CANADA-END HORSE SLAUGHTER IN 2014-THE YEAR OF THE HORSE!

Horses from across the US and Canada are enduring untold horrors at the hands of people who profit from selling them by the pound to 4 federally run slaughter houses in Canada. These horses come from all walks of life...pets ,companion animals, race horses, riding horses, working horses, cast - off mares and foals from the pharmaceutical industry, ponies, donkeys and even some of the last wild horses. Most are perfectly healthy and young--not old, ill or lame as you may have been led to believe for so many years!
From the moment they are obtained by “kill buyers” usually at auctions, the animal’s life becomes dispensable --they are grossly mistreated, mares and foals are separated, strange horses are crowded together in trucks where fighting and severe injuries are common. Fearful horses that object to loading and attempt to escape are punished , at times so savagely that their eyes are gouged out, The transport of horses destined for slaughter is often long and can last for days with no food or water provided. Once unloaded at the slaughter stockyard , the horses wait their fate in fear, with no wound treatment or care for the animals with injuries or illness. The terror continues as they are shocked and prodded into kill chutes, where they panic, often slipping and falling in the blood left behind. Horses are flight animals and unlike cattle, have long necks and thrash their heads about, making humane, clean kills nearly impossible. Many endure multiple shots to the head, and some gain consciousness as the dismembering begins.
Countless video footage, eye witness accounts, and veterinary reports all point to the same conclusion...horse slaughter is extremely inhumane and has no place in a civilized society where horses are not raised for meat. These animals often have medications in their systems which are banned in food animals, and for that fact alone they should be ineligible for slaughter.
Horse slaughter is undeniably cruel, steeped with criminal activity, and poses a real human health hazard for consumers,mostly from European/Asian countries and unaware of the facts! Horses are not raised for meat in the US and Canada and an overwhelming majority of our citizens want horse slaughter BANNED!
There are solutions to horse overpopulation, but until we stop the greed that keeps pulling for horses to kill, we will not be able to address the need for breeding regulation and proper management. It can be done--we can help our horses--they have earned payback for all the work and heart they have given us, and continue to give us.
Please help make 2014 a true Year of the Horse.