# Horse Slaughter



## Horsegirl896 (Oct 29, 2016)

What's everyone's opinion on horse slaughter? I believe that it is just wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Naturally, horses would never have to go through that and be killed by us humans! :-|:-?


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## ApuetsoT (Aug 22, 2014)

What's worse? Starving slowly during winter because the owner has no hay, nearby rescues are full, and no one else will take the horse, or a week of stress then it ends? 
In the nature a horse might spend weeks dieing from an infection, or broken leg, or from starvation or dehydration, or being hunted and mauled by a predator.


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## Prairie (May 13, 2016)

In addition to Apuetso's post, where are you going to find homes for all the horses who are now homeless? It's far better to be quickly slaughtered than to slowly starve to death. Have you even seen horses who have been starved because the owners can no longer afford to feed them? How many sick horses have you seen who are slowly dying because the owner can't afford the vet?


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## carshon (Apr 7, 2015)

Agree, and over grazing in the wild is an issue. Not just because of the cattle but because of over population of all animals on that land. When you take away natural predators over population and disease are the end result. 

I am not against slaughter but I am also not "for" eradication of all wild horses. 

Over breeding, careless breeding and lack of training are a HUGE issue in the horse world. A well trained grade horse will always be worth more than an untrained papered horse.

I am for humane euthanasia - whether that be captive bolt or a shot from a vet.


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## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

What I don't understand is why people think it's wrong to slaughter horses, but ok to slaughter cows? Why are people horrified at the idea of shooting a deer but have no issue with chowing down on their bacon double cheeseburger? Because horses and deer are cuter than cows and pigs? Is this what we're basing our judgment on? Because if so, I have a big problem with that. 

If you're against eating all meat, then I get that. But just some meat? Seems a little arbitrary and superficial. And wild horses would die from predators (which many humans are) all the time. Not sure why you think otherwise. 

More important than judging people for what they eat, I think the raising and slaughtering of animals of ANY kind should be heavily regulated. If humans are going to raise animals for the purpose of eating them or their products (milk, eggs), then they should be responsible enough to do it ethically. I don't think an animal dying is the tragedy. I think an animal living in abject conditions, in tiny pens in its own filth and/or being tortured to death is a tragedy.


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## Avna (Jul 11, 2015)

Humane slaughter would solve many problems in the horse world.


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

Here's my question for those who oppose slaughter. How many of these horses can you go to the auction or meat buyer's and buy and house yourself? If not you, who?


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## Avna (Jul 11, 2015)

Banning horse slaughter in the US without solving the several problems which it previously addressed, was, in my belief, extremely misguided if not irresponsible. The Law of Unintended Consequences rushed into the vacuum it created, with a vengeance.


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

I think I would maybe have another option in that Poll because I don't agree with the current slaughter house situation in the US which mostly amounts too shipping horses to other countries where the supervision can be poor to non existent
However I do agree that we need supervised carefully regulated slaughter houses in the US, every State should have at least one that's licensed to handle horses


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## Avna (Jul 11, 2015)

Over 150,000 horses were sent to slaughter in the US in 2005. It probably isn't any less now. Many of these horses were old, sick, crippled, very poor quality, or dangerous. Probably a lot weren't, as well. There isn't a market for rescue horses, the way there is for dogs and cats (of which there is also an oversupply, of course). Because, you have to have extra land and extra money for a horse (even if you don't have the extra time for riding). That's a luxury most people don't have, even if they wanted a horse. So the horse rescue world doesn't have a lot of room for expansion.


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## Knave (Dec 16, 2015)

The uproar over slaughter has always struck me as odd. Wild horses are feral like dogs. In towns there are pounds which euthanize dogs who are not adopted and people have no problem with that. People are judgmental of breeding cats for instance, but don't argue about the feral horses breeding.

People also judge cattle intensely. They claim the cattle over graze and this is to the detriment of the land and natural animals. I live on a ranch and I promise you keeping land in good condition is a requirement to longevity ranching. Horses used to be managed and useful. Today they are overpopulated and dying. I live where they are abundant and I love horses and think it is awful to let an animal thirst to death or starve.

If slaughter was permitted the horses could again have value to more persons than just the activists who don't understand their plight. They could be managed and profitable to our country rather than a drain. When people profit from something they tend to take care of it.


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## Knave (Dec 16, 2015)

https://youtu.be/adE3v6v7uuU


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## Horsegirl896 (Oct 29, 2016)

I was just stating my opinion.  And you guys are WAY nicer about this topic than some other forums I've been on. (they really overreact about everything!)


