|
|
 |
|
Equine ProtectionThe Perfect Time to End the Slaughter of American Horses
September 1, 2010 – At the moment, the news is rife with stories about the level of equine neglect in the United States, with many of the articles blaming the “unintended consequences” of closing the US horse slaughter plants and calling for them to be reopened. But in reality, we are coming up on a once in a lifetime opportunity to get rid of this abominable practice once and for all. To understand this apparent paradox, one needs to get past unsubstantiated myths to the real forces at play in the market. First, one needs to understand that it is completely impossible to blame the current glut of excess horses on the closing of the slaughter plants because the closings simply sent the horses over the Mexican and Canadian borders for slaughter. In 2006, the year before the closings, 142,740 American horses were slaughtered, and that number only dropped by 14% the year the plants were closed. By 2008, slaughter was back to the second highest level in almost ten years. Next, it is necessary to understand what really causes neglect, and that is unemployment. After years of studying the relationship between neglect rates and slaughter volumes, I had concluded that there was no relationship whatever. Then I looked at the rates of neglect in Illinois in comparison with unemployment in the state. The correlation was striking. Read more> http://www.horsesinthesouth.com/article/article_detail.aspx?id=12051 Arrest Announced for Failure to Report Horse DiseaseSeptember 1, 2010 – TALLAHASSEE — Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles H. Bronson today announced the arrest of an Indian River County woman who allegedly tried to conceal from authorities her two horses that were infected with Equine Infectious Anemia (EIA). Arrested by Bronson’s Office of Agricultural Law Enforcement (OALE) was Regina Chesser, 56, of Fellsmere. She was charged with failure to report a dangerous transmissible disease, which is a second-degree felony. Authorities allege that Chesser brought her horse “Dolly” to a Vero Beach veterinary clinic to be tested for EIA. When the test results were positive for EIA, authorities with the department’s Division of Animal Industry attempted to contact Chesser only to find that she had given the alias Cheryl Hearndon with a false address and phone number to the clinic and used a an email address registered to a friend. The false information was given because Chesser believed “Dolly” was infected with the EIA virus. The case was turned over to Bronson’s Office of Agricultural Law Enforcement to initiate a criminal investigation of the matter. After an extensive search, Chesser’s true identity and location were discovered. Authorities then learned that there were two horses on Chesser’s property and subsequent testing showed that both of the horses were carriers of EIA. As Study Begins, the Animal Welfare Institute Calls on BLM to Halt Wild Horse RoundupsWashington, DC (September 1, 2010) – While the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) welcomes the recent news that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has asked the National Academy of Sciences National Research Council (NAS/NRC) to review its National Wild Horse and Burro Program starting January 1, 2011, we are deeply disappointed with the agency’s blatant disregard for calls to halt wild horse roundups pending completion of the review. AWI first recommended this outside review along with a moratorium on roundups over a year ago given the widespread problems being reported in the BLM’s management of wild horses. “While we are grateful that the BLM has finally realized the urgent need for advice from scientific experts, we continue to be disappointed at their stubborn refusal to halt the massive wild horse roundups they are conducting at an alarming rate,” said Chris Heyde, deputy director of government and legal affairs for AWI. In testimony to the House and Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittees, AWI laid out its reasoning and criteria for an independent study by the NAS, a moratorium on all non-emergency roundups, and the critical importance of maintaining language preventing the BLM from killing tens of thousands of healthy wild horses. In July, similar concerns were raised with the BLM in a bipartisan letter from House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall (D-WV), National Parks, Forests and Public Lands Subcommittee Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) and 52 of their colleagues. The Public Has Spoken – Our Pony Express Goal Has Been Exceeded!Dear Supporters, Wow! What amazing supporters we have! On August 1st, we gave you a goal of 20,000 letters to take with us for our Pony Express Mustang Delivery to Washington. Our deadline was set for September 1st. We just wanted to let you know that we have completely blown our goal out of the water with the overwhelming response from so many wild horse supporters! Just over this past weekend, we received 7,234 letters from so many of you, which brings our current count to 26, 995! *Keep the letters coming and each of you can stand as a voice for each individual mustang that has been rounded up by the Bureau of Land Management and the ones left on the range. We are their voices, their spokespeople. The new Ravenwood Farm Foundation, Inc. asks for your help to re-home animalsRavenwood Farm Foundation, Inc. A rehoming foundation for all of God’s Creatures The Ravenwood Farm Foundation, Inc. is dedicated to help all animals that for reasons beyond their control have been placed in a homeless position. The foundation is a non-profit organization made up of volunteers who devote their time, energies, their homes and barns to the rehab and placement of these animals in their new forever homes. If you have a little extra love, a little extra space or an empty stall. We need your help. Horses, Dogs, Cats and all species are being abandoned and dumped every day. The animal rescues, humane societies and animal controls are beyond capacity. Do you have space for one? Can you foster for us? We would love for you to provide a forever home to one of our beautiful creatures. For more information contact: Ravenwood Farm Foundation, Inc. Ravenwood Farm Foundation, Inc.is a non-profit organization 501c3 pending |
