Patty Wilber
There have been some changes in federal law affecting horse slaughter and here is a bit of information. Click the title to see the whole thing. I then restate my views.
Congress Passes USDA Appropriations Bill – USDA Inspection of Horse Processing Allowed to Resume
A provision that had prohibited USDA funds being used for personnel inspecting the slaughter process at horse processing facilities was not included in the Fiscal Year 2012 Agriculture, Commerce/Justice/Science, and Transportation/Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bills signed into law by President Obama on Nov. 18. The appropriations bill passed the House on a vote of 298-121, while the Senate voted 70-30 in favor of the bill. The bill funds a variety of federal programs and agencies and is not solely a bill addressing horse processing.
What does the passing of this bill mean for horse processing?
It means that USDA can now pay inspectors to inspect horses and meat that may be processed for human consumption at U.S. plants.
This bill does not, however, appropriate any new money to pay for these inspections. The USDA would have to find the money in the funds appropriated in the FY’ 12 bill.
Is there a federal law that has been reversed?
No. There has been no law passed or changed dealing with processing itself. There is no current prohibition on the processing of horses in the U.S. The federal bills introduced in Congress to prohibit this are still before Congress. The only change is that for the past five years the USDA was not allowed to fund the inspection of horses at the plants – even though no plants were open – and now they are should a plant begin operating.
Will horse processing plants open?
While a plant could open and start processing horses, it should be understood that this appropriations bill is only good until September 30, 2012. In addition, as mentioned above, there are two bills currently in Congress proposing to ban horse processing in the U.S.: H.R. 2966 and S. 1176.
Due to state laws passed in Texas and Illinois, the home of the last plants to process horses in the U.S. in 2007, the processing of horses for human consumption in those states, even with USDA inspections allowed, will not be possible. Horse processing also is banned in California.”
The following is a recap (without the sarcasm) of my views on horse slaughter.
1. Opposition to horse slaughter seems illogical. Opponents argue that horses are pets and symbols of the west.
Symbols: Hunting of all sorts of beautiful and iconic animals for food and for trophy is legal.
Pets: Being “saddled” with the ownership for the life of the horse regardless of the usefulness or need of the animal is unrealistic, as it is for dogs or cats. There are free options for euthanasia of dogs and cats. I know of no such option for equines.
Animal slaughter in general: I think it is clear that I love horses. However, they are still legally classified as livestock, and to my mind that category does fit equines. We slaughter livestock such as cows and pigs, ducks, sheep, goats and chickens in regulated facilities. To me, it feels very reasonable to do the same with horses.
2. What happens to unwanted/ unusuable horses these days? Many rescue facilities are full. Humane euthanasia is an option. But it is expensive. A vet has to come do the job and then someone has to come haul the carcass away. In the past, you could actually make a little bit on a horse that was unwanted and the body was used for a purpose. Now if you can’t afford to keep a horse and it won’t sell (economy and all), you might not be able to afford to euthanize it either. The price of hay in NM and Texas has doubled since last year. It is legal to shoot your own horse, however, in Bernalillo County, where I live, burying a horse is not legal, without building a crypt of sorts. There needs to be a humane and economically friendly way to dispose of unwanted horses.
3. Unwanted and unusuable horses are being abandoned. Is starving more humane than slaughter? “In Colorado, for example, data showed that investigations for horse neglect and abuse increased more than 60 percent — from 975 in 2005 to almost 1,600 in 2009.”
4. If I own the horse, I make the (humane, of course) decisions. I know there are plenty of horse lovers that oppose horse slaughter, but neither the American Association of Equine Practitioners or the American Quarter Horse Association oppose it. Also, horses are big and it seems kind of wasteful to let all that meat go unused if the horse is going to be put down anyway.
5. Closing the U.S. plants did not prevent horse slaughter, it moved it. Export of horses increased over 600% to Mexico and over 120% to Canada. Did this change in slaughter location increase the welfare of the horse? About the same number of horses (138,000) were still killed, but the conditions in the Mexican plants is far less regulated than what we had here.
This issue is very emotional for many people, and to them the idea of slaughtering horses, especially for human consumption is repugnant. I don’t have that issue. To me allowing horse slaughter in the U.S. for glue or dog food or even human consumption is reasonable, practical, economical, and with proper oversight and funding, humane.
THE HEART OF DOG
NIGHT OF THE TIGER
This weekend, the Beagles went flying.
Normally these three qualifying runs would have earned him a title–and I thought it had. Then I remembered that it takes three legs under TWO different judges, and at this particular trial there was only one judge. (It’s quite unusual just for that reason.) We’re traveling for the next trial, which may or may not explode his brain. We shall have to see!
It’s been a very very long year. And a long seven months since we started the Heart of Dog journey to fund Connery’s health journey.