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## equinesmitten (Sep 5, 2010)

This is such a tough issue.  Personally, I wish everyone would drastically reduce breeding until we get our unwanted horse problem solved. 140,000 horses killed in awful conditions a year is just way too many. Really one is too many. I saw a great suggestion years ago about horse people becoming certified in humane euthanization. I think that's a viable option if the alternative is shipping them for a terrifying ride to another country to meet a sad end. We all love this fabulous animal and we are not doing it right. We all owe it to the horse as a species. Just my two cents.


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## cbar (Nov 27, 2015)

I don't like the idea of horses being slaughtered....however I think it is a necessary industry. There are far too many horses and not enough homes for them. And as others have mentioned, I would rather see a horse meet a quick end at a slaughter house, than starve to death. 

However, I do think there needs to be stricter regulations on the transport & care of horses en route to the slaughter house. While these animals are still alive, they should be given food & water and transported as safely as possible. 

I also have a problem with the slaughter houses themselves. At least up here in Alberta, the slaughterhouse is designed more for cattle - horses are much slimmer and taller than cattle which can lead to mistakes & injury (rather than a quick death).


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## Change (Jul 19, 2014)

I used to live near a Wild Cat (i.e., Tigers, Snow Leopards, Lions, etc.) Breeding Compound. They were a 501c and so existed through zoos paying 'board' on the cats the sent in to breed (genetic diversity tracking was a big part of the program) and donations. 

Some of those donations were in the form of 'meat.' Sometimes a horse - old, lame, whatever - would be donated. Domestic horses are wormed, given shots, meds, etc., and have to be certified drug free before being slaughtered for the cat's feed. I donated a turn-out at my ranch as their holding pen. The vet would come and check the horse in; I would feed (only hay) and certify no additional supplements or meds. It wasn't easy, sometimes, to see a horse with severe laminitis and not give it any bute, but that's what I'd signed up for. I'd cold soak or boot or whatever I could to ease pain short of meds.

After 30 days, the vet would do a blood draw and certify the animal was 'clean meat,' at which time I would make arrangements with the butcher to come get the horse. 

Those horses had value in the end, but I often wished that more 'unwanted healthy' horses were donated and that the old or lame ones would just be humanely put down (caveat here: if the vet thought the animal was in too much pain to go 30 days, it was euthanized)

If slaughtering horses wasn't so frowned upon, more horses would have come through my place for the cats. We joke and call them glue-factories and dog-food. And when my Mom bred show GSDs, the bitches were fed raw horse-meat (in the 60s). 

Sure, I hated going to auction back then and being outbid on nice horses because the lbs on the hoof price was more than I could afford, but I also hate seeing how many poor horses are foisted off on rescues now because there's no other option.


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

Here's another question to go with this issue. Of course, in order to do this we'd have to have an abattoir in just about every town. Nobody likes to think of 'Pookie' going to slaughter but it is what it is. Right now if a horse is euthanized, by whatever means, it just ends up in a landfill. I would prefer to see that meat given to the poor, used to feed other animals, anything other than the waste it currently is. We USED to eat horse meat in this country, and having been raised in EU, I've eaten it as a child and never thought twice about it. Here in the US, it was fairly common practice to eat horse meat during times of hardship up until 1975. Why would we not make use of the carcass, just like we do cows, sheep, pigs, goats and chickens(all of which are frequently used as pets too)? If we're ever to effectively deal with the numbers of unwanted horses, I think it's something we need to reconsider. 
@Horsegirl896, we're fairly civil about this topic because you didn't come on here screaming about how everyone who doesn't believe as you do is completely evil. We may not agree, but it's a topic that needs to be discussed and solutions found. What we're doing now isn't working, we need to find something else. Most of us who have been around horses for a long time (like 50+ years long time) have seen this issue first hand, and have experience on the working side of rescues. My personal experience has made me fairly thick skinned about the topic because, what I have seen is that those who are screaming the loudest about not slaughtering horses are the first ones to say, "What? Take a horse? I can't take a horse! You should take all these pretty ponies and put them in YOUR backyard. Horses are awesome (as long as I don't have to deal with the smelly, dirty things)!". Or change anything about their lives as they live them now, including not getting up at 4 a.m. (especially in winter) to feed, water, pick, groom and otherwise be a handmaiden to a 4 legged critter or 10.


