“The answer is simply, yes. Humane and regulated horse slaughter is, in fact, the only solution that protects the well being of horses while preserving owner rights, and stabilizes the industry. It is the only moral and ethical way to deal with excess horses that nobody wants, and who otherwise get turned out to fend for themselves in harsh deserts, kept in the pasture or corral until they starve, or killed and left to rot in a ditch at a total loss and waste to everyone, not to mention a significant environmental problem.” ~Slaughterhouse Sue
As we all know, Slaughterhouse Sue considers herself to be a poet and creative writer. I guess this fact is lost on her blind followers. The above quote paints quite a picture, wouldn’t you agree? One of the hallmarks of being a PSA is sweeping generalizations and speaking in absolutes. So, if we are to take her statement at face value, truckloads of horses are being turned loose, there is pastures upon pastures of starving animals and our ditches are filled with decomposing horses. She’s all concerned about the environment even though she doesn’t give a rat’s ass about what her proposed slaughter plant is going to do to an entire community, environmentally or economically. Very convenient!
The fact is that yes, some people do turn their horses loose to fend for themselves. It’s kinda how we ended up with wild horses in the first place if you want to go back in time far enough. Personally, I don’t think it’s a great option or humane to do to a domesticated horse, but it does happen. I know a guy in Canada that used to go catch `wildies’ every few years (you had to have a permit to do this). He used them on his pack string once they were broke and swore by them as he said they were tough and sure footed. I remember one year he came home with a nice stout bay mare. When he got her shed out, she had a brand on her and turned out was very well broke. How did she get there? Nobody will ever know. She may have been turned loose, or more likely, she got taken by a stallion from a back country rider. I haven’t seen any hard numbers, but I would guess that the number of domesticated horses that end up turned loose to fend for themselves is less than 2% . I will also go out on a limb and say that number won’t change with slaughter. The kind of people that think this is a good option for a horse, likely will still think it’s a good option, however misguided that may be.
I grew up in ranching country. I remember there was a ranch in the hills west of us that you had to go by when we were moving our cattle to their summer pastures. That hill was always called `Hungry Horse Hill’ due to this ranch having a field full of starving horses. There were often dead ones in amongst the live ones and aside from the odd moldy bale of hay, those poor horses never had much to eat. It was disgusting and eventually the guy either went broke or was run out of the area. The point being, is that this was in the 70’s. Slaughter was alive and well, yet this man didn’t see that as an option. He thought his horses were valuable and continued to breed them and starve them. Even the Humane Society could do very little as he did have some poor quality feed available to them when they checked. Again, this happened when there was slaughter. It takes a certain type of person that can do this to another living creature and the availability of domestic slaughter will NEVER change this. The only thing that will change it is if the Humane Society or SPCA have more authority to deal with such issues. That will never happen because then all the PSA Turds will start crying that they don’t want somebody to tell them what to do with their property. Funny how many of them have had visits from the Humane Society or Animal Control. There goes that whole lack of self awareness thing that is a trait of a PSA. I’ve yet to see a horse carcass in a ditch, so again I’m going to assume these are isolated incidents unless somebody can give me hard and verifiable numbers.
Since the last slaughter house closed in 2007, there has been repeated cries of unwanted horses and not being able to sell one. So, I did some digging around and found these quotes from a few PSAs:
” So I’m searching dreamhorse and the selection is just nothing. I thought I would see how many young AQHA horses are in my 200 mile radius. I was shocked, weanlings – 3, yearling-16, 2 year olds -6, 1-3year old. Just WOW, there is no selection compared to other years that I’ve searched young horses.”
umm IF you will tell your readers the REAL story BEHIND your last comment maybe jsut maybe youwould not look like an asshole, SO let me tell ya, THIS person( notme of course) LOST her home due to LOSS of JOB, loss of income due to bad renters. HER HORSES are CHAMPIONS and come from CHAMPION stock, these are NOT your run of the mill backyard pets. THESE are TOP HORSES. I guess you have never found yourself in money trouble either have you.
