February 3, 2012 – Chicago (EWA) – A poll conducted in January by Lake Research Partners for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) found that 80% of Americans are strongly opposed to horse slaughter. The highly respected research group based its survey on 1,008 voters giving the results a 3% margin of error. The poll found opposition was consistent across all sectors, including horse owners.

The findings are all the more remarkable given the huge media effort that was mounted by the horse slaughter lobby following the closing of U.S. based horse slaughter plants in 2007.

While the effort appeared to have worked on Congress, causing them to restore funding for horse slaughter inspections, it had the opposite effect on voter opinion. A similar poll performed a decade earlier indicates that opposition to horse slaughter has increased by almost 10%.

The slaughter lobby, supported by some of the most powerful agriculture groups in the country including the Farm Bureau, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), the Pork Producers Council (PPC), the American Veterinary Medicine Association and the American Quarter Horse Association, has engaged some of the top lobbying and PR firms in Washington in a concerted effort to push back against what they saw as a victory for “animal rights” supporters.

EWA’s John Holland explains, “The horse slaughter issue has unfortunately become part of a much larger battle between big agriculture and animal welfare advocates. Big agriculture has decided to protect itself with an aggressive in-your-face strategy designed to preemptively crush its opponents, real and imagined.”

The promotion of horse slaughter is just one of the proxy battles being waged by the Ag giants. In July of 2011, the NCBA and the PPC opposed a plan already agreed to by the United Egg Producers (UEP) and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) to replace existing battery cages with equally efficient environments that create better living conditions for laying hens. The move showed a willingness to attack even other animal agriculture associations who appeared to be bending toward better humane standards.

Perhaps the most bizarre example of this aggressive strategy is SB 610 introduced into the Virginia Legislature this year by State Senator Dick Black. The bill called for working dogs to be reclassified as livestock, effectively removing their humane protection as companion animals. Following an avalanche of criticism, Black announced he was pulling the bill and admitting that he had introduced it “to aid the agriculture and farming community at their request.” He went on to mention the Farm Bureau and the Agribusiness Council by name.

“This newest poll should serve as a warning to politicians who have yielded to big Ag bullying,” says EWA’s Vick Tobin. “Voters are not with you on the horse slaughter issue.”

The Equine Welfare Alliance is a dues-free 501c4, umbrella organization with over 220 member organizations and hundreds of individual members worldwide in 18 countries. The organization focuses its efforts on the welfare of all equines and the preservation of wild equids. www.equinewelfarealliance.org

Contacts:

John Holland
540-268-5693
john@equinewelfarealliance.org

Vicki Tobin
630.961.9292
vicki@equinewelfarealliance.org

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…

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.”

Her middleman is alleged to be one Bruce Rotz, Jr., who operates his killer buyer business from barns in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania.  He is under contract to buy horses for the Canadian meat company Viande Richelieu.

Long before Rotz was a killer buyer, however, the Rotz family gained notoriety via another avenue of animal abuse: as Class B dealers. Rotz worked for his father, Bruce Rotz, Sr., who acquired dogs via an illicit supply chain and made tens of thousands of dollars a year selling the poor victims — many of whom were likely former companion animals — to research facilities for experimentation.

As dog dealers, the Rotzes had numerous run-ins with the law.  The elder Rotz was fined $1,240 in 2005 for failing to meet minimum requirements under the Animal Welfare Act.  The Rotzes acquired many of the dogs they sold from a family of notorious dealers in Missouri whose license was eventually revoked and a fine imposed for violations of the federal law, including failing to keep accurate records on hundreds of the dogs they sold.

In 2006, Bruce Rotz Sr. let his license to operate as a random source dog dealer expire, and he sold his business. Although Bruce Rotz, Jr. continued to work for the new owner for a while, he was already moving on to horses by then. Though he’s shifted species from dogs to horses, Rotz’s methods appear to be the same.  He is part of a dirty business where animals come to him from questionable sources, and he sells them for profit.  He frequents the nearby New Holland horse auction to acquire horses, including former racehorses, for the trade in their meat.  Recently, according to the criminal investigation, Rotz bought horses from Ms. Lefever.