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## equinesmitten (Sep 5, 2010)

I totally agree that everyone wants something done but few actually can or are willing to.  That's why when a newer to horses person steps into my life or gets on a forum with obvious limitations but wants to work with a horse and lacks experience, I always try to encourage/help them rather than tell them why they can't or shouldn't. Sure, it's risky and things could go wrong. Life in general is pretty risky. But it could go really right for the horse and human too!  With so many unwanted horses, we need people to step up and give it a try. I feel like those who can, SHOULD. For example, we had a wild cat deposit 4 darling kittens in our barn over the summer. My husband's take (and several other friends and family) was "not our cat, not our problem". He felt that since we didn't contribute, we didn't need to fix it. Naturally, I did as I darn well pleased anyway.  I had them fixed and did first shots and got everyone out to good homes but the two I kept. It cost $500 and tons of time and inconvenience. But you know what? I could and so I did. If I hadn't, she would have continued to make more and more feral cats to become someone else's problem. Maybe that someone couldn't afford to or didn't have the time to solve it. 

This unwanted horse problem belongs to all of us. Those who have the facilities, the money, and the ability should be picking up that occasional horse that shows some functionality from auction, kill pen, irresponsible owner, etc. I plan on that very thing as soon as our round pen is done! We are in the process of converting my Dad's pleasure farm into a horse farm, it's going to take a few months because I'm doing right. It's been a dream of mine to take some rescues and polish them up for better lives! Because my husband was Army until his recent retirement, I have only been able to cart my own 4 horses around the country.


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## boots (Jan 16, 2012)

Dreamcatcher Arabians said:


> Here's another question to go with this issue. Of course, in order to do this we'd have to have an abattoir in just about every town.
> 
> ...
> 
> @Horsegirl896, we're fairly civil about this topic because you didn't come on here screaming about how everyone who doesn't believe as you do is completely evil. We may not agree, but it's a topic that needs to be discussed and solutions found.


It is not illegal to eat horse meat in the U.S. You just can't process it commercially since the USDA de-funded federal meat inspectors. It can't be sold but people can and do prepare it for their personal use. I know several ranchers, Native and non, that eat horse in their house because it is good meat and the beef is a marketable product.

@Horsegirl896 - I agree with DA. You set up a poll and stated your opinion, but didn't shriek at those who disagree. It is very much appreciated. 

Range management is so complex, if we discuss the feral horses. I started volunteering to catalog forage and water conditions for a couple gov't agencies more than 20 years ago on an area of several hundred thousand acres (along with an army of other volunteers). I thought I'd have it all figured out by the end of the first summer and end all the controversy.

It was very enlightening to learn about species that I hadn't even thought about before. How what is good for one species may be awful for another. In some cases, how one species uses the land is really good for another. Which species is most important? None of them. Balance is what is striven for. Nature is more cruel and let's populations grow and die off. We people try to ease that.


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## Rascaholic (Oct 4, 2010)

