Greetings
again, horsemen. Even as we work through
a few early kinks and minor editorial mishaps, we’re excited to utilize the
fluid medium of blogging to bring people up to speed with what we are
accomplishing. Understandably, there
have been a lot of questions about the programs we are putting in place, and we
hope to be able to address them here.
In our
first blog, we offered a preview of what our Equine Rescue & Rejuvenation
Program (ERRP) will look like. While the diagram illustrates the basics, the
program will also be inherently flexible and dynamic enough to meet the changes
and challenges we’ll inevitably face—something we are ready, willing, and—most
importantly--able to do. It’s impossible to sufficiently emphasize our
priorities as being the well-being of horses, horse-people, and the horse
industry as a whole.
·
The
well-being of horses is NOT being neglected and abandoned when owners run out
of options, when the skyrocketing costs of feed and care are rivaled only by
the cost of euthanasia and carcass disposal, and the struggling rescue network
can’t accommodate even a fraction of the widely accepted estimate of 100,000
horses that become unwanted annually. **
See references at the end of the blog.
·
The
well-being of horse-people is NOT being forced to choose between paying for
groceries for their families, or paying for the disposal of a horse they can no
longer afford.
·
The
well-being of the horse industry is NOT to eliminate humane end of life
options, not only creating prolonged and completely unnecessary suffering of
horses, but also erasing the base of the market.
FAQs
How does the United
Horsmen’s ERRP differ from traditional rescues?
Most obviously, the ERRP includes humane processing as a final
option for horses that cannot be rehabilitated and made useful otherwise. This will ensure that funds are used in the
most productive and efficient manner possible.
Another unique aspect of ERRP will be the extensive involvement of
professionals—trainers, veterinarians, and educational program leaders.
How will horses enter ERRP?
Horses
may enter the Rescue and Rejuvenation Program in several ways. Owners who are
unwilling or unable to care for their animals may donate them to the 501c3
non-profit program, and possibly receive a tax deduction. The Program also will
accept horses from other over-burdened rescue organizations or from law
enforcement/livestock agencies in possession of stray, abandoned or neglected
horses.
What is the primary goal of the
program?
To rehabilitate
horses from an unwanted and at-risk status to a healthy and functional status. We
will identify horses with potential, teach them skills, and then offer them to
the public. Horses that can be trained, or re-trained
for new purposes, will be sold. Horses that demonstrate suitability for
purposes such as non-profit therapeutic riding or youth programs will be made
available to those groups at little or no cost. Any profit on the re-homing of
horses will go back into the Program in order to help more horses in need.
How will this be
accomplished?
All horses entering the Program will be
evaluated for health, soundness, behavior, disposition and level of training.
These evaluations will be performed by qualified veterinarians and professional
horse trainers. Horses will go in one of three directions: into training, into rehabilitation, or to humane processing/euthanasia. Healthy
horses will continue their training as appropriate. Professional trainers,
students from college and university equine science programs, and apprentice
trainers from tribal education programs will work with the horses in a safe and
supervised setting. Rideable horses will
continue their training as appropriate, under the guidance of professionals and
supervised student trainers from college and university equine programs. Horses will be developed in the areas where
they demonstrate talent - roping, jumping, cow work, reining, pleasure, trails,
ranch work, therapeutic riding, etc. Untrained horses that are sound and
healthy will be started under saddle and evaluated for various disciplines.
How will the Program help
horses?
By
giving horses every possible chance to live a healthy, productive life. The
Rescue and Rejuvenation Program offers sanctuary to
horses that are starving, neglected or otherwise suffering. Horses who
are ill, injured, thin or otherwise in need of rehabilitation will receive
medical care and nutrition. If a horse in the program
is unsuitable for any other purpose, the Program provides quality care and a quick,
painless death. The rejuvenation
phase of the program is designed for horses that cannot enter the training
program due to their age or condition. Mares with foals at their sides, and
horses too young to enter training, will go on pasture. These horses will stay in the rejuvenation
program until their status changes, and then they will be re-evaluated.
How will the
Program help horse owners?
