose and/or abandoned horses. The pro-slaughterers are DESPERATE to have their way.

CJ/Mk

Champion Arabian Showhorse Slaughter-bound?

I'm posting this as this horse needs a chance to live and may end up where he shouldn't. He has given too much this is just another reason slaughter isn't the answer. A well trained champion and is at risk. Remember this horse is well trained and needs a well trained rider. He won't understand neck reining and such. He could also end up in the wrong hands with someone that doesn't know how to ride him correctly. When people don't understand how to ride a horse correctly they blame the horse he could end up abused in the wrong hands. Someone in that area please save this boy. I live to far away.
Kathy
----- Original Message -----

in/near Ohio wanting to help El Moraduke son?


Carol,

Thanks for posting this announcement.
It really hurts to see a great show campaigner like OA De Leon+ end up his life in an auction with the likelihood that he might go to the knackers.

I am afraid this is the plight of many of our horses in the spanish lines.



I just received this email and wanted to pass it along in case
someone was interested. This boy is out of Jairam, so he's double
Galero.

The information I received:

" OA DE LEON+ AHR*354165 Grey 1986 & another Arab gelding, going to
auction 2-14

[quote]....a public auction will be held February 14, 2009 at 10AM
8517 Norwalk Rd, Litchfield, Medina County, State of Ohio of horses
to the highest bidder for cash to pay a lien for food & boarding
charges of Diamond D's Stable, James Dean. The horses are owned by
Katherine Dunn & described as an Arab, 18yo, named Teddy; & a bay
Arab 26 years [b][he's 23],[/b], named T-Bird & may be viewed between
the hours of 330 & 5pm, Monday, February 2 & Thursday, February 5,
weekdays at Diamond D's Stables, 8517 Norwalk Rd, Litchfield, Ohio.
Auctioneer: Max Walton, Walton & Associates, 3860 Paradise Rd,
Medina, Ohio 44256 330-416-3119[/quote]
(my bold)

[quote] This horse was bred by Owens Arabian Ranch in Az formerly of
california, long time breeders of Spanish Arabian horses. He is
very very big for an Arab., and impeccible Spanish cross breeding.
He is 23, and will probably go to the killers due to his size. Can
somebody rescue him?
The other horse is not listed in the registry as owner of any horses
other than the one above who goes by the name "Teddy"[/quote]

I thought I would pass this one to you just in case you know of
someone who is looking for a great horse for their kids. These
horses are located where I use to board LA. They use to be show
horses as well as used for lessons in the recent past. I believe
they may have good bloodlines if that would be an attraction for
someone."

His pedigree is up on allbreed:
http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/oa+de+leon
He had a very respectable show record according to DataSource.