I do not agree with the current slaughter option. I just don't. Humane euthanasia takes training. Slaughter companies are generally unwilling to give/pay for the training needed to teach the bolt users the proper way to put down a horse. The back up plan, if one goes wrong, is non existent.
I have seen first hand what a misplaced bullet can do. It's horrible. Screaming terror and the look of WTF on an already suffering animal is never pretty. Transportation to, and the holding of horses, at the pens is a joke.
I'll be the first one to say get the gun, call the vet..... end that misery. Quality of life IMO is the first priority. If it is sick/hurting and is not going to improve to the point of having a DECENT quality of life...end it. Quality of life means nothing to people anymore IMO. I've seen some pitiful and gimpy "babies" that I'd have sent across the bridge ASAP if the choice were mine. Suffering isn't right. Dog, cat, Horse, chicken... Not gonna do it. 
Rescues around our area are full of old arthritic, lame, special needs & high dollar babies. Why not send that suffering animal some peace and make room for a younger viable animal? I watched 12k+ spent to save an animal who only lived 8 months after he "recovered." His quality of life SUCKED. He suffered seizures, lameness, colic, and was confined to a stall the whole time. WHY?? There could have been 12 more saved for what was spent on him. This is the primary reason I don't do rescue anymore. I personally won't stand the suffering of "Fluffy" to spare a humans feelings. 
I just got Tobie. But you can bet I thought LONG and hard about whether I could Love him, train him, house him, and care for him til his death. BEFORE I took him. I made sure, in the event of my death, that he has a home. I made sure, in my heart, that I could make the right decision for him if it should ever come to that. Losing Rascal was terrible for me. I don't know that I will ever quit missing him or completely recover from the loss of him. I had options and financial help, if I had decided to try surgery. BUT his recovery outlook was not good at all. He had already suffered enough. My feelings aside, what was best for him? His favorite pasture spot, forever and pain free, or a very slim chance and huge amounts of recovery pain, time, and possible death in a painful way?? I loved him, what other choice was there? My feelings or his comfort, there was only one choice and it hurt, OMG it still hurts so bad. I miss him every day... My comfort now is in knowing I did what was best for him. Small comfort, let me tell ya, but I know it was best for him. I cry for so many others who suffered because HUMANS chose to let them live a horrible existence rather than show mercy and end the suffering.
Take the responsibility for what you breed/buy for LIFE. Not until you move, go off to school, or become tired of the responsibility of caring for another creature. It's a sickening subject not many care to discuss rationally and with the ANIMALS welfare in mind. As human beings we TAKE the responsibility when WE decide to adopt or purchase that animal. We take on a LIFETIME commitment for the care and quality of said animals life. If you want to do something to help. EDUCATE PEOPLE. Educate people on the results of the disposable mindset we see daily....people need to see the reality of what WE are doing to the animal kingdom. All the rescues in the world won't help until PEOPLE change. 
Put legislation/regulation in place to protect the stolen horses, practice HUMANE ends for the horses and I would be all for it. Do I eat cows, chickens and pigs, yes I do. I was raised eating them. They are food animals. BUT they deserve a swift and painless an end as possible. Would I eat a horse, hell no!! But I wouldn't eat a dog either and millions are killed in shelters every year. There has to be a middle ground. Animals everywhere are suffering. Man up and put that animal down if you won't/can't provide for the lifetime commitment you chose. Don't put it on some else to make that decision.
Some of this may seem off topic, but it's not. It is at the heart of the slaughter debate. RESPONSIBILITY. CHOICES. Quality of life. Doing what is right for the animals, not the humans who are failing them.


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## equinesmitten (Sep 5, 2010)

@Rascaholic, if we had a love option, I would have used it. <3


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## Rascaholic (Oct 4, 2010)

equinesmitten said:


> @Rascaholic, if we had a love option, I would have used it. <3


I know I get on the soap box sometimes, but I really can't abide the thought of animals, or people for that matter, suffering needlessly. 
And thanks for that comment. I worried a bit before posting it, then decided I'd do me. And if me isn't acceptable, well it won't be the first time I have had a comment deleted on the net.  and I am sure it won't be the last.


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

Things are never black and white in life, unfortunately. I've spent a lifetime and a lot of money with horses. It would be nice to think I could keep them all for a lifetime but that's just not always possible. Especially as we get older, decisions have to be made. I'm coming 60 next year and it's not as easy as it once was to take care of them all. I am down to 10 horses, and for those that think "10 horses!", I used to run over 50 head just my operation and when my folks were doing their thing we had more than 100 most of the time. At some point you say, "It's time to cut back." and you have to start making plans.

One of my things is, every single horse will be under saddle before it leaves this property. That way, if it's not going to a breeder, it still has a use. It's one of the reasons I'm so adamant about temper and trainability. There's going to come a day when, even if I wanted to and had the room, I could not take a horse I had sold back. Planning for that day, they all get a lot of training and use time so that when they go, they are good, productive using horses. 

I have worked with rescues and seen the absolute waste of money that some are guilty of. $25,000 for 3 colic surgeries on a 27 year old horse that was old and arthritic and not going to really recover anyhow. Why? Because the person in charge couldn't bear the thought of putting the "old girl" down. Thousands spent on a horse that was so lame from founder it would never be even close to sound again, and the money spent on all the medications to cover the pain. It can be very disheartening. Especially when 25 or more, young and healthy horses go through the pipeline because there's no money to get them or care for them because the money has been mismanaged. Sometimes the rescues need rescuing from the rescuers. 

