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| Make the Call for Horses on April 29! |
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Honor Barbaro's Birthday by making the call for horses on April 29!
Check to see if your U.S. Representative is already a cosponsor of H.R. 503 and if your two U.S. Senators are co-sponsors of S. 311.
If they are not, please call on April 29 to urge them to become co-sponsors. You can reach your federal legislators by calling the Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121, or click here to find their Capitol office phone numbers.
» Take Action: End Horse Slaughter
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The two Texas facilities shut down after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit Court upheld a 1949 Texas law that prohibits the sale of horsemeat. A separate decision affirming Congress' intent in the FY06 Agriculture Appropriations language to prohibit the U.S. Department of Agriculture from inspecting horsemeat from slaughtering facilities shut down the Illinois plant for a time. In May, the state of Illinois enacted a ban on horse slaughter, shutting down Cavel International, the last operating plant in the country. Cavel International sought to delay its inevitable closure by obtaining a temporary restraining order, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit upheld the State of Illinois' decision to ban the slaughter of horses for human consumption. With all three horse slaughter plants in the U.S. now closed, passage of a permanent slaughter ban to prohibit American horses from being trucked over the border for slaughter is crucial.
Horses are still being crowded into trucks, enduring hours without food, water and rest, and driven to Mexico and Canada for slaughter. The American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (H.R. 503/S. 311), introduced in the U.S. House by Reps. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), John Spratt (D-SC), Ed Whitfield (R-KY), and Nick Rahall (D-WV), and in the U.S. Senate by Sens. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and John Ensign (R-NV), closes this loophole and prevents the exportation of American horses to slaughter plants in foreign countries. It also ensures that horse slaughter is permanently banned in the United States.
During the 2004 budget process former Senator Conrad Burns (R-MT) inserted a rider to strip 30 years of protection from slaughter for wild horses and burros. Since 2004, several dozen previously protected wild horses have been slaughtered and exported for human consumption. H.R. 249, introduced by Reps. Rahall (D-WV) and Whitfield (R-KY), will restore federal protections for wild horses and burros.
The 110th Congress presents exciting possibilities for horse protection legislation. Senator Burns, who acted as the major impediment to any horse protection bills, was defeated for re-election. With him out of the way, and with all three horse slaughter plants in the U.S. now closed, our chances are brighter than ever.
Common Myths about Horse Slaughter
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 and over the border as well.
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Get the Facts about Horse Slaughter
How many horses are slaughtered each year?
Prior to the closure of all three foreign-owned plans in the U.S., over 100,000 horses were being slaughtered in the United States and processed for human consumption. Now, tens of thousands of live horses are transported across the border to Mexico and Canada for slaughter. After these horses are killed, their flesh is shipped to Europe and Asia for human consumption. Their owners are often unaware of the pain, fear, and suffering their horses endure before being slaughtered.
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The HSUS and Horse Protection
The HSUS has worked to protect horses and other equines in our society from abuse, neglect, and slaughter for human consumption since our organization's inception in 1954. We’ve conducted workshops for law enforcement, animal control officers, and humane society officials on equine neglect, immunocontraception for wild horses and burros, and we’ve engaged directly in pilot programs with the Bureau of Land Management for implementation of population control for wild mustangs. Our investigators have been undercover at equine auctions and horse slaughter facilities, documenting the inhumane treatment of these animals, in transport and during their slaughter.
We have worked at the state and federal level in advocating for the adoption of strong horse protection and anti-cruelty laws, and we have sought funding and provided training for enforcement. The HSUS stands firmly in opposition to horse slaughter and is a leading advocate in support of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, as well as legislation at the state level to prohibit this gruesome and unnecessary practice.
Posted Nov. 22, 2006. Updated October 3, 2007.
