Let Them Eat ... Horse?

3-12-2010 @6:16PM G said... I love horses and couldn't bring myself to eat one - but they ARE right that the market bottomed out, be it the recession or the ban causing it. I'd never before seen horses being literally given away the way that's been occurring, but horses are a BIG financial strain so I could see them being one of the first things to go after a lost job or something.

That said, some of the slaughter houses that were closed were BRUTAL from the footage I've seen so if they DO bring back slaughter I'd really like to see it pretty tightly regulated since there are a lot of people (including me) who feel extremely sensitive about the treatment of companion animals.

To me this really is a lot like someone saying they want to raid the pound to butcher large dogs because some people like eating them...
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3-12-2010 @6:35PM L said... I think this is horrible. They are slaughtering horses? I have loved horses all my life. I am totally against this. They are beautiful creatures and we have no right to kill them. Even if they are 'good.' They also have feelings and can feel hurt. They ARE animals, and we are HUMANS. Would you like to slaughter one of us? No, I didnt think so. So why slaughter them? Thats right. You dont have an answer.
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3-12-2010 @7:32PM Matt said... Which is more humane: A quick and relatively painless slaughter or starvation over months because their owner can't afford to feed them? There are thousands of horses suffering now because there's no market for them. With horse slaughter legal, they have a base value (that of their meat). With no market for meat, horses are worthless. Worse, they're money holes. Many people decide if they can't sell them, you might as well starve them. Until the anti-slaughter folks decide to put up the cash to feed these animals, they should stay out of farmers' business.

And as for eating it myself, I passed on 'paardvlees' when I saw in it in the grocery in Belgium. Not because I knew what it was, but because it was a very unappetizing piece of meat. Properly cooked, I'm sure it's wonderful (I wasn't rich enough to eat in restaurants that served it!)
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3-13-2010 @8:18AM HAH said... Horse meat described as packed with protein. Duh it's a meat. Humans are packed with protein too some more than others. So let's season and smother each other with carmelized onions and a splash of this and that to cover the flavor of barbarism. Using your mate as a guinea pig for the purpose of promoting your next paycheck. Humans love to embrace and get some sort of sadistic lift that they feel gives them bragging rights to go along with an absence of conscience. Eat a baby this. Eat a live that. Swallow a heart that still beating it will give you spiritual awakening. Eat a dolphin so you can glow with all the mercury it's ingested. Kill a seal. Wipe out the oceans. And then when it's all said and done and we're down to the last carmelized onion and one penis we'll make a salad out of it and drizzle it with horse manure and doo doo chips. So Chic. Bon Appetit Savages! h.a.h.
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3-14-2010 @10:01AM Numb said... Here's the deal: If it's okay to eat cow, pig, chicken, etc... then it's okay to eat horse. There are exactly two viewpoints in this debate that are legitimate - those who say that it's morally acceptable to eat all animals, and those who say it's not morally acceptable to eat ANY animals. Any other viewpoint is silly, honestly.
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3-14-2010 @2:11PM Kris said... I own two mix breed horses, one for over 30 years. I got both horses for free and they have been very good horses. It doesn't cost much to humanely end a horses life with a vet compared to the monthly upkeep costs when a horse is kept in a stable (I know it costs less in a pasture). I would be very concerned about horse meat in my food as companion horses take a lot of drugs that are not considered safe for human consumption (or at least that is what the labels say).
I am more concerned about the how many horses are being bred each year. I feel the same about dogs and cats. It's not alright to breed your pet for fun or because you didn't want to spend money to spay your barn cat.
I am concerned about the many people who adopt or purchase animals but consider them disposible and don't give them forever homes. I am also concerned about how many people fail to trail their animals so if something unforseeable happens their animals don't have good chances for another home.
I am concerned about the genetic diversity of purebred animals (see BBC special on purebred dogs) and our food plants. I am concerned about how many people are spending a huge amount of money to keep an ailing animal alive even though it is suffering, because it is a member of the family, and the veternarians that profit from this. There are too many good animals that need a home for that. My cat had a tumor in her foot and the veternarian was pushing for $2,000 surgery to amputate it. The cats prognosis was to live another six months either way. I worked for a vet and a kennel and saw hundreds of animals that were suffering because their owners were paying for surgery to keep them alive longer but not really improving the quality of their life. Some of their suffering was also due to being overweight; very few people were exercising their pets and monitoring their diet. Some had geneitc disorders due to their inbreeding, breathing problems from squashed faces, eyelashes that roll inward, hip dysplasia....
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3-14-2010 @2:59PM Mary Knows said... Horses were sacrificed and eaten in medieval countries that worshipped Odin and his kin. I believe that is why eating horse meat fell out of practice. It was practiced by heathens.
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3-14-2010 @3:05PM Real World said... As a person who was raised around horses my entire life, went to college and got a degree in Animal Science/Equine Emphasis and makes a living in the horse industry I would like to weigh in. I completely understand the view point that horses are beautiful majestic creatures that deserve everything we can give them I feel the same way. HOWEVER, with that being said, true horse breeders, people who make a living in the horse industry have either DRASTICALLY cut back on breeding or stopped all together. There is no market for horses, part of it is probably the economy, they are a luxury item for most everyone who own them. But the main reason is the elimination of slaughter in the US. Whether you like it or not, Slaughter sets the BASE Price for all horses, every horse owner should be able to get market price for their animal. Everyone forgets that horses are classified as livestock, they may be pets to most people but they are actually livestock animals. With no base price for horses, rising feed costs and many people losing jobs and not spending money, many horses are suffering that would have gone to slaughter. Having a vet euthanize a horse is not the most humane method either, those who have had to see it will never forget their beautiful horses going through that. Then the owners need to deal with the body, many places forbid burrying an animal that large, and local rendering plants are few and far between and have increased rates for removal of horses. If you are not sure what a rendering plant is, watch the Dirty Jobs episode where he works at one, then ask if that is where you would like to send your horse, or dog or cat there?