A friend of mine, very active in rescue, died suddenly and had 11 horses. She had no will, no plan. I went and got the horses and brought them home to see what I could do for them. They were a hair less than feral. One was flat out dangerous and pulled my husband down several times before I took him to the vet. Others I worked with and re-homed. The gal who told me that my friend had died and wanted me to go get her horses has not spoken to me since. Oh well. 10 of them went to good homes. The 11th was blind and not a kind horse, so I sent him to be with her (my friend that died), but the rescue person wanted me to keep him and just let him run on my pastures for who knows how many years. WHY? Every one of those horses was a rescue and when rescued was a young, perfectly usable horse. When I got them, they were 13 years old and up and NOT ONE had been put under saddle. NOT ONE! The re-homed ones were under saddle when they left here and a couple went on to belong to young kids and have taught the kids about horsemanship and riding. To do all this, I put my own horses on the back burner and trained up horses I then gave away and that's still not enough for the rescue. TOUGH. And why am I telling you all this? So you can understand why some people will just send them through the auction. The hassle I went through and the time and money I spent, was not worth it and I would not do it again. Where does that leave the next bunch of horses? 

The slaughter and unwanted horse problem is not JUST an over breeding or lack of commitment issue. It's caused by people just like you and me who have kind hearts, love horses and want to do the right thing by them. And then get in past what they can truly support and then things start slowly going south. The farrier doesn't come out, the yearly vaccs don't get done, training doesn't happen and then something happens. Loss of a job, you die of a heart attack, you have a car accident. And you have a bunch of horses you can no longer care for and they have no worth to the vast majority of people who are looking to buy or take in a horse. Horses are a luxury and most people can't really afford the luxury of having them.


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## Rascaholic (Oct 4, 2010)

Dreamcatcher Arabians said:


> Things are never black and white in life, unfortunately. I've spent a lifetime and a lot of money with horses. It would be nice to think I could keep them all for a lifetime but that's just not always possible. Especially as we get older, decisions have to be made. I'm coming 60 next year and it's not as easy as it once was to take care of them all. I am down to 10 horses, and for those that think "10 horses!", I used to run over 50 head just my operation and when my folks were doing their thing we had more than 100 most of the time. At some point you say, "It's time to cut back." and you have to start making plans.
> *I agree, and you are facing a reality you might not like, but you ARE doing what YOU feel is best for yours. Some folks won't even think about it.*
> One of my things is, every single horse will be under saddle before it leaves this property. *That way, if it's not going to a breeder, it still has a use.* *YES!* It's one of the reasons I'm so adamant about temper and trainability. There's going to come a day when, even if I wanted to and had the room, I could not take a horse I had sold back. *Planning* for that day, they all get a lot of training and use time so that when they go, they are good, productive using horses.
> 
> ...


 I work hard for my animals and the joy I get from them. I have dogs who were mainstream unadoptable. They take extra time and effort. To me, they are worth it. I also have a back up plan. There is money set aside to euthanize all of them if it came to an untimely death for me and no suitable home for them.
_* I*_ took them knowing nothing in life is certain. IMO at least I owe them a quick and painless death if I am not here to care for them. In my life that is the best I can do for them. And they are all worth it.... to me.


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

Rascaholic said:


> I also have a back up plan. There is money set aside to euthanize all of them if it came to an untimely death for me and no suitable home for them.




And that's my point, You have a plan. You have a number of animals that you can properly care for and have arrangements made for an untimely situation. My friend talked about having a plan, having money put aside and that she was going to leave her property to the person from the rescue. And guess what? She never did it, there was nothing in place when she died. Her family came out, buried her, sold the property and was going to send the horses through the auction but the rescue person talked them into letting me have them to re-home, as we both knew my friend wanted done. Otherwise? Every last one of them would have ended up in Mexico. Not at all what she wanted. If we have a problem with our horses ending up in another country to be slaughtered, it's OUR responsibility to make those arrangements and see to it that it doesn't happen.


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## Idrivetrotters (Jan 5, 2013)

If you look at what leaves on slaughter trucks it is NOT old or sick horses (would you eat a sick horse?) it is young, healthy, and very good weight horses, most are stock/QH/paints (80%) with drafts and then TBs (12%) with mules etc making up the remainder. 

I am against slaughter but for multiple reasons.

1) Responsibility - if you cannot feed your horse or it is lame/ill put it down, your horse deserves that last kindness for years of being a riding/useful animal.

2) Drugs - many horses are given drugs that are banned by both the USDA and the EU on food production animals. Whether you agree with the rules or not, rules are in place to keep drugs out of human food consumption and horses carry multiple lifetime banned drugs (bute is the biggest one). If you are responsibly breeding horses for food and keep drugs out, then that is different than unloading a sick/lame horse loaded up with bute for a person to unknowingly eat. Remember, the EU members believe our horses are drug free and kept to EU standards and they are not.

