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ALERT: HORSE SLAUGHTER
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House of Representatives to Vote on a Permanent End to Horse Slaughter! The American public must be heard like never before!
Posted 06/22/2006
June 22, 2006
Dear Humanitarian:
Since the Society for Animal Protective Legislation’s national campaign against horse slaughter began in 2001, our ultimate goal has been passage of a permanent horse slaughter ban. We have just learned House of Representatives Leadership has assured the sponsors of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act that a vote on the measure will take place on the House floor before June 30.
Sponsored in the House by Congressional Horse Caucus Co-chair John Sweeney (R-NY), Representative John Spratt, Jr. (D-SC) and Representative Ed Whitfield (R-KY), the Act will end the slaughter of horses for human consumption and the domestic and international transport of live horses or horseflesh for the same purpose. Just last year, over 90,000 horses were slaughtered in the three foreign-owned horse slaughter facilities located in Texas and Illinois.
We have always believed that, if given a fair chance and an open vote, Congress would support this complete ban. Four separate times, it has demonstrated interest in stopping horse slaughter for wild and domestic horses by voting in favor of amendments. The upcoming vote is crucial, and it represents a culmination of five years of hard work by supporters from across the United States. It is vital for everyone you know to call their Representative immediately and urge a “YES” vote for the Act.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
Please call or fax your Representative TODAY, asking him or her to vote in favor of H.R. 503, the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act. Keep checking your email every day for the latest news, and continue to contact your Representative until the vote has transpired.
When talking with your Representative's office please include some of the additional facts about horse slaughter listed below.
To locate your Representative’s contact information and to learn more about horse slaughter and the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act please visit www.saplonline.org/horses.htm.
Please share our “Dear Humanitarian” eAlert with family, friends and co-workers, and encourage them to call or fax their Members of Congress, too. Thank you very much for your help!
Sincerely,
Cathy Liss
Legislative Director
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Related Links
Equine Advocates Inc.
Just Say Whoa
SAPLONLINE
American Public
Must Act Now To End
Horse Slaughter
ABCnews: Many Injured Horses Still Sent to Slaughterhouses
The Song:
Remember Ferdinand
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Go to HSUS site to help get this issue "permanently off the table"
https://community.hsus.org
PLEASE. TAKE A MOMENT TO FILL OUT THE QUICK LETTER TO YOUR REPRSENTATIVES. WE ARE ON THE VERGE OF MAKING HISTORY. ONCE THIS BILL GETS THROUGH THE HOUSE AND THE SENATE WE WILL NEVER AGAIN SLAUGHTER OUR BEAUTIFUL AMERICAN HORSES TO SERVE THE PATRONS IN EUROPEAN AND ASIAN RESTAURANTS.
FACTS AND FAQ's ABOUT HORSE SLAUGHTER
- Last year three foreign-owned slaughter plants cruelly slaughtered more than 90,000 horses for human consumption in Europe and Asia. Tens of thousands more of America's horses were exported from the U.S. and slaughtered in other countries.
- Slaughter is NOT humane euthanasia. Horses suffer horribly on the way to and during slaughter.
- Passage of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (AHSPA) will reduce animal suffering hence its wide support throughout the equestrian and veterinary world, as well as the humane community.
- Americans overwhelmingly support an end to horse slaughter for human consumption (polls from Kentucky, Virginia, Texas and Utah respectively show that 82, 74, 72 and 69 percent of those questioned oppose the practice). In California, a 1998 ballot initiative (Prop. 6) banning horse slaughter for human consumption passed with 60 percent of the vote.
Sick and old horses to slaughter
Question: Is it true that slaughter is only a last resort for infirm, dangerous or no longer serviceable horses?
Answer: 92.3 percent of horses arriving at slaughter plants in this country are in "good" condition, according to the US Department of Agriculture's Guidelines for Handling and Transporting Equines to Slaughter.
Neglect and abuse
Question: Will horse abuse and neglect cases rise significantly following a ban on slaughter?
Answer: There has been no documented rise in abuse and neglect cases in California since the state banned horse slaughter for human consumption in 1998. There was no documented rise in Illinois following closure of the state's only horse slaughter plant in 2002 and its reopening in 2004.
Cost of caring for unwanted horses
Question: If there is a ban on horse slaughter, will horse rescue and retirement groups have the resources to take care of unwanted horses? Should the government have to pay for the care of horses voluntarily given up by their owners?
