After Loss, Slaughter Leader Issues Manifesto
Ag Appropriations Repo
rt and our Initial Response
By Sue Wallis,
WASHINGTON, (United Organizations of the Horse) – Last night the Ag Appropriations Committee voted 24-21 to adopt Rep. Moran, Virginia, amendment to reinstate the prohibition on inspection of horse meat. This in spite of Rep. Lummis’ knowledgeable and articulate testimony and over the objection of Subcommittee Chairman Kingston.
This is just the opening round, however, and we still have multiple opportunities to fix the bill before the 2012 appropriations process is complete. Our next chance will be when the committee bill comes to a full vote of the House on June 15th. Then it will go to the Senate and goes through the complete process over there. Needless to say we are circling the wagons with our coalition partners and will do our best to keep you apprised as we move along. We will be asking for your help throughout, and really appreciate your willingness to step up on behalf of our industry.
Moran is well known for his support of HSUS causes, so that it is not surprising that he would bring forward the amendment-what was disappointing to so many of us is that the Committee did not honor our request to not inflict any more damage on the horse industry until after they have had a chance to review the findings of the GAO Report on the welfare of horses and the effect on the equine economy of the plants closing.
That long anticipated report is done. It was delivered to USDA last Friday, and is due to Congress within two weeks of that date.
Our message remains the same. There is no disagreement in that we all expect horses to be well cared for and not abused from birth to death.
The only disagreement boils down to a private property rights issue. The veterinarians agree that there are three humane ways to end a horse’s life, by bullet, by captive bolt, by lethal drug. Bullets and captive bolts provide instantaneous insensibility. Lethal drugs can cause many long minutes of suffering before the animal finally succumbs, which many of us have witnessed with our own eyes, and results in a large, expensive, toxic drug ridden carcass that cannot be buried for fear of leaching into water tables, cannot be left above ground for fear of other animals feeding on the carcass and dying, cannot even be rendered where that is available because the drugs survive the rendering process-basically results in a thousand pounds of toxic waste.
On the other hand, a horse in a processing plant dies instantaneously with a minimum of pain or stress and their meat is welcomed by a thriving worldwide market providing the horse owner who chooses to receive some return on their investment a decent price. From a humanitarian viewpoint the result is the same, the horse has been dealt with in the best possible way. The only difference is whether the carcass is used or disposed of-for some that means a burial for an old friend, for others it is a bit of income that can be reinvested in better or more useful animals to support their livelihood. No one should have the right to dictate to someone else whether or not they respect their horse’s life by making sure it is not wasted, or dictate how that carcass should be disposed of-only the owner of the horse should determine that.
Secondly there is the issue of Congress once again issuing edicts that prevent states from developing their own economies. Strongly worded resolutions from the National Conference of State Legislatures, the National Association of Counties, the National Congress of American Indians and other such organizations reflect the position of state, local, and tribal governments and have called on Congress not to pass such measures.
The fact is that the well developed projects in Wyoming, North Dakota, Oregon, Montana, Missouri and elsewhere would create over a Thousand good paying jobs almost overnight with the ability to access the export market. It is ironic that the Ag Appropriations process funds millions of dollars of government inspected beef, pork, lamb, and chicken FOR EXPORT, but one of Rep.
Moran’s main arguments was that the USDA shouldn’t inspect meat only meant for export!
Instead our excess, unusable, unwanted horses must endure the sorry choice of being killed, albeit humanely, but totally wasted; or trucked for thousands of miles to other countries to be processed where we have no control over how that is done (not to mention their economy gets enhanced, not ours, we’re now importing millions of tons of horse meat for zoo diet and ethnic markets); or being abandoned to fend for themselves where they inevitably die an agonizing death of starvation where they all too often become the victim of predators and have their guts and their butts eaten by wolves or coyotes while they are still alive (google the recent wolf kill of a prized horse in Darby, Montana to see what wolves do to horses). Look up A Million Horses.com – 400% increase in reports of abandoned, neglected horses every year since the plants closed. That is abuse!
Many aspects of Rep. Moran’s testimony were disturbing, misleading, and false.
The fact is that allowing horse plants to pay for their own processing fees would add zero cost, and require zero appropriation, not the $5 million that he claimed.
To say that the only benefactors of horse processing are foreign countries is almost beyond belief when the secondary market for an entire sector of animal agriculture is eliminated-a 30% to 80% drop in value of horses nationwide with the commensurate loss of income and assets to our U.S. horse owners.
To say that Americans do not use horse meat is crazy when three quarters of the world does, and we have a long and honorable history in this country of using and enjoying a meat that is so healthy and nutritious-twice the protein, half the fat, high in iron and other beneficial nutrients with, for instance, eighteen times the omega three fatty acids.
To say that all horses are full of toxic drugs is an exaggeration so outrageous as to be beyond belief-number one, the vast majority of horses who are not performance or sport horses ever receive any kind of veterinary medicine in their entire lives, those that are can be held for an appropriate withdrawal period before processing depending on the drug, and there are tests for both live animals before processing and for carcasses afterwards that can detect any drug residue down to the parts per trillion-combine that with the fact that EU has NEVER found any significant drug residue in any carcass in any horse plant in the United States, Canada, or Mexico, EVER. It strikes us as a bit ingenuous that people so opposed to eating horse meat are raising food safety issues as their argument against it.
The brutal truth is that the entire United States equine industry is in the process of liquidating and downsizing. Until we see the GAO Report no one has any accurate accounting of how many jobs and livelihoods have already been lost. It is no exaggeration to
note that without a responsible and regulated option for processing to deal with excess otherwise unusable and unwanted horses that we will inevitable lose another 200,000 to 300,000 jobs. Without a secondary outlet, the whole market has plummeted, breeding has essentially stopped.
Fewer horses means fewer jobs means fewer horse shows, fewer rodeos, fewer horse trailers, fewer training dollars, fewer veterinary needs, fewer saddles, bridles, less need for feed-that all amounts to a devastating economic contraction that is destroying our prized American horseback culture.
Our efforts to restore the private property rights of horse owners, to rejuvenate an entire sector of animal agriculture, to create jobs and opportunity, and to preserve our cultures and livelihoods will continue.
