I would like to preface this post by disclosing that I'm a lifelong hunter, not particularly squeamish but fully committed to the humane dispatch of any animal; I also eat what I kill, and won't kill what I won't eat.
With that out of the way, most of us are aware that racehorses that fail to perform satisfactorily on the track or show a profit to its connections may face unpleasant futures.
Far too many young, healthy thoroughbreds are consigned to the slaughterhouse pipeline daily, guilty of no offense other than low speed figures. The slaughter pipeline begins with the sale of the horse either at auction, where it is purchased by a kill buyer, or directly to the kill buyer himself. Most U.S. tracks have written policies prohibiting the knowing sale of a racehorse to a kill buyer, complete with sanctions for the owner or trainer. Yet many tracks ignore enforcement of their own rules. (Looking straight at you, Delta Downs/Boyd Gaming.)
The second stop in the pipeline is the so-called "kill lot," a holding facility that collects horses until a full trailerload is possible. These kill lots offer inadequate food, shelter, and water, and no attempt is made to segregate the weak from the strong, the grown from the fillies and colts. The stronger horses eat, the weaker ones don't. Often the horses are consigned to stand in mud up to their knees, barely able to move. Stressed-out horses often damage each other, sometimes seriously, through bites or kicks; the victims receive no treatment.
The final step is inside a packed trailer for hundreds of miles to the slaughterhouse itself. There are no active horse slaughterhouses in the U.S., but it is still legal to export horses for slaughter to Canada and Mexico. Canada has regulations in place to help ensure that slaughter methods are humane, to the extent that is possible in such circumstances. Mexico has regulations too, but they are not enforced. And Mexico is where the majority of our discarded racehorses end up.
There is legislation pending in Congress that would prohibit the export of horses for slaughter. The House version is HR 113. The Senate version is S1706. Both bills are designated the SAFE act; officially the purpose of the bill is to prevent horse meat from being used for human consumption due to the drugs typically administered to horses. Regardless of Act's intent, it will serve the dual purpose of shutting down the slaughter pipeline.
I'm fully aware that there are 20,000 thoroughbreds foaled annually, and that only a fraction of them will be successful on the track. Fair enough. But the industry needs to start a conversation about the treatment and ultimate futures of the equine athletes that don't quite measure up.
The following was written by a person who I believe is not a native English-speaking person. I made a couple of punctuation and grammatical corrections, but nothing whatsoever to add or detract from the content.
A brief description of a horse slaughterhouse in Mexico:
“… The horse shakes her head frantically when the door of the killing box is closed and trapped within it. A worker buries, in her back and around her neck, a small, sharp knife, seven, eight, nine times. She, with her eyes wide, frantically lowers and raises her head while the worker stabs her again and again. On the tenth stroke of the knife she falls to the ground, bloodied and paralyzed, but still alive. She lays there for two minutes before being hoisted by her leg and lifted into the air, hung
upside down to be bled, slaughtered in the midst of terrible pain, fully conscious and terrified … “
It is my understanding that the "killing box" is merely a narrow pipe chute, like all horse vets use. And that being an assembly line operation, the next horse in line is watching what is happening in front of him.
Respectfully, I ask your support for the pending legislation, if you're so inclined. A quick email or phone call, asking that the bills be brought to the floor and stating your position, would help.
Congressional contacts by zip code
Thank you, and sorry for the long post.
Mule