Show Record
OA DE LEON+ - AHR*354165
EASTERN ARABIAN HORSE SHOW (5159) Region: 15 04-AUG-00 to 05-AUG-00
Arabian Mounted Native Costume Champ 3 6 0
Arabian Mounted Native Costume 2 8 1
SHENANDOAH VALLEY II (5117) Region: 15 17-JUN-00 to 19-JUN-00
Arabian Mounted Native Costume 3 3 0
SHENANDOAH VALLEY I (5116) Region: 15 15-JUN-00 to 16-JUN-00
Arabian English Show Hack Champ 2 4 1
Arabian English Show Hack 2 2 0
SILVER SPUR ALL ARAB (4859) Region: 16 04-SEP-99 to 05-SEP-99
Arabian Mounted Native Costume 4 6 0
REGION 15 CHAMPIONSHIP (4795) Region: 15 09-JUL-99 to 11-JUL-99
Arabian Mounted Native Costume Champ TOP 5 13 4
REGION 15 PRE-SHOW (4794) Region: 15 08-JUL-99 to 09-JUL-99
Arabian Mounted Native Costume AT 3 4 0
EASTERN CLASSIC (4652) Region: 16 11-JUN-99 to 13-JUN-99
Arabian Mounted Native Costume 2 4 0
EAST COAST CHAMPIONSHIP (4393) Region: 15 01-AUG-98 to 02-AUG-98
Arabian Mounted Native Costume Champ RES CH 2 5 6
Arabian English Show Hack Champ TOP 5 11 4
BUCKEYE SWEEPSTAKES (4459) Region: 14 21-MAY-98 to 24-MAY-98
Arabian English Show Hack Champ 3 7 0
Arabian English Show Hack 2 9 1
REGION 15 CHAMPIONSHIP (3833) Region: 15 04-JUL-97 to 06-JUL-97
Arabian English Show Hack Champ RES CH 2 18 6
Arabian Mounted Native Costume Champ TOP 5 12 4
REGION 14 CHAMPIONSHIP (3851) Region: 14 27-JUN-97 to 29-JUN-97
Arabian Mounted Native Costume Champ TOP 5 14 4
NW PA ALL ARAB SHOW (3885) Region: 15 13-JUN-97 to 15-JUN-97
Arabian Mounted Native Costume Champ 1 7 2
Arabian Mounted Native Costume 2 4 0
BUCKEYE SWEEPSTAKES (4003) Region: 14 22-MAY-97 to 25-MAY-97
Arabian Mounted Native Costume Champ 2 8 2
Arabian Mounted Native Costume 2 5 0
Arabian English Show Hack 4 8 0
BLUEGRASS CLASSIC (3949) Region: 14 05-APR-97 to 06-APR-97
Arabian Hunter Pl 1 6 1
Arabian Hunter Pl Champ 2 3 0
BLUEGRASS SPRING FESTIVAL (3950) Region: 14 04-APR-97 to 04-APR-97
Arabian Mounted Native Costume 1 1 0
Arabian Hunter Pl 1 5 1
Arabian Hunter Pl Champ 2 4 1
Arabian Mounted Native Costume Champ 2 2 0
SILVER SPUR ALL ARAB (3715) Region: 16 31-AUG-96 to 01-SEP-96
Arabian Country English Pl 2 11 1
Arabian English Show Hack 3 13 1
EAST COAST CHAMPIONSHIP (3704) Region: 15 03-AUG-96 to 04-AUG-96
Arabian English Show Hack Champ CHAMP 1 7 12
EASTERN ARABIAN HORSE SHOW (3703) Region: 15 02-AUG-96 to 03-AUG-96
Arabian English Show Hack 1 8 2
REGION 16 CHAMPIONSHIP (3479) Region: 16 10-JUL-96 to 13-JUL-96
Arabian English Show Hack Champ RES CH 2 16 6
REGION 14 CHAMPIONSHIP (3553) Region: 14 28-JUN-96 to 30-JUN-96
Arabian English Show Hack Champ RES CH 2 19 6
OHIO BUCKEYE (3528) Region: 14 23-MAY-96 to 26-MAY-96
Arabian English Show Hack Champ 1 7 2
Arabian English Show Hack 5 11 0
OHAHA SPRINGTIME (3474) Region: 14 18-APR-96 to 21-APR-96
Arabian Country English Pl 5 14 0
BLUEGRASS CLASSIC (3226) Region: 14 30-MAR-96 to 31-MAR-96
Arabian Country English Pl 4 9 0
BLUEGRASS SPRING FESTIVAL (3225) Region: 14 29-MAR-96 to 30-MAR-96
Arabian Country English Pl 2 9 1
Arabian Country English Pl Champ 1 6 2
US NATIONAL CHAMP (2931) Region: 0 20-OCT-95 to 28-OCT-95
Arabian English Show Hack Champ CHAMP 1 35 30
SILVER SPUR ALL ARAB (2993) Region: 16 02-SEP-95 to 03-SEP-95
Arabian Country English Pl 1 8 2
Arabian Country English Pl Champ 1 7 2
Arabian English Show Hack 1 12 3
EAST COAST CHAMPIONSHIP (2858) Region: 15 04-AUG-95 to 06-AUG-95
Arabian English Show Hack Champ CHAMP 1 7 12
Arabian Country English Pl Champ TOP 5 14 4
REGION 14 SILVERAMA (3002) Region: 14 28-JUN-95 to 02-JUL-95
Arabian Country English Pl Champ 3 5 0
Arabian Country English Pl 3 9 0
REGION 14 CHAMPIONSHIP (3003) Region: 14 30-JUN-95 to 02-JUL-95
Arabian English Show Hack Champ CHAMP 1 16 12
NW PA ALL ARABIAN SHOW (2808) Region: 15 16-JUN-95 to 18-JUN-95
Arabian English Show Hack 4 13 0
Arabian English Show Hack Champ 1 7 2
Arabian Country English Pl 1 14 3
OHIO BUCKEYE (2848) Region: 14 25-MAY-95 to 28-MAY-95
Arabian English Show Hack Champ 6 8 0
OHAHA SPRINGTIME SHOW (2878) Region: 14 20-APR-95 to 23-APR-95
Arabian Mounted Native Costume Champ 3 7 0
Arabian Mounted Native Costume 2 10 1
BLUE GRASS CLASSIC (2825) Region: 14 01-APR-95 to 02-APR-95
Arabian English Show Hack 1 4 1
Arabian English Show Hack Champ 2 5 1
BLUE GRASS SPRING FEST (2824) Region: 14 31-MAR-95 to 01-APR-95
Arabian English Show Hack 3 4 0
OHAHA FALL SHOW (2727) Region: 14 16-SEP-94 to 18-SEP-94
Arabian English Show Hack 1 9 2
TRI STATE CHARITY ARABIAN (1235) Region: 14 08-JUN-91 to 09-JUN-91
Arabian Stallion Breeding 5 5 0
BERRIEN COUNTY FAIR (881321) Region: 13 12-AUG-88 to 14-AUG-88
Arabian Stallion Breeding 4 4 0