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Amazing that with all those words, there is not one fact. One of the best lies is the number of jobs. Between the three plants there were 200 workers, of which, 85% were undocumented. The haulers are still hauling, the KBs are still buying, the auctions are still selling and feed lots are still feeding. The only jobs lost were in the plants. A few more emails from Sue with her Micky Mouse numbers and we will have the job crisis solved in the US. How can she say there is no secondary outlet when the same number of horses are being slaughtered? But she’ll keep repeating it hoping someone will believe it.
Moran’s comment were right on target. The plants were foreign owned with the profits and products all exported. The communities housing these plants had tanked property values not to mention the wastewater issues residents were forced to endure as well as not being able to attract any businesses. The data on A Million Horses is not accurate. The unemployment rates are measured against hearsay articles, many of which are no longer available. There are no police reports or authoritative reports validating the information in the articles. This was their attempt to discredit John Holland’s studies that measured unemployment rates against official state reports.
So now Sue is an expert on drug residues! I guess she didn’t read the FVO report from the EU on drug residues. She knows that the standard tests performed do not detect bute so of course, none is reflected. A five year old could figure out that one.
And you’ll notice that she NEVER addresses over breeding, supports rescues or any programs that help owners keep their horses. Makes you wonder what’s in it for her to keep slaughtering the victims of irresponsible breeders and owners.
Sue, you’re not going to restore the horse industry by turning it into a meat industry…
Vicki, Very well put. I can believe she makes the arguement that the “captive bolt” is a humane way to put down the horse. A horse will not hold still and usually it takes 3-4 times before the horse is knocked out. A horses brain sits further back in it’s scull makeing it harder to knock out on one try. A horse with trash about and the person will miss and hit the eye, or the cheek. Jobs? she must be smokin somethin.
they don’t kill the horses humanly that is a lie.they are to many pictures of what they do to them.someone want to line their pockets.they are more to this that meet the eye.
How can you say that this meat is good for you. These animals are not farm raised, for consumption purposes, they are someones pony, a beloved performance animal or a race horse off the track. These animals in their life time are filled with toxins from wormers, pain medications, anti-inflammatories ect. – so how can you say this meat is healthy!
Secondly, the live bolt is not humane – it is made for cattle not horses and many veterinarians oppose this means of euthanasia.
No addressing how these animals suffer on the long trips across country with no food, or water and the end that they suffer when the go to Mexico – what a horrible way to die.
How about limiting the Thoroughbred industry from over breeding – they put 30,000 foals on the ground each year – how many of these animals make it and how many to slaughter?!?
Over breeding goes to the Quarter Horse Industry. I don’t know the numbers for last year but they’ve ranged from 135,000 to over 160,000 per year in past years. And that’s only the horses that are AQHA registered. It is no wonder they are the leading breed on the slaughter trucks. Dump them so they can breed more. TBs are the second highest.
I love the comment about Lummis as if the messiah spoke and the village people didn’t listen. Anyone can be articulate but being articulate doesn’t mean you are articulating accurate information. Fortunately, the majority saw through the lies. Lummis also wants to rid the ranges of wild horses and burros. Oh, but they love horses. Bottom line is they are supporting the meat industry, not the horse industry. There is no money in the horse industry for dead horses.
We are just wasting our time with her. She knows the facts but prefers to repeat her agenda. She doesn’t understand how carcinogenic drugs build and react in our systems. Cancer doesn’t develop overnight and there are no studies. Let her fund a 10 or 20 year study and then when she has the results, she can challenge the professionals. She makes a mockery of the medical professionals that have researched and studied for years.
The property rights issue has been beaten to death. There are restrictions on just about every piece of property we own, including the disposal of private property – batteries, computers, appliances, cars, you name it. They claim it is a disposal option so why do they expect to be paid? Does your trash collector pay you to pick-up your trash? The issue has nothing to do with property rights and perhaps one day, she’ll tell us the real reason.
Well said, Vicki.
You go Vicki, let Sue Wallis know we have her number and its not a number of her true love of horses, live ones anyhow…….
Dear Mrs. Tobin,
I respect your passion for your feelings about Horse Salvage Operations…its clear that you are a horse lover…as am I.
However…I think it is a mistake on your part to doubt the information on A Million Horses… the Manager of that site is very thorough in her research and has a very high personal standard of excellence in her work.
In regards to the comment against Sue Wallace never addressing over breeding…it could be true that she has never made a statement in that regard..I am not sure….however…if you recall I made a very valid suggestion in that regard some months ago. My suggestion was a quota system for horse breeders…it would be based on the potential breeders capability to produce a viable product(horse) that could be enjoyed by a multitude of horse lovers..such as yourself. In this system a potential breeder would be allowed an initial quota…once they had proven that the horses bred were actually viable livestock for the horse industry to enjoy, then they could purchase more quota.
This system of promoting “Quality Horses” would curb the number of useless horses that are born every year…thus cutting the supply of salvage horses that are available to salvage every year.
As of yet yourself nor John Holland has ever responded to my intelligent and viable solution to sponsor less breeding of horses….the both of you seem more focused on complaining about the morality of the pro horse salvage community as well as your own personal agenda of ending equine salvage entirely…..no one in your organization has come up with a viable solution as of yet either…..I see no grounds for harpooning Sue Wallace on that very important issue until you offer some viable solutions yourselves.
I would think that your organization would whole heartedly embrace this mentality( Quota) as horse death on a large scale volume seems to upset you very much…as well eventually the salvage plants would eventually dry up and go away as they would not have enough volume to be viable.
Horse slaughter/salvage at that time could be put back into the same perspective and amount of activity as what was seen at the time of settlement of this Continent…..people who wished to salvage a crippled horse for personal use could do so at their own discretion…..I personally know quite a few people that do in fact put down their crippled or “Less Desirable” horses for their own use as well as friends of the family….drug residue is never an issue because they are the owners of the Horses and know the history of health care on every horse…kind of like a Personal Equine I.D. System so to speak.
On another note of somewhat the same topic…in a previous post Dr. Marini was somewhat profound in her position about the public eating horse meat….as she assumes that “all” horses have at one point in time been “forever infected/tainted” with Bute or some other carcinogenic material….as much as I still doubt her position to be valid….I’m assuming if consumption was backed off to in country use by the actual owners of the horses then it would be a personal choice and decision to consume horse flesh…and she could stop losing sleep over the morality of the issue…kind of like people smoking or drinking to much Beer.
Best Regards
Anotherhorseman
P.S. And what about my valid suggestion to pull Bute from the market….if the product causes such havoc on the immune system of a human it cannot be good for a horse in any sense of the idea of Equine Welfare.
Keep up your good work in the support of proper equine management…lets here more civil discussion on remedies rather than trashing individuals that are as passionate in thier beliefs as you are in yours.
Anotherhorseman, I am sorry but I differ in your opinion on Jeri Dobrowski. She makes a compelling presentation but the numbers are meaningless. Her study on neglect was nothing more than an attempt to discredit John’s studies. She used official unemployment rates that were measured against hearsay articles. There are no police reports or any authoritative reports to validate the information in the articles. Many are no longer available so the hearsay can’t even be validated. John’s studies used official unemployment rates measured against state reported cases – information that is available to anyone and doesn’t disappear. Had she used official numbers of neglect cases, she wouldn’t have had the results she wanted.
I believe the comments were closed after your post. Your suggestion is certainly a viable solution but could be perceived as a “tax” and we all know how that will go over with the responsible breeders that don’t require lessons in supply and demand. It would increase costs for those that are already breeding responsibly and taking care of what they produce. How would you enforce it? How would you know that someone is breeding horses and not buying a quota?
We have provided many solutions to help owners keep their horses and retirement programs that are already being implemented. I am sick of hearing from slaughter supporters that we have offered nothing. They don’t want to hear anything unless the answer is slaughter. There are prison programs, hay programs, rescues, programs that provide services, state and local vet colleges and vet associations that provide low cost (some no cost) euthanasia and disposal, retirement programs for TBs and on and on. They have a 501c3 – where is their support of these programs? Instead, they spend every penny lobbying for slaughter under the guise of “education”.
Wallis comes up with cute phrases like restoring the horse industry or preserving horseback culture. Neither exists from dead horses and neither will be restored by opening plants on US soil or trying to turn the horse industry into a meat industry. Horse slaughter has not ended and is as readily available as when the plants were open. And yet, she whines about the “option” being gone. Perhaps she should tell the 112,904 horses that were slaughtered last year that the slaughter “option” isn’t available. And the sad thing is that the few lemmings that follow her believe her drivel. She has made herself the face of slaughter and promotes nothing but slaughter. I’m all for civil conversation but we aren’t going to keep quiet and let her flat out lies go unanswered.
The EU FVO recently completed an investigation and did indeed find residues of banned substances (you’ll notice she ignored that, as well). Exactly what we have been saying. North American horses are not raised or regulated as food animals. There is no tracking and no way to remove horses that have received prohibited substances. If they want to raise food animals, they can start raising cows. Horses are bred and raised for other purposes. That is the horse industry. If someone wants to slaughter their horse and eat it, the federal legislation would not stop them. If they want to sell it commercially, they have to meet FDA food safety regulations. That is the law. We don’t need to waste tax dollars on federal inspections for non-food animals. There is no reason to force a national tracking system down the throats of horse owners so the owners of less than 2% of the horse population can send their horses to slaughter. Bute is a low cost, widely used medication. It makes no sense to pull a medication because of the minority of horse owners/breeders that are irresponsible. Even if bute was pulled, there are still wormers, respiratory drugs, fly sprays and dozens of other horse meds routinely used that are prohibited in food animals.
Dear Mrs. Tobin,
I’m not sure how to respond to your opinion of Jeri Dobrowski so I will refrain from doing so….you have your opinion and I have mine. As well I have personal friends in Kentucky and Tennessee who have spoken of volumes of horses that have been turned loose in the hills as a result of the poor economics of keeping a low quality horse alive much less having to pay someone to take it off their hands.
In regards to controlling the horse breeding numbers with a quota system….many programs have been initiated in several countries to control supply side management of livestock….few producers ever complained as they knew in the long run it would be a much better business with some solid rules and production planning. As far as existing breeders go…they would be grandfathered into a production number that was a historical level for their operation, easily validated by registration applications as well as financial records of sales. This would be realistic as most breeders who have continued/survived with true breeding programs through the last 7 years are certainly doing something correctly…being the market is what it is for a multitude of reasons.
As far as being perceived as a tax….its odd that you would think of that… as having to pay a vet to terminate your personal horse(your preference) as well as hiring a disposal service to properly dispose of the resulting carcass(drugged or not) some might argue that the fee for such services could be considered a tax so to speak as well(a prohibitive one I might add for some low income horse enthusiasts..like a 4H project)
As far as who would administer a program like this…why not EWA ..? your organization is the leading sponsor of all this control of the horse world…why would you not offer administration of this very important part of regulating the very problem you say is the root of it all….”over breeding”…? This would certainly validate your desire and goal of helping horses over an extended period of time…you might even offer the service free of charge and get all your members to help pay for the hard assets..paper..computors, ect. of course time/labor should be donated and it could all be a tax write off for the wealthy among your ranks….A NOBLE DEED FOR HORSES…!
I agree with you about wasting tax dollars…thats why it would be very financially prudent to dispose of all the BLM Horses that are held in captivity currently….a single shot to the head would save approx. 1200.00/year per head multiply that by say 50,000 or so and all of a sudden you can feed kids a good lunch at a lot of schools…thus enabling them to think clear and make rational decisions.
As far as Bute goes….no way…I know the stuff is toxic to horses at any level..Dr. Marini has convinced me of that as well I know that a horses bodily functions are very similar to a humans…off course no one would ever know for sure unless we initiated and financed(EWA Financed Possibly..?) a 20 year testing program on the function of test horses immune response as well as level of function of the liver and other vital organs….in addition to that Race Day Bute is no doubt somewhat responsible for several TB Race Horses shattering their Cannon Bones….Barbaro comes to mind….what a shame…such a fantastic animal put through such an ordeal just for the sake of winning the “Big Money” he should have had a long life.
Mrs Tobin…you know perfectly well that as long as people desire to win thy will use products that will enhance the possibility of doing so,,I think as responsible stewards of the horse population you(EWA) should fully embrace outlawing such a caustic dangerous product. In regards to the other products ….none of the ones you mentioned put a horse in such a compromising situation in regards to self preservation as does Bute.
