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A Continuing Battle to Stop the Slaughter of American Horses
Updated March 27, 2009

Representatives Conyers (D-MI) and Burton (R-IN) and Senators Landrieu (D-LA) and Ensign (R-NV) continue their fight to protect American horses with the introduction of the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2009 (H.R. 503 and S. 727), which will effectively stop the slaughter of American horses by banning their shipment to foreign slaughterhouses.

The final horse slaughterhouses in the U.S. closed in 2007, yet tens of thousands of American horses are still being slaughtered for human consumption. Hauled over the border to Mexico and Canada, these horses, most of them once cherished, gentle family companions, are brutally killed by the cruelest of methods.

Stacked on double-decker cattle trucks, horses travel for hours without food, water or rest. Once they reach the foreign slaughterhouse, suffering continues with crowded, stressful housing and harsh handling. Slaughter can be far from humane: stabbing a horse in the neck multiple times to paralyze him prior to slaughter is a common practice in Mexican slaughterhouses. The animal, however, is still conscious when he is hung by the leg and his neck is slit.

The demand for horse meat in Italy, France, Belgium, Japan and other countries drives this abuse and provides a financial incentive for horse to be purchased by killer buyers rather than find their way to new homes.

It is time Congress takes a stand for horses!

You Can Help:

The Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2009, H.R. 503, has most recently been referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. Help to rally legislative support by contacting your federal representative and urging him or her to cosponsor H.R. 503, the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2009, and VOTE YES on the bill when it comes to the floor for a vote.

• Please make a quick call to your U.S. representative. Look up contact information for your U.S. representative and make sure to contact your federal, not your state, representative. Find out if your representative is already a cosponsor, and if they are, thank him or her for supporting this compassionate legislation.

When calling your representative’s office, you can tell the person answering the phone:
“Hi, I am a constituent of Rep. [insert last name] and I am calling to urge the legislator to cosponsor and vote YES on H.R. 503, the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act. This bill will effectively stop the slaughter of American horses for human consumption by banning their shipment to foreign slaughterhouses. We need to take action to protect these horses, most of them once cherished, gentle family companions, from being brutally killed by the cruelest of methods.
Can I count on Rep. [insert last name] to help put a stop to brutal horse slaughter by cosponsoring and voting YES on H.R. 503?”

• Please follow up with a quick e-mail right from here. Remember to personalize your e-mail to send a more powerful message! See the talking points at the bottom of the page for help personalizing your e-mail.

Additional points to make in your communications

• If horse slaughter proponents truly had the best interests of the animals in mind, they wouldn't propose a torturous slaughter process as the best alternative to rescue, adoption or even humane euthanasia.


• Because horses are more high-strung than other livestock, their slaughter can be particularly horrifying. Captive bolt pistols, meant to stun the animals before their throats are cut, frequently miss the mark, leaving horses maimed and writhing in agony as slaughterhouse workers deliver second blows.

• Horses are shipped to other countries without regard for their basic welfare. Some horses arrive to their destinations dead, and many others arrive injured, battered and bruised after traveling hundreds of miles in packed trucks from the U.S.

• Contrary to claims that the horse slaughter industry is a necessary means of disposing of unwanted, old and sick horses, buyers actively seek healthy and marketable horses to maximize profits.

• Although proponents of the horse slaughter industry like to blame the closure of U.S. horse slaughter plants for an anecdotal increase in the number of reported horse neglect and starvation cases across the country, this claim is hollow. The number of American horses slaughtered annually has actually increased, as killer-buyers haul loads of doomed ponies and horses over U.S. borders to be killed for consumption. 


• The horse meat industry is hidden from most Americans, many of whom would be appalled if they knew American companies were exporting horses for slaughter and consumption in other countries.


• Most horses are bought at livestock auctions by buyers who act as middlemen for slaughterhouses. Some “owners” are completely unaware that their horses are going directly to a slaughterhouse.


• It is estimated that hundreds, or even thousands, of horses every year are stolen and sold to slaughter operations. The horses can be slaughtered very soon after their arrival, before “owners” can track down and recover lost companion animals.

Latest News on Horse Slaughter:

FOIA Request Uncovers Unprecedented Evidence Horse Slaughter is Inhumane (PR Web, Dec. 4, 2008) Documents never before made public reveal the USDA was aware of extreme cruelty during horse slaughter at facilities in the U.S. The documents dispute claims horse slaughter in the U.S. was in any sense humane and instead reveal a brutal, terrifying ordeal that should be permanently banned.

No Country for Horses
June 10, 2008
With slaughterhouses closed in the U.S., Canada is now home to a growing horse slaughter industry. Undercover video exposes some disturbing methods.
http://www.cbc.ca/national/blog/special_feature/no_country_for_horses/no_
country_for_horses.html