Answer: Not every horse currently going to slaughter will need to be absorbed into the rescue community – many will be sold to a new owner, others will be kept longer and a licensed veterinarian will humanely euthanize some. Opponents of this legislation admit passage of the bill will not necessarily lead to an increase in the number of horses sent to rescue facilities, precisely because humane euthanasia is so widely used. It is not the government's responsibility to provide for the care of horses voluntarily given up by their owners, as these animals are private property. Hundreds of horse rescue organizations operate around the country, and additional facilities are being established (a list is available).
A safe and humane solution for sick, old and unwanted horses
Question: If slaughter is not an option, what will we do with sick, old and unwanted horses?
Answer: Approximately 900,000 horses die annually in this country (10 percent of an estimated population of 9 million) and the vast majority are not slaughtered, but euthanized and rendered or buried without any negative environmental impact instead. 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.
Export of horses for slaughter abroad
Question: If there is a ban on horse slaughter in the United States, will there be an increase in the export of horses for foreign slaughter? Will horses suffer from longer transport for slaughter in countries where there may be weaker welfare laws?
Answer: Horse slaughter has declined dramatically in the United States over the past decade, but there has been no correlating increase in the number of American horses exported for slaughter abroad. Further, the AHSPA prohibits the export of horses for slaughter abroad, and contains clear enforcement and penalty provisions to prevent this from happening. Risk of federal prosecution and the high costs associated with illegally transporting horses long distances for slaughter abroad are strong deterrents.
Standards of care at sanctuaries and rescue organizations
Question: Is it true no standards exist for horse rescue facilities that take unwanted horses?
Answer: The Doris Day Animal League and the Animal Welfare Institute published "Basic Guidelines for Operating an Equine Rescue or Retirement Facility" in 2004. Additionally, the Association of Sanctuaries and the American Sanctuaries Association provide accreditation programs, a code of ethics and guidelines for the operation of sanctuaries and rescue organizations. Horse rescue groups must also provide for the welfare of horses in their custody in compliance with state and local animal welfare laws.
Use of horsemeat in pet food
Question: If there is a ban on horse slaughter, will horsemeat no longer be available for pet food?
Answer: There is no horsemeat in pet food. This practice stopped decades ago and has some connection to the enactment of protections for America's wild horses in 1971. The US public and Congress were outraged to learn federal agencies were rounding up and allowing the exploitation and slaughter of these national treasures for items such as pet food. Some by-products of the horse slaughter industry are used in various consumer items, but they are derived from the rendering (a different process than slaughter and not affected by the AHSPA) of dead horses and other animals.
A song written to highlight the need for a ban on horse slaughter.
Posted 05/31/2006
Dedicated to 'Ferdinand' Kentucky Derby winner and Horse of the Year 1987. When Ferdinand stopped winning he never made it to green pastures for a well deserved retirement, he ended up as horse meat. How do you feel about horse slaughter? Is it a case of if you don't see it then it isn't there? Through a dear friend of ours I have learned about the treatment of horses at the three remaining slaughterhouses in the USA. Did you know that healthy horses and ponies, ex-racehorses, riding horses, ex-police horses, brood mares, foals, stolen horses and even family pets sold at sales, any of these can become another statistic of the horse meat trade? Horses are naturally inquisitive and highly sensitive animals, just walk up to a horse with a peppermint in your pocket and watch how he or she will nuzzle you to give up that sweet treat! Now imagine the same horse standing in the death queue of a slaughterhouse, smelling fear all around and hearing the horse in front frantically fighting for its life. Horses are intelligent, free spirited creatures, it is certain that this frightening end to their lives is traumatic in the extreme, but what follows is nothing less than a tragedy. While hanging by their hooves upside down, horses are bled and dismembered, often still conscious. This practice has no place in a caring society. Through history the horse has given us so much pleasure and service, we should not be treating our trusting friends in this cruel, dispassionate way. Last year alone 90,227 horses were slaughtered in one of the three foreign-owned, US-based horse slaughtering facilities located in Texas and Illinois. The American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act will ban the slaughter of horses for human consumption and the domestic and international transport of live horses or horseflesh for human consumption. How do I feel? I hope horse slaughter is banned in USA for good. The compassionate, hard working people tirelessly campaigning to close down these slaughterhouses have my utmost respect and admiration.
commentary by Society For Animal Protective Legislation - www.saplonline.org
House Approves Wild Horse Protection Measure
Posted 05/18/2006
With tremendous grassroots pressure bearing down on lawmakers, the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously approved a measure May 18 to protect wild horses from slaughter. The outpouring of support from the American public was so overwhelming that House leadership conceded to the provision without a vote by individual members.
