AMERICAN HORSE SLAUGHTER PREVENTION ACT UPDATE

January 20, 2007, AMERICAN HORSE SLAUGHTER PREVENTION ACT UPDATE

Federal Appeals Court Declares Horse Slaughter in Texas IllegalTwo of the Nation’s Three Horse Slaughter Plants Face Closure, Criminal ChargesWASHINGTON (Jan. 20, 2007) – The Humane Society of the United States, which has been campaigning to ban the slaughter of American horses for export for human consumption, hailed a decision yesterday by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit overturning a lower court decision that invalidated a Texas state law banning the sale of horsemeat for human consumption. The HSUS filed an amicus brief in the case in March 2006, arguing in defense of Texas’ state law barring the slaughter of American horses for human consumption overseas."This is the most important court action ever on the issue of horse slaughter. A federal appeals court has ruled that America’s horses can no longer be slaughtered in Texas and shipped to foreign countries for food,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO for The Humane Society of the United States. “When this ruling is enforced, a single plant in Illinois will stand alone in conducting this grisly business.” The criminal code of Texas has long prohibited the sale or possession of horse meat, but the law has never been enforced. In 2002, responding to citizen and local government concerns about the two foreign-owned horse slaughter plants in the state – Dallas Crown in Kaufman and Beltex in Fort Worth – then-Texas Attorney General John Cornyn issued a written opinion that the 1949 Texas law applies and may be enforced.In response, the Tarrant County District Attorney attempted to enforce the law, but last year a federal district court in Texas ruled that the law was repealed by another statute and preempted by federal law. The District Attorney appealed that decision last year, and was supported by The HSUS in briefing before the Court of Appeals.In its decision, the court flatly rejected the slaughterhouses’ arguments that the ban on the sale of horsemeat does not protect horses from theft and abuse, and that regulating horse slaughter can achieve those same purposes, noting instead that “it is a matter of commonsense that…alternatives…do not preserve horses as well as completely prohibiting the sale and transfer of horsemeat for human consumption.” The court noted that the horse on the Texas trail is a cinematic icon, but “not once in memory did the cowboy eat his horse.”The Court of Appeals also quickly brushed aside the slaughter plants’ arguments that the Texas law at issue was invalid under state and federal law, noting that the Texas law “has not been repealed or preempted by federal law,” and that “several states have already banned its commercial use for human consumption.”“The Texas law prohibiting the sale of horse meat for human food could hardly be any more explicit," said Jonathan Lovvorn, vice president of animal protection litigation for The HSUS. "The court’s decision means that any individual employee or corporation involved in the horse slaughter business in Texas now stares straight ahead at criminal prosecution."According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 100,800 American horses were slaughtered in three foreign-owned slaughter houses in 2006. Opponents of the slaughter ban argue the practice constitutes a humane way to kill old animals*, but investigations by The HSUS show cruelty and abuse throughout the process. USDA statistics show that more than 92 percent of horses slaughtered in the U.S. are not old and infirm but in good condition.Legislation to ban the slaughter of American horses nationwide was introduced this week in the 110th Congress, and this court ruling will give further momentum to the federal legislative effort. In the U.S. Senate, the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, S. 311, was launched Jan. 17 by Sens. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) and John Ensign (R-Nev.), with 12 original cosponsors. In the U.S. House, Reps. Janice Schakowsky (D-Ill.) Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.), John Spratt (D-S.C.), and Nick Rahall (D-W.V.) introduced a companion bill, H.R. 503, the same day with 62 original cosponsors.The measure received tremendous bipartisan support in the 109th Congress, winning a vote of 263 to 146 in the House. It stalled in the Senate in late 2006, however, and was not brought up for a vote before Congress adjourned, even though a similar effort had been overwhelmingly approved by the Senate in 2005.

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In case you didn't know... *According to D.R.E.R.C. studies,
The horses that go to slaughter are of different ages, young and old. For the most part, they were healthy animals in bad luck situations. We know this because D.R.E.R.C. has had several rescue missions preventing horses from going to slaughter. Not one of the horses we rescued were too old or too ill to be viable animals. As a matter of fact they were all pretty young, healthy horses.

Be aware, some people are pro slaughter because they feel it to be humane to euthanize an animal that is ill. Some people who bring their horses to auction may unknowingly send their horse to slaughter. Killer buyers often shop the auction blocks. Slaughtering horses is cruel and inhumane. They suffer a great deal thru shipment and the actual act of slaughter. Please give us a call before you send a horse off to auction. OR- If you have a horse or know of a horse that needs to be euthanized, call a vet. Don't put an animal thought this much suffering. KNOW THE DIFFERENCE!!


We are not out of the woods yet!! What You Can Do…
Take the initiative.
Please contact your legislators today to say you're glad Congress approved the horse slaughter ban amendment, and to urge them to make sure horse slaughterhouses never open again! Ask that they co-sponsor the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act -- H.R. 503 in the House and S. 1915 in the Senate.
1- Write letters and more letters

2- Also, create awareness by passing this on to your friends, who can pass it on to

their friends & etc. The more people know, the more effective we can be in banning

slaughter.

3- Please make a donation by sending a check to;

Dude’s Ranch Equine Rescue Center.
23679 Calabasas Rd. #616
Calabasas, Ca . 91302



Dude's Ranch
Equine Rescue Center

661-269-2473
info@dudesranch.com

“Dude’s Ranch is a no-kill rescue organization for wayward horses who have been saved from abuse, slaughter and adverse conditions.”




WE NEED YOUR HELP!!
Make a pledge.
http://www.dudesranch.com/FosterCareSponsorshipDonationInfo.html