3) Humane reasons - horse slaughter is not the same as cows, horses fight until the very end with many horses needing multiple hits from the capture bolt and we witnessed one horse receive 6 yes 6 hits before it went down. Mexico is a slice through the spine and slaughtered while still alive, so yeah, there is nothing humane about slaughter as it currently is practiced.

4) Environment - Areas that had horse slaughter plants had tremendous problems with flies, smells, and vultures. Large ponds of blood stored without covers and many towns knew exactly what days the horses were slaughtered. Crime was also worse during slaughter plant operations than pre/post slaughter plants. Slaughter plants do not attract new businesses, who wants to put a business next to a fly/vulture stink hole? 

Overbreeding is a major concern especially in the QH/stock world, where slaughter is considered a proper dumping ground for their undesirables. I pull Standardbreds and help with TBs at auction and I see first hand what sells to go on the slaughter truck (again young healthy QH/stock types in heavy muscle) versus what is picked up to sell on various "Broker lot" Facebook pages (decent riding horses or the skinny/sick ones that cannot ship to slaughter).


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## Rascaholic (Oct 4, 2010)

Dreamcatcher Arabians said:


> And that's my point, You have a plan. You have a number of animals that you can properly care for and have arrangements made for an untimely situation. My friend talked about having a plan, having money put aside and that she was going to leave her property to the person from the rescue. And guess what? She never did it, there was nothing in place when she died. Her family came out, buried her, sold the property and was going to send the horses through the auction but the rescue person talked them into letting me have them to re-home, as we both knew my friend wanted done. Otherwise? Every last one of them would have ended up in Mexico. Not at all what she wanted. *This is just so freaking sad!* If we have a problem with our horses ending up in another country to be slaughtered, it's OUR responsibility to make those arrangements and see to it that it doesn't happen. *I whole heartedly agree!!*



No one can guarantee they will wake up tomorrow. BUT you can plan for that to the best of your ability. I hope I have. I know I have tried! And knowing I did the best I could for them, in this life and after, is a small comfort when I see the auction horses, and the euthanasia numbers for dogs and cats still climbing. 
Will the slaughter stop? No. But if one thing I do helps lower those numbers or put better killing practices in place, then maybe I made a difference for one soul who would otherwise suffer more than needed.
I am going to hug all the dogs and work with Tobie. I think I'll add that saddle money to the vet fund. I can look at the ones I have and see if Tobie will go english or look for a nice used western one that fits. I'll just wear my old boots instead of spending a hundred on a new pair.


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## Rainaisabelle (Jan 2, 2015)

Slaughter is necessary, horses are considered livestock and people still do eat them like majority of the population eat cattle and pigs. You won't be able to get rid of slaughter and to do so would be completely irresponsible. The one thing we can do is to change how it is done, where it is done and to educate on unwanted breeding. As to some of the things said about owning animals and needing to care for them for as long as you live. I come from a family where if you buy a pet you better take on that responsibility and you better be ready to give up everything for them! But things change, life changes, if it came down to it and I couldn't find my horses a home for whatever reason I personally would shoot them. But you can't judge someone unless you walk a mile in their shoes.


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## PoptartShop (Jul 25, 2010)

I second @Rainaisabelle for the most part.
That's how I feel about slaughter as well. Yes it can be very sad, especially depending on how it's done. Really depends on the situation & the circumstances. It's a tough subject.  Wish we could save all the animals, but sadly we can't. I don't like the idea of slaughter but unfortunately I doubt it can be stopped completely.
I do, however, think it's important to do what we can & rescuing horses/giving them a second chance always helps. One rescue can save that horse from the slaughterhouse.


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

I really like @Dreamcatcher Arabians point; that people who run rescues that are funded by donations need to make reasonable management decisions on which horses are really not a good investment of the donated funds. they need to use the money, limited money, to rescue the most horses possible, and wasting it on horses that are very old or never able to leave the rescue and make room for a new adoptee, is a foolish decision and simply dooms one more good horse to death.


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## Wallaby (Jul 13, 2008)

As a person, equine slaughter strikes me the wrong way. But I fully understand the need for it.