Rep. Sue WalliS, the "S" behind slaughter

Rep. Sue Wallis of Wyoming is the one who organized the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) at a meeting last December. She is vice chair of the Agricultural Sub-Committe and is author of the proposal submitted to Congress on behalf of the Committee asking Congress NOT to pass anti-horse slaughter legislation - and they are organizing on a state-by-state basis. Already North Dakota, Arkansas, Kansas & Wyoming have taken direct action either through their own state legislative process or by petitioning Congress. Here is a letter Ms. WalliS is circulating around in support of her pro-slaughter position;

Dear friends,

I have developed this list of talking points and action items over the last months of working so hard to protect the horse industry, and the horse people that I love from the horrific consequences being foisted upon us all by radical animal rights activists, and thought I would share them with you all. Please let me know if you can think of anything to add.

Specific things you can do to help protect animal agriculture...

In opposition to the Burton-Conyers HB 503 - Prevention of Cruelty to Equines Act that has been introduced in the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives in the US Congress.

First of all...know what we are all up against...let me point to just a couple of the headlines out of the bill that has been introduced-from the transportation statement, "to prohibit the shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling or donation of horses and other equines to be slaughtered for human consumption, and for any other purposes;"(that covers about everything!) "horses and other equines are domestic animals that are used primarily for recreation, pleasure, and sport;"(also used for work, and for the majority of world cultures for food) "the movement, showing, exhibition, or sale of sore horses in intrastate commerce, and the shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling, or donation in intrastate commerce of horses and other equines to be slaughtered for human consumption, adversely affect and burden interstate and foreign commerce;" ("sore" is a very loose term that could be applied to practically any horse under a lot of different circumstances) and "the Secretary may detain for examination, testing, or the taking of evidence-(the horse)-any horse at any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction which is sore or which the Secretary has probable cause to believe is sore." (Unconstitutional search and seizure!) According to Thomas Arens, a licensed Equine Professional and Auctioneer in Markleville, Indiana who pointed this out to me, the intent of the bill is to have a USDA official to be able to stop any horses being transported anywhere and take a swab sample of their legs. If the swab sample shows an astringent or a countered irritant then the assumption is that they must be transporting them to slaughter and the official will have the right to impound the horse.

I am sure that I don't have to tell you what the implications are...and what the horrific imposition is just about to be foisted upon all of agriculture. If they can do this to me...let me assure you that we are one hair-breadth away from telling a dairy man that he can no longer market his cows when they don't breed back, or any other kind of livestock producer whose stock is not producing as they should. This is a clarion call to action for everyone in agriculture.