Part
of the Rescue and Rejuvenation Program’s mission is to help horses and horse
owners in need. Numerous “unwanted” horses enter the slaughter pipeline
primarily due to their lack of training. This problem becomes cyclical for
owners who need to sell their horses, cannot afford to have them trained, and
then discover their horses have little or no re-sale value due to their lack of
training.
The
Rescue & Rejuvenation Program is a place for horses to receive training,
thus transforming them from potentially slaughter-bound animals into valuable
horses with skills and a purpose. In addition to training, the Program offers a
safe haven for ill, injured, malnourished or abandoned animals. Horses in need
of a feeding program or medical care will go on pasture or into treatment until
they are healthy enough for a training and temperament evaluation. Critically sick or injured horses will be euthanized
through humane processing.
Horses
adopted/purchased from the Rescue & Rejuvenation Program will be eligible
for a special show incentive. Events organized by the Program will offer
classes in various disciplines for those horses, in which competitors can win
money.
What happens to horses that
can’t be trained or rehomed?
For horses who have lived past their useful life, are unsound,
untrainable, or otherwise not suited for re-homing, a humane system of
processing will be utilized. Equipment and management practices approved by
industry experts will ensure a minimum of stress and pain. Horses will be
handled with kindness and respect, employees will undergo proper training, and
the facility will be monitored to prevent mishandling and abuse. The processing plant will be
near enough to the the Rescue and Rejuvenation Program to spare horses the
stress of trailering and travel.
How does ERRP set the base of
the market?
ERRP
doesn’t set the base of the market; the existence of domestic humane processing
does. The ERRP is an option for horse
owners, and because of the network of professionals involved, it’s a unique opportunity
for otherwise unusable horses to become useful.
Will the ERRP benefits reach
beyond horses, horse owners, and the industry?
Absolutely.
Numerous educational opportunities will
be available in all aspects of the Program.
Dialogue is currently underway
with colleges and universities to establish internships and credit-earning
opportunities in the following areas:
At
the Rescue & Rehabilitation Facility:
·
Horse Training
·
Equine Sales Promotion and Marketing
·
Reproductive Management of Horses
·
Equine Nutrition and Exercise
Physiologie
·
Farrier Science/Basics of Equine
Dentistry
·
Therapeutic Riding
·
Pasture Management
At
the processing plant:
·
Collection of Organs and Fluids
(e.g. synovial fluids) for Therapeutic Purposes
·
Meat Processing
With
the program’s holistic, multifaceted approach, issues that have been central to
the ARM’s misguided battle against humane horse processing will be addressed
and effectively curtailed. For example:
·
“Horse
slaughter can’t be done humanely.” The American Veterinary Medical
Association (AVMA) and American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) deem
the captive bolt gun used in processing plants to be humane end of life option
for equines. All food animals are
processed under the same USDA guidelines for humane treatment. It is interesting to note that USDA reports
for humane handling standards from late 2011 demonstrate less than 1%--that’s
ONE percent—non-compliance.*** There is
no logical, science-based reason to believe that the processing of horses will
be any more problematic, or less humane, than is the processing of literally millions of other livestock.
·
“Perfectly
sound, usable horses go to slaughter.” Horses entering the program will be evaluated for any
existing potential, and given a chance that is uniquely afforded by actual
equine professionals.
·
“Horses
are forced to endure long hours in trucks to their eventual fate across our
borders.” The proximity of the ERRP to humane processing
plants will eliminate this issue entirely.
ERRP
is just one of the expansive efforts by United Horsemen to answer concerns
related to horse processing. Stay tuned
for upcoming blogs—we will soon be outlining the Equine Owners’ Assurance
Program (EOAP), better known as the “do not slaughter registry.”
**Refer
to www.amillionhorses.com to see for yourself just how
catastrophic the situation has been for American equines, and http://jas.fass.org/cgi/content/full/88/12/4142 for details about the sadly
insufficient existing rescue network.
***For
detailed reports on non-compliance of humane handling standards: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/regulations/HHER_Q4_FY2011/index.asp