Rotz doesn’t appear to be any more concerned with where the horses come from than he was with the dogs — and because he is once removed from the known illegal activity, he appears to be successfully ducking prosecution.  While Lefever faces prosecution for her fraudulent acquisition of the horses, Rotz remains free — a fine example of the sort of individual poised to take a lead role in a revised American horse slaughter industry.

“This makes you wonder why some Members of Congress are fighting so hard to restore an industry filled with crooked individuals like Rotz and Lefever, while thumbing their noses at those responsible owners who lost their horses into slaughter against their will,” said Chris Heyde, deputy director of government and legal affairs for AWI.  “Thankfully, the majority of legislators are supporting passage of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act which would protect horses from corrupt profiteers.”

For more information:
Chris Heyde, chris@awionline.org, (202) 446-2142

January 16, 2012 – Chicago (EWA) – The Equine Welfare Alliance (EWA) children’s letter writing campaign to end horse slaughter, first announced on January 5th, has now received the support of The United Federation of Teachers (UFT) Humane Education Committee.

The Equine Welfare Alliance (EWA) was contacted by the committee to offer their support and to obtain additional information on the campaign. The committee enclosed a letter from one of their teachers with an email voicing support from Senator Joe Lieberman.

The EWA will provide information to help support, update and expand lesson plans developed by the committee. The plans can be found on the EWA’s new Children’s Page, along with fun and educational videos about famous horses.

The UFT Humane Education Committee’s lessons already provided children with sound basic information about horses, their functions in our society, and the issue of horse slaughter. The UFT Humane Education Committee is involved in many such projects with the goal of enhancing student skills in science and literacy through humane education.

Support for the campaign has been overwhelming from both the U.S. and around the world. “Children aren’t given enough credit for their intuitive understanding of right and wrong, especially when it pertains to humane treatment of animals,” said EWA’s Vicki Tobin. “We have received letters, poems, videos and pictures from children as young as 4 years old. We were amazed at the unique ways they made their points.”

“In our opinion,” explained EWA’s John Holland, “it is vital to our society that children grow up with a healthy attitude toward all animals and their welfare.  Such empathy for the plight of defenseless creatures will bring forth a healthier attitude toward their fellow humans later in life, and the legacy of young people who abuse animals has well documented and frightening consequences.”

Jo-Claire Corcoran of EWA’s research team started the campaign and is thrilled with the response she has received in support of America’s horses. “Horses have played such a significant role in our country’s history. Not only do horses continue to protect our citizens in law enforcement, they provide entertainment and serve as loyal companions,” added Jo-Claire.

EWA is calling on children and adults to demand President Obama and our Congress pass the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act of 2011 and afford America’s horses the protection they so richly deserve. The time is now.

Press requests for letters or video presentations by children should be made to: jo-claire@equinewelfarealliance.org.

The Equine Welfare Alliance is a dues-free 501c4, umbrella organization with over 210 member organizations and hundreds of individual members worldwide. The organization focuses its efforts on the welfare of all equines and the preservation of wild equids. www.equinewelfarealliance.org

Contacts:

John Holland
540-268-5693
john@equinewelfarealliance.org

Jo-Claire Corcoran
276.970.5607
jo-claire@equinewelfarealliance.org

January 6, 2012 – Chicago (EWA) – Jo-Claire Corcoran of the Equine Welfare Alliance’s Research Team has launched a children’s letter writing campaign to end the slaughter of American horses. Canadian partners have launched a parallel campaign aimed at stopping horse slaughter in Canada.

A similar campaign forty years ago resulted in the passage of the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act that was passed on a unanimous vote in both houses. Jo-Claire commented, “As Wild Horse Annie proved in 1971 congress listened to the children of this country. Sometimes we do not give our children credit for their ability to comprehend. Children growing up on farms which raise animals for food are aware those animals are going to slaughter to become food; they understand those animals were raised for that purpose.” She added, “My grandson understands the difference between animals raised for food and animals that are not raised for food.”

Horse owners and advocates were outraged at the back-room sub-committee meeting that removed language that defunded federal horse inspections without a full house and senate debate. “It is deplorable”, commented EWA’s Vicki Tobin, “that three legislators were allowed to ignore the voice of the people and decide the fate of horses across our nation.”

The concept came to her when Jo-Claire’s six year old grandson heard a newscast stating the President had signed the appropriations bill and could mean that horse slaughter would resume in the U.S. He innocently asked his Grandmother, “Why is the President letting them kill horses?” He is also aware that their horse had been saved from slaughter.

EWA is getting a tremendous, positive response from parents, schools and teachers in both countries.

“This is a civics lesson for children of all ages”, explained EWA’s John Holland. “Our governments, both the United States of America and Canada, provide the right for their citizens to petition their government to bring about positive change when something is wrong. Children need to know that as citizens in these countries, they have the right to have a voice and a right to be heard.”

With parental consent, EWA plans to offer sample letters for publication in the local papers of the children.

To learn more about the campaign in Canada and the U.S., please visit http://www.equinewelfarealliance.org/How_You_Can_Help.html.

The Equine Welfare Alliance is a dues-free 501c4, umbrella organization with over 210 member organizations and hundreds of individual members worldwide. The organization focuses its efforts on the welfare of all equines and the preservation of wild equids. www.equinewelfarealliance.org

Contacts:

John Holland
540-268-5693
john@equinewelfarealliance.org

Jo-Claire Corcoran
276.970.5607
jo-claire@equinewelfarealliance.org

Recently a billboard was put up in Palm Beach County regarding the issue of horse slaughter and specifically against horse slaughter. Pure Thoughts Inc. Horse Rescue stands against horse slaughter and always will; it is a horrific end for a horse’s life; our goal and mission has always been and always will be the welfare of the horses.

Pure Thoughts did not have any prior notice of this billboard (we found out through the newspaper), nor did we contribute financially. Every penny we raise goes directly to the care of the horses at the rescue and we struggle daily to keep the rescue operating. Although a billboard for the rescue could help raise funds, increase adoptions and encourage volunteers, it is just not a luxury we can afford.

As a result of this billboard being put up in Palm Beach County there have been derogative and disparaging remarks posted on various pages in the Facebook community regarding the Wellington Equestrian Community, the Equestrian Show Community and even the Polo Community, as well as the Palm Beach community, stating everything from ignorance of horse slaughter to ambivalence of horse welfare. Pure Thoughts does not appreciate, condone or stand by any of these comments made. They are clearly from people who do not know this community and its dedication to the horses and their welfare. Although we have done our best to retort to all comments made we do not have the time to go in search of every uneducated post so we want to make it clear that not only do we stand by our community and all it entails during show season and all year long, we are PROUD to be a part of it.

In 2012, Pure Thoughts will be entering its tenth year. Ten years of taking in horses, rehabilitating the ones that need it and placing horses in good, quality homes. This in itself speaks for the quality of the horse community of Palm Beach County and throughout the State of Florida. There is good and bad everywhere, but to us, you – our community – that is the heart and soul of this rescue.

Please feel free to come out anytime, whether to volunteer, adopt, donate or just for a visit.  You can also see some of our amazing horses for adoption here: http://www.equine.com/horses-for-sale/search-results.html?uname=PureThoughtsHorseRescue&is_rescue_horse=on.

We wish everyone and the horses a healthy, safe and happy New Year! www.PTHR.org.

Jennifer Swanson
Pure Thoughts Inc. Horse Rescue
19181 Capet Creek
Loxahatchee, FL 33470
www.pthr.org
561-951-2108

January 1, 2012 – Chicago (EWA) – Equine Welfare Alliance (EWA) launched a major campaign on December 30 to expose the underhanded move by Rep. Jack Kingston (GA) and Sens. Kohl (WI) and Blunt (MO) that reinstated horse inspections and opened the way for horse slaughter to return to US soil.

On a must pass bill, the three legislators in a tiny committee quietly removed the language that prohibited the use of taxpayer dollars to fund horse inspections. The action effectively legalized horse slaughter in the US without a debate in the full house and senate, where a straight vote would have failed.

The ad campaign was launched in major theaters running the War Horse film in the legislator’s districts and also reached out to Montana and Wyoming to cover Sen. Baucus and state Rep. Sue Wallis who has become the face of horse slaughter as well as Wallis’ Representative Cynthia Lummis of WY.

Featured in the ad is a remarkable Korean War hero, an equine named Reckless. The ad uses this one remarkable equine and her war time heroism to make the point that horses are our animal partners and not just “livestock”, explains EWA Vice President Vicki Tobin.

Sgt. Reckless hauled supplies to Marines, carried wounded off the battle field, was wounded twice, and performed many of her duties without a handler. Staff Sergeant Reckless was a beloved legend of the Marine Corps. She was promoted to sergeant in 1957 and then to staff sergeant in 1959 by the Commandant of the Marines. She was retired in 1960 to Camp Pendleton and when she died in 1968, she was buried at Camp Pendleton with full military honors.

Rep. Jack Kingston excused his action saying horses were “just like cows”.

If the funding move was designed to deal a death blow to the anti-slaughter movement it appears to have had the opposite effect. “We were able to raise the funding for the campaign and produce it in just two weeks,” explained Tobin.

The move has not been popular with Congress either. With an all-time low approval rating, members did not need such a blatant example of pandering to special interests. Over 50 Congressmen and Senators signed on as co-sponsors of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (H.R. 2966 / S. 1176) after the language was removed.

John Holland, president of EWA, stated, “This is not the end. We want to send a message that if you betray our horses we will haunt you to the ends of the earth. We will continue to attack these individuals as long as we have resources and they are in office.” When asked why the EWA was attacking Senator Kohl, given that he has announced he will not run for reelection, Holland said, “We want his successor to have an example.”

The funding action is seen by the EWA as just one more example of how special interests are running our country and through the ad campaign, the EWA is joining the growing chorus shouting “enough is enough”. Legislation should be enacted because of its merits, not the deep pockets of Big Agriculture or any other special interest group. Our horses belong in the horse industry, not a foreign meat business.

EWA and equine advocates across the country are calling on President Obama to stand up against special interests as he promised and issue an immediate executive order to ban the slaughter and transport to slaughter of America’s domestic and wild horses.

Link to the ad: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tlv7P6xWekE

Link to ad referral site: www.realwarhorse.com

Link to EWA site: http://www.equinewelfarealliance.org/Real_War_Horse.html

The Equine Welfare Alliance is a dues-free 501c4, umbrella organization with over 210 member organizations and hundreds of individual members worldwide. The organization focuses its efforts on the welfare of all equines and the preservation of wild equids. www.equinewelfarealliance.org

Contacts:

John Holland
540-268-5693
john@equinewelfarealliance.org

Vicki Tobin
630.961.9292
vicki@equinewelfarealliance.org

Chicago (EWA) – A six month investigation by the EWA and other animal investigation organizations has finally determined the predominant source of abandoned horses in the Southwestern US. The findings show that most or all of more than 5,000 horses a year are being abandoned after being rejected for slaughter at the Mexican border.

The investigation explains the source and reason for abandonments, most of which have been reported in the vast stretches of isolated land north of the Mexican border since 2009. Most of these horses could clearly be identified as domestic stock from such indications as nail holes in their hooves (where shoes had recently been removed) but no other clues to their source were found.

Until now articles about their discovery have speculated that they were abandoned by individual owners because they could no longer afford to feed them. The horse slaughter lobby has further suggested that this was made worse because individuals “no longer had a slaughter option”.

Equine advocates countered this hypothesis by pointing out that there had been no decrease in slaughter to force such actions, and that the areas where they were being found did not have significant domestic horse populations.

Moreover, it made no sense that someone who could not afford to euthanize and bury a horse would elect instead to pay for hauling it hundreds or thousands of miles only to turn it loose. In fact, many horse advocates had good reason to suspect the reports were bogus.

Following the closure of US horse slaughter plants in 2007, there were a large number of stories published claiming horses were being abandoned because of a lack of slaughter. These reports ranged from reclaimed strip mines in Kentucky to the Florida Everglades and Oregon ranches. For a year each of these was investigated and found to be false or hugely distorted.

But in the past two years there have been an increasing number of authenticated reports of abandoned horses, mostly in the remote stretches of the southwest Border States. A few of these horses actually had hide removed, apparently to obscure a brand.

In August, the first piece of the puzzle fell into place when approximately 300 horses were spotted from the air starving and dead in a remote feedlot near the port-of-entry town of Presidio, Texas. The fact that living horses were found in different stages of starvation and the dead horses were in various stages of decomposition, indicated they had been dumped there at different times.

The situation became all the more puzzling when it was revealed that the feedlot was operated by the C4 Cattle Company and Intermeat Inc./Dallas Crown the Belgian meat company that had formerly operated the Dallas Crown horse slaughter plant in Kaufman, Texas. The company buys horses for slaughter in Mexico. It was also discovered that about 40 of the horses came from kill buyer Trenton Saulters.

The question was of course why they had left the horses to perish only a few miles from the border crossing where they could have been sold to the slaughter plants in Mexico.

An answer came in the European Union’s (EU’s) report (DG(SANCO) 2010-8524 – MR) from the 2010 audit of their horse slaughter plants in Mexico. In section 5.2.1.2, the report divulged that Mexico had rejected 5,336 slaughter horses out of 62,560 presented at six OISAs (Border Crossing Offices) during the audit period between January and October 2010.

The horses were rejected under a new system of controls implemented in December, 2009. Reasons for rejection included health problems, advanced pregnancy and injuries.

The final piece of the puzzle came from an investigation by EWA on how the USDA’s APHIS (Animal and Plant Inspection Service) tracks horses bound for slaughter. EWA’s Valerie James-Patton was researching the Owner/Shipper certificate system which is supposed to allow APHIS to assure humane regulations are being followed. When asked what happens to horses rejected at the Mexican border, she was told simply “they fall out of the system.”

Normally kill buyers who haul slaughter horses to Mexico try to fill their trailers with cattle and other animals on the return journey. So clearly they need to dispose of the rejected horses, and the most economical way to do so is to simply abandon them on a deserted stretch of road or in an isolated lot.

Ironically, while the horse slaughter lobby has been claiming abandonment was a result of a lack of slaughter, it now appears it is in large part a result of the practice.

The Equine Welfare Alliance is a dues-free 501c4, umbrella organization with over 210 member organizations and hundreds of individual members worldwide. The organization focuses its efforts on the welfare of all equines and the preservation of wild equids. www.equinewelfarealliance.org

Contacts:

John Holland
540-268-5693
john@equinewelfarealliance.org

Vicki Tobins
630.961.9292
vicki@equinewelfarealliance.org

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.

“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.”

Some legislators are trying to disguise what they did as helping the horses, but there is substantial evidence of horses suffering at taxpayers’ expense when slaughter was permitted in the U.S. While a recent GAO report attempted to connect an increase in abuse to a cessation of horse slaughter in the U.S., the authors noted that there was no actual proof other than claims put forward by pro-horse slaughter proponents.

With this cynical move, there is now only one avenue left for ending the tragedy of the slaughter of horses for human consumption:  Swift action on the GAO’s other recommendation — passage of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act.

“AWI commends Representative Farr (D-CA), ranking member of the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, for being the sole member of the Conference Committee to stand up for America’s horses and fiscal responsibility,” noted Heyde.  “We look forward to working with Representative Farr and other Members of Congress on passage of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act.”

The Animal Welfare Institute is calling on everyone who has horses and cares about the welfare of America’s horses to demand that Congress pass the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act immediately.

Chris Heyde, chris@awionline.org, (202) 446-2142

November 6, 2011 – Preferring to deal in facts, we prefer not to editorialize about personalities. However, sometimes a public figure will say something so revealing about their motives and ethical beliefs that it suddenly shines a light into motives that had never seen light.

We are, of course, referring to the heretofore enigma that was Sue Wallis, WY state representative and self-appointed scientist, veterinarian, medical doctor and omnipotent master of all aspects of horses and their welfare.

In recent years, Sue Wallis has effectively galvanized the pro-horse slaughter movement and become its undisputed leader. As she has accomplished this, she has become ever more vitriolic in her attacks against those she sees as “animal rights extremists”, blaming them for all manner problems facing the horse industry, and immediately proclaiming that any evidence emerging to the contrary is a lie.

The enigma was not that someone with no pertinent knowledge or experience could, through bluff and bluster, be able to rise to a position of leadership. Indeed, history is replete with examples of this phenomenon, and it was all the easier because no one of reputation in the horse industry wanted to publicly accept the crown of entrails.

No, the enigma was why a mother of seven children with no equine experience should be motivated to take up this grizzly crusade. Wallis portrays herself as representing the horse industry although she doesn’t own a horse. Clearly Wallis is trying to turn the horse industry into a meat industry, but how would that benefit her?

Wallis, a rural state legislator, spends her days and nights lobbying. She does this with a 501(c)(3), a charitable designation that only permits a small percentage of time to lobbying. The lobbying is done under the guise of “educating” so as not to arouse IRS suspicions. There are two things wrong with this picture. First, one must have facts to educate, and second, virtually every communication from Wallis is aimed at influencing Congress.

Her organization started as United Organizations of the Horse (UOH), a mutual benefit corporation that doesn’t allow tax deductible donations. To get around that, the donate button bounced over to the 501(c)(3) organization of her sidekick,  quarter horse breeder Dave Duquette, titled United Horsemen’s Front. Possibly realizing that name portrayed too much, it was changed to United Horsemen (UH).

Earlier this year, UOH faded into the sunset as have numerous other websites of Wallis’ and then Dave Duquette disappeared. Currently, Wallis is sending all her “educational” materials from UH that was supposed to be moved to WY earlier this year.

Until now, nothing has raised an eyebrow among her devoted flock. Not when she sold them lotto tickets for a truck and then faked its presentation with a loaner from a dealership; not when she announced unregistered investment opportunities in a slaughter house in Wyoming that was never built; not when she came out in support of the indefensible abuse that is horse tripping; not when she claimed videos of abuse in horse slaughter facilities were faked only to have government agencies authenticate them; no, nothing shook their faith. Nothing that is, until now.

Over the past week, a young Oregonian woman and her boyfriend killed their horse, disemboweled it, and took a series of photos of the woman peering out of the abdomen of the horse as well as standing nude while apparently eating its raw heart.

The images were posted to YouTube and soon went viral. The story was so disturbing that we hesitated to even acknowledge it. But Sue Wallis felt otherwise.

Sue thought this was fun. Her exact blog quote was: “Wonder what the AR nutjobs will make of this? People humanely kill an old horse, butcher it to use the good meat, and decide to have some fun with it, and take pictures.”

She went on to ask her followers to support the couple who she felt were being unfairly criticized!  This was finally too much for her minions. While they had no problem at all with killing or eating the horse, they were horrified that her statements showed her deeper motivation, and their fear was justified.

Suddenly Sue Wallis is a known entity, as exposed and disturbed as that young woman standing nude bathed in the blood of her horse. Whether it was the incident in England a decade ago when her refusal to mount a horse for a photo opportunity ruined her tour as a traveling “cowgirl poet”, or whether it was being kicked as a child, the disrespect in which she holds horses is now clear to all the world. She can no longer claim to care about their welfare.

Slowly at first, her supporters began to realize their leader had made a fatal blunder and to speak out. Across cyberspace her words were going viral and being irretrievably secreted away in a thousand caches.

Yet even after her supporters called her on the devastating admission and how it would reflect on slaughter supporters, she retorted with, “[name], if you had lived in my shoes over these last few years you would know that it doesn’t matter what I say or don’t say, “they” will make something up. It is all a Saul Alinsky style campaign to make it a personal attack on a single individual instead of a broader problem affecting every horse owning family and business in the U.S. I ignore it. It is irrelevant. Once you understand that simple concept, it is pretty easy to figure out what is going on.”

Meanwhile, Europeans continue to eat our horses, apparently oblivious to the fact that the meat is often contaminated with drug residues. We wonder if those who have been consuming Wallis’ “information” will now realize what a poisoned well they have been drinking from.

Contact Information: John Holland | 540.268.2693 | john@equinewelfarealliance.org

www.equinewelfarealliance.org

The Equine Welfare Alliance is a dues-free 501c4, umbrella organization with over 200 member organizations and hundreds of individual members worldwide. The organization focuses its efforts on the welfare of all equines and the preservation of wild equids. www.equinewelfarealliance.org

November 2, 2011 – Chicago (EWA) – During his 2008 campaign, President Obama promised his unequivocal support for a ban on horse slaughter. “Now is the time for you to keep that promise, Mr. President,” says John Holland, president of Equine Welfare Alliance.

Calling it “paramount to public health”, the Equine Welfare Alliance (EWA) and Animal Law Coalition sent a letter to President Obama, urging him to support a ban on equine slaughter for human consumption.  The groups also presented the president with more than 6,000 signatures on a White House petition calling for an end to equine slaughter for human consumption.

At the time the petition was created, the White House indicated the administration would consider any issue with at least 5,000 signatures. The equine slaughter ban petition easily gathered more signatures, more quickly than a petition created to reinstate equine slaughter for human consumption in the U.S. The opposition petition was lacking 2,750 signatures when the petition to ban horse slaughter reached 5,000.

Realizing they didn’t have the support, slaughter supporters solicited the help of the American Quarter Horse Association to attempt to reach the required number of signatures. As the deadline approached, the pro-slaughter petition was still well below the required 5,000 signatures. Almost 1,000 then appeared overnight to reach the required minimum, but many of the last minute entries consisted of nothing more than first and last initials. If that wasn’t suspicious enough, this came after a call from the opposition to obtain a list of friends and family that “didn’t have computers” to register and sign for them.

Sadly, the White House petition site lacks security precautions to prevent such apparent abuse and to assure one vote per individual. POPVOX, a site which has better security against fraud, has consistently registered support for anti-slaughter legislation at a rate of 3 to 1.

While the argument over horse slaughter is hot and contentious, the fact remains that American horses were not raised for human consumption. “The disregard for food safety of European consumers is unconscionable,” stated EWA’s Vicki Tobin. “If they tried to sell the meat from our horses In the U.S., they would be in violation of government food safety regulations.”

Horse slaughter has not ended or slowed down since the US slaughter plants were closed in 2007. The same number of horses is being slaughtered as when the domestic plants were open. It should be obvious that slaughter does not prevent neglect nor does it control the population. It is absurd to suggest that killing horses is going to restore an industry that makes its billions from live horses, especially when slaughter provides only 3 cents of every $100 of revenue.

On behalf of our members, the EWA and ALC call on the President to close this ugly chapter in American history.

The Equine Welfare Alliance is a dues-free 501c4, umbrella organization with over 200 member organizations and hundreds of individual members worldwide. The organization focuses its efforts on the welfare of all equines and the preservation of wild equids. www.equinewelfarealliance.org

The Animal Law Coalition is a coalition of pet owners and rescuers, advocates, attorneys, law students, veterinarians, shelter workers, decision makers, and other citizens, that advocates for the rights of animals to live and live free of cruelty and neglect. www.animallawcoalition.com

Contacts:

John Holland, Equine Welfare Alliance
540.268.5693
john@equinewelfarealliance.org

Laura Allen, Animal Law Coalition and Equine Welfare Alliance, general counsel
425.419.7301
lauraallen@animallawcoalition.com