1. Talk to everybody. Talk to the media. Talk to livestock and agriculture groups. Talk to animal rescue and recovery groups. Talk to local governments. Talk to concerned citizens...and tell everyone of them to talk to everybody they know, and write Congress...particularly the House Judicial Committee where the Burton-Conyers HB 503 Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act has been introduced...and to both the House and Senate Agriculture Committees who need to challenge the appropriateness of that Committee, and weigh in with all of the weight of our rural and horse-loving citizens behind them. Here is a link to the House Judiciary Committee, House Agriculture Committee, Senate Agriculture Committee, and a contact list for the entire Congress so that you can contact your own Senators and Representatives. Below you will find a PowerPoint that you can use if you like...
2 What should you tell them?
Make sure they understand the true agenda of the animal rights organizations backing this measure-imposing a vegan lifestyle on all of America-go to www.HumaneWatch.org yourselves, and point everyone you have any contact with that way-find out what the 7 Things You Need to Know About the HSUS are...
3. Make sure they hear that a vegan lifestyle is particularly dangerous for our babies and children. Babies and children deprived of animal derived protein through their mother's milk, and through their diets-their brains do not have the nutrients to develop properly-this lifestyle will severely handicap the next generation. Remember that 85% of the human brain's development happens in the first three years of life. Here are a couple of links that back this up: New York Times article - Authorities Say Strict Vegan Diet Endangered Life of Queens Baby; People Magazine - Did This Baby Die from a Vegan Diet?; and Death by Veganism, a New York Times Op Ed written by Nina Planck, author of Real Food.
4. Make sure they understand that most of the world eats horses. Remind them that horses have been used for many purposes, including food, since before the very first animals were domesticated. If we ban the processing of horses in the US it will not stop horses from being eaten-it will just destroy the equine industry here, eliminate the livelihoods of thousands of people, and the jobs of thousands more-at a time when the economy is already suffering tremendously. Here is a quote from a recent broadcast, "Frugal Icelanders Prepare For The Holidays Morning Edition, December 11, 2008 · Iceland has been hit by the global financial crisis in a big way. With unemployment surging and the currency collapsing, less expensive traditional staples are coming back into fashion. Frugal Icelanders are avoiding imported beers. They are also buying horse meat, which is half the price of beef."
4. Tell them that since the plants were closed by state action in the US, that we are now importing more than 500 metric tons of horsemeat into the US.
5. Make sure that every horse owner in the United States-especially the wealthy thoroughbred owners, and warm blood people, clearly understand that if we classify horses as pets, as companion animals-that all of their agriculture related tax benefits will disappear-no more deductions, no more exemptions. Horses are livestock, plain and simple.
6. Tell them this is not an issue of human euthanasia for un-wanted horses-this is an issue of economics and markets. Without a market there will be no breeders. Without breeders there will be no horses. Period.
7. Tell them that abandoned and neglected horses are overwhelming the rescue and recovery organizations, and that even if you wanted to give away your good, old horse today...you might not be able to find any place to go with him because there is no longer a release valve through the marketing of those horses who will never be anybody's pet-or whose owners need to salvage some economic value out of their property.
Make sure they understand that we have some 33,000 (by BLM count-most ranchers dealing with those ranges say triple that number) so-called wild horses on the Western public lands. Make sure they know that we have another 30,000+ standing in feedlots all over the West at taxpayer expense. 8. Make sure they know that any unregulated, unmanaged horse herd will double itself every 4 years-that they are already destroying the ecosystems and wildlife habitat of our public lands, and that the cost of caring for them off of the lands will grow to $77 million dollars of taxpayer expense by 2012.
9. Remind them that 10 million people starve to death every year in this world...and maybe our excess BLM wild horses could be put to much better use by providing high quality, nutritious animal protein, untainted by BSE-type disease concerns of other livestock to people who could never afford to buy it. Once again, Americans can use an abundant and sustainable resource to come to the aid of the poor and starving of the world.
10. Encourage your legislature or assembly to send a clear message to the administration and the congress that our state's will not tolerate this clear violation of private property rights, and the blatant interference of the commerce clause of our US Constitution through the disruption of intrastate and foreign free commerce. Here is a link to the HJ0008 Equine Resources resolution that the Wyoming Legislature is passing this year. Feel free to contact me, I have lots of other resolutions from national organizations that you can model language after if you like.
11. We need to have the information and be ready to challenge every assumption-for example, we heard Gene Baur of the Farm Sanctuary in our Animal Rights/Animal Welfare discussion at the State Ag and Rural Leaders meeting invoke the name of Dr. Temple Grandin not once, but twice. We need to take that argument away from them. Dr. Grandin, as most of you probably know is a renowned autistic animal behavior scientist at Colorado State University who does a lot of work with the emotions of animals, and what it takes for an animal to lead a happy life. Her most recent book is a great read, you would enjoy it, Animals Make us Human: creating the best life for animals...the part that Mr. Baur conveniently left out...and which you need to know, understand, and broadcast to everyone is the part where they lead a happy life because they have their needs for sufficient food, clean water, proper handling AND a quick and painless death when they are processed into food. Her other books include Genetics and the Behavior of Domestic Animals; Livestock Handling and Transport; and Humane Livestock Handling, in which she goes into great detail about the design of processing facilities and how they can be set up for efficiency, stress free handling, and humane slaughter.
12. The North Dakota Legislature is ahead of all of us and that they have a bill in their legislature this year to provide $100,000 to study the feasibility of a horse processing plant in their state. Some of that study money needs to very publicly go to Dr. Grandin or somebody like her, to make sure that plant design is designed specifically for horses so that their end-of-life experience is quiet, calm, and stress-free. Those of us in animal agriculture understand completely that that not only makes tremendous animal welfare sense, and we should be able to benefit from that...but it also makes perfect product quality sense...stressed animals equals poor quality meat...pure and simple.
13. Here is the PowerPoint presentation we used to explain the issue to the National Council of State Legislature's Agriculture and Energy Committee. Feel free to use it or change it to whatever advantage you can: ( click here to access the slideshow and many other resources)

