Calling All Animal Angels……

I am not a writer. I have learned even extremely bad fiction seems to come under the category of writing. See the comment section of “Yes, Jane, It is a Must Read". We have been graced by a REAL writer and we should all learn from his example. Anyway now that I have everyone sufficiently pissed off…..I ran across these press releases while doing some point research for a live horse I am selling. Points, that’s what horses earn when you actually ride them in breed association sponsored shows. I felt I should explain since it seems unless it is written on the internet or some other public place involving racing, slaughter, mustangs, slaughter, rescues, slaughter, subsidies, slaughter or any combination of these subjects it is missed by our esteemed adversaries. I have also learned from them it is not necessary to quote or identify the source of one’s information so here ya go……all I am guilty of is a little sarcasm in the opening paragraph and copy and paste. (I am not a writer and I often miss the point. I was much too busy drowning kittens and pulling the wings off flies to pay much attention in school). Trivia for the day……When it is a discounted grazing lease to a rancher to produce revenue it is a subsidy. When we are discussing using taxpayer or other people’s money in any form to “solve” an unwanted horse issue it is a noble entitlement we should all be willing to hand over????????

Expert Predictions on Equine Welfare Realized
Courtesy of Animal Welfare Press Release, February 4, 2010 --

In 2007, animal activists utilized the state legislative and legal systems in Illinois and Texas to close the three USDA- regulated horse processing plants in the United States.
A year prior, veterinarians, scientists, and economists - all equine specialists - highlighted the likely consequences of the plant closures in the Animal Welfare Council’s (AWC) “The Unintended Consequences of a Ban on Humane Processing of Horses in the United States.” Currently, as animal activist groups continue toward their goal of banning the transport of horses to Mexico and Canada for processing it seems the message in the AWC’s original document were ignored. An objective look at the current state of horses in America proves the expert forecast made in 2006 remains relevant today. Horse Industry and Veterinary Experts predicted that with the elimination of horse processing facilities in the United State, the welfare of horses would be jeopardized.
Here are the Facts:
1. Experts said the closure of American plants would lead to an increase in abandoned and unwanted horses, putting a severe strain on the budgets of rescue facilities, sheriffs departments, and county governments. In a recent national study conducted by the Unwanted Horse Coalition, more than 90 percent of those polled indicated the number of neglected and abused horses is increasing. It requires about $2,340 to maintain a horse for one year. With no provisions for the care of unwanted horses, the financial burden has fallen to local taxpayers.
2. Experts said the closure of the USDA-regulated plants would lead to increased horse neglect, abuse, and malnourishment. It did.The Colorado Department of Agriculture reports that the number of equine cruelty investigations rose 60 percent from 2005 to 2009.
3. Experts predicted then that the closure of the plants in the United States would devastate the market for horses. It did. Livestock market owners now put the value of all horses at 40 percent of their 2005 price.
What is the answer to the unwanted horse issue? It is clear that there will always be unwanted horses due to the fact that some horses simply won’t meet their owner’s expectations or will become ill or infirm. The horse industry has responded to the unwanted horse problem and is developing and implementing programs to both reduce the number of unwanted horses. Experts agree that the passing of the pending legislation to ban the transport and commerce related to horse processing would exacerbate all of these issues. H.R.503/S.727 has no financial provisions for the care of unwanted horses. The question remains: Who will tend to the additional 100,000 unwanted horses currently being shipped to Canada and Mexico for processing if this bill is passed? In a survey conducted by the Animal Welfare Council in 2009 of 94 government supported animal control centers 53 percent acknowledged there are no horse rescue facilities in their area and 83 percent cannot house or care for any horses. Animal activist proponents of the legislation do not have a viable plan for caring for the nation’s unwanted horses.
Horses are an invaluable part of the livestock industry. All parties involved are actively committed to the humane treatment of the horse. H.R.503/S.727 will do nothing but cause greater suffering for horses, their owners, and the horse industry in general.
For the complete information on the AWC works cited go to http://www.animalwelfarecouncil.org/.
Effective January 31, 2010, equine owners intending to sell animals directly or indirectly to Canadian meat processors are being advised to record certain information.
Equine owners who wish to keep their sale options open should record all vaccines and medications administered or fed to their animals, and record any occurrence of illness in their animals.
The collection of this information will better prepare the equine industry for July 31, 2010, when it will be mandatory for all federally-inspected equine facilities in Canada to have complete records dating back six months for all domestic and imported animals presented for slaughter.
These requirements apply to owners of horses and their crosses, referred to as equine.
In order to help owners collect all of the necessary information, the CFIA is launching a new Equine Information Document (EID) that can be found in the Meat Hygiene Directive no. 2009-49.
The EID is the first step in the development of a comprehensive food safety and traceability program for the Canadian equine industry – for both domestic and international markets.
Anyone selling equines may have to provide an EID at ownership transfer. The document will require an owner-signed declaration to verify the accuracy of the information.
There are a number of medications and substances that are prohibited from being given -- administered or fed -- to equine intended to be slaughtered for human consumption. A list of these medications and substances can be found on the CFIA web site.
And in regard to all that supposedly tainted meat……..
According to Dr. Tim Cordes, USDA senior staff veterinarian and National Coordinator Equine
Health and Slaughter Horse Transport for USDA, the price of horse meat in Europe is at an all time high.
He also notes that the marketplace will find horses for food from other countries, like Mexico or South America, if it is unable to source from the US or Canada.
China consumes more equine meat (421,620 tonnes) than any other country.
CFIA found no residue of steroid and non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs in any of the
horses they tested. (That would include the dreaded bute we here about every time this comes up. Bute is a non-steroid anti-inflammatory as is Banamine). 75 times more horses are tested for drug residues than cattle (300 of every 100,000 horses compared to 4 of every 100,000 head of beef cattle). These results indicate that there is no significant issue with drug residues in horse meat.

These are direct quotes from the 2008 Alberta Horse Welfare Study. I am sure it’s a load of crap for some reason and I am sure I will soon learn the reason. Of course it is irrelevant now, all the same it is a little different slant than we are presented most of the time.
By RH1

As always, Vicki, John, Lin, and EVERYONE, is invited to comment.
RM