Reps. Nick Rahall (D-WV), Ed Whitfield (R-KY), John Sweeney (R-NY), and John Spratt (D-SC) successfully offered an amendment to the spending bill for the Department of the Interior for fiscal year 2007. The measure would end the commercial sale and subsequent slaughter of wild horses and burros.
"A public outcry has again begun across the United States over the change in law that now allows the commercial sale and slaughter of these animals," Rahall said. "We need to act before it is too late for thousands of these animals."
America's wild horses were protected from sale and slaughter for 34 years. Then, a year and a half ago, those protections were removed through a highly controversial legislative maneuver, without hearings, debate, or the introduction of a bill.
Late in 2004, Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT) attached a provision to an omnibus spending bill, which passed without any public review and reversed a longstanding federal policy of protecting wild horses from being sold at auctions and subsequently shipped to slaughter plants.
Wild Horses Sent to Slaughter
It is already too late for hundreds of horses. On April 15, 2005, six horses were purchased by Oklahoman Dustin Herbert. Only three days later, these horses were sent directly to a foreign-owned slaughter plant in Illinois. Mr. Herbert told the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) that he intended to use the horses for a church youth program.
One week later, another 35 were killed at the same slaughter plant after being traded unwittingly by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe soon after they were sold by BLM. By pure chance, another 52 were snatched from the slaughter plant line in a last-minute effort to preserve their lives by fast-thinking officials. Since then, we've lost hundreds more of our treasured wild horses to the slaughterhouse. We have graphic evidence in hand now that sale authority is not a workable solution.
Cruel and Inhumane Practice
The cruelty of horse slaughter is not limited to the slaughter itself. Economics, not humane considerations, dictate transport conditions. Horses are shipped in crowded trucks, frequently over long distances, and are typically given no food, water or rest. The truck ceilings are so low that horses are not able to hold their heads in a normal, balanced position.
"Horses have done so much for us in our country's history," said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The HSUS. "They deserve much better than to be trucked across the country, prodded onto the slaughterhouse floor, hoisted up by a rear leg, and then bled out with a sharp cut to the throat-simply to appease the palates of foreign gourmands."
Only three horse slaughterhouses remain in the United States—two in Texas, one in Illinois—and all three are foreign-owned.
The Need for a Permanent Ban
Congress cast strong, bipartisan votes on the interior and agriculture appropriations bills for fiscal year 2006 in both the House and Senate (House Interior 249-159; House Agriculture 269-158; Senate Agriculture 69-28). But when the U.S. Department of Agriculture's found a way to circumvent the amendment to continue horse slaughter, it did more than undermine the will of Congress—it illustrated a clear need for a permanent horse slaughter ban with passage of the American Horse Slaughter Protection Act.
"Congress, on behalf of millions of Americans, has spoken out by an overwhelming majority to save these majestic icons of the West from a certain and inhumane death, and for that we're very grateful," Pacelle added. "It's up to Congress now to act with equal passion and pass the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act to keep all American horses from ending up in the hands of killer buyers and ultimately on dinner plates in Europe and Asia."
Willie Nelson and Friends Sit Down to Discuss Horse Slaughter
Posted 03/03/2006
Dear Humanitarian:
The Society for Animal Protective Legislation is pleased to announce the online release of a new video in support of our campaign to end horse slaughter. Country music legend Willie Nelson took the time to sit down with his friends Bo Derek, Morgan Fairchild and Jennifer Lee Pryor to discuss the brutal practice.
Click here to view: http://www.saplonline.org/horses_Willie_and_friends.htm (requires Flash 8 player, link provided)
Please take a moment to share the video with friends, family and everyone you know who cares about ending this cruelty.
Additionally, please write your Members of Congress http://www.saplonline.org/congress.htm to urge their support of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, H.R. 503 and S. 1915. A permanent ban on horse slaughter is the only way we can ensure that America’s horses will truly be safe. To find out more about these bills and what you can do to help, please click here: http://www.saplonline.org/horses.htm.