I'll conclude this pep talk by telling you a little about why this is so important to me, personally. I come from horse people, in horse country. My Dad was born on the Laramie Plains at the Wallis Brothers Ranch, and they, among other things, raised horses for the Army. They ran Remount studs provided by the Army with 20-25 mares with each stud bunch. Colonel Grey would come out every year to buy 3 and 4 year old geldings ready to train. Colonel Grey once told my grandfather that there were two places in the world that were perfect for raising horses in terms of sound legs, and good hooves-one of them is the bluegrass country of Kentucky, and the other is a 100 mile circle around Sheridan, Wyoming...and that is right where I live. I have great aunts and uncles who were world champion saddle bronc riders in the late 20s and 30s...and all sorts of relatives active in the rodeo world today. My father was a race steward and the very first job that my son Isaac ever held was as a jockey runner at the race track when he was 10 years old. I made my extra money in high school putting 30 to 60 days on green-broke colts. My brother, who lives on the ranch with my folks, my husband and I, raises Belgian and Haflinger horses and went all the way to Ohio to buy his Haflinger stud.

So...horses have always been, and still are, a central part of our lives, the lives of my neighbors, and my constituents. I have committed myself to do everything that I can to preserve this way of life, and I will be happy to go just about anywhere, and talk to anybody. So, if you know of a place or time where I might be able to do some good...drop me a note, or give me a call...

Thanks,

Sue Wallis
Wyoming House of Representatives
Campbell County - District 52
PO Box 71
Recluse, WY 82725
307 685 8248 - ranch
307 680 8515 - blackberry
http://www.wallis.vcn.com

ND OK's $75,000 Horse-Slaughter Study

Horse slaughter facility promoted

Feb 07, 2009 - 04:05:45 CST
By BRIAN DUGGAN
Bismarck Tribune

Despite federal pressure to ban horse slaughtering entirely, a House committee agreed with two state lawmakers on Friday that the state should set aside money to study the possibility of opening an equine processing plant in North Dakota.

Ranchers, veterinarians and horse breeders filled the Capitol's Brynhild Haugland room, where they told lawmakers on the House Agriculture Committee that processing unwanted horses for meat is a more humane and profitable alternative than abandoning or euthanizing them.

They were testifying in favor of a bill that would set aside up to $75,000 in agriculture fuel tax revenue for a study to see if North Dakota could feasibly - and legally - open a horse slaughterhouse.

"The actions in Washington, D.C., have created a problem for horse owners," said Rep. Rod Froelich, D-Selfridge, who is co-sponsoring the legislation with Sen. Joe Miller, R-Park River.

If the bill passes, the funds will go to the state Department of Commerce to study the feasibility of the project, Froelich said, adding not all the money will be spent if it turns out that the laws are already too restrictive on horse slaughterhouses.

"We've got to lay the groundwork first," he said.

Froelich said the problem started when the U.S. Agriculture Department stopped funding federal meat inspectors two years ago to oversee the nation's three horse slaughterhouses.

The plants closed amid a growing chorus of political fervor to shut down the horse slaughterhouses, leaving horse owners with fewer options for unwanted horses. Congress also is considering a bill that would prohibit the consumption of horse meat.

As a result, Froelich said the market for unwanted horses has plummeted, sometimes costing horse owners more money to simply transport their animals to a ring compared to the amount of money they could expect to get in return for them.

Greg Kitto, a North Dakota veterinarian who treats horses, told the committee that he's seen an increase in requests for him to euthanize horses in recent years, which he said correlates to the closure of three horse processing plants in Illinois and Texas.

"I'm getting more and more calls to do it on unwanted horses and it's because they can't take them to slaughter," Kitto said, testifying in favor of the study. He added it can cost horse owners hundreds of dollars to euthanize and then dispose of a horse.

While testifying, the veterinarian of 34 years held up a photo of an emaciated horse lying in a field. It had starved to death after its owner abandoned it a few weeks back. Kitto said that is what some horse owners have resorted to because they can no longer care for nor afford the animal, which can carry an annual price tag of about $2,200.

"He was allowed to starve to death," Kitto said. "I'm not saying the guy didn't do wrong and he's going to be prosecuted. If he had an alternative, maybe something else could have been done."

But opponents to the bill say breeders need to be more cautious and that euthanasia is more humane than sending a horse to die on the floor of a slaughterhouse.

"Why on Earth would anyone have to watch their horse suffer and die?" said Alison Smith, co-owner of the Triple H Horse Rescue in Mandan. "Euthanasia is always an option, even if you have to do it yourself. A bullet is cheap and more humane than a slaughterhouse."

Lynn Larson, a volunteer at Smith's horse rescue, said she's no PETA supporter and she's fine with hunting, but she said she draws the line at horse slaughterhouses.

"It's wasted money to spend $75,000 to study a slaughter facility," said Larson, who has eight adopted horses. "That money could be better used to develop ways to help these animals."

She said horses are not like other livestock, such as cattle or sheep, and that there are alternatives to getting rid of unwanted horses - euthanasia being one of those. She added that besides other animal rescue and adoption programs, places like the Dakota Zoo can take donated horses and use them as feed for other animals.

Larson said people should use more responsibility before buying or breeding horses and know that they are financial burdens. She added, a slaughterhouse is "not going to make the problem go away."

But Todd Hall, a Dunn County rancher, said federal regulations banning the processing or sale of horse meat is an infringement on personal property rights.

"Those people have begun to strip our rights for pushing for an outright ban on meat harvest," Hall told the House committee. "Horses were chosen first because, let's face it, they have the best personalities."

Greg Brokaw, who owns a training stable in Ashley, cited a congressional report while testifying that found during the 1980s more than 300,000 horses were slaughtered. By 2006, that number had fallen to 105,000.

He added that taxpayers are feeding 38,000 unwanted horses kept on federal land with an annual price tag of $17.6 million.

North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner Roger Johnson said the study makes sense, saying a federal ban on horse slaughtering is bad policy.

"Why don't you just pass a law that makes it illegal for horses to die?" Johnson asked.

Wyoming Wants Horse Slaughter

Lawmakers decry interference in horse slaughter

By MARJORIE KORN Associated Press Writer

The Wyoming House gave preliminary approval Friday to a resolution asking Congress not to interfere with the shipment and slaughter of unwanted horses.

House Joint Resolution 8 urges Congress to keep out of state oversight of the transport and processing of horses.

Rep. Sue Wallis, R-Recluse, who introduced the resolution, said it's a response to a federal bill that seeks to limit horse transport to Mexico and Canada. Americans currently send unwanted horses to the neighboring countries for slaughter, because slaughterhouses in the United States have closed.

Wallis said the proposed Conyers-Burton Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2009 would be a threat to Wyoming's horse and livestock industries. She said the industries have already been hurt as domestic slaughterhouses have closed due pressure from animal rights organizations.

"It's absolutely decimating to the horse industry," Wallis said.

There are an estimated 100,000 unwanted or unusable horses in the United States, according to supporters of the resolution.

But Nancy Perry, of the Humane Society of the United States, said horses transported to Canada and Mexico are often young and slaughtered for horse meat.

"Horses that wind up going to slaughter are not old, broken down horses that reach the end of their utility," Perry said. She said the Humane Society would rather see old or unwanted horses euthanized.

She said the bipartisan Conyers-Burton bill has more than 80 co-sponsors and continues to gain support.

The Wyoming House would need to approve the state resolution two more times before it would go to the Senate.


