7. PROTECT WILD HORSES FROM SLAUGHTER

Rescue works to end the abuse and neglect of horses, both domestic and wild, through rescue and education programs.

In 2005, Front Range Equine Rescue launched its “Save the Wild Horses” campaign in direct response to the Burns Amendment and has expanded this program as wild horse and burro protections continue to be abused and eroded. This national campaign assists mustangs with direct rescue from the slaughter pipeline, educates FRER supporters and the general public on wild horse issues, advocates on behalf of increased protections for wild horses especially with regard to ending unnecessary and brutal round ups, coordinates supporters in petition drives directed at government agencies or officials on behalf of wild horses, submits responses to BLM proposed wild horse and burro actions during required public comment periods, and engages in legal actions.

While horse slaughter plants are currently barred from operating in the United States, the transport of horses into Canada and Mexico for slaughter remains legal. The Forest Service’s plan provides a clear incentive for kill-buyers to obtain these horses and profit from selling them for meat.

The decision to facilitate the purchase of horses en masse for almost no money–from whence they can be sold to slaughter–flies in the face of overwhelming public opposition. Eighty percent of Americans are opposed to horse slaughter and with good reason: Horse slaughter is brutal and often prolonged–with their unique physiology and strong “fight or flight” reactions, horses may endure repeated blows to the head (or slashes to the neck) until they are rendered unconscious and killed.