Horse Slaughter Bill Passes Legislature, HB 418 (sale, transporting, homes)

[callmesprite]

This just makes me sick to my stomach.

[AQHA]

Originally Posted by ReniHope

I do not agree with slaughter plants that are unregulated and do not treat horses humanely while a horse is waiting for it's death...

Thats the whole thing right there. They NEED to be regulated so the animals are not treated poorly. I do not understand how people can mistreat animals.

[AQHA]

one thing I forgot to add, the way it is now these animals are being shipped long distances to Mexico or Canada to be killed. The treatment these animals get on that long cramped ride is absolutely inhumane. Some die before they even get there.
Those who made horse slaughter unlawful in America probably made the situation worse for the animals. They should have put their energy into improving the conditions and practices at the plants rather than banishing them.

[jimj]

Originally Posted by AQHA

Thats the whole thing right there. They NEED to be regulated so the animals are not treated poorly. I do not understand how people can mistreat animals.

The same regulation should apply to ANY slaughter house be it cattle or horse. There's no excuse to mistreat an animal even if it's to be eaten.

[rangerider]

I'll say upfront I don't have much use for horse slaughter. I too have been around them most all my life, so I have an emotional attachment that taints my view. I imagine it's a taste of what makes the buffalo issue a heated one.

It's interesting to me that more than one state is re-visiting this issue all at once. I think that's more than coincidence.

It's also interesting that in making the rounds of the horse-related sites there is a definite polarity of feelings about whether this is a good or bad thing. Far as I can see, it's about 50-50 or so, maybe leaning a bit towards being pro-slaughter. I didn't expect to see that.

The sad thing is, horse ownership is getting to be very, very expensive and that is a self-weeding process. Coupled with a sagging economy and an intent to create a state-based industry, someone saw a buck to be made off a lot of excess animals. People are turning them loose around here, too, and that's a sad thing.

[AQHA]

Originally Posted by rangerider

The sad thing is, horse ownership is getting to be very, very expensive and that is a self-weeding process. Coupled with a sagging economy...

Thats right. Owning horses is not cheap. The cost of the horse is down but the feed and everything else is still very high. A new horse trailer just cost me $30,000! Why?!
The horse world is going through a transformation right now.

[jimj]

Originally Posted by rangerider

I'll say upfront I don't have much use for horse slaughter. I too have been around them most all my life, so I have an emotional attachment that taints my view. I imagine it's a taste of what makes the buffalo issue a heated one.

It's interesting to me that more than one state is re-visiting this issue all at once. I think that's more than coincidence.

It's also interesting that in making the rounds of the horse-related sites there is a definite polarity of feelings about whether this is a good or bad thing. Far as I can see, it's about 50-50 or so, maybe leaning a bit towards being pro-slaughter. I didn't expect to see that.

The sad thing is, horse ownership is getting to be very, very expensive and that is a self-weeding process. Coupled with a sagging economy and an intent to create a state-based industry, someone saw a buck to be made off a lot of excess animals. People are turning them loose around here, too, and that's a sad thing.

I love horses as well but it would be highly hypocritical of me to oppose this and not oppose the slaughter of all other animals.

[rangerider]

Originally Posted by jimj

I love horses as well but it would be highly hypocritical of me to oppose this and not oppose the slaughter of all other animals.

True, that. Just stating my prejudice up front so there would be no doubt as to my bias.

Shipping cows, sheep, and the like don't bother me, butchered all and chickens too. One by one, and just out in the yard. Pigs are kinda like horses, you get the sense that there is more than average there, more aware, if you will. Spent a little time around them when I was young. A whole bunch of this debate centers around how we feel about horses and our connection to them. Every so often someone goes into a chicken facility or processing plant and raises cain. Then someone tells them how much a pound of roast is going to cost with the improvements they are suggesting and they clam up.

I have no problem whatsoever dropping animals for my plate, whether barnyard or forest. Have done it lots. I guess the central issue for me is, if we are to have these facilities in our backyard, how would they be run? I have seen slaughterhouses that I wouldn't even think of buying meat from. And if almost anyone ever got wind of how cattle are shipped they'd have a queasy feeling every time they drew a steak knife across a T-bone.

If I feel the need for beefsteak, I buy a half from my neighbor and get it processed at a small grocery/meat store a mile from my house. One at a time, small and clean, local beef. I realize that condition is pretty much a luxury most places, but only because we have been herded into the practice of trading cost for quality. Another dime a pound. How much is TV costing these days?

Goes back to the argument about mass production. Don't care whether it's slaughterhouses, puppy mills, nursing homes, schools, etc. You crowd things in order to turn a higher profit/economy of scale and conditions can go south in a hurry. I'd rather not see that happen anywhere, and horses are a concern to me.

[cedew]

It's not done here because it's not our culture. It might be a euro thing, but who cares, this isn't Europe. You don't want people from California to move to Montana and make it like California do you? Then why let the Belgian's do it?

[Redraven]

Originally Posted by cedew

It's not done here because it's not our culture. It might be a euro thing, but who cares, this isn't Europe. You don't want people from California to move to Montana and make it like California do you? Then why let the Belgian's do it?

It may not be our MODERN culture, but historicly it most assuredly WAS quite common. The American Indians slaughtered and ate horses. The early settlers did, too, when necessary.
Shucks, the early settlers ate their friends and neighbors once in a while.
I bet the Belgians won't be the ones "doing it", I bet the facilities will be built, operated, and staffed by Montanans. The Belgians may buy the product, though.