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HSUS Sets the Record Straight

Humane Society Says It Will Not Oppose Slaughter of Farm and Ranch Animals Despite Ag Interest Groups Claims

Farmers and Rancher Target HSUS

By Steven Long

HOUSTON, (Horseback Magazine) - The nation's largest animal welfare organization has for the first time gone on the record to counter claims that it wants to end the slaughter of food animals.

Michael Markarian, executive vice president of Washington based Humane Society of the United States, emphatically countered the charge frequently made by agriculture groups that it wants nothing less than to end the slaughter of any animal for food, not just horses.

Asked Tuesday if HSUS is targeting the food animal industry for abolition Markarian was quick to respond.

"The answer is no," he told Horseback Magazine through a spokeswoman. "That is not our goal."

Agriculture groups from across the nation have zeroed in on HSUS as the bogy man in their war with animal welfare activists over horse slaughter. They say that the ultimate goal of the Society is to eliminate the killing of all food animals including cattle, sheep, goats, and swine.

"They have a simple goal, and that is to eliminate animal agriculture in this country," said South Dakota Rancher Troy Hadrick in a story in Tuesday's Rapid City Journal.

Such talk is sweeping the nation. Agriculture interests will soon take their battle to Congress and to state legislatures as legislation to end horse slaughter forever is brought up for debate and a vote.

In meeting after meeting, both large and small, farmers and ranchers are pointed to the Humane Society by industry leaders as the group most well funded and determined to end their livelihood and way of life. The result has been an emotional upheaval against the group coming from across rural America.

In the current Texas legislative session a fierce battle is expected over the issue. It will pit recreational horse owners and animal rescue operators against breeders, ranchers, and much of the horse industry itself.

Polling has consistently shown that an overwhelming majority of Americans oppose the slaughter of horses.

The industry is well funded and able to tap the deep pockets of the Farm Bureau, Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raiser's Association, AQHA and others who have a vested interest in being able to recoup the costs of raising a horse with little market value. Selling a horse for slaughter enables a breeder to recover at least part of his costs for breeding a seemingly unwanted horse. In short, it's all about money and the ability to recover the investment made to breed the animal.

The battle could well be waged in multiple states all at once, as well as in Congress. Animal rights activists counter that there are no unwanted horses and most animals culled from breeding programs may be placed with the public if only given the chance. They say that it is a myth that old, frail, and ill horses are sold for slaughter as the slaughter advocates frequently claim. They say it's all about meat on the hoof, and there isn't much meat on a starving horse.

Yet the agriculture industry is fiercely determined to bring back slaughter plants that were outlawed and closed in Texas and Illinois during the past two years.

In fact, a bill has already been filed in South Dakota that would provide funding for a study to establish a horse slaughter industry in that state. Currently, there is no legal horse slaughter facility operating in the United States, although horses are shipped to Canada and Mexico to supply markets in Europe and Japan.

While the Humane Society has now gone on record saying it will not target animal agriculture for elimination, that doesn't mean it has embraced it either.

"Most animals raised for meat, eggs, and dairy products today suffer immensely on factory farms," said HSUS spokeswoman Heather Sullivan. "They are confined by the tens of thousands in warehouses where many of their natural instincts are frustrated and are generally treated like mere commodities as opposed to living, feeling individuals."

Sullivan said the organization welcomes animal lovers of all dietary persuasions, from vegans to confirmed carnivores.

"The Humane Society of the United States is a big tent organization -- we're comprised of vegetarians and meat-eaters alike. In fact, the vast majority of our members are not vegetarians," she said.

"We accept the fact that most Americans eat animals and we support efforts by individuals, corporations, voters and lawmakers (and what they) can do to help reduce the suffering of these animals. At the same time, while most Americans eat animals, they do not want to see them treated inhumanely. The industry can only be expected to go so far as the public wants it to go, and many standard industry practices today are clearly out of step with the sentiments of most Americans. This is where HSUS focuses the bulk of our farm animal resources.

While HSUS is not officially opposed to meat eating, it clearly isn't promoting it either, and in fact promotes alternatives.

"We support a variety of reasonable efforts to help reduce animal suffering. If consumers want to avoid eating animals, we'll provide them with the information they need to make that decision," Sullivan said. "If they want to reduce the number of animals they eat, we'll give them recipes and other useful information. And if they want to avoid products that cause the most animal suffering (e.g., switching from battery cage eggs to cage-free eggs), we applaud that too, and give them the info they need on where they can find those products. This is the range of motion for the bulk of the American public, and we are comfortable working in all of these ways."

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