Source: by Jayne Winters of the Kennebec Journal
“We have no system in place to track medications and treatments given to horses…”
photo by Terry Fitch of Wild Horse Freedom Federation
As a border state, Maine has become a transport pipeline for horses destined for slaughter. This is only one red flag as to why Mainers should support L.D. 1286, “An Act to Protect Maine Communities by Prohibiting Horse Slaughter for Human Consumption and the Transport of Horses for Slaughter,” which is now being heard in the Legislature.
Before horses are even subjected to the terrors of slaughter, they are transported in often unsafe, overcrowded trailers, going hours without rest or proper food and water. They m
ay incur a variety of injuries, such as gouged eyes and broken bones.
An undercover investigation by the Canadian Horse Defense Coalition revealed that in even state-of-the-art horse slaughter facilities, at least 40 percent of the horses in the stun box were not immediately rendered unconscious or revived after stunning.
Slaughter is not quick or painless. It is not a “humane” alternative for horses that might otherwise be subject to neglect and abuse.
Proponents say that horses going to slaughter are old and sickly. The fact is that more than 90 percent of the horses that go to slaughter are healthy.
Alternatives to slaughter include retraining, rescues, reducing overbreeding, foster care, rehoming, education and assistance to owners and humane euthanasia.
Eating horse meat is cultural. While the thought of serving “My Friend Flicka” is disgusting to most Americans, others suggest it’s no different from eating beef or poultry.
The difference is that U.S. horses, unlike cows, chickens and pigs, are not raised for human consumption; they are raised for use in show, sport, work and recreation.
They also routinely receive drugs, both legal (e.g., vaccinations and de-wormers) and illegal (performance enhancers and painkillers), which taint their meat.
The New York Times has revealed that an average of 24 horses per week die at U.S. tracks, shot up with drugs to overcome injuries and pain.
Thousands are sold at auction for slaughter within weeks of their last race.
We have no system in place to track medications and treatments given to horses to ensure their meat is safe for human consumption.
Demand for horse meat is now uncertain because of the recent European scandals regarding the discovery of horse meat in beef products. That does not bode well for fledgling companies trying to bring slaughter back to the U.S., since they will be competing with multinational companies in what appears to be a shrinking market.
In addition, President Barack Obama‘s budget proposal includes a request to remove federal funding for horse slaughter plant inspections by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Given the current demand for cuts in government spending that drains taxpayer dollars, this should be an easy cut for political leaders to make.
Horse slaughter facilities will not reinvigorate local economies…(CONTINUED)
Click (HERE) to read the story in it’s entirety and to coment
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Categories: Horse News, Horse Slaughter
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
You go Maine, happens to be my home State, I hope they have enough sense to see what the real truth is hard NOT too, where as other’s just look the other way or legislative body’s have been bought by Big Ag…….
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Great article. One of the first I have read that actually begins to decipher and dispute the claims by pro-slaughter advocates with many of their common and misleading claims. Great job.
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I love Maine. I hope to visi this summer. I cannot for the life of me understand why this cringe-worthy practice is planned to be resurrected. *shudder* I just can’t imagine our countrydeliberately producing tainted food products for sale and consumption to other countries, not to mention how ungodly cruel and inhumane it is.
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If you dont want something like this happening in your state then youd better hurry up and pass this anti slaughter and anti transport to slaughter bill! This just happened in my state of NY near where i live and it has shaken me up so bad that its all i can think about. The horrible suffering of those poor horses!!
http://www.9wsyr.com/news/local/story/30-horses-killed-in-tractor-trailer-fire-on-I-81/07EINu5NYE2lEsvoW8COaA.cspx
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Please read the following posted today May 7th from Pet Rescue Examiner:
A tractor trailer caught fire on Monday night along Route 1-81 in Lisle, N.Y. Thirty slaughter bound horses from Rotz Livestock in Shippensburg, Pa. were being shipped to Massueville, Quebec, to a horse slaughter plant where their meat is then shipped to Europe for human consumption.
Many of the horses were purchased by killbuyers (intermediate agents for the slaughter houses) from New Holland Auction in Pennsylvania popularly known as the largest killbuyer auction East of the Mississippi.
According to UticaOD.com, the driver of the truck, Clarence Phelps, 56, of Watertown noticed flames coming from the back of his truck; he pulled over, and tried to extinguish the fire.
When firefighters and authorities arrived, the vehicle was fully engulfed in flames. Marathon Fire Department was not able to save any of the horses. Authorities believe the fire started in the fuel tank.
It never seems to stop – I can’t believe that these poor horses may be the lucky ones.
If these are truck safety issues – why can’t they be enforced??
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Pro slaughter keeps saying they need a place for old, sick (lame, diseased?) and the press has got to start challenging these cruel morons. Why? Because……
IT IS AGAISNT THE LAW TO SELL DISEASED AND TRULY LAME ANIMALS TO AUCTION, MUCH MORE HCHS…..as to old, I have a couple of 14 year olds and they barely made the cross country trip with a responsible, comfort van transporter. How is a 22-30 year old equine going to ship through the hell that is HCHS auction and transport and be alive for the kill box?
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People here we go AGAIN. 30 horses died in tractor trailer fire in NEW YORK! I was so very furious, I called people in New York as soon as I heard and said we wont stand for this! Please contact anyone in power in NewYork and contact Equine Advocates and let them know we are behind them. This is a routine issue which we saw in Illinois. Trust me the anger wells up from deep down inside, when them killer buyers trailers go the horses are most likely dead or seriously injured, we have deep, deep wounds in our State and we don’t want this played out in other states across the map, the story is in the Examiner and in Reuters. We need to let New York know we are here and we don’t give a damn, we Are out to Push slaughter out! And I want to hand Sue Wallis and Dave Duquette back their stomped and trampled and crushed hats and give them a swift Kick in the A#@! This should NOT be happening in America again, and I am here to say that this is just a taste of what comes when everyone in America fires up them out of date rigs, and rusted old horse trailers that the floors fall out at 65 mph with horses in them! I am sick of this! This is the most monumental failure of governments to accept for one moment this travesty in the United States! I am so angry, I am gonna go calm down, relatively, and if you don’t mind I will leave my soap box here as I will soon return!
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I thank the people of Maine. They have heart.
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