# Interesting Article about potential horse slaughter in USA



## 2SCHorses (Jun 18, 2011)

U.S. horse slaughter plants in the very early stages of planning, proponent says | NewsOK.com

Interesting read as I wasn't aware of this. Does anyone know more about this??


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## Cherie (Dec 16, 2010)

Yes! Several states and several sovereign Indian Tribes have plans for horse slaughter facilities. This is possible because of a recent bill passed by both houses of Congress and signed by the President that would once again allow USDA to provide meat inspectors for horse meat.

Slaughter of horses has never been illegal in the US. It has been illegal in some states under state laws. But, in 2007 Congress pulled all USDA inspectors out of horse slaughter plants so the meat could not be sold. This, in effect, stopped the building of slaughter facilities in states that did not ban it on the state level (like Illinois and Texas).

Animal Rights nuts vow to challenge the new law, but challenges can only be made on the Constitutionality of the law and there is nothing that would allow this low to be over-turned. 

If you want to follow the whole process, you can join a group called the United Horsemen. Their website is United Horsemen 

Sue Wallis in Wyoming started this as a lobby group that could counter all of the rubbish and rot put out there by the HSUS and PETA. 

We have been members since its inception one year ago. Finally, someone is lobbying for the interest of horse people all over America. Until now, we have not had a voice. The result has been a collapse of the horse market and the starvation and neglect of hundreds of thousands of horses -- all caused by their loss of value after the last remaining slaughter plants were closed in the US.


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## 2SCHorses (Jun 18, 2011)

Thank you for the information! I will check the link.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## MHFoundation Quarters (Feb 23, 2011)

Thanks for that link Cherie. I will pass it along to clients & horse friends as well. It's refreshing to see things heading in the right direction.


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## Cherie (Dec 16, 2010)

Happy to do it. It is the only lobby group that I have ever given a dime to. Sue has worked tirelessly to put this together. She is also the force behind the first 'Summit Of The Horse' meeting held last winter in Las Vegas. They are going to hold another National Meeting this coming May here in OKC. 

You can get on their mailing list by going to their website, but to get all of the information and plans, you have to join officially. That is so they have names and IP addresses of 'members' so they cannot be infiltrated as easily by the Animal Rights nuts.

Everyone of us that tries to make a living or even part of their living from the horse business should become a member. If the well-funded lobbies from PETA and USHS are the only voice Public Officials hear, they will get their radical goals met. PETA and HSUS have as their objectives:

The total stop of all animal agriculture and use of animals for meat or products like eggs or milk. 

The total stop of all 'ownership' and 'use' of livestock and pet animals. 

The total stop of all testing of drugs, cosmetic, etc on any animal.

The total stop of use of even 'service animals' like guide dogs, drug dogs, police dogs, etc.

This is what we face as horse and pet owners and I do not know of very many organizations that lobby for our rights to own and use animals. The Farm Bureau has a lobbyist and that is why I have my Farm Owners' Insurance with them. I have to applaud the efforts of the United Horsemen.


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## bubba13 (Jan 6, 2007)

I'm not sure how I feel about slaughter plants on the reservations. Do the have to follow the same welfare laws as the US at large?


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## Cherie (Dec 16, 2010)

Actually, if the horsemeat is going to be shipped to the European Union, there are very strict rules about how the horses and the meat have to be handled. The new plant in Mexico is owned by the Belgians and it is supposed to be a 'state of the art' facility where the horses are handled correctly and humanely and kept quiet. A group of American Veterinarians went down there last year and I read their report after they returned. They said that plant was far better than any of the old plants that were shut down. They said they saw no abuse or mishandling of horses and that everyone was well trained and knew their job. It is the first plant in North America that actually met EU standards. 

If new plants are built here in the US, they will be built specifically for horses like the new one in Mexico. They will also set up feed lots over-seen by Veterinarians where horses will be held until they reach weight and condition.

All horses are also scanned for microchips and that will be part of any plants set up here. Any stolen horses or horse that are on the 'do not slaughter registry' that are chipped, will not be processed.

They are trying to cover all of the objections people have and at the same time produce a safe, high quality meat.


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## bubba13 (Jan 6, 2007)

What happens to "do not slaughter" registry horses?


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## Cherie (Dec 16, 2010)

The previous owner that had the horse registered and micro-chipped is contacted and given the opportunity to take the horse back for whatever is is worth at the processing plant. It is just the same as when a pet is taken in to a shelter that has been chipped. The person listed on that chip is contacted. They have to pay shelter fees -- at least they have to here. 

The person that had the horse micro-chipped can come to the plant and pick the horse back up. The same is true of horses that are chipped that have been stolen. They will not be processed until the person that had them chipped is contacted. Just like with pets, I would assume that people with chipped horses need to keep current addresses and phone numbers with the company doing the chips.


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## bubba13 (Jan 6, 2007)

Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't they have a similar registration system in the UK? Something along the lines of keeping track of the drugs the horse has had, and whether or not those are safe in animals intended for human consumption. I *believe* that horses there on the DNS list really can't be slaughtered due to toxins in their system.


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

Cherie, your post is very logical. *My response is opinion oriented. I hope that if anyone wants to disagree with my opionions that they will PM me, bc I'm not interested in a thread fight.* _....anyway he is my response to this article..._
FINALLY. I'm less interested in market value, and happier that we will soon see less suffering due to neglect. We cannot save them all, and general horse welfare was better in IL when we had a horse slaughter in the northern part of our state. 
Vis a vis Mustangs, why don't you feel sorry for pheasant--ANOTHER introducted species, from China, btw--who are hunted to "extinction?" I have LONG believed that the BLM bureucrats have cushy, horsey jobs while the average non-horsey American pays to keep even more introduced animal species, for which the horse-buyer pays the ridiculously low "adoption" fee of $125. The new owner never had to:
‎1) Pay their Vet for broodmare checks or foal checks; 
2) feed either 
3) Pay for boarding or farm matainence for them; 
yet _the average American_ gets NO return on the BLM salaries. A pretty raw deal, IMHO. I'm tired of Americans stealing from other Americans.
A think Mustangs should be branded and special licenses offered for ranchers who want to run them on their own private properties. You can buy your certified mustang from a certified mustang owner/breeder. Ken McNabb had a great program (RFD-tv) about how dismal the Mustang's lives are, too, since their ranges are not contiguous. They live in pockets in between private lands, often with awful fodder and sometimes no water. Let's keep this going and make them suffer more. Typical bleeding-heart logic!!!
Thanks. I feel better. =D


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