Most of them aren’t even registered or broke so I would guess they aren’t `champions’ at anything other than eating and pooping. If she lost her job and is in foreclosure she has NO business breeding anything. Period.
umm ALL OF THEM are or CAN be registered. You might want to try and look again. EVERY SINGLE one can or be registered.
Poor, stupid Daffy….she stated herself that some cannot be registered. MOST are not broke. Not exactly a reputable breeder….
Another thing I’ve noticed: PSA’s are full of contradictions. None of their arguments hold water or make any sense to a rational, thinking person. But cling to their mantra they do. Frightening really.
Which is why I question their true motives in all of this.
I really enjoy this blog – finally, a voice of reason! I am appalled with how many backyard breeders are out there. Despite the PSA’s protests that breeding is NOT part of the unwanted horse problem, go to Cragslist in any city USA, and hello… there are so many yearlings, two and three year olds, broodmares and stallions that should not be part of a breeding program advertised for sale or for stud. Most are unbroke, unhandled, and have less than stellar confirmation. It’s really tragic.
They want it both ways. The use the `unwanted’ horses as a platform for slaughter, yet when people cut back on breeding and there is less poor quality stock out there, they cry that there isn’t enough selection and don’t want to pay the price for a good horse. It seems to escape them that those same cheap `good horses’ will be the slaughter candidates if they get their way.
thus its called the TRUE BACKYARD BREEDER those are the horses you find on CL
Yes, so please stop breeding your dinks, Daffy.
ummm DINKS why don’t you let your followers decide. SO shed rowfollowers HOW is a mare that has JET deck on her papers, with AWSOME conformation that is a MONEY earner A dink, who is bred to a DASH FOR CASH grandson who is a MONEY EARNER and PROVEN a dink?
OH thats right because you ppl have no clue about barrel horses
I would be happy to let my followers decide. why don’t you email me pictures of the horses in question and I will post them and we will let the other people decide. I don’t care what their bloodlines are (yours are average) if they don’t look the part.
nope sorry i would my mare, but I DO NOT have permission to post the studs photo, want to see him you can see him on my friends Fb page. or mine. BUT i do not have permission to post him
You owned him and you do not have permission to post his picture? How about we link to his picture on Horse City? The fact is that I’m sure they are/were perfectly nice horses and you enjoy them. That does not mean they should be reproduced when you could go out and buy similar or better for less money than it would take to breed and raise one. You are pro slaughter. I would think that you have no place to complain about overpopulation and unwanted horses when you contribute to the problem. What if something happened that you could no longer afford to keep your horses? Do they have a value to anybody else? Honestly? Each and every time you breed a horse, that should be the under consideration.. I’m sorry, but I just don’t see it in the horses that you post as your own.
UMMM duh The stud she is being bred to IS NOT MINE>>>>> The STUD she is being bred to is THIS stud
http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/justa+leaving
He is owned by a Marla Stonbuner out of zanesville ohio. My stud JUDGE died last yr. HOW am I to bred my mare to HIM if he is in the ground?
and IF something would happen to me, I have 75 acres and a family that will see they are well taken care of..
As for going out ad buying one, WHY? My bloodlines are what i have researched and are preserving, and improving. I DO NOT pay a vet to do normal breeding exams, etc. The ONLY time I have a vet out is at 23 days to check for twins. THE rest I do. I have been trained in everything that comes with dealing with breeding and foaling horses.
So, you don’t take a culture on your mares or flush them? Your `training’ led to your own stud falling off a mare and injuring his back. I’m guessing you weren’t a great student?
I already told you I don’t think much of your bloodlines. Not my type of horse. I’m more concerned with what they look like and I don’t think any of your look like they should be bred. Period.
The mare hasn’t even been bred yet. I feel sorry for the Owner of the Stud & the Stud. Boy someone is looking through some very thick glasses when it comes to looking at a good horse. It may have names on its papers that were great horses but it doesn’t make that horse as great as those names on the papers. The only truth that comes from her mouth is about the stud. But the mare thats another story. Just another result of a back yard breeder. Her money earning horse has only made that money at local shows. No rodeos, no barrel racing shows, or breed shows. So maybe the baby from the result of the breeding will get everything from the stud but with her luck an accident will happen and something will happen to the foal. Seems like luck is always on her side. Really this whole researching bloodlines to breed her horses this one was that she got lucky and won the breeding through a benefit so she got lucky and got the breeding cheap.
LMAO!!! Oh Daffy, you are so busted…..
you really must not KNOW what to look for when you look for a barrel horse do you then. MY mare has the classic conformation of a WINNING barrel horse. WELL put toegether, NO faults, etc.
and NO i don’t take cultures on my mares, NO need to. or flush them. NOPE never have. no need to do something you don’t need to. I guess you have never been to a real breeding farm then have you? I have seen TB, QH, etc come off mares wrong all the time. IT happens.
SO WHAT kind of bloodlines do you like
You just tell me you don’t take cultures on open mares and then suggest I haven’t been to a real breeding farm. Hmmmm, I’ve been at most of the ones in KY, and quite a few other states. Never have seen a horse fall off a mare and never have taken them a mare that they didn’t need a culture and health certificates.
I don’t have to be a barrel racer to understand the concept of form to function. I just don’t care for your stock. Move on.
So, the stud you chose made a grand total of $9600 and has an average speed index. Not exactly Corona Cartel or Mr Jess Perry, is he?
that money earned is ONLY what he had won under certain events. HE has way more under rodeo events, they don’t list that per horse in the books its per rider. Doesn’t matter, he is a PROVEN sire, that is a money earner in NBHA, IPRA, etc. He produces good mined, good moving , FAST babies. I Look at his bloodlines after his confo. Speed index, does not mean shit to me. its how HE RUNS in barrels that matters to me.
as for the other no in fact I have never taken a mare to a breeders where they ask for cultures or health, WHY because they are all AI. So come on tell me what stock you like. throw some of YOUR bloodlines out there.
apparently you really don’t understand that one of the two TOP barrel racing lines that are coming back and are very popular are jet deck and dash for cash. BOTH of which the mare and stud have. TOo bad you cant understand that
I understand bloodlines very well. Just not impressed with yours. Different strokes, for different folks. What are you gonna do?
thats your OP. MANY MANY ppl are impressed with my bloodlines. sorry to dissappoint you. and MY mare yes is ( has never been bred) and you are saying thats a bad thing? Mare will be bred AI. and my mare has won money at NBHA, IBRA, and Rodeos. sorry to dissappoint you all again.
I think the other person was saying your mare hasn’t even been bred yet. It is getting a little late in the year to be breeding. If you are such a big time barrel racer, you would know that having an earlier foal helps things out if you want to go after any futurity money.
I think the consensus of those that have seen your horses and breeding program is that you suffer from a severe case of barn blindness.
OH and even IF i didn’t win this stud at a benefit action I would still have paid the full breeding fee.
I DON”T show my barrel horses in futurity I DON”T LIKE starting horses to run hard and fast until they are about 5 or 6, IF that. I DON”T like to have jan, feb, march foals here in ohio, because of the nasty winters we have. ALL of my foals are late foals, NOT one has been born before april. I DON”T show aqhA, only rodeo, NBHA, and breed shows.
From what OP says, you only show little local shows. Buckskin breed shows are notorious for being low entry and soft company. Not impressed.
umm how in the hell does the OP know where i show? I show breed IBHA and ABRA shows with my duns in contest classes, and rodeos I rodeo with IPRA, and SEBRA events. NHBA , IBRA barrel races. Sorry no little local shows around me worth even going to. I only go to the shows or barrel races that have more then 500 added money to it.
Yes and I went to the Calgary Stampeded once…..TO WATCH. I don’t believe you without proof. Now, copy and paste this and run back to your little bat cave so Mendy can continue to flick her bean over every little thing I say.
[…] are no good cheap horses to buy anymore and poor selection of the ones left out there. . See https://shedrowconfessions.wordpress.com/2012/06/26/where-have-all-the-unwanted-horses-gone/ for some PSA quotes on the issue. It seems they want to have a bunch of cheap horses to choose […]