[haunani]

I'm also a pro-slaughter person. Just think of all the horses that are dealing with lives of neglect now? Obviously there's already a problem in finding places for them to go. What's going to happen when the tens of thousands of slaughter-bound horses have nowhere to go?

[arabgirl15]

And what are all of the people who worked for the slaughter houses? Where will they work? What about the unemployed?

[Stormy'smom]

Originally Posted by pocahontas

http://www.saplonline.org/Alerts/062206.htm


Please please DO NOT turn this into an argument and over opinionated thread!!!!

Did ya'll not read this part of pocahontas thread???

Ok this is something that the humane society of the United States is working on. Not pocahantas or anyone that I know of on this forum. So if you have questions, why not click on the link above and find out who to aim your questions at. This was posted to make people aware of what the humane soceity is working on to end slaughter. I'm sure they have some ideas and would be more than happy to answer any questions you may have! Alot of you tell the anti slaughter people to get reliable facts and instead of talking about it on here, to get out there and try to do something about it, etc etc. This came from the Humane Society of the United States, so I'm pretty sure it's the most up to date info out there.
So I'm asking you anti-slaughter people, instead of coming on here bashing where no one really listens or has the answers to your so commonly asked questions, why not put your money where your mouth is? Why not practice what you preach? Get out there and get the info and speak your mind where it will be heard by someone who will maybe be able to answer those questions? Obviously you don't have all the answers either and where does the info you get come from? I have yet to find a more up to date info site online than the humane society.
As far as the employees of slaughter houses, yes, I would feel bad that they lost thier jobs because the factory shut down. But these things happen all the time and they can always find another job. That's what the unemployment office is there for. People have choices, animals don't have any choice but the choice the human race chooses for them.
Don't bother quoteing me and bashing this as I will not return the favor. I plan on honoring pocahonta's wishes to not turn this thing into a bashing episode.

[arabgirl15]

It isn't turning into a argument. People are just pointing out things.

Originally Posted by Stormy'smom

Did ya'll not read this part of pocahontas thread???

[Super Step]

If we are going to tell people to put their money where their mouth is, then it is asking to much for all the anti slaughter advocates to assume responsibility for the excess horses?

When information comes from the colleges and universities, it tends to be more objective than information from a group with an agenda.

FYI... I have contacted the Humane Society about funding an educational program for our schools. Talk about a rude bunch of people! I was not deterred and kept calling different branches, talking to as many people with some sort of authority. I was finally told point blank not to try to budget their money, they had a committee for that, thank you. But I did try, and I was nice about it.

[summersmyhorse]

Common Myths about Horse Slaughter

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Most Americans are shocked to learn that horses are slaughtered for foreign food exports. In 2005, both the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate cast landslide bi-partisan votes to stop horse slaughter in a 2006 budget bill. In order to stop the suffering experienced by horses and put an end to slaughter practices that most Americans abhor, efforts are underway to pass the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (S. 1915/H.R. 503) which would establish a permanent ban on horse slaughter. Opponents of the bill are trying to confuse the issue by the extraordinary and untenable argument that the slaughter industry somehow benefits horses.

Myth: A ban could result in "unregulated shipment of horses to slaughter" and horses being shipped longer distances to slaughter.
Fact: Untrue. The passage of The American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act will prohibit the slaughter of horses for human consumption, as well as the trade and transport of horseflesh and live horses intended for human consumption. This legislation will terminate any legal option for sending American horses to slaughter within the United States at one of the three, foreign-owned plants or to any foreign slaughterhouse.
Myth: There has been an increase in the number of abandoned and unwanted horses in the United States, and a slaughter ban will lead to an increase in horse abuse and starvation or neglect cases.

Fact: There is no evidence to support these claims. According to the USDA, at least 5,000 horses have been imported into one of the three foreign-owned slaughter plants in the United States for slaughter since August 2004. If there were "too many" horses in the United States, then there would be no reason to import horses for slaughter. Furthermore, a ban on horse slaughter will not lead to an increase in horse abuse and neglect. In California, where horse slaughter was banned in 1998, there has been no corresponding rise in cruelty and neglect cases. In fact, horse theft has dropped by 34% since enactment of the ban. Allowing one's horse to starve is not an option—state anti-cruelty laws prohibit such neglect.
Myth: Transport guidelines protect horses shipped to slaughter from harm.
Fact: The 2002 guidelines allow horses to be shipped for more than 24 hours without food, water or rest, with broken limbs, with eyes missing, even heavily pregnant. Industry pushed to delay the prohibition on use of double-decker trucks until December 7, 2006. The regulations only cover the final journey to the slaughterhouse. If horses are loaded and unloaded at various places as part of their route to slaughter, only the final leg of the trip is covered. Enforcement of these guidelines will only occur once the truck reaches the slaughter plant, so these guidelines will have little preventative effect. These guidelines are wholly inadequate and allow extreme suffering in transport to continue.
Myth: There is no need for a ban because slaughter is humane euthanasia.
Fact: Horse slaughter is a far cry from humane euthanasia. "Euthanasia" means a gentle, painless death provided in order to prevent suffering. Horse slaughter is a death fraught with terror, pain, and suffering. Horses are shipped for more than 24 hours at a time in crowded double-decker cattle trucks without food, water, or rest. Pregnant mares, foals, injured horses, and even blind horses must endure the journey. Once they arrive, their suffering intensifies—undercover footage obtained by The Humane Society of the United States demonstrates that fully conscious horses are shackled and hoisted by the rear leg and have their throats slit. Because horses are skittish by nature, it is particularly difficult to align them correctly and ensure the captive bolt stun gun renders them unconscious. Unwanted horses should be humanely euthanized by a licensed veterinarian when no other option exists, rather than placed on a truck, cruelly transported, and then butchered. Most horse owners already use humane euthanasia for their older or ill horses.
Myth: If horses can no longer be slaughtered, their welfare is at risk due to the lack of adequate equine rescue facilities and uniform standards for them.
Fact: Standards of care have already been developed and embraced by the hundreds of equine rescue and retirement facilities that exist throughout the country that routinely rescue horses from slaughter. All must comply with state and local animal welfare statutes. In an effort to end the slaughter of racehorses, the New York Racing Association has partnered with other groups to launch the "Ferdinand Fee" to raise funds for the care of retired racehorses, and to honor Ferdinand, a former Kentucky Derby winner who went to slaughter. The organizations leading the charge in favor of a slaughter ban are the very organizations that are actively working to provide sanctuaries and solutions for any horses that would otherwise go to slaughter.

Myth: If a slaughter ban is passed, the federal government will face the financial burden of care for horses no longer going to slaughter.

Fact: This assertion rests on the false premise that all horses currently going to slaughter would become the financial responsibility of the federal government. Horse owners, not the government, will remain responsible for the care of their horses. Owners who no longer wish to keep their horses and who cannot sell or place their horses in a new home will have the option of humane euthanasia. The average cost for veterinarian-administered euthanasia and carcass disposal—approximately $225, the cost of one month's care—is simply a part of responsible horse ownership.
Myth: Ending horse slaughter will cause environmental harm.
Fact: Hundreds of thousands of horses are safely disposed of annually by means other than slaughter, and the infrastructure can absorb an increase in numbers. Conversely, the operation of the horse slaughterhouses has a very real negative environmental impact, with two out of the three in violation of current environmental law related to the disposal of blood and other waste materials. Mayor Paula Beacon of Kaufman, Texas—the home of one of the three horse slaughter plants in the United States—desperately states "Dallas-Crown is operating in violation of a multitude of local laws pertaining to waste management, air quality and other environmental concerns... Residents are also fed up with the situation. Long-established neighbors living adjacent to the plant cannot open their windows or run air conditioners without enduring the most horrific stench."
Myth: A prohibition on horse slaughter creates a negative precedent for beef, pork, and poultry producers by legitimizing efforts to end consumption of food derived from any animal.
Fact: Americans don't eat horses, and unlike other livestock, we don't breed them for human consumption. Additionally, horses are different from cattle (and other animals specifically bred, sold, and transported for human consumption) due to their instinctive flight response in stressful conditions, making it difficult to accurately stun them prior to slaughter. Undercover footage has demonstrated that many horses are dismembered while fully conscious, underscoring the need to ban this utterly inhumane process. The American public overwhelming supports a ban on horse slaughter—horses have a special place in our heritage and they are beloved companions to millions today.
Myth: Consuming horsemeat does not put the public's health at risk.
Fact: Horsemeat is potentially dangerous to humans when eaten because horses are not raised for this purpose. Recent lab work revealed that horsemeat from one of the Texas plants contains several substances that are not intended for human consumption. Our horses are regularly treated with worming medications, drugs, and other injections unintended for human consumption.
Myth: There has been no formal public discussion on this issue.
Fact: For years, legislation that would prohibit horse slaughter has been under consideration in the Senate. The U.S. House of Representatives witnessed thoughtful and substantial public floor debate on this identical amendment which led to its passage by a landslide bipartisan vote. Further, there has been extensive media coverage on this issue by newspapers and television networks nationwide including CNN, The L.A. Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, and many others. Action on this issue is past due.

