Poll: Your Opinion Please!

Barnmice Admin · Well Schooled

Poll: Your Opinion Please!

spirithorse · Advanced

Horse slaughter must be allowed to go forward under strict controls
The amount of horses just being sent out of the country cannot be taken care of by the rescues which are already swamped with starving neglected horses.

The training and riding abuses of competitive horses must be addressed.

A program to reduce excessive breeding needs to be developed.

Barbara F · Grand Prix

I thought I'd pipe in here as "me"...

I think proper rider education can lead to progress in all of the other areas. I would also like to add to the list better regulations for the racing industry, changes in the working conditions of urban carriage horses and much stricter rules over the wellbeing of horses at shows.

On another note, maybe this is a generalization, but I think riders in developed countries are woefully undereducated and under-involved in charitable initiatives for working horses, donkeys and mules in developing countries.

Jackie Cochran · Advanced

I could not make a choice, they are all important!
Probably my top pick would be proper rider education--but then who decides what is proper? I know I have fundamental disagreements with many training systems in all types of riding. How about making all horse associations train their judges in proper horsemanship too? If the judges reward bad horsemanship with blue ribbons and championships most riders happily go with the bad horsemanship. They just don't know better and assume that if official people reward it bad horsemanship must be correct horsemanship. Of course this has been going on ever since the first horse show centuries ago.

Figarocubed · Advanced

With a view to the economy, the surplus of horses without adequate care, I voted for (um, AGAINST) indiscriminate breeding.
Same problem as with "rider education", though. Who decides what's "proper" education? Who decides what "indiscriminate breeding" is?

Rescues are doing what they can regarding management and rehoming of horses, and I know racehorse trainers & owners who do their level best to find new homes/careers for their horses when their racing days are done. Not all are so considerate, unfortunately.

Slaughter is an unfortunate necessity. The best we can do is make it quick and humane.

The wild horses? Strictly speaking, they are an invasive species. Try to limit births through hormonal implants/gelding/culling. It comes back to the economy. How many of these horses can be adopted? How many can "we" afford?

Barbara F · Grand Prix

Lol, we ALL think we know what proper education is! I guess I would base proper education of the rider on the resulting harmony between horse and rider and the quality of life and care being given to the horse. What does everyone else think?

Also, I'm no expert at all on breeding, but I mean, there seems to be NO regulation in place at all and there seems to be no way to get a handle on indiscriminant breeding. Somehow puppy mills have come under scrutiny, but not horse breeders.

dbliron · Advanced

You know, Figaro, if I'm ever lucky enough to meet you I'm convinced I'll really like you...we think so much alike!

I agree with all of your points. While I personally would prefer that slaughter was not necessary, the US experiment has proven that it is necessary. I think that when one takes on the responsibility for an animal, one must also recognize that this responsibility may include a dignified and reasonable death.

There's no question in my mind that the misguided souls who are turning their domesticated horses loose to fend for themselves are taking the easy path for themselves, and disregarding their responsibilities with regard to their horses (the same goes for dogs and cats). The same can be said for those who abandon them.

I guess rationalization is universal, but I sure have a hard time with it when it involves animals and children.

Additionally, I think we need to be clear on the quality of life for most wild horses. I'm not at all sure that staggering around with laminitis, paper thin soles, and being hunted by coyotes and wolves is a better life than that enjoyed by the average domesticated horse. Wild horses did not exist in NