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AWIHorse Sense Prevails: House Committee Approves Bill with Ban on Double-Deck Trailer Transport
Friday, February 3, 2102 – Washington, D.C. — The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) is pleased to report that the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act, H.R. 7, approved earlier today by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, includes a prohibition on the hauling of horses via double-deck trailers. The move to incorporate this prohibition within the larger transportation bill was strongly supported by AWI and championed by Representative Andy Harris (R-MD) and Committee Ranking Member, Nick Rahall (D-WV). The entire bill now goes before the full House of Representatives for a vote. While the overall transportation bill is by no means an unqualified success and contains many unsavory elements from an animal welfare perspective, final passage of this ban on double-deck transport in interstate commerce would represent a clear and important victory for horse protection. AWI has long fought to have this inhumane practice outlawed, and in the present instance AWI worked to fend off a last-minute attempt by committee member Representative Rick Crawford (R-AR) to amend the bill so as to strip out the double-deck transport ban. Calls Needed Today in Support of Ban on Hauling Horses in Double-Deck TrailersHouse Committee to Consider Bill on Thursday
Support for banning the use of double-deck trailers is strong, and includes the American Veterinary Medical Association, National Black Farmers Association, Animal Welfare Institute and Veterinarians for Equine Welfare. Equine rescue, humane, and professional organizations realize it is cruel and dangerous to haul horses on double-deck trailers. Even the U.S. Department of Agriculture has come out against their use: “We do not believe that equines can be safely and humanely transported on a conveyance that has an animal cargo space divided into two or more stacked levels.” (9 CFR Parts 70 and 88). In fact, USDA has prohibited using these trailers for transporting horses to slaughter, but its rule doesn’t cover horses being transported for any other purposes – or those supposedly being hauled for another purpose. All horses, irrespective of where they are going, deserve this important protection, and the language included in the Surface Transportation Extension Act will provide it. The Face of American Horse Slaughter: Shady Dealer Shifts Species but Modus Operandi Remains Unchanged
A story recently surfaced about a 24-year-old Pennsylvania woman, Kelsey Lefever, who faces felony charges after allegedly collecting over 120 retired racehorses from well-meaning owners, promising them she would find good homes for the horses. Her intention all along, however, was to sell them to killer buyers. Their “good homes” turned out to be a slaughterhouse in Canada, where they met with a gruesome death in order to become a “delicacy” at restaurants abroad. In the police report, a witness indicates that Lefever told her, “I killed every one of those (expletive) horses — over 120 of them. If they only knew, every one of them is dead.” Handful of Legislators Condemn Horses to USDA Approved Abuse
“I have been in Washington for a long time and this move baffles me. Both parties talked about making the hard cuts in federal spending and yet behind closed doors, three of the four men thought it was a good use of taxpayer dollars to ignore their colleagues and restore a federal program that will cost Americans at least $5 million a year and pull limited USDA inspectors from ensuring the humane treatment and safety of our nation’s food supply. To make matters worse, this was all done to appease a few foreign companies and Big Ag,” said Chris Heyde, deputy director of AWI’s government and legal affairs department. “This action shows the true nature of some elected officials — that they are more concerned about helping special interests than doing what they were elected to do.” Updated AWI Horse Slaughter Brochure and Action Alert Insert Now Available
If you would like come copies of this brochure and the new insert, please send an email to chris@awionline.org with the quantity of each you would like. Thanks for your continued help with this important issue. While you are waiting for your brochures please visit AWI’s Compassion Index to see how your Representative and Senators stand on horse slaughter and other animal protection measures. While there, be sure to send them an email in support of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act: http://capwiz.com/compassionindex/issues/?style=D&. CHRIS HEYDE ANIMAL WELFARE INSTITUTE Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Animal-Welfare-Institute/11601155278 Willie & The Nelson Family Release “Wild Horses” Video to Help Raise Awareness for America’s Wild Horses
“The BLM has been rounding them up at an alarming rate, supposedly for their own good. Sadly, there are more wild horses in holding pens than in the wild. Something is wrong with that, so we must act now before the BLM has managed these magnificent animals into extinction,” said Willie Nelson. “It’s time for the cowboys to stand up for the horses.” The Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act was enacted in 1971 to halt the disappearance of these iconic animals from public lands in the American West. Since then, however, over 21 million acres of land set aside by Congress for wild horses have been removed from their range, even as the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) – the very agency charged with their protection – claims there is not enough land to support existing herds. The BLM is unnecessarily removing horses based on spurious claims of damage to range and other adverse impacts. The BLM’s mismanagement of America’s wild horses is largely designed to benefit a livestock industry that has, for decades, exploited western public lands while profiting from massive subsidies funded by taxpayer dollars. Willie & The Nelson Family and AWI are calling on the BLM and the Obama administration to immediately halt all wild horse round-ups, restore the land provided by law to wild horses and stop warehousing horses on private lands at even greater expense to the taxpayer. Taking Action and Important Petition to White House against Horse Slaughter
I wanted to let you know that the Obama administration has created a new petition website where citizens can communicate with the White House on issues that matter to them. If a petition gets 5,000 signatures within a month of being posted, White House staff will review it, ensure it is sent to the appropriate policy experts, and issue a formal response. The petition, https://wwws.whitehouse.gov/petitions/!/petition/support-ban-horse-slaughter/q30gJg1k, was posted on September 23, 2011 asking for the Administration’s support of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, which was recently introduced in the Senate, S. 1176, and the House, H.R. 2966. In order for the White House to respond, 5,000 signatures are needed by October 23, 2011. Supporters of horse slaughter have also posted their own petition so it’s important that we speak up to protect our horses from this torturous treatment by those who seek to profit from their misery. Thank you for taking action on their behalf. CHRISTOPHER J. HEYDE The Animal Welfare Institute has been working to alleviate the suffering inflicted on animals by humans since 1951. Please join us in our work to protect animals – visit our website to find out more and to sign up for AWI eAlerts: www.awionline.org. Protect America’s Horses and Promote Responsible Government!
Turn on the news and much of what you will hear from our elected officials in Washington, D.C. is “cut federal spending,” “stop wasteful federal programs,” or “decrease federal regulation.” For those truly interested in cutting waste, we have a winning issue: banning horse slaughter. Not only does the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (S. 1176) help end the abuse of over 100,000 American horses being hauled to and slaughtered in Mexico and Canada for human consumption, but this bill would also eliminate a federal program while saving the American taxpayer millions of dollars a year. Amazingly, however, while some in Congress talk about cuts, a few of the same politicians are quietly trying to restore a USDA program that was eliminated six years ago. At the time Congress shut this program down, it was costing taxpayers $5 million a year, almost exclusively for the benefit of foreign interests. Restoring it now would cost much more — and require an increase in federal bureaucracy to boot. It is time for the American people to stand up for horses while taking a stand against those in Congress working both sides of the issue when it comes to federal spending. Contact your Senators TODAY in support of S. 1176, the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act. For more background on the issue and the legislation, please visit www.awionline.org/horseslaughter. What You Can Do: Managing for Extinction: Shortcomings of BLM’s National Wild Horse & Burro Program Available
The Animal Welfare Institute’s updated report on the state of America’s wild horses is now available. If you would like a copy you can click on the link below or if you would like to order a large number of the booklets please email directly with your request. http://www.awionline.org/ht/d/ContentDetails/id/2646/pid/2456 Managing for Extinction: Shortcomings of the Bureau of Land Management’s National Wild Horse and Burro Program Senator Kirk Introduces Bill to End Inhumane Transport of Horses on Double Deck TrailersWashington, D.C. (June 28, 2011) – Late Monday night, Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) introduced The Horse Transportation Safety Act of 2011 (S. 1281) to ban double deck trailer transportation of horses in the United States. Senator Kirk has worked to end the use of double deck transports for hauling horses since serving in the House of Representatives, following a horrific double deck trailer accident that took place in his state. “Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) is elated that Senator Kirk has chosen to reassert his strong commitment to the issue since his election to the Senate last year,” said Christine Sequenzia, federal policy advisor at AWI. “Humane horse transportation is one of our top priorities and we felt that committee passage of a standalone bill during the 111th Congress was an important step forward. We now look forward to seeing the Horse Transportation Safety Act of 2011 signed into law.” Double deck livestock trailers on the road today were built to meet the specific design and engineering requirements of short-necked livestock species, like cattle, sheep, and swine. Unfortunately, a few irresponsible haulers have used these trailers against manufacturer intent to transport horses, leading to inhumane travel conditions for equines and unsafe roadways for drivers. The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and the National Agriculture Safety Database (NASD) have recommended ceiling heights no lower than 7’-8’ to transport horses safely, while average double deck trailer ceiling heights range from 4’7”-5‘11”. The U.S. Department of Transportation only requires bridges to have a vertical clearance of 14′ in both rural and urban areas, making it impractical to build or modify a trailer large enough to transport equines on two levels. “Besides being an inhumane way to transport horses, double-deck trailers pose a major safety threat to the drivers of the imbalanced, oversized vehicles, as well as to other motorists,” said Senator Kirk. “Unfortunately, crashes due to these factors have occurred, and the results of the accidents are devastating. Following an accident in 2007 in Wadsworth, Ill., authorities worked for five hours before they were able to free the horses from the wreckage.” |
Monday, January 30, 2012 – At long last, a ban on the use of trailers with more than one level for hauling horses is on the verge of being considered by Congress… It is also on the verge of being derailed. While language clearly banning ALL hauling of horses by double-deck trailers is included in the Surface Transportation Extension Act, opponents are trying to undermine this modest yet important legislation.
Washington, DC (January 23, 2012) – Some politicians in Washington feel that restarting a horse slaughter industry on American soil is a good idea. We’d like to offer a small window into how the horse slaughter industry currently operates, as shady players make deals amongst themselves while duping innocent people into giving up their horses to be butchered. Read on…
Washington, D.C. (November 15, 2011) – It would appear that some in Congress are all talk when it comes to seriously reducing federal spending and decreasing the size of government. Despite overwhelming objections from the American public and the horse community, and despite Congress’ own supposed belief in fiscal restraint, the fate of America’s horses was undermined by three Members of Congress and their staffs behind closed doors this week. For years, an amendment to the annual Agriculture Appropriations bill has prevented tax dollars from being used to “inspect” horse slaughter facilities in the U.S. The House of Representatives voted this year to again include it in the Fiscal Year 2012 Agriculture Appropriations bill, but three members of the Conference Committee, Representative Jack Kingston (R-GA), Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI), and Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO), removed it from the final bill. A fourth member of the Conference Committee, Representative Sam Farr (D-CA), was the lone objector.
For years, the Animal Welfare Institute’s brochure on horse slaughter has been used by horsemen and activists across the US to help raise awareness about this cruel industry. AWI has just released an updated version of this fact filled color brochure and will be providing copies for free to those working to help educate the public. We have also created an insert filled with information about how you can take action in support of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act currently pending before Congress.
Monday, October 3, 2011 — Washington, D.C. — Earlier this year, the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) was honored to announce the exclusive release of the Rolling Stones’ classic 
There are a number of ways for you to voice your opposition to horse slaughter and register your support for a permanent ban on this practice, including responding to AWI eAlerts, taking action through AWI’s Compassion Index at 
Please tell your Senators to Support the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act