[summersmyhorse]

http://www.horse-protection.org/info.php?id=33

[Super Step]

According to the USDA, at least 5,000 horses have been imported into one of the three foreign-owned slaughter plants in the United States for slaughter since August 2004.

The reason approximately 5,000 horses are imported for slaughter since 2004 is because of the dollar value being greater than the peso.
Even with out the imported horses, that still leaves more than 75,000 horses PER YEAR that will need an home.

The average cost for veterinarian-administered euthanasia and carcass disposal—approximately $225, the cost of one month's care—is simply a part of responsible horse ownership.

If a person can not afford to feed a horse, how can we expect them to pay the $225. ?
We are not talking about the elete horse owners to begin with.
The government may as well be prepared to print food stamps for horses.

[Blistering Winds]

Hey stormy's mom. it is unfortunate when you post something controvercial.... you WILL get opinions and debates....(arguments are nailed by the mods)

If someone doesn't want comments, they should contact Miss B or one of the other mods and ask them to post and close the thread. Simple as that.

As to what "CAN" and "CAN"T" be on a thread....last I checked, it was a free country where this forum was created....and as long as they are within the rules...I have a right, and so does everyone else, to post our 'statements', which are usually opinions to begin with.




MOST people backing that bill, are "horse lovers". yes. Great. Kudos. But MOST don't own a darn one. Which you can easily take a sample anywhere in the nation and find that out. Ask any horse owner...you'll get close to a 50/50 split. You ask a non-horse owner...and it is closer to a 90/10 split. The ag community espeically is that small 10%. Those that raise other animals. But your basic everyday dog/cat lover will always choose to shut slaughter down. Ignorance is bliss I guess.

Funny. How the LOUDEST VOICES involved are people who spend MILLIONS of dollars ON POLITICS, instead of spending the funds to rescue, care, and feed the animals they are lobbying for.

The Humane Society of America spends ZERO funds on animals directly. ZERO! ALL is to pay their top executives, pay their lobbiests, etc.

we HAVE the funds to stop slaughter. We HAVE the funds to care for these horses every year. Just the funds are in the wrong hands and being used in the wrong way.

[Blistering Winds]

And I have put my money where my mouth is. What money I do have.

I do not breed, I help educate VOLUNTARILY people in my area on their horses.

I cannot take on a rescue from my local rescue, as most of them are "vet cases". Just not in my budget.

My congressmen/women know where I stand as I have contacted them to shut this bill down in its tracks and have requested (like they will do anything) to look toward setting up things BEFORE shutting slaughter down. And the last time they voted....they were on the side I requested them to be on. (not that my little voice mattered...but it helps knowing that they see the BIG PICTURE and not the narrow slits others are viewing)


When rescues can be regulated, horse loving ignorant people NOT running them.....funding be directed to caring for the horses that would go to slaughter, some way of helping the little man who got in over their head and cannot find a home for their horse that the auction would have been able to sell for them.....

THEN, stop it.