Best Regards
Anotherhorseman
’m glad you said the horse issues are a result of the economy. I am certainly not denying that horses have been turned out but it is definitely not a result of closing the plants because there is nothing stopping anyone from sending their horse to slaughter. We’ve also heard from many of our members that work on locating owners that they have turned out their horses because they were afraid it would end up on a slaughter truck if they sold it.
I’m not sure what you are getting at with your comment on a tax for euthanizing a horse. Horses are no different than any non-food animal. Why should they be treated differently? If you raise an animal for non food purposes, it should be euthanized as we do with all non-food animals. Do you know any non-food animals that are slaughtered? Whether it is a dog, horse or cat, it is the owner’s responsibility and if they don’t want the responsibility of providing a humane death for a 1,200 pound animal, they shouldn’t own a horse. A breeder is responsible for caring for the animals they bring into the population. If it is a business, then they shouldn’t be breeding for more than the demand and be prepared to care for those they cannot sell. The excuses of wasting a resource are pathetic. Nobody sends their horse to slaughter to provide food. They want to get rid of it and once the horse leaves their hands, they don’t care what happens to it. It could be euthanized and you wouldn’t hear a peep out of them. If they cared about their horse, they wouldn’t be sending it to slaughter in the first place.
Our organization is not the leading sponsor of responsible horse ownership and breeding. It is common sense and promoted by all equine advocates. If you are producing too much of something, it is common sense to cut back. That is the only means for controlling the numbers. We are currently grass roots and do not accept donations, contributions or funding. We have worked with our members on several programs and support organizations that are implementing programs. We’ve worked with the racing industry and several programs have been implemented. One of our members started a gelding clinic that will be offered in several states. Another member in my state worked with the state racing board and has implemented a program. We also have a prison program as do several other states. The programs are much easier to implement on a local level by people living in the state. Since quarter horses are the number one breed going to slaughter, why isn’t the AQHA doing something instead of bragging about spending over $1M lobbying against banning horse slaughter? Just think of what that $1M could have done to provide low cost services to QH owners.
The solution for the wild horses is to leave them on their ranges. That is a prime example of whining they have too many and then keep rounding them up. They are creating a disaster. Wild horses have had over 20 million acres taken away and the horses in holding should be returned to the land legislated by law. The cattle are being moved onto the ranges as fast as the horses are being removed. By the BLMs own numbers, there are less than 20,000 horses remaining free roaming. The privately owned cattle cost tax payers hundreds of millions of dollars each year compared to $67M for the wild horses including the millions on unnecessary round-ups. We’d like to see the cattle numbers reduced to under 20,000. BTW, if you read the EU regulations, the only wild equidae meat that is accepted is zebra meat. See the third page, third paragraph here – http://equinewelfarealliance.org/uploads/EU_Import_Regulations_letter.pdf. So unless you plan on painting black and white stripes on the Mustangs, they can’t go slaughter. In addition, all them have been wormed and those with injuries given bute so they have all received banned substances and are not safe for human consumption (confirmed by BLM on Horseback Magazine).
As far a bute, I have heard of no issues with horses receiving bute. I’m sure there are as with any drug but with the thousands of horse owners, rescues, vets, etc. we work with, none of them have had problems. It is the responsibility of the medical and veterinarian experts to approve or pull drugs. BTW- we are in support of the legislation banning race day drugs.
Sue, once again you leave us speechless.
I am quite sure you are amongst those who do not believe the Holocaust ever happened.
This is for Mrs. Tobin as a reply sign was not available for me to respond.
The horse abandonment issue does have somewhat to do with salvage issues…some times the salvage value is less than the cost of marketing and transport…thus those horses will be abandoned so that the owner does not get a Bill from the Sale Barn….thats why reports of horses being dropped at Sale Barns in the night arise…owners don;t want a bill and they do not want to be prosecuted for abandonment by HSUS and the like.
But your right…they could care less about the horses…but only because they are deemed worthless.
In regards to the Mustangs and painting Stripes on them….no I was not advocating eating them….just shoot them…its no big deal….let mother nature take them back to the place they came from…the grass. That would end the expense. Interestingly enough even Mrs. Pickens will not feed them for free…why should the Tax Payer…?
Best Regards
Another Horseman
Anotherhorseman, so what you are saying is that horse slaughter is not a disposal option as has been said over and over again by slaughter supporters. Slaughter is a means to make the last dollar from the horse as we have been saying rather than paying to provide a humane death. I again ask why ending a horse’s life should be different than any other non-food animal? BTW-a lot of those “deemed worthless” horses that have been rescued have gone on to new careers including winning awards such as USEF horse of the year. Terms like worthless, unwanted, no value are all words to provide an excuse. I was going to say to ease their conscience but I suspect that never comes into play…
We never uttered a peep about our tax dollars going to subsidize the welfare rancher’s privately owned livestock grazing on public land until they started removing the wild horses in such large numbers. Why should hundreds of millions of tax payer dollars be used to subsidize the welfare ranchers but not wild horses? Let them graze their livestock on their own land. The wild horses belong to America, are part of our heritage and were roaming the ranges long before the welfare ranchers turned public lands into a giant, private feed lot.
HSUS does not have the authority to prosecute anyone. The local officials are responsible for prosecuting individuals that break the law and it is against the law to abandon animals. Is there a reason you don’t think the owners should be held accountable for breaking the law? Never pass up an opportunity to attack HSUS! You guys must really be afraid of them.
Dear Mrs Tobin,
No..I am not saying that Salvage is not an option at all….for those horse owners that choose to end ownership in that fashion they should be allowed access to that particular venue.
I really don’t believe that its an issue of getting rich from the salvage operations of a horses remains…in fact the only participants that make any significant income from this particular venue for eliminating ownership and accompanying expense is the Cartels that control distribution of the high quality product that horse flesh is.
I agree some horses that find themselves being purveyed by salvage buyers should or could have other uses…we have all heard of the cheap killer that turned into a World Beater of some sort.
I also expect that you would also full well know that there really are a lot of horses that are truly unwanted and have no further good use on this earth…if they are free of so called toxic chemicals(another contradiction on your part…why would you on one hand say these animals are Angels and Pets and then fill them up with “Known Toxins”..? surely if these substances are toxic to Humans then they will be to Horses as well) then I and many others firmly believe that the remains of that horse should be used honorably and not wasted..keeping in mind that they be handled humanely at all times.
As far as the public lands issue…I am and have always been in agreement with you and Mr. Holland in that regard…in fact I do not think Mankind should intervene at all…the Wild Horses should never be Wormed or given any vaccines or hoof care as we all know that eventually the so called assistance to the well being of these horses will upset the natural order of their existance…let mother nature take its course..as grizzly at it may seem to some ultra sensitive humans.
HSUS does not scare me…they irritate me…they have a anti agricultural agenda and they stick their nose to far into operational policy under the guise of animal welfare…using public donations from people who do not fully understand the issues at hand.
If all HSUS did was follow the discription of their name I may actually donate funds to them myself…
Best Regards
Anotherhorseman
Anotherhorseman, I didn’t say salvage wasn’t an option, I said slaughter wasn’t a disposal option as slaughter supporters have been saying. Does your trashman PAY you to pick-up your trash? So it is not a disposal option.
Where did I say that horses were angels and pets? The toxins are called medications. The meds are not toxic to horses but many are toxic to humans. Kudos to you for twisting my words. The medications are used to worm horses, treat illnesses, diseases and pain. They are for the horses well being and maintenance. Surely you aren’t suggesting withholding meds so the horses can go to slaughter?
Once again the choice is simple. Either they are raised as food animals or they aren’t. Period. You can’t raise them for other purposes such as racing, performing, providing service, serving law enforcement, working, therapy, etc. and then suddenly decide they become food. You know as well as anyone that horses are not raised for slaughter but for other purposes. While they are performing those other purposes they must be wormed, injuries treated, illnesses treated not to mention the fly sprays, ointments and on and on. There are hundreds, if not thousands of bute compounds available on the internet. Bute is inexpensive and widely used by horse owners. You would be hard pressed to find a US horse that hasn’t received bute. If you want horses to go to slaughter then they need to be raised as food animals from birth. Food animals don’t have careers, don’t have names, don’t perform, etc. They stand around getting fat and waiting to be slaughtered. There must be a national tracking system so you can prove the horse has met FDA regulations before sending it to slaughter. Since the overwhelming majority of horse owners oppose slaughter and don’t want their horses tracked (i.e. the miserable failure of NAIS), how do you propose shoving a national tracking system down their throats? Do you think that is fair to horse owners so the irresponsible breeders and owners of less than 2% of the horse population can send their horses to slaughter?
I think HSUS understands the issues. They aren’t anti-Ag. Bashing dairy calves’ heads with sledge hammers, kicking them, dragging them by their tails or hitting them when they are doing nothing is not humane. Is that what you call policy? A food animal should not have to live its short life crammed into a cage where it cannot turn around or lay down. What happens to those Happy Cows when they can no longer produce milk? Is it policy that downer animals be prodded, shocked and lifted with forklifts instead of being euthanized? If the operational policy is inhumane, then more power to the advocacy groups exposing the abuses. This is 2011 and policies from the dark ages don’t cut it today. The factory farms should all be shut down and we should be using local farmers for our meat. They take care of their animals and treat them humanely. The slaughter houses should have 24/7 video coverage that anyone can watch. Instead, they want to ban undercover investigations so they can hide their abuses. Everything went down the tubes with factory farming. When people get sick, they can’t even be treated because they are resistant to antibiotics because of all the antibiotics given to the animals.
This female is so darn stupid, she makes my head hurt. Is she really a ranch person???? Guess she spends her time in the house when she is home. She sure doesn’t know anything about euthanasia of equines. I had to have an old gelding put down at the clinic two weeks ago. I assume he was rendered as his body couldn’t be put in a landfill because of the pink juice. Total cost $235 which included removal of his body. In March of this year, we had an old mare put down on the ranch and buried. That cost $210 which included the vet call, pink juice, and the backhoe. Wallis is just plain full of B.S. I can’t believe any farmer/rancher would believe her obvious lies. I could go on and on about this female but I won’t, don’t want the blood pressure to get too high. Geesh… When is she going to learn that we can’t slaughter our way out of a sinking economy!!!!
Sue, your facts are so woefully misstated that no one with a quarter of a brain would find them minutely believable. Shame on you for your chest-pounding perpetuation of skewed facts.
Deranged………
Did they ever manage to pay their bill in Vegas?
I too agree with those about Sue. Private Property rights..Well,
we have millions of dogs and cats and could send them to Korea.
Many horses are rendered. We are discussing 1% going to slaughter
but she would like to continue massive breeding, slaughtering, and
placing horsemeat on the American Menu…kids delight and parents
Christmas meal. How many employees? 200 to 300 thousand? She is talking big business here in the US. The costs were excessive
and loss of property values, waste treatement, etc. Get a grip,
Sue, slaughtering our horses is not the answer. Live horses
make more money, not dead ones.
http://www.vetsforequinewelfare.org/white_paper.php
Read this…..most veterinarians do not agree that the captive bolt is an acceptable means. Slaughter is not humane, the words are complete opposites.
Sue Wallis is so delusional in her greed to line her own pockets with the blood of thousands of horses. There must be something wrong with someone who so strongly wants to kill their companions. What is next on her plate? Dog and cat. Oh and I wonder, does she still want to serve tainted horse meat to poor children?
http://canadianhorsedefencecoalition.wordpress.com/2011/05/05/eu-inspectors-find-serious-violations-at-eu-regulated-horse-slaughter-plants-in-mexico/
Here are the results the EU found….no drugs present in meat, Sue Wallis is delusional.
A few thoughts after reading this piece:
1. The majority of domestic and meat animals are full of toxic chemicals. They begin with vaccinations, usually become ill at some point and get more drugs and much like most of the mainstream meat market, are full of antibiotics and stuff humans should never consume or consume with great risk.
2. Jobs at slaughter plants are hideous. And statistics show that they trash the water table and environment where they are located.
3. Any “400%” increase in so called abused, abandoned and starved horses is due primarily to thoughtless over breeding, greed and a totally trashed economy.
“…. providing the horse owner who chooses to receive some return on their investment a decent price…” Excuse me? Anyone who considers a horse to be an “investment” which should render a “decent price” when the owner has no further use for it, does not deserve to own a horse.
