Chicago (EWA) – The Equine Welfare Alliance has released the first comprehensive analysis of economic forces that have caused major shrinkage of the horse industry in recent few years. The study analyzes the cost of alfalfa, grass hay, corn and gasoline as well as the impact of the extended recession, and explains why breed registries have seen an approximately 50% reduction in foal registrations since 2007.
While all sectors of the economy have been hammered by the economic conditions this new study shows that the horse industry has also suffered hyper-inflation of its costs. The combination has been devastating.
Wellington – March 23, 2011 – The Seraphim12 Foundation is writing a new history for horses around the world as the team fights imposing legislation and raises awareness through actions and education. Seraphim12 represents the essence of the bond that exists between horse and human, a bond that should never be broken. Conceptualized by lifelong equestrians, Manda Kalimian and Pamela Polk head up the Seraphim12 Foundation, reconstructing the bridge that interconnects horses with humans.
In a world where horses are mostly seen for financial value and usefulness, people have forgotten the power and sensitivity horses provide, acting as a mirror to reflect back to us, who we are and who we can be. It was three and a half years ago when Kalimian realized that slaughterhouses were still in existence, an e-mail from a rescue organization changed her world – she knew that she needed to do something.
SAM has received thousands of emails regarding the appointment of Callie Hendrickson to the National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board. By a large majority, the comments received through various social media sites have raised concern and strong opposition to Ms. Hendrickson being appointed to the Board because of her ardent support for slaughter of wild horses. While others on the Board have also expressed support for efforts to revive the slaughter of wild horses, as well as domestic horses, Ms. Hendrickson has signaled her support for United Horsemen, the most aggressive coalition in this country advising support for horse slaughter for human consumption. SAM feels compelled to respond to the thousands of inquires we have received about Ms. Hendrickson’s appointment.
The most glaring and perplexing part of the Hendrickson appointment is this: at a time when the Bureau of Land Management, from the Secretary of the Interior and the current BLM Director on down have expressed in no uncertain terms that there will be no slaughter of wild horses, why appoint an individual that supports slaughter to the only public advisory Board that makes recommendations on how to improve the Wild Horse and Burro Program.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s (APHIS) Animal Care Program will hold listening sessions throughout the United States [including the Kentucky Horse Park] to obtain public feedback on the Horse Protection Program. In particular, APHIS is interested in hearing feedback on the questions below:
• Congress passed the Horse Protection Act in 1970 to eliminate the cruel and inhumane practice of soring horses. How close are we to achieving the goal?
• Can the industry achieve a consensus on how to carry out a self-regulatory program to enforce the Horse Protection Act in a consistent way?
• What responsibilities should USDA-certified Horse Industry Organizations (HIOs) have within the industry?
March 10, 2012 – Mountain Grove, MO (EWA) – A bizarre chain of events has followed the contentious meeting of the Mountain Grove City Council on March 6th concerning the Unified Equine proposal to build a horse slaughter plant near the town.
Unified Equine CEO Sue Wallis claimed that the project would be a 50% partnership with Belgian company Chevideco, and that they would invest $6 to $7 million in a plant that would be designed by Dr. Temple Grandin.
But during the meeting city residents became inflamed by a presentation given by attorney Cynthia MacPherson, cataloging the pollution and crime that Chevideco’s Dallas Crown facility had brought to the town of Kaufman, Texas.
Mountain Grove, MO (EWA) – A much publicized proposal to locate a horse slaughter plant in Mountain Grove, Missouri was soundly rejected by the Mountain Grove town council tonight. The meeting was attended by a capacity crowd of about 300, with many people being turned away and others sitting in areas where they could not see or hear.
The plan, proposed by Sue Wallis of Unified Equine, was to use land just east of the town of Mountain Grove to build a facility to slaughter horses. Wallis had claimed that she chose the location because people in the area were “100% behind what we are doing and 100% behind how we are going to do it.”
The first cracks in her plan happened just days earlier when Dr. Temple Grandin, who Wallis said was to design the plant, publicly stated that she knew nothing about it.
Dear Friends and Supporters,
SAM would like to express its appreciation for the BLM’s selection of a 4,000 acre ranch in Wyoming to house some wild horses, but this proposal raises more questions than it answers. It continues along the outdated and inhumane path the BLM has pursued for years; continuing to give wild horses to private ranch operations that profit from them without assurances of a real public benefit.
But, let’s look at some of the other aspects of this proposed plan.
BLM has suggested they can do the necessary NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) compliance work in about 3-6 months. I have been waiting for over two years and have been told all along that the NEPA compliance work on the proposal that I submitted for an Eco sanctuary in northern NV would take as long as two years, if they ever start on it. I can only presume that there is a special, unique “fast track” for a rancher where NEPA is concerned.
A Bill to Reopen Cruel Horse Slaughter Plants in Illinois
Urgent calls are needed to protect equine welfare in the state of Illinois. Please contact your Illinois State Representative to help preserve the 2007 Illinois ban on horse slaughter, which ultimately resulted in the closure of the last remaining horse slaughter plant in the United States.
On February 9, State Representative Richard Morthland (R) reintroduced a bill to overturn the 2007 Illinois ban on horse slaughter. The bill has been assigned to the House Committee on Agriculture and Conservation, which has not scheduled a hearing on the measure. A similar bill has been introduced every year since the original ban, only to be soundly defeated each time. It is an issue that has been discussed and voted on many times before and the facts remain the same – the slaughter process subjects horses to extreme cruelty and an inhumane death, and should remain illegal.
Dear Humanitarian:
At long last, the U.S. House of Representatives is poised to consider a ban on the use of trailers with more than one level for hauling horses. This week, the House is expected to take up consideration of the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act, H.R. 7. At present, language explicitly banning ALL hauling of horses on double-deck trailers is included in the bill – a safe and sound measure. However, opponents are trying to undermine this modest yet important legislation. Representative Cory Gardner (R-CO) has offered an amendment to strip the double-deck trailer ban from the bill and allow this inhumane practice to continue.
Support for banning the use of double-deck trailers is strong, and includes the American Veterinary Medical Association, National Black Farmers Association, Animal Welfare Institute, and Veterinarians for Equine Welfare. Equine rescue, humane, and professional organizations all realize it is cruel and dangerous to haul horses on double-deck trailers. Even the U.S. Department of Agriculture has expressed opposition to double-deck hauling of horses, stating that, “We do not believe that equines can be safely and humanely transported on a conveyance that has an animal cargo space divided into two or more stacked levels.” (9 CFR Parts 70 and 88). In fact, the USDA has already prohibited the use of these trailers to transport horses to slaughter, but its rule does not cover horses being transported for any other purposes. All horses, regardless of where they are going, deserve this important protection, and the language included in the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act will provide it.
Comments Needed for Cibola-Trigo Environmental Assessment
Jennie & foal, Marietta Wild Burro Range, NV
Dear Wild Horse & Burro Supporters;
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages wild burro herds at disastrously low numbers throughout the West. One of the few viable burro herds lives in the immense Cibola-Trigo Herd Management Area (HMA) in southwestern Arizona along the Colorado River — a 600,000 acre area.
Yet, even here, burros are in danger. The inept Sun J roundup crew is set to swoop into their peaceful desert home in early April, the height of the foaling time for burros.* Pregnant jennies are in danger of spontaneous abortion and small foals can be permanently damaged or killed.
350 burros will lose their freedom — roughly half the herd.
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SAM has received thousands of emails regarding the 
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s (APHIS) Animal Care Program will hold listening sessions throughout the United States [including the Kentucky Horse Park] to obtain public feedback on the Horse Protection Program. In particular, APHIS is interested in hearing feedback on the questions below:
March 10, 2012 – Mountain Grove, MO (EWA) – A bizarre chain of events has followed the contentious meeting of the Mountain Grove City Council on March 6th concerning the Unified Equine proposal to build a horse slaughter plant near the town.
Mountain Grove, MO (EWA) – A much publicized proposal to locate a horse slaughter plant in Mountain Grove, Missouri was soundly rejected by the Mountain Grove town council tonight. The meeting was attended by a capacity crowd of about 300, with many people being turned away and others sitting in areas where they could not see or hear.
Dear Friends and Supporters,
Urgent calls are needed to protect equine welfare in the state of Illinois. Please contact your Illinois State Representative to help preserve the 2007 Illinois ban on horse slaughter, which ultimately resulted in the closure of the last remaining horse slaughter plant in the United States.
Dear Humanitarian:
