Trailers rumble in, one after the other, just before the sale begins.
The air is taut with tension as owners unload their horses and park them in a sea of connecting metal corrals.
Among them is a 7-month-old quarter horse filly named Mocha.
Young, middle-aged and old, the healthy, the starved and the crippled - all the horses are here for the same reason.
“Hay is too expensive,” explains Carl Penner of Hamilton, who has brought a horse to the auction. “It costs a lot to keep them.”
And so, people sell them - or try to.
Horses are suffering as the economy falters, and not just in Montana.
It's a nationwide problem, said Gene Greimann, a longtime Hardin veterinarian.
“It's pretty clear we've got a situation,” he said. “And it's pretty critical.”
Montana has seen a rash of horse neglect and abuse cases in recent months, most recently in the Bitterroot Valley, where two Georgia outfitters are accused of abandoning their pack horses, one of which nearly starved.
In the Billings area, Greimann said, “people are turning horses loose on the Crow Reservation, and we have had several ranchers who have found stray horses starved, laying down and banging their head on the ground in misery.”
Because the horses lack brands, there's speculation they're being dumped by people who couldn't sell them at the Billings livestock auction, he said.
Problems with strays on the reservation have become so severe, he said, that the Bureau of Indian Affairs has had to round up horses and auction them off.
“The BIA is trying to get them a better home, but I don't think they sold 10 to 20 percent of those horses,” he said.
Things aren't much better at the Missoula auction.
Out in the corrals, Mocha's owner, Riley Lewis, hears upsetting news: Babies - weanlings - are selling for $10 and $15. Even the best saddle horses - the well-fed ones that have been bathed, groomed and shod - are going for just a few hundred dollars.
Her heart sinks as she brushes Mocha.
With two horses at home and a 10-month-old son, Lewis doesn't have time for the youngster. She's hoping a family will fall in love with the well-behaved, glossy filly - an appendix quarter horse, or thoroughbred-quarter horse cross - and buy her for $100.
But in her heart, Lewis knows better.
Mocha will likely be sold for meat.
“I didn't want to bring her,” Lewis explains, her voice heavy. “She doesn't even know what's going on and what's going to happen to her.”
Buyers at Missoula's monthly sale can get a young horse for, in some cases, less than they'd pay for a shelter dog.
Those that aren't sold - and that's most of them - go for
15 cents a pound. Meat buyers haul them to Canada and Mexico for slaughter. (See related story.)
Sales volume has actually increased 20 percent in the last six months, but there's more supply than demand, according to Kent Kerchal, Missoula Livestock Exchange manager.
Two years ago, Kerchal sold a 10-year-old palomino gelding for $10,000. In September, when the auction held its fall catalogue sale, an annual event that attracts top-end horses, the high price of the day was $5,100 for a gelding saddle horse.
Last week, the auction house worked hard to get the high bid of $2,100 for an attractive 5-year-old gelding, and even harder to get $400 for an flashy pedigreed 4-year-old quarter horse mare that's never been ridden.
“Nothing is selling very good right now, be it a horse or a truck,” Kerchal said. “Especially if the horses aren't broke. And it's especially tough on the mares and the young ones.”
A trip through the auctioneer's corrals shows some horses in rough shape.
Most are matted and muddy, and several have gouges on their back. One has an open gash that stretches from its leg to its hoof. Another's leg balloons with infection from an untreated cut.
Jacqui Davis takes it all in as she roams the sale lot before the auction begins, looking for a “project” to take home.
“I think people have been holding out trying to sell them for high dollars, but they can't,” she says. “I get upset because I feel they shouldn't starve their horses before they bring them here.”
She peers between the metal bars and scrutinizes the big-eyed beasts in every pen.
“I wonder why aren't the activists here,” Davis says. “Why aren't they here to see what happens to horses when people don't take care of them?”
She lingers at a corral that holds a ribby horse whose awkward, stretched-out stance indicates a crippling lameness.
A slip of paper on the gate describes this skinny resident.
“For meat only,” it reads.
Davis shakes her head in wonderment.
“An old horse like this? If it's hurting, I wouldn't bring it to this hell,” she says. “I would have it put down humanely.”
No matter what people think about putting horses down, or selling them for slaughter, the fact is horses are in crisis and something needs to be done about it, said Victor horse breeder Theresa Manzella.
Manzella spearheaded Willing Servants, a Bitterroot grass-roots organization founded in response to a case of equine neglect this past summer. Two women came across a near-dead gelding tied to a tree in the Bitterroot Mountains. A father-and-son duo from Georgia face cruelty charges in the case.
The abused horse was dubbed Able, and his sorry tale prompted calls from animal lovers nationwide, offering to help. Able's story also sparked communitywide discussions about what to do with unwanted, neglected or abused horses.
Manzella's motivation in forming Willing Servants was simple: “I realized there is a huge hole in our animal welfare system and I want to help.”
If enough volunteers step forward, Willing Servants will apply for nonprofit status and work to prevent equine abuse by increasing the penalties for offenders.
The group's other main objective, Manzella said, is to help unwanted, neglected or confiscated horses find new homes and to raise money to help care for these animals.
“We are only limited by funds and our creativity,” Manzella said. “Our goal is simple: To be proactive about trying to help these horses through our network of equine professionals, and help match these horses with people who will take care of them.”
As for the legal end of things, the fledgling organization is getting a helping hand from Darby lawmaker Rick Laible.
Laible said he's working on a bill that will redefine horses as domestic pets - not livestock - and will impose stiffer penalties for people involved with horse abuse cases.
The issue is close to his heart, Laible said.
“When you see evil, you want to fix it. It happened in my valley, and I'm a horse owner. That somebody would treat an animal as these men did defies excuse,” he said. “What happened to Able I don't want to ever happen again.”
Back at the Missoula auction, bids come in low and slow for every sale, despite the auctioneer's best efforts.
When the time finally comes for Riley Lewis to walk Mocha through the ring, she's filled with doubt.
Mocha shows off her calm and trusting nature, willingly following Lewis.
With each reluctant step, Lewis feels worse.
Her mind races: “Why did I bring Mocha to this? Why are we here?”
The moment of truth comes when the filly brings a final high bid of $15.
Lewis decides not to sell. In fact, in the end, she's the one who pays: It costs her $62 to pull Mocha from the auction.
She later confesses, “I don't think I would have sold her (even) for $100.”
On the drive back to the Bitterroot Valley, Mocha nibbles at grain as her trailer rolls down the highway, nearing the end of the strange field trip.
Lewis smiles the whole way home.
Many unwanted horses sold to foreign slaughterhouses
By BETSY COHEN of the Missoulian
What to do with unwanted horses is an increasingly difficult problem - and one without easy solutions.
The bottom has dropped out of the sale market for horses, something to which Kent Kerchal, manager of the Missoula Livestock Exchange, can attest.
Many of the horses sold there, even trained riding horses, end up being sold for meat and shipped to slaughterhouses in Mexico or Canada. Horse slaughter ended in the United States in 2007.
But slaughter isn't the only option, he said.
“Call the vet,” he said. “That's what you do. Have the animal put down.”
Easier said than done, especially when money is tight, said Linda Kauffman, a Stevensville veterinarian.
It costs about $100 for a vet to euthanize a horse. Then it's another $100 to rent a bulldozer operator to dig a hole and bury a horse.
Owners who don't have the land for burial can call the knacker, who hauls the body to a rendering plant. That's another $100.
Which brings the situation back around to slaughterhouses, Kauffman said.
She said she's in favor of slaughtering horses in the United States if the business returns with governing boards that ensure ethical slaughter as defined by national veterinary associations.
Shawn Gleason, a Victor veterinarian, shares her sentiments.
“Without slaughter facilities, it's taken away an avenue for people to move older horses, or any horses for that matter,” Gleason said. “Some of these people, instead of getting a few dollars from their animals, now it costs them to get rid of their animals. ... In my opinion, it probably has created more neglect to a degree - at least that's my perception.”
