At Risk Horses

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tma
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At Risk Horses

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It is Saturday. Trailers are beginning to line up and horses are being unloaded nearby.
Last edited by tma on Sun Aug 15, 2010 2:40 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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At Risk Horses

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As they enter the grounds, each horse is assigned a number and the horse is identified from then on, by the number on the sticker glued on it's hip.

Each horse is then tied in a pen...and waits.

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Last edited by tma on Sun Aug 15, 2010 2:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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They come in all colors, all sizes. All breeds and crosses.

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At Risk Horses

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More and more horses arrive. Some of these horses are young, some old, some in between. Some sound, some not. Some have sleek coats, some less so. Some are alert and checking out their new surroundings and their new neighbors. Some are clearly concerned, some withdrawn, patient, or appear resigned. A couple appear ill.

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Last edited by tma on Thu Aug 26, 2010 11:41 am, edited 3 times in total.
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Last edited by tma on Sun Aug 15, 2010 2:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by tma »

This is a typical, "low-end" auction. One of thousands around the country.

If a horse is lucky, it will have more than a minute to demonstrate it's value in the sale ring. If a horse is lucky, at the end of the night they have found a new human to care about them, and for them.

If there is little or no interest in a particular horse, or if there happen to be fewer buyers in attendance that day than there are horses offered, there is always that buyer in the corner. A buyer who estimates a horse's weight. A buyer looking to fill a trailer. A buyer whose purchases tend to "disappear".

Times are tough. Horse owners are losing their jobs, their homes. Feed prices are climbing. Many can no longer afford to keep their horse, or even have a place to keep them. They are looking to find their horse a new home. Some turn to the auctions in desperation, some advertise in a variety of ways.

There is a law in the state of California. That law states:

598c. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, it is
unlawful for any person to possess, to import into or export from the
state, or to sell, buy, give away, hold, or accept any horse with
the intent of killing, or having another kill, that horse, if that
person knows or should have known that any part of that horse will be
used for human consumption.

(b) For purposes of this section, "horse" means any equine,
including any horse, pony, burro, or mule.
(c) Violation of this section is a felony punishable by
imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, or two or three
years.
(d) It is not the intent of this section to affect any commonly
accepted commercial, noncommercial, recreational, or sporting
activity that relates to horses.
(e) It is not the intent of this section to affect any existing
law that relates to horse taxation or zoning.

Many horse owners mistakenly believe that the existence of this law means that horses in the state can no longer be slaughtered at all. That their horse is protected. And that any horse that a person may sell or give away, is "safe", and that what is commonly referred to as a "kill buyer", doesn't even exist in this state.

The reality is that many horses from California that are bought and sold can - and do- immediately find their way from auctions and private homes into the pipeline to slaughterhouses in Mexico and Canada on a daily basis. And from there to dinner plates in other parts of the world.

Those kill buyers looking to fill a trailer certainly do not openly advertise where the majority of the horses they are buying are destined. But ask those who attend the auctions on a regular basis, and they will know who these buyers are, and what they buy the majority of their horses for.

Since this law has taken effect, there has been little to no enforcement. There has not been one prosecution in the years since the law has been in effect.

Loopholes - ways to circumvent the law - have also been found.

Of course these buyers also obtain many horses offered for sale privately. An auction setting such as the one described above is simply a quick and easy way to fill that trailer with cheap horses.
Last edited by tma on Thu Aug 26, 2010 11:46 am, edited 15 times in total.
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At Risk Horses

Post by tma »

On this particular night, the young chestnut horse with the white face on the right got lucky. A feedlot/kill buyer tried to buy him. He was rescued.

Some of the others were also fortunate and found private homes.

Many others were not.

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