I agree that slaughter plants need to be tightly regulated, they already are, I would like to see the people on the kill floor make a serious salary that matches the severity of their job. If you pay minimum wage for a job that is that serious you will get people working it who don't take it seriously and get the "Macho Man" syndrome seen in a bunch of the slaughter house videos. Also, if we have plants in the US, we can regulate them, and horses will not go to Canada or Mexico to be slaughtered.

Slaughter also serves another purpose in the horse industry, there are horses that that is the only option. These horses are dangerous, the appropriate term is RANK, these are horses that are so damaged that they WILL hurt someone. These horses may be fixable, but retraining these horses needs to be done by experienced & highly qualified horse trainers which is very expensive, time consuming and these trainers are few and far between. A responsible owner would either have these horses put down or sold to slaughter, to keep the general public safe. Dishonest owners drug these horses and sell them at an auction just to get rid of them. Leading to someone getting hurt, hopefully not a child.

In todays horse industry we are seeing more horses suffering from starvation, and neglect. We also are seeing horses left places, people go on a trail ride and find 1 or more horses tied to their trailer when they get back, horses being left at show facilities. This is completely unacceptable.

For those who propose keeping the slaughter plants closed, these are the issues you need to solve. the number of horse rescue facilities and funding for these facilities is limited, so that is not a viable option for all the horses in the country. I think everyone in the industry would like to see a viable option to slaughter, but there is not one yet. For those who propose restricting or eliminate breeding who determines who gets to be a breeder? Responsible breeders work to better their breeds, and raise horses for a purpose. However, there are many people in the US who own a mare and decide to breed her, indiscriminate breeding leads to a majority of horses who end up in slaughter. Spaying mares is major surgery and very cost prohibative. Until better options are reached/proposed slaughter remains the neccessary evil of the horse industry.