I particularly don't love the idea of slaughtering horses for human consumption with no regard/idea of what kinds of chemicals they may have ingested over their lifetimes [bute, etc]. 
People say that bute leaves the system after a time, but I'm a skeptic. From my own life, I am violently allergic to corn and react to animal products when the animal has been ingesting corn - milk, most meats, and so forth. Technically my body shouldn't react because all identifiable corn has been removed from the animal via processing, but I, and many others, react to "corn-taminated" meat like we are actually eating corn - this leads to questions about how the body processes food and so forth. 
The idea that it could be the same with bute and other medications makes me nervous.



My gelding that I currently own, and plan to own for the rest of forever, came out of the kill pen about a year before I became his owner. 
His elderly owners had gotten very sick and probably thought they were giving him the best chance at a new life by auctioning him off. Instead, the auction he happened to be a part of was one with historically low horse numbers and few interested bidders - other than the KB.
He ended up being one of 4 horses [typically 15-20 are left in the pen at this particular lot] that the KB felt should get another chance at finding a person, before shipping. Most of the horses in that auction cycle went straight on the truck.

Out of those 4 leftover horses, only my guy and the horse he came in with found new homes. The other two ended up shipping.

BUT.
I've had my gelding for 3 years and the first two years were taken up not doing much riding and not enjoying the riding we did do [either because my gelding had a terrible attitude about it or because he was busy bolting off]. 
The last year has been taken up with discovering and attempting to work through his anxiety, caused by a recently discovered [in him] genetic muscle disorder, and doing absolutely no riding. 
His genetic muscle disorder causes him to experience extremely high levels of pain whenever he becomes stressed or anxious, and it's incredibly easy to stress him.

I have to wonder how much simpler, and more pain-free, my guy's life would have been if he had gone to slaughter. He certainly wouldn't be dealing with the stress/pain of everyday life like he is now! 
I'm beyond glad that I own him and he's teaching me so so much everyday, you couldn't pay me any amount of money for him...but was pulling him out of the kill pen really the right choice for my gelding?


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## Horsegirl896 (Oct 29, 2016)

Well, if slaughter HAS to be done, I fine with it if it's humane enough. (you know what I mean?) Overall though, I just don't agree with it. On another forum, someone had started a thread that said, "Horse Slaughter. What's you opinion?" And I answered respectfully, but everyone kept replying to what I said and saying that I was "wrong" for my opinion. That is why I like this forum a lot more, and I'm glad to be off of the other!!


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

I'd like to think that we should all allow people their opinions on things especially something as sensitive as this
In the past I have taken horses and ponies to a slaughter yard in the UK, have had that same company come to dispatch horses on the yard, had vets shoot horses with a free bullet and a human killer and had the local hunt shoot horses with a free bullet and I can assure anyone that when done correctly it is immediate and efficient. 
The most distressing euthanasia I have ever seen - distressing for me and for the horse, albeit for just a very short time it seemed like forever - was when I had to opt for having my beloved mare put down using the lethal injection method. It was done correctly but was no way instant. My vet did warn me that sometimes a horse will react badly to it but it was far worse than I expected it to be.
It was still kinder to end her life though than to let her die slowly suffering and confused


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## IndiesaurusRex (Feb 23, 2011)

As someone who works for an equine charity, I've seen what the UK horse crisis (very similar to the situation in the US, I imagine) has done to the state of equine welfare in this country. For that reason, I am personally very for humane slaughter. Fly grazing and abandonment cases are always on the rise, and when you have gone on a round up and been met with the sight of 400 cob mares, most of them pregnant and some with a foal at foot, and a couple of stallions, all on one measly field with no grazing, no forage and knee deep in mud, all starving slowly and with bellies full of worms and feet full of canker - it makes you evaluate your viewpoint on what is in the horses' best interest. We provided a home for over 150 of these horses, but many of them had to be euthanised, as it was in their best interests.

Sadly enough, the owner of these horses seems to have a lot of support, not only in the UK but abroad as well, as he sells the "good stock" as premium Gypsy Vanner imports, while the rest rot in fields of slop in the UK.

It's a sad fact of the industry at the moment, that rescues like these are nothing new to us anymore. But my viewpoint on it is, there are much worse things for a horse in life than death, unmanaged suffering being one of them. Say what you will, but at least death is the end of the line for that horse, and it can't suffer any longer.


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## natisha (Jan 11, 2011)

Idrivetrotters said:


> If you look at what leaves on slaughter trucks it is NOT old or sick horses (would you eat a sick horse?) it is young, healthy, and very good weight horses, most are stock/QH/paints (80%) with drafts and then TBs (12%) with mules etc making up the remainder.
> 
> I am against slaughter but for multiple reasons.
> 
> ...