As always, thank you very much for your help!
Sincerely,
Christopher J. Heyde
Deputy Legislative Director
Society for Animal Protective Legislation
(A Division of the Animal Welfare Institute)
PO Box 3719 ~ Washington, DC 20027
T: (703) 836-4300 ~ F: (703) 997-1134
UPDATE: Horse Slaughter Amendment Pulled from House Floor
Posted 02/24/2006
Dear Humanitarian:
This afternoon, the Sweeney/Spratt/Whitfield/Rahall Agriculture Appropriations amendment was not considered because its sponsors opted to focus their full attention on achieving a permanent ban on horse slaughter as opposed to a temporary one. Every effort must be bent towards achieving this objective. It is now crucial for constituents like you to tell your Members of Congress to support the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (H.R. 503 and S. 1915), the only bill that will put a permanent end to horse slaughter for human consumption.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
Please continue to contact your Members of Congress in each chamber to urge them to cosponsor the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act and push for immediate action on this measure. A permanent ban on horse slaughter is the only way we can ensure the safety of America’s horses. To find out more about this bill, how to contact your legislator and what you can do to help, click here.
Your assistance is essential to ensure Congress hears from an outpouring of concerned constituents as it did last year. Please share our "Dear Humanitarian" eAlert with family, friends and co-workers, and encourage them to contact their Members of Congress today, too. As always, thank you very much for your help!
Sincerely,
Cathy Liss
Legislative Director
Parties try to halt horse meat sales
Posted 02/24/2006
By Eric Pfeiffer
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Published February 24, 2006
Some of us eat like horses. But few would actually eat a horse, which is why animal rights activists, celebrities and members of Congress from both parties are joining forces to stop the practice of selling horses for food.
In a vote last year on the Department of Agriculture's annual budget, 249 House members and 68 senators approved an amendment blocking USDA funds from being used to inspect horse food processing plants. Although it passed with broad support, the amendment is being challenged by the USDA.
With the support of a Belgian horse food distributor, the USDA is attempting to make use of a loophole that allows private companies to pay for inspections.
"There's a culture of arrogance at the USDA," said Jeff Miles, spokesman for Rep. Ed Whitfield, Kentucky Republican. "They are disregarding a vote in Congress to help three foreign-based companies."
The three slaughtering plants include two in Texas and one in Illinois. All of the meat from the plants is shipped out of the country, with France, Belgium, Japan and Italy as the main consumers of horse meat.
A coalition of animal rights groups, including the Society for Animal Protective Legislation (SAPL), filed a motion Wednesday in federal court for a temporary restraining order to block the USDA. The USDA policy allowing for private inspections is scheduled to go into effect March 10.
According to a SAPL statement, the coalition will argue the USDA's move "circumvents Congress' intent in enacting the recent ban on commercial horse slaughter," and "violates the Federal Meat Inspection Act's requirement that the agency -- not private parties -- pay the cost of inspection."
In addition to the USDA, previous opposition to the ban has come from Republican Reps. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia and Henry Bonilla of Texas, and Sen. Conrad Burns, Montana Republican, according to Chris Heyde, deputy legislative director for the SAPL.
Brittany Eck, a spokeswoman for Mr. Bonilla, disputed Mr. Heyde, pointing out the amendment did pass through Mr. Bonilla's committee.
Congress is now considering the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, in another attempt to put the practice to rest. Sens. Ted Stevens, Alaska Republican, and Mary L. Landrieu, Louisiana Democrat, are co-sponsors. Mr. Stevens is chairman of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, which can hold hearings on the issue.
"There's been a majority of support for this legislation I never expected," said Mr. Heyde.
In addition to Mr. Whitfield, the proposal has public support from House members including John Sweeney, New York Republican, and John Spratt, South Carolina Democrat. "We hope to have hearings in early spring and a vote soon after that," said Sweeney spokesman David Taft.
Celebrity supporters of the legislation include country singer Willie Nelson, actress Bo Derek and rock star Paul McCartney. Miss Derek recently appeared for five hours on XM Satellite radio to promote the cause and is a scheduled guest to discuss the topic on today's edition of "The O'Reilly Factor."
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