“Instead our excess, unusable, unwanted horses must endure the sorry choice of being killed, albeit humanely, but totally wasted..” And yet again – excuse me? Unwanted horses must “endure the sorry choice of being killed humanely but wasted.” What? Oh of course I would MUCH rather be sent on a terrifying truck journey to be slaughtered for profit by people who don’t care about me than to be quietly and humanely euthanized at home amongst loved ones. I mean who wouldn’t? What?????
It’s unfortunate that Sue Wallis can’t deal with reporting factual information and continues on being “Slaughter House Sue”.
Anyone having a horse requires medication that is contraindicitory of the health of humans. To foist this on people of other countries let alone our own shows her incredible ignorance in getting to the truth.
Money buys alot of things in our society. Obviously it has made Sue Wallis blind to the well being of both equine and human species in America and overseas.
Wow..Is this lady for real? Where did she get her facts? She must never have watched a horse die in a meat plant. Stupid
This woman remains as delusional as the rest of the arrogant, greedy, righteous people she has bamboozled into thinking she is knowledgeable.
For being someone who proclaims great love for the equine, she sure wants to put them to their deaths in a big greedy hurry.
I wonder if the United Organizations of the Horse is aware she published this manifesto? If so, we need to immediately start campaigning against them, as well.
Cynthia Lummis was articulate, WHAT? I watched the entire web cast and it was said LOUD AND CLEAR, that they are very concerned about FOOD safety and YET, YOU, SUE WALLIS and CYNTHIA LUMMIS are ready to feed horse meat to unsuspecting, homeless, school children and inmates…..(TAINTED WITH MEDS< NOT MEANT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION)alway's homing in on the innocent, horses, children and homeless, you have a pattern Sue Wallis and it is in certain book's, where they teach about the mystery of certain people's MINDS!!! WHEN will all of you let the words OVERBREEDING SEEP OUT OF YOUR MOUTH'S..SAY IT, IT WON"T MAKE YOUR LIPS FALL OFF!!!
Slaughterhouse, Slaughterhouse, Slaughterhouse!! tisk, tisk, tisk, blah, blah, blah. Same old argument as always and I don’t know where to start. So let’s start with the captive bolt gun to the head of a horse. Does your vet carry one? Mine does not, so I’m guessing that they really do NOT feel it is as efficient as you would like us to believe. We have all seen the photos of the horse who had its eyes shot out with the bolt gun and still lived. And we have all seen the video of the plant worker who shot the horse on one side of her head and then the other and one more shot and still he missed. Is this what you consider humane? Many, many more of us have seen our horses put down by a vet with the so called “pink juice” and in no way saw the pain and suffering that could compare with what happens in the slaughter house. You are a very sick person if you think that the captive bolt is the most humane way to put down a horse.
And since you brought it up, I must agree with you on one thing, there are not enough rendering plants. Why would you not take you own observation and open a rendering plant which would be a very good thing and green too? Then you can help out the vets and horse owners and take the horses that they put down humanely with the pink juice. You would make money on a rendering plant since you will not make any on a horse slaughter one.
Just a quick fact, the numbers of those who will fight the reopening of a horse slaughter plant are growing since there are more humane thinking people then those who have no compassion. Many, many more people have a heart then you would like to believe.
And one last thought; why would you think that anyone, beside you, would think that Rep. Lummis is “knowledgeable and articulate” about horses and that her testimony would mean anything to anyone but you? The only thing she means to me is one more horse hater who only wants to make money from the blood of horses. She is just one more cattle rancher who only wants to gain more money in her war chest from the welfare ranchers who support her.
Then there is Rep. Moran who says much more meaningful things for me and has proven his support of horses and the horse industry by supporting a bill that will support live horses and not a money pit of a business that wants to make blood money off an animal that so many consider a member of their family. The horse industry needs live horses if they want to make money and come back from this recession. A live horse makes money for the industry year after year as long as it lives. And industry that includes many professionals like vets, breeders, barn managers, farmers, and on and on. Once horses are dead they bring very little money back to the US. Even the illegals that work in slaughter houses take the money back to Mexico. Horse slaughter is not a good option for anyone or horses. Horse slaughter is not humane and does not benefit the welfare of the horse.
Hey Slaughterhouse, don’t quit your day job. Hopefully the people of Wyoming will see the light next election and vote you out.
Good points, Lynette.
Thanks Vicki!!!
I truely believe Sue Wallis is evil. She is in the pocket of someone who makes big money off dead horses.
Sue Wallis, forgets the fact that horses are butchered alive, here, Mexico or Canada. Stop the overbreeding aka unwanted. Most American horse owners, provide a dignified death for their horses.People that overbreed and want an easy way out. Irresponsible horse owners, want a couple hundred bucks, and don’t care what happens to the horses they bring into this world. We do.
Sue
why don’t you eat something tainted with drugs. Maybe you’ll get lock jaw.
If someone was so interested in helping horses out, love love, with horse rejuvenation centers and a rescue, there’s nothing stopping them. However, if Sue’s special breed of crazy’s “Unified Equine System” (rescue?) doesn’t include a slaughterhouse out back, then there’s no point to it – but it’s not about the money the dead horse’s flesh brings at some oversea’s market, nah… not at all.
How does destroying stock “restore” an industry? Maybe we should be burning down some houses to restore the housing industry? Oh, wait, they pretty much stopped building, that’s right. Now, there’s a novel approach. Stop making MORE of something there’s too many of. Hmmm… We should do some market research on that one… insert rolly eyes and dripping sarcasm here.
Sad part is, people buy her line of crap.
Having been one of the unfortunate group that had to slog through the undercover video from the Bouvry and Richelieu slaughterhouses in its entirety to produce the accompanying transcript I can tell you without hesitation that there is no such thing as humane slaughter. Each killing was brutal and shocking. That is, the ones that went down on the first shot from the rifle not a captive bolt as both slaughterhouses captured on video did not use captive bolts.
They both used .22 calibre rifles with the shooter standing unacceptably far away from the equidae about to be executed. There were more misses and pot shots than accurate hits.
Sue Wallis and her pro slaughter supporters are dumb as posts if they can continue to promote slaughter.
Each of us that had to view this footage in its entirity came away changed forever but it also furthered our resolve to end this barbaric business.
And the only one getting rich out of this is the Bouvry family.