If I may I'd like to add to your list.

My vet worked at a slaughter plant to explained the differences.His job was to assess the health of the animals & oversee humane treatment. He said he never saw the trembling fear/panic that horses exhibit.

Cattle & most sheep are handled differently from horses their whole lives. They are used to chutes & tight quarters. They follow along.
They are shipped with other cattle that they know (I'm generalizing as there are always exceptions).
They are in a neck lock at the end & a captive bolt actually works on them (kills vs stunning). 
It's not the first time they are restrained in a chute.
Their necks are not as flexible as a horse's so it's an easier target.
The flooring is made for cloven hooves and modern chute designs keep the cattle quieter.

We all know how horses react so no need to explain that.


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## natisha (Jan 11, 2011)

jaydee said:


> I'd like to think that we should all allow people their opinions on things especially something as sensitive as this
> In the past I have taken horses and ponies to a slaughter yard in the UK, have had that same company come to dispatch horses on the yard, had vets shoot horses with a free bullet and a human killer and had the local hunt shoot horses with a free bullet and I can assure anyone that when done correctly it is immediate and efficient.
> The most distressing euthanasia I have ever seen - distressing for me and for the horse, albeit for just a very short time it seemed like forever - was when I had to opt for having my beloved mare put down using the lethal injection method. It was done correctly but was no way instant. My vet did warn me that sometimes a horse will react badly to it but it was far worse than I expected it to be.
> It was still kinder to end her life though than to let her die slowly suffering and confused


I'm sorry you & your mare had to go through that.
I saw one bad death but that was a few decades ago before someone figured out to heavily sedate the horse first.
Nowadays, a standing sedation is administered, then an IV line is inserted to assure venous access. Once the brain is disconnected the final overdose is given & it is quick. The horse feels nothing and most importantly it's not afraid.

The UK has it right that they don't do it as a production line. Correct me if I'm wrong about that but from what I've seen it's one horse, one gun & done.
I'm OK with that.


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

natisha said:


> I'm sorry you & your mare had to go through that.
> I saw one bad death but that was a few decades ago before someone figured out to heavily sedate the horse first.
> Nowadays, a standing sedation is administered, then an IV line is inserted to assure venous access. Once the brain is disconnected the final overdose is given & it is quick. The horse feels nothing and most importantly it's not afraid.
> 
> ...


 My mare did get the standing sedation first - that's the one that she reacted badly too and according to my equine vet the one that horse's do occasionally react badly too, he's only had a few incidents himself but as a vet who works closely with other vets and with Equine hospitals he's also had similar accounts from others
It was not the actual lethal shot that was 'disturbing' as she was completely out of it by the time that was given - though death was by no means instant as we had the people from the horse cremation service here and they won't start to load the remains until the horse is confirmed to be dead. 
The bullet if done correctly is far more instant


I'm not sure what you mean by not a production line in the UK?
If the horse goes to a slaughter yard then its very much a production line if there are other horses going there at the same time - they have to go into an enclosed space on their own but there's a queue of others waiting their turn


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## natisha (Jan 11, 2011)

jaydee said:


> My mare did get the standing sedation first - that's the one that she reacted badly too and according to my equine vet the one that horse's do occasionally react badly too, he's only had a few incidents himself but as a vet who works closely with other vets and with Equine hospitals he's also had similar accounts from others
> It was not the actual lethal shot that was 'disturbing' as she was completely out of it by the time that was given - though death was by no means instant as we had the people from the horse cremation service here and they won't start to load the remains until the horse is confirmed to be dead.
> The bullet if done correctly is far more instant
> 
> ...


Here they are/were driven into tight chutes, head to tail, prodded along. They can see, hear & smell everything. Nothing kind about it. Your way is better.

One can never predict how any individual person or animal will react to sedation. Yes, a bullet is instant if done right.


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

natisha said:


> Here they are/were driven into tight chutes, head to tail, prodded along. They can see, hear & smell everything. Nothing kind about it. Your way is better.
> 
> .


At the 2 slaughter yards that I knew in the UK the horses also had to move along tight 'chutes', they have to be tight to prevent them from trying to turn around and when those yards were busy (pre. Passporting days) the horses were 'nose to tail' - but legally they aren't supposed to be prodded or poked or hit by the workers there to make them keep moving. They can't see what's happening but they can smell and hear it.


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