Animal Welfare Groups Laud House Panel on Horse Transport Ban – Mexican Abittoirs Will See Business Decline
WASHINGTON, (AWI_ – The Animal Welfaree Institute (AWI) applauds Chairman James Oberstar (D-MN), of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for bringing the Horse Transportation Safety Act (H.R. 305) before his Committee and supporting its swift unanimous passage. “We are especially grateful for the leadership and commitment of the bill’s sponsors Congressman Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Congressman Steve Cohen (D-TN). Both have been incredible champions for the welfare of America’s horses,” noted Christine Sequenzia, AWI federal policy advisor.
Several bipartisan cosponsors spoke in support of H.R. 305 during the hearing, including a poignant opening statement by Congressman Cohen. H.R. 305 passed by a voice vote with no amendments and is now headed to the House floor. This crucial bill will ban the hauling of horses on double deck livestock trailers. Double deck trailers were designed to accommodate livestock, such as cattle, swine and other shorter necked species. According to USDA, horses can stand 8 feet tall and up to 12 feet when rearing. Consequently, the American Veterinary Medical Association’s literature review recommends that horses have a minimum of 7-8 feet of clearance. Double deck trailers, on the other hand, can have ceilings as low as 4 feet 7 inches.
Currently, these trailers are being used to haul horses in overcrowded conditions—and in most cases to slaughter. These unaccommodating conditions are not only dangerous for the horses, but to drivers, as well. Several catastrophic accidents involving double deck trailers have occurred in recent years.
In 2006, a double deck truck hauling 41 horses in Missouri crashed and resulted in the death of 16 horses. In 2008, a double deck trailer carrying 59 horses in Illinois struck another vehicle after blowing through a stop sign. It took five hours to rescue the horses from this mangled truck; 9 horses died at the scene, and an additional 6 died later due to injuries sustained in the crash. Today’s vote was critical to the safety of horses being transported, safety of drivers on our roadways, and safety of first responders who generally are not trained in equine medical attention. The USDA stated, “We do not believe that equines can be safely and humanely transported on a conveyance that has an animal cargo space divided into two or more stacked levels.”
“Thanks to horse champions such as Chairman Oberstar and Congressmen Kirk and Cohen, we are one step closer to more humane methods of transport for equines and safer roadways for drivers,” said Sequenzia.
Humane Society Lauds House Panel
WASHINGTON, (HSUS — The Humane Society of the United States applauds the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for passing legislation—H.R. 305, the Horse Transportation Safety Act of 2009—that will vastly improve the welfare of horse transport in the United States.
Chairman James Oberstar, D-Minn., and Ranking Member John Mica, R-Fla., exhibited strong leadership for horse protection by moving this bill for a vote. Chairman Oberstar spoke eloquently about the dangers horses faced in a series of accidents involving double-decker trailers and commended the bipartisan nature of the legislation. Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, offered an amendment to remove the ban on double deckers from the bill and to simply regulate these vehicles. He then agreed to withdraw the amendment after several members from both parties spoke strongly against it as undermining the need for an immediate ban.
The legislation would prohibit the interstate transportation of horses in a motor vehicle containing two or more levels stacked on top of one another. The bill was introduced by U.S. Reps. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., and Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., and has 70 House cosponsors. In addition to Chairman Oberstar and Rep. Cohen, Reps. John Hall, D-N.Y., Phil Hare, D-Ill., and Frank LoBiondo, R-N.J., also spoke in strong support of the legislation today.
“The time has come for Congress to ban double decker trailers for all horses,” said Keith Dane, The HSUS’ director of equine protection. “We don’t need any more gruesome incidents to know that double-decker trailers are inhumane and unsafe. These vehicles are primarily used by the horse slaughter industry for hauling as many horses as possible from auctions to slaughter plants in Canada and Mexico. The American public loves horses and this legislation is urgently needed to prevent future tragedies.”
Double-decker trailers are designed for animals such as cattle and pigs – shorter-necked species than horses, who require more headroom than double-decker trailers afford. Horses often throw their heads to maintain balance, and injure easily in such vehicles.
The USDA has stated: “We do not believe that equines can be safely and humanely transported on a conveyance that has an animal cargo space divided into two or more stacked levels.” (9 CFR Parts 70 and 88)
“It is time that we put an end to the inhumane practice of using double-decker trailers to transport horses,” Rep. Kirk said. “Stacking these animals one atop the other in a moving vehicle is simply an accident waiting to happen. It is not only a cruel way to transport horses, but it also puts human lives at risk.”
Rep. Cohen said, “Using double-stacked trailers is inhumane and cruel. Our bill prohibits any interstate transportation of horses in double-stacked trailers and implements tough civil penalties for anyone caught using such deplorable modes of transportation for horses.”
Recent accidents graphically demonstrate the dangers of the double-decker trailers. In 2006, a double-decker truck hauling 41 horses in Missouri crashed, killing 16 horses. In 2007, a double-decker carrying 59 horses in Illinois struck another vehicle after blowing through a stop sign. It took five hours to rescue the horses from this mangled truck, resulting in the death of nine horses; six died later due to injuries sustained. In both instances, the design of the trailers caused horses to lose parts of their legs or break their backs. Others were crushed under the weight of other horses falling on top of them.
Congress will soon recess for the summer but returns in September when H.R. 305 is now cleared for a vote before the U.S. House of Representatives.
Facebook
Thanks for the good news! And thanks to everyone who made this possible!
A little bit of good news is greatly appreciated.
Another step closer to ensuring the safety and welfare of our U.S. equine companions.
The “Horse Eaters” must be fuming.
With all the bad news concerning our wild horses lately this vote in committee sure did give a ray of light. Thanks for putting a smile on this worn out horse advocates face.
Remarkable.
Finally! Trina Bellak who worked so hard to bring this horrible situation to light would be proud. As you may know she founded the American Horse Defense Fund and died of cancer at far too young an age. Thanks for the letting us know about the passage of this long awaited legislation. Yes, RT, I imagine our friends in Recluse are not happy.