Thank you for bearing witness for the horses. By assiting in getting the horrible videos out and seen you released truth which brought others to stand beside you in the fight. Bless your heart. As well as the hearts of everyone that would like to see this barbaric business end. It’s time.
Sue Wallis is one sick woman. Anyone whose main mission in life is to send horses to a horrific, terrifying death in a slaughterhouse has some serious mental issues. Money can’t be her only motivation. Anyone with an ounce of compassion knows how terrible a slaughterhouse death is for horses or for any animal. No, there is no such thing as humane slaughter, period. Wallis will say or do anything to kill horses. Wonder what kind of home environment resulted in someone like her? She obviously doesn’t care that horsemeat is loaded with drugs and is harmful to humans either. Her so-called “drug expertise” is another line of bull from someone who has no business being in public office. Wallis is a cruel, nasty woman who needs to quietly go away.
Sue honey, Fred with Westboro Baptist Church says that he likes the way you think and wants to know if you want to be the spokesperson for their group…I personally think you should take the job..You would fit it perfectly ! !
LOL!!!!
Sue Wallis is not just violent when it comes to animals, but also as shown in Las Vegas, with humans as well. Studies have shown that most people that abuse or are cruel to animals end up being that way to humans too, so it is no big shock there. Wallis says that horses that are not performance or sport horses are never fed any drugs…..seriously? First of all, check the stats of the horses that are sent to slaughter or are sold to kill buyers at auctions….THEY ARE SPORT/PERFORMANCE horses!!!!! The kill buyers have NO USE for horses that are old, sick or dying. The market won’t make money from those ones. Most people have done their research on this subject by now, especially with the great press coverage that the anti slaughter side has received. Most people see right through your lies and desire to kill for a couple of hundred dollars. Your big pro slaughter summit in Las Vegas was a joke and nothing more than a few of your friends and slaughter buddies trying to get some press. Again, it backfired. People have seen the real you and laugh every time you get one of these bought and paid for articles posted somewhere under your blanket pro slaughter organization of the horse. lol. Your big goal is to bring horse slaughter back to the US, why not make commercials for it if it is so humane? Why not show a horse being slsughtered and put it up on your site or FB page if you are so sure that people will embrace the idea? Let people make their own decisions based on real facts, NOT what you continue to dream up in your head. Personally, I don’t care what the RICH people in France or Japan want to eat but I know I don’t want the over breeders in the US catering to this very SMALL market of diners at the expense of our horses. In ending…the horse meat market is NOT thriving. I don’t know where you get your information except in your delusional, dishonest head.
Sue Wallis is clearly a victim of mad cow disease…or maybe she’s just a mad cow herself. This is another example of a politician paid to lie to the American people. There are plenty of animal rights groups in this country who could put this woman out in the street…but they will not. This is because they are also paid to lie to all of us. The truth is that most so called animal rights groups do not care about horses. Why? Why do they scream about polar bears and whales or dolphins but not horses? It is because those animals are not really in trouble and they are easy to use as propaganda. But when you have real hard evidence of true abuse, as in the case of the wild horses, they cannot escape the reality of the ugliness of slaughter. They consider the horse to be a “right wing” animal. They equate the horse to true old American values. They are the ones trying to silence those values, hence, they are out to destroy the horse. That is only the political ideology. The rest is about money. It has to be clear by the relentless efforts of the slaughterhouse people that they are after money at the expense of making the wild horse extinct. I know that it may seem far fetched to believe they really are evil about this but it is the truth. The wild horse must survive as freedom in America must also survive. The horse is a symbol of freedom and those who dislike America are going to destroy them just as they would burn the flag. Wake up everyone – this is only the beginning. We must save the horses and along with them, our freedom!
Thanks Slaughter House Sue for this forum of wonderful replies! I love the last one from Luigi… I think that is the heart or lack there of on this issue. It is about a hidden agenda and greed of course. I feel stronger now that based on her “manifesto” we can beat these monsters. She has exposed herself even more for the sicko she is. Keep talking Sue….you are digging your own giant hole.
I read the article and thought I have to respond–people should know not to believe Sue Wallis’lies. I see there are plenty who know the truth about horse slaughter and to seriously question the messenger and her motives. Praise be.
What needs to happen now-is a Beef Boycott.
The Cattle Ranching Industry needs to end in America-
not expand it to include horses, which seems to be the plan.
Eating beef is not good for our Environment, Our Economy, or our Health. We need to close the slaughterhouses. There are many wonderful things people can eat instead of slaughtered animals.
If you love horses, start voting with your dollars.
BOYCOTT BEEF!
Nylene,
Nevada
The editors of Horseback Magazine in no way endorse a beef boycott. In fact, we urge our readers to eat more good red meat and support the nation’s vital ranching industry and animal agriculture. While we respect the rights of vegans to free speech to express their beliefs, we strongly believe those beliefs are wrong.
The Editor
TO the Editor of Horseback Online….good for you folks to support one of the longest surviving sustainable food production systems in the United States and Canada.
Utilizing non arable land and waste land grass for the production of high quality beef to support the growth of Nations Population is as rational and intelligent as you can get.
Now if we could just get those ranchers back to using horses instead of 4 wheelers to handle the cattle….that would certainly help the Horse Economy.
Best Regards
Anotherhorseman
USDA equals POISON MEAT. SEE N. Dodson et al 2010 Food and Chemical Toxicology. BAN NORTH AMERICAN HORSE MEAT. Instead try a Wallace Burger topped with a little horse cheese. Hey Wallace if you add a little Bute and Furozone you might be able to fit that whole sausage in your face. Hey USDA you wanna get majorly sued by poisoned horse meat consumers. International torte? Cheers.
How is Vegan wrong? Are you kidding? I will tell you what is wrong. USHS. Humane? USHS is as much a JOKE as USDA. How is adding a long ride with freezing horse piss floors, nails to wound the animals, no vet care, no food/water….to a place we CANNOT MONITOR THEIR DEATH…HUMANE??? THIS is ridiculous. Sure round up the wild horses (to a place with no water…you jerks) so there is room for cows. What are you gonna eat McDonalds until every inch is crowded up with cows. Americans don’t want diseased drugged beef but we sell Munition horses all drugged up for Burgers every day. That is why the USDA is gonna pay pay pay for the innocent people whose lives they damaged. For discussion please contact stophorseslaughter2010@yahoo.com. Join the cause and eat your Wallace burger.
From Luigi
Sue Wallis is clearly a victim of mad cow disease…or maybe she’s just a mad cow herself.
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhaahhahahahahahahahaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahaahahhaahahahahhaa, I’m sorry for losing it but I haven’t laughed that hard for so long with all the problems in our county, that was COLOSSAL Luigi!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wyoming need to THROW THE BUM OUT!
To Vicki-While much of your information is accurate,I must say you went out of control with your comments to Anotherhorsemen in regards to factory farming and the ills associated w/it.This is 2011 and not the dark ages but buy food from local,backyard farmers?As if their livestock doesn’t get sick and need to be medicated;a bit of a stretch I’d say.Factory farming does have occasional issues,but has proven itself time and again as a cost effective,safe method of food production.Many rules/regulations have been put in place to ensure the quality/safety of their products.I also find it incredulous to say one cannot be treated due to the antibiotics one ingests from eating a “factory-raised”animal.I’ve never had doc ask me if I’ve had any “factory-raised” livestock prior to treating what might be ailing me.Keep up your work and thank you for allowing me to respond.
Hi, Skip. You haven’t been keeping up with the news! Last month, our local station CBS ran an investigative report that reported 4 out of 5 pieces of meat at the grocery stores had bacteria. The last outbreak of illness that was reported was difficult to treat because of the antibiotics. Many of the meds given to livestock aren’t to treat them but to fatten them quicker. That’s what it is all about in factory farming. Fatten ‘em as quick as you can, shove as many as you can into small cages, small gestation crates, more animals, more profits and to heck with humane treatment. What they do to the calves of dairy cows is criminal. There is no excuse for anyone to treat a defenseless animal in that manner. None. As one speaker at the Vegas meeting said regarding Temple Grandin’s suggestions to make life better for the animals, “thank you but it would be costly.”
More and more people are buying from local farmers. They don’t use meds to fatten the animals. They don’t cram animals into crates and I’ve never heard of anyone getting sick from their meat. They take pride in their stock unlike the factory farms that don’t give a hoot about the animals.
The treatment of horses through-out the slaughter pipeline has proven to be the same as factory farming. No regard for the horses, just cram them into cattle trucks where they can’t stand properly, don’t separate stallions, move them through the line as quickly as possible and pay no attention that the horse is being vivisected. Time is money and they can’t slow down the lines because the profits wouldn’t sustain the plant. Decades of investigations and it is no different today than 30 years ago. None of them, including the US plants, did anything to make changes and denied and fought every violation they received. Slaughter supporters use exports as rationale for opening plants but where were they when we exported almost 800,000 horses when the US plants were open from ’89-’06? You didn’t hear a peep out of them but now it is one of their top talking points. Rather hypocritical, don’t you think? They argued the US plants were humane so why now do they want to build a “humane” plant? Why do they never address over breeding or food safety issues in any of their communications?
You wouldn’t know if it came from a factory farm because that isn’t part of the required labeling. Unfortunately, in my area, only eggs and vegetables are available from local farmers. The eggs are far superior to any in the stores and you can see the hens and the facilities they live in. The place I go to can’t keep up with the demand.
This all ties into the horses because when there is an outbreak from livestock, the illness can be traced to the farm. Not so with horses because they aren’t raised or regulated as food animals. They have no idea who the owner’s are or how many owners the horse has had, what meds have been given or if the horse has been stolen. You don’t see that with livestock.
Seems to me they should clean up their act with our food animals before venturing into slaughtering a non regulated, non food animal.
Thanks for the support Skip….perhaps I misstated Mrs. Tobins personal discription of horses and I will apologize for that mistake…however..there are many supporters in the ranks of EWA and HSUS that do in fact describe Equine Livestock in that fashion.(Pets and Angels)
The comment Mrs Tobin made about does the garbage Man ever pay to take my trash?…yes in fact they do…plastic bottles/glass containers/aluminum cans ect. salvage value is a broad term that covers many different commodities….
In regards to my position on HSUS…yes they do some good things in this world..however they do in fact “go to far” in sensationalizing the odd atrocity that “some” humans enact upon animals.
The remedy to better livestock care and consideration has been and always will be a higher value assessed upon each and every category of livestock….thus demanding a higher price paid by the consumer…whether you ride it or eat it..it applies.
Best Regards
Anotherhorseman
To Vicki-Thanks for responding to my earlier post in regards to animal health/drug issues;a very important issue indeed.Several statements made by you are in need of clarification/correction.1)bacteria is on everything-humans, vegetables,animals.There’s good and bad bacteria;the bacteria you referred to in regards to beef in a meat counter is not from the raising of that animal,but from improper handling after the slaughter process-to equate” factory farming” w/bacterial contamination is harmful and misleading.Other prime examples are the outbreaks associated w/spinach and tomatoes.2)other than chickens being crammed into crates(which is wrong and has been addressed thru efforts of HSUS and others)what other food animals are stuffed into crates and finished for food?It’s been shown that animal comfort produces a faster,healthier product,not to mention the scrutiny producers face by improper production methods.3)It’s obvious you are not up to speed in regards to current trucking regs. imposed on the transportation of horses to slaughter;truckers can’t haul studs to the border,the Mexican gov. does not allow studs to cross the border for slaughter.Huge fines are imposed on horses that are hurt/banged up do due improper loading,etc.Do they come off the trucks w/cuts,bite-marks,and bruises?Yes they do;owners/truckers can ill-afford the fines and the fact that an unmerchantable horse will be rejected at the border and have to be reloaded and sent back;as a result, more care is taken than in the past.4)You say slaughter supporters were hypocritical when 800,000 head were exported from ‘89-’06?Where were you and others prior to ‘07 when the plants closed?An abandoned,unwanted horse was not part of the vocabulary-w/slaughter values approaching 1.00/lb at times,who would abandon an animal w/that kind of value?5)All horses entering Mexico are implanted w/an I.D. chip-making trace-ability a reality.Horses could very easily be “chipped”at birth at a very low cost, 5.00-10.00;as far as trace-ability goes in cattle,read the package some time-”a product of Mexico, USA, Canada” Which one is it from?6)Lastly,I’m all for buying locally grown/raised produce,;however,this option isn’t always available.Thanks again for your time and consideration.