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3-14-2010 @3:39PM mabel said... a few more points against slaughtering horses for human consumption. one - horses spend their whole lives "working", serving humans. at the very least we can provide a HUMANE end to their life. Putting a horse down is not terribly expensive, especially when you weigh that cost against the cost people gladly pay out for tack, and riding clothes, boots, fancy trainers, etc...and this should be considered BEFORE you get into horses.
The system we did have was FAR from humane, that is not an debatable point. And now our horses are being taken to Mexico and Canada to be even more inhumanely slaughtered.
But here is something many don't realize...horses are constantly fed supplements and drugs and dewormers which are NOT SUPPOSED TO BE GIVEN TO ANIMALS USED FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION without a withdrawal period. when someones pet is sent to slaughter, more than likely it is unhealthy, unsound and probably full of these products and pain killers, etc. There is NO WAY to regulate their usage, NO WAY to tell if an animal is clear of these drugs. isnt it bad enough the diseases we get from the industry that is "regulated", beef, pork, poultry? Many of these horse meds/supplements are CARCINOGENIC TO HUMANS. just google horse dewormers for example, see for yourself. Do you really think some meat inspector can tell by eyeballing a horse in a feed pen if its flesh has these products in it or not, these horse that came from who knows where and were fed who knows what? That would require superhuman abilities. If you then depend on the killer dealer to know, to be honest, they are a bunch of criminals as it is. They look for free or very cheap horses and tell the owner its going to some handicapped riding program somewhere, when in fact its going to the slaughter house. And they steal them off people's properties to make a quick buck.
If you want to eat horses, then they should be raised on a farm STRICTLY for meat consumption, grass fed, regulated as a meat farm. They should not come from private parties or be pets.
I suggest that everyone watch FOOD, INC and wake the heck up! know what you are putting in your mouth and feeding your children! Question authority! Speak up!
Another important point - have you seen the way these animals are transported to the facilities? Crammed In double decker cattle and sheep carriers with not enough head room to stand up, as most horses are much taller than cattle and sheep. They travel for days with no food or water, in fear, in pain, trampling the small ones to death in the process.
There are people who say, hey they are only animals, and that human rights come first before animals. But to them I say THE EARTH AND ANIMALS CAN SURVIVE JUST FINE WITHOUT HUMANS, BUT HUMANS CANNOT SURVIVE WITHOUT THE EARTH AND ANIMALS. We need to treat the earth and the animals with RESPECT in order for us to survive. There is no arguing that point!
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3-14-2010 @6:02PM Marjorie said... As a horse owner I strongly object to any type of slaughter of these beautiful animals. It is wrong and horrible what humans do to animals. Yes, I've seen horses starved (I use to go on patrol in my area), but there are ways to deal with these obnoxious evil people who would starve an animal. Usually they are hugely overweight prefering to feed themselves rather than their animal that is entrusted innocently in their care...unfortunately. We always called the animal control or Humane Society and they would come out to inspect and if the horse was determined to be uncared for, the horse was taken away and sent to live their life in a horse retirement rescue facility. So don't tell me or anyone else that it would be better for these animals to go to slaughter. Yes, see the movie FOOD, INC. and you'll see the abuse and ughliness and horror of slaughter houses. I, for one, do not eat meat of any kind since I do not believe in killing animals, and I am healthier than any of my meat-eating "friends."
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3-15-2010 @3:42PM BevMorea said... I have been around the horse slaughter industry for a long time and I can attest to two things - one it will not help the economy, only the pockets of those who are willing to participate in sending the poor things to slaughter, and two it is not a way to cull the crippled, abused, unwanted or unrideable. "Killer" dealers as they are known buy fat, rideable horses because that is where the money is since skinny, abused animals do not have any meat on their frames and it is too expensive to fatten them up in most cases. It raises the price of the average horse above what the average person can pay - they are literally worth more dead than alive. It opens the door for horse theives to raid pastures where horses are turned out to graze at night like what is happening in the Miami, Florida, area now. Left behind are the skinny, starved and abused animals - no meat on their bones too thin for the meat trade, unrideable and unwanted by knowledgeable horsemen. These horses get sold or given to more unknowledgeable people who continue to feed them poorly and ride those that can still be ridden until the worst happens and they die of starvation. d. Rather we need to enact laws to stop the breeding of backyard animals (dogs, cats and horses) so that those that are bred are wanted, of good quality and trained, That will raise the prices for the economy, at least enough to pay the breeders a fair price for a nice animal. It will take away the excess from the market place and remove the animals from the care of people who cannot afford them. In some parts of the world stallions must be inspected before they can be used for breeding - here any backyard, crooked legged animal can be bred by anyone. Also, some of the fat animals that have been pets have been given medications and other supplements to make them fat and shiny, those products increase their saleability but may make them unfit for human consumption. Many of the horses going to slaughter have worked hard for their human owners and deserve a better fate than an air hammer at the end of a long ride. Champion horses are sold for meat because they can no longer win, racehorses sold for slaughter because of old age or injury - one Kentucky Derby winner went to slaughter. I don't agree with everything Peta does but somebody has to stick their neck out and stop this slaughter. Those congressmen better watch out for their jobs, they have us in enough trouble already and we are the voters.
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3-16-2010 @5:59PM Johnnie said... I'm vegan so to me the slaughter of any animal is putrid. And for the bell pepper lady or man who mentioned at least it would be humane....you're kidding right? Do some research and you'll find it's far from humane sweetie!
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3-15-2010 @8:06PM Kitty said... This is written by a woman named Lisa Drahorad. She works with a rescue to buy these horses from the "kill" brokers and give them homes. Many times when people sell their horses to the broker...they do not know that he/she will turn around and sell the horse to the slaughter house. I understand times are tough for many and horses are expensive, but there are many horse rescues out there that can help.

"The most pervasive of all the slaughter myths is that the horses being slaughtered are unwanted and would be abandoned and neglected if they were not slaughtered.
The only study ever done to explore the relationship between slaughter and the rate of abuse and neglect found there was no consistent correlation.
In 1998, California banned horse slaughter and export for slaughter. Since then there was absolutely no measurable increase in neglect cases and according to the California Bureau of Livestock Identification statistics, horse theft dropped by 88%!
Moreover, the slaughter industry wants you to believe the horses slaughtered are lame, old or ill tempered. However, USDA data shows that over 90% of horses slaughtered are in good condition. Other studies show that over 80% are under age 10, 74% sound of limb, and 96% had no behavioral issues.
The current annual slaughter rates represent approximately 1% of the entire horse population in the US. 1% can easily be reabsorbred into the horse population and when pro-slaughter people realize they don't have an easy dumping ground for horses, they will breed less. ... See More
Lastly, we have found that there are truly no unwanted horses. You have all seen the saves go on here and other places and homes are found for horses if we are given the time. There are no unwanted horses, there are just horses that aren't given the opportunity to have a new home because slaughter is the easy way out."
Her rescue is www.ac4h.com

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3-16-2010 @9:48AM Danielle said... Horses are nothing like chickens or cows. They bond with people, just like dogs. They are intelligent, beautiful animals that each have a personality of their own. The thought of horses being slaughtered sickens and saddens me to the core. Eating a horse would be no different than eating a beloved family dog.

"The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated." - Mahatma Gandhi

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