Longtime rancher and horse broker Ole Olson of Elko, Nev., places most of the blame on the Humane Society of the United States and other organizations that lobbied Congress to end horse slaughtering.
“Stopping horse slaughter in this country was the worst thing that ever happened, because people don't have a market to take their animals,” said Olson.
He's a regular at the Missoula horse auction, and makes the long journey from Elko to buy and sell horses.
If the price is right, he'll bid on the healthy young horses that haven't been ridden or the rank good-looking ones. After hauling them back to his ranch, his staff of experienced riders put miles on the horses, gets them trained and better conditioned. Then Olson resells the animals at other auctions.
Last Tuesday, an untrained pony he bought for $100 in Missoula two months ago sold to a family for $550.
But he also buys the others, the “loose” auction horses, the ones that aren't led in by someone, but rather are moved through as a group at the end of the auction, when crowds have thinned.
Meat buyers seek those horses.
“If there's anything we can salvage, we will,” Olson explains, “but what else can someone do with the old ones and the crippled ones and the mares nobody wants? If people can't take them to slaughter, we'll be having people turning animals loose on the freeway and that's not right.”
The Humane Society of the United States also sees a rise in horse neglect and abuse, but said it's not because American slaughterhouses have been taken out of the equation.
It's because there are too many horses.
Keith Dane, the organization's chief equine protection specialist, explains it this way:
“What we would like is for the horse industry to look at the economy and the demand for their product and reflect that in their breeding practices. Unfortunately, that has not been happening.”
Last year, 106,963 American horses were slaughtered in Canada and Mexico. That compares to 133,912 in 2006 and 111,649 in 2005.
The numbers speak for themselves, Dane said, and what they say is that the United States is irresponsible when it comes to breeding horses.
“We believe there are solutions in achieving equilibrium, where there is virtually no horse oversupply,” he explains. “In the 1990s, over 300,000 horses were slaughtered in one year, and we've come down to 100,000 in the last couple of years and as low as 40,000 in 2002.
“We believe there is no reason not to get that number down to zero through more responsible breeding, by placing horses in good homes and the adoption of unwanted horses.”
Dane is adamant that if the United States purges itself of the horse slaughter option, people will make more responsible decisions.
The Humane Society is working on new legislation to permanently stop all horse slaughter for human consumption, making it illegal to transport horses to Canada and Mexico for slaughter.
Dane challenges all critics to get on the Internet and read the investigations into Mexican slaughterhouses.
Not only do horses endure the long truck drive across the border, with trailers jammed to maximum capacity with untethered animals and many individuals getting severely injured on the journey, he said. But when horses finally get to the facility, they are knifed several times in the spinal cord, rendered paralyzed but not unconscious before slaughter.
“It's pretty gruesome,” said Dane, who has reviewed the evidence. “If people knew of the treatment their horses get in Mexico, where most of them go, they would think twice about looking at slaughter as the only means available for dealing with horses.”
Reach reporter Betsy Cohen at (406) 523-5253 or by e-mail at bcohen@missoulian.com.
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gregg wrote on Nov 16, 2008 3:03 AM:
" how can anyone with a horse not afford a hundred bucks? Where do these morons come from? A bullet doesn't cost a hundred bucks.....and it doesn't cost a thing to dump the carcass in the river.
these people can't even support themselves....where did they ever get a horse in the first place. this is disgusting.......horses are a great animal..... I say a month in the county tank for abusers. "
these people can't even support themselves....where did they ever get a horse in the first place. this is disgusting.......horses are a great animal..... I say a month in the county tank for abusers. "
Carola Mielke wrote on Nov 16, 2008 8:36 AM:
" I am so sick of this subject. People are not raising horses just to slaughter. Horses are not family pets.
I was raised on a ranch and know the reality of it all. Horses are a working part of the ranch. You don't see true farmers and ranchers mistreating their animals. Only those who want to play that they have a farm or ranch, and it looks cool to have horses out in the pasture. Don't tie the hands of those who would care properly for their horses. Talk to some real horse people before your make a decision on how you feel about this situation. "
I was raised on a ranch and know the reality of it all. Horses are a working part of the ranch. You don't see true farmers and ranchers mistreating their animals. Only those who want to play that they have a farm or ranch, and it looks cool to have horses out in the pasture. Don't tie the hands of those who would care properly for their horses. Talk to some real horse people before your make a decision on how you feel about this situation. "
Carol wrote on Nov 16, 2008 9:14 AM:
" I am just sickened by this whole ordeal with people having to give up on a horse because they can no longer afford their care. There so many animals that are treated so badly, that euthanasia is looking kinder for the animals. Not just horses,but all animals. Please just think of euthanasia as a quick and painless way to get out of suffering for these animals that had nothing to do with coming into this world free, but having to suffer for it.mns "
Tina Nicola wrote on Nov 16, 2008 9:37 AM:
" Such a diverse and emotional issue...but what it all comes down to is the lack of responsibility. Your horse, by your hand, even in death. Now,we need regulation to control the animal popluation becuase people breed for pay. No matter what the animal, this is an issue. As a horse owner, never would I hand her off to a stranger or allow her to suffer in any way. That's weak, detached, and represents the same phenomena we see in how treat one another...it's a new age, a new time, yes, but let's move back to taking care of your own 'business' for the greater good. And quite frankly, I think we need local veterinarian funding (euthanasia) and support(aka bulldozer,sanitation service, etc.) and take care of this on a local level. "
Fred Garvin wrote on Nov 16, 2008 12:54 PM:
" Great article, by the way, and thanks for telling it like it really is. Too bad it will not reach the folks that need it the most because they have to keep up their "image." On top of the huge mustang glut east and south, it might be time for a realistic view about a horse slaughter plant in the mid-west even though it goes against everything we grew-up with... "
Fonda Ghiardi wrote on Nov 16, 2008 1:22 PM:
" Good article, the situation has been well presented. But the slaughter picture could use some enhancing. If you can't afford to euthanize you could not afford the horse in the first place. The amount is cheap compared to maintenance costs for keeping the horse. If the horse has served you well doesn't it deserve a humane death? The slaughter market which is based on greed rather than humanity has created the oversupply from overbreeding because irresponsible breeders, trainers, and owners could easily dispose of and get a last few bucks for the horse when they over bred, broke it down through overtraining a two year old or just bred for a "cute " baby with no plans for its future or knowledge how to train it. Slaughter has allowed us to be irresponsible. Yes horses are suffering but it is because of humans not there doing. As long as we have a slaughter market our horses will be disposible, we will continue to overbreed and greed will prevail over humanity. "
Ann M. Marini Ph.D. M.D. wrote on Nov 16, 2008 1:33 PM:
" horse slaugher did NOT END. This is just more pro-slaughter CRAP! "
Ele wrote on Nov 16, 2008 4:51 PM:
" In Philipsburg we have a woman who soon will be tried and if found guilty faces a $500 fine and or 6 months in jail. Her crime? Having 2 horses "penned illegally" within town limits. Horses that are well cared for and have been at that same location for years without any complaints, except from the town councilman who suggested and pushed for the ordinance. It's apparent there's a personal vendetta and selective enforcement as others continue to have horses in town. It's truly sad reading about people who have to give up their horses and the horses abandoned or starved by creeps, when a woman has to face criminal charges and fight to keep them because her biggest crime is caring for animals that were permited yesterday but outlawed today. "
Di wrote on Nov 16, 2008 6:50 PM:
" to Ann Marini: pls let everyone know where you are located so anyone who cannot afford their horses anymore can haul them to you. "
Karen wrote on Nov 17, 2008 6:48 AM:
" Keith Dane is only partially right on Mexican horse slaughter. There are some family owned butcher shops in the country that will process a horse this way.
But, the plants that are receiving 99% of the horses are regulated processing plants like we had in the US. Those horses are being processed for shipment for human consumption to Europe, and their laws mandate the processing procedure. So the horror stories of Mexican slaughter is not entirely true.
Check out the Unwanted Horse Coalition. Yes the fines or repercussions of abuse or neglect should have more bite to it, but putting horses in the "pet/companion animal" section will only put more taxes and more regulations that no one can enforce. Horses are livestock, not pets.
And if we cannot enforce the laws to make people take care of their children, how do we think we can force people to take care of their horses? "
But, the plants that are receiving 99% of the horses are regulated processing plants like we had in the US. Those horses are being processed for shipment for human consumption to Europe, and their laws mandate the processing procedure. So the horror stories of Mexican slaughter is not entirely true.
Check out the Unwanted Horse Coalition. Yes the fines or repercussions of abuse or neglect should have more bite to it, but putting horses in the "pet/companion animal" section will only put more taxes and more regulations that no one can enforce. Horses are livestock, not pets.
And if we cannot enforce the laws to make people take care of their children, how do we think we can force people to take care of their horses? "
Dave Skinner wrote on Nov 17, 2008 9:45 AM:
" This is a fairly decent contextual article. The sick fact is, the unintended consequences of HSUS/PETA whatever "equine activism" has been a glut of horses. BLM has more wild horses in storage than it has out in the range, people are dumping MORE horses out there in the dark of night, and there's no place for the carcasses.
By golly, let's get slaughter for sale back in the picture. The French like to eat horsemeat, dogs like to eat horsemeat, and you don't have to get a bulldozer.
Nuts. Shame on HSUS. "
By golly, let's get slaughter for sale back in the picture. The French like to eat horsemeat, dogs like to eat horsemeat, and you don't have to get a bulldozer.
Nuts. Shame on HSUS. "
Big Jim wrote on Nov 17, 2008 10:47 AM:
" It never ceases to amaze me at the comments made by the "pro-slaughter" nitwits. How many of you have ever been inside a slaughter house? If so,are you willing to work a few hours in the "killing room?" And as for the anti-comments about HSUS, are you aware of the money invested in their horse sanctuary in Oregon? Of course not....you are too busy placing the blame on others. How about curtailing the breeding and stop this glut of horses? Most of you have created your own problem and now want a quick solution. Shame on you! "
Lexi wrote on Nov 17, 2008 11:54 AM:
" one other reason we are in such a dilemna is the horses being kept for urine collecting. a lot of people are no longer buying Premerin, etc (menopause prescription) and those horses are being sold for slaughter to of course Mexico and Canada. After the years of abuse these poor horses have had to endure, don't send them to another hell....please just put them out of their misery. I will send you the money for the bullets.
NONE of these poor animals, be they domestic pets OR livestock, should be treated this way. None of them..... "
NONE of these poor animals, be they domestic pets OR livestock, should be treated this way. None of them..... "
kim wrote on Nov 17, 2008 12:11 PM:
" Ever wonder where all the money PITA gets goes towards? Not one anminal facility to accomodate animals, horses, chickens, whales, etc, NO ANIMALS are cared, fed or vetted out of PITA's pocket. Maybe they should be the ones to open their pockets and finanace the care and property necessary instead of asking every body else to pay for something they spearheaded. "
Alison wrote on Nov 17, 2008 12:35 PM:
" Just like any other animal, don't get it if you can't afford to properly care for it for the rest of its life. It's not that hard to figure out. When you choose to own an animal, you are also taking on responsibility for it. "
D. Masters wrote on Nov 17, 2008 3:25 PM:
" There are some good points brought out with the stories featured. However, there are also some very bad and down out not factual so called info being presented here. Some of the comments are just simply ill-informed and inacurrate also. Horse slaughter is still available. If your horse doesn't sell at auction it's because your horse either should have been put down by you at HOME because of age, temperment, infirmity and/or people think because they have a horse it's worth something. That's an OK mindset except for a few factors: (1) the economy, (2) the fall(worst time to sell because you don't want to feed it, why do you think someone else would, and (3) TOO MANY HORSES FOR SALE THAT THE KBs DON'T EVEN NEED THEM!!! Forgot to add that so many people that have horses let stallions run with mares (do any of you Backyard breeders know how to separate livestock with proper fencing for horses???), don't geld enough, and don't even bother to properly break these horses. And you're clueless as to why it didn't sell????? Please, horses done right take a TON OF WORK, just like good kids and good dogs and a good business. This isn't the lotto and it ain't freakin' rocket science.
For you profolks, why don't you demand production records like traditional meat livestock and humane slaughter. "
For you profolks, why don't you demand production records like traditional meat livestock and humane slaughter. "
Barbara Burns wrote on Nov 17, 2008 6:09 PM:
" The absolute worst thing that could happen to horses was the initiation (by the Humane Sociaty) of the no slaughter law in the U.S. These do-gooders, who don't know anything regarding the horse market, may have thought they were doing horse a favor. But, anyone with the smallest amount of grey matter, would have realized the consequences of their actions. Anytime the government and special interest radicals get involved in an issue, it ends up like this i.e. wild horses, wolves, etc. Those who pushed this bill thru should be responsible for the cost of caring for these unfortunate horses. What were they thinking? I wonder if they are proud of the situation they caused. It makes me sick! "
marcie wrote on Nov 17, 2008 6:09 PM:
" Where is PETA and all the other lobbyist that stopped the slaughter of horses. they need to step up now and take care of these unwanted animals. I would like to know when animals started having the same thought process that humans do?? In four years are we going to have our first four footed president?? Why has our society given animals more rights than people. i would like to see these Lobbyists start putting their noses is something that would truely matter like the abused children in our own valley that seem to be falling thru the cracks. i am for reopening the slaughter houses in the us. there needs to be an outlet for the old, crippled and renegades. the horses dont get on the truck and say to one another "gee we must be going to die today". they do not THINK like us. i would personally rather see a horse suffer a few seconds or even minutes than to be on the ground and beating its head on the ground until it dies because it does not have the strength to get up. people wont spend the money to have the horse put down by the vet but they may take it to the stockyards if they can get even a little bit of money instead. lets be humane to these animals and reopen the ability to slaughter horses. "
D. Masters wrote on Nov 17, 2008 6:13 PM:
" Kim...it's PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), not PITA. Try to become informed before you decide to post your uneducated, uninformed diatribe. No. I don't belong to PETA. Yes. I eat meat. Many antihorse slaughter organizations put their money where their mouth is. Know your horses and become an intelligent business person. That any horseman needs slaughter as a solution to horse population speaks volumes to that persons equine and business skills, plus their sensibility to cruelty and inhumane treatment. Slaughter is not a tool of equine management, it's an out to responsibilty with a payout. Wild horses and burros are victims of the ineptitude of the US Government and special interests. It's a slimey business Kim, facilitating alot of sloppy owners, theives and opportunists with alot of people eating meat that is more than contaminated. Horses being treated as a nuisance and lower than US garbage...even garbage is regulated better. "
D. Masters wrote on Nov 17, 2008 6:24 PM:
" Barbara Burns and marcie:
PETA didn't have anything to do with the closure of the 3 (2 TX & 1 IL) slaughterhouses for horses (all foreign owned, not paying US taxes, employing illegals BTW). The 3 were closed by the STATES! Congress has not passed any legislation banning horse slaughter for human consumption. Also, there are more than a few US slaughterhouses that still handle disposal and rendering of horses...but you knew that, right??? Difference is the meat is not for human consumption. But you both knew that, right??? Stop with the horse slaughter drivel and get the facts. While you're at it, stop breeding horses with poor pedigrees, no show or race records, poor confirmation/genetic disease and no accountability for owner disposal. They can live for 30 years folks, with proper care. Or is that something you all don't consider?...and yes, I own horses. "
PETA didn't have anything to do with the closure of the 3 (2 TX & 1 IL) slaughterhouses for horses (all foreign owned, not paying US taxes, employing illegals BTW). The 3 were closed by the STATES! Congress has not passed any legislation banning horse slaughter for human consumption. Also, there are more than a few US slaughterhouses that still handle disposal and rendering of horses...but you knew that, right??? Difference is the meat is not for human consumption. But you both knew that, right??? Stop with the horse slaughter drivel and get the facts. While you're at it, stop breeding horses with poor pedigrees, no show or race records, poor confirmation/genetic disease and no accountability for owner disposal. They can live for 30 years folks, with proper care. Or is that something you all don't consider?...and yes, I own horses. "
D. Masters wrote on Nov 17, 2008 7:04 PM:
" Dear Barbara Burns:
Forgot to add...HSUS didn't pass any freakin' law that stopped horse slaughter in the US (although they'd like to stop the transport). I'm not an animal RIGHTS, left-wing, vegan PETA loon. I'm an animal welfare and people welfare person (for that matter) that served my country for 30+ years. Take the time to understand the issue here. It's not a matter of emotions or some city folks tryin' to tell you how to take care of your animal. This is about RIGHT AND WRONG! And horse slaughter as it is now is WRONG, MADAM..cruel, brutal and unaccountable, unchecked and UNREGULATED!. I'm not against eating horsemeat(I'm not going to), but I'm against how it's done now! Now, what is your solution to TOO MANY HORSES??? "
Forgot to add...HSUS didn't pass any freakin' law that stopped horse slaughter in the US (although they'd like to stop the transport). I'm not an animal RIGHTS, left-wing, vegan PETA loon. I'm an animal welfare and people welfare person (for that matter) that served my country for 30+ years. Take the time to understand the issue here. It's not a matter of emotions or some city folks tryin' to tell you how to take care of your animal. This is about RIGHT AND WRONG! And horse slaughter as it is now is WRONG, MADAM..cruel, brutal and unaccountable, unchecked and UNREGULATED!. I'm not against eating horsemeat(I'm not going to), but I'm against how it's done now! Now, what is your solution to TOO MANY HORSES??? "
Ray Woodside wrote on Nov 17, 2008 8:11 PM:
" Hi Besty,
I read with interest your acticles inSundays paper about the horse problems of late. I wn 12 mules and horses, so know of the problems first hand. I do think that you are way off base in most of your coments about the problems. Horses are not some little animal a person can put in a cage and feed then whenever one think about it. They need constant feed and care and that isn't cheap. If you want to know the problems from some one who has owned and ridden horses all their life, please feel free to contact me...
Ray Woodside www.potomacmules.com
31085 Bring Your Own Horse Lane 1-406-244-5861
Potomac, MT 59823 1-406-544-8398 cell
rayw@blackfoot.net
May your troubles be less, your blessing more,
and nothing but happiness comes through your door!! "
I read with interest your acticles inSundays paper about the horse problems of late. I wn 12 mules and horses, so know of the problems first hand. I do think that you are way off base in most of your coments about the problems. Horses are not some little animal a person can put in a cage and feed then whenever one think about it. They need constant feed and care and that isn't cheap. If you want to know the problems from some one who has owned and ridden horses all their life, please feel free to contact me...
Ray Woodside www.potomacmules.com
31085 Bring Your Own Horse Lane 1-406-244-5861
Potomac, MT 59823 1-406-544-8398 cell
rayw@blackfoot.net
May your troubles be less, your blessing more,
and nothing but happiness comes through your door!! "
Heidi wrote on Nov 18, 2008 8:58 AM:
" Utopia is a wonderful place, and HSUS/PETA members seem to live there, but unfortunately it is a fairy tale. The reality is- sick, crippled, unwanted horses are better off being humanely destroyed, whether euthanized, or at a slaughter plant that is regulated by US inspectors and laws. Yes, there is a glut of horses now due to economic reasons-maily because people cant sell them at slaughter to recoup some expenses. So, because of their "good"intentions, there is more horse suffering than at any time in history. In the old days, if an owner had an ailing horse, he would have ended his suffering with a bullet. Can hardly do that anymore! "
marcie wrote on Nov 18, 2008 6:00 PM:
" dear d. masters. yes i too own horses and have all my life. the fact is that horses are still considered livestock. many ranchers over the years have made a living just like cattle or sheep ranchers do today. are we going to stop the slaughter of cattle, sheep, or swine next. there is just a problem out there that horses are not being taken care of. i have experencied first hand of a horses just being dumped on me!!! I watched for seven hours as an old mare beat her head on the ground because she was to weak to get up. do you have any idea of the red tape you have to go thru on a sat morning trying to get someone to do something. you have to get a state stock inspector there to tell you she has no brand and can not track to the rightful owner, a vet to say there is no chance at saving her and the animal warden and sherriffs depts are there too. then pay to have some come and haul it to the dump because no one wants the bill .. so next time, can i call you to come and sit to watch her die????? t "
Abrooks wrote on Nov 19, 2008 7:21 AM:
" The special interest groups and their lobbying power with congress made a HUGE mistake by closing the packing houses. They are LIVESTOCK, not dogs and cats, if people want to eat horses and we have too many that are unfit for riding, breeding, or whatever then we should be able to process them and sell them. It's more humane than what they are facing currently.. I would like to see these huge activist groups really put their money where their mouth is and start building these refuges for the 100,000 horses that were processed every year. If you don't have a lengthy background with horses then you should not have a voice when it comes to horse welfare!! "
Abrooks wrote on Nov 19, 2008 7:38 AM:
" Such a diverse and emotional issue...but what it all comes down to is the lack of responsibility. Your horse, by your hand, even in death. Now,we need regulation to control the animal popluation becuase people breed for pay. No matter what the animal, this is an issue. As a horse owner, never would I hand her off to a stranger or allow her to suffer in any way. That's weak, detached, and represents the same phenomena we see in how treat one another...it's a new age, a new time, yes, but let's move back to taking care of your own 'business' for the greater good. And quite frankly, I think we need local veterinarian funding (euthanasia) and support(aka bulldozer,sanitation service, etc.) and take care of this on a local level. "************************
We absolutely don't need more government regulation!! Seriously, the government is in a big enough mess as it is.. Why should the tax payers have to bear this burden as well?? The owners should have the right to do with their horses as they see fit. "
We absolutely don't need more government regulation!! Seriously, the government is in a big enough mess as it is.. Why should the tax payers have to bear this burden as well?? The owners should have the right to do with their horses as they see fit. "
Jamie wrote on Nov 20, 2008 2:49 PM:
" The story of Mocha makes me so sad. I have been hearing on the news over and over again about how many people have to take their beloved pets to the pound or shelter because they can't afford to feed them. I want desperately to get a non-profit org. together in order to help these animals. I have others who would be interested in helping too, if only I knew where to start on applying for the needed grants to get one started.
Anyone have any ideas? "
Anyone have any ideas? "
cheryl wrote on Nov 23, 2008 4:06 PM:
" Why don't all the "activists" and PETA wanna be's put their money where there mouths are and instead of crying about the horror that these animals go through, why don't they buy them and give them the humane treatment, even in death, that these animals deserve. And the next time someone wants to breed that unrideable mare to experience the joy of foaling reread this article. "
ellieroo wrote on Nov 25, 2008 12:25 PM:
" It is not just horses, cats, dogs, goats also children! They are all being left by the wayside. We have been a society of excess gotta have this, gotta have that, don't really give a damn about anything just gotta have ... "
kim l wrote on Dec 2, 2008 11:52 AM:
" There is a simple solution to all this. it is a two pronged attack One open several USDA regulated slaughterhouses in the midwest specifically for horse and have very strict enfrcement of procedures. Two, spend more money on education for potential horse breeders and owners. Lastly i would like to say horses are livestock not pets. they eat sleep etc in a barn they do not live in your frontroom. "
Thomas Lee Trevino wrote on Nov 16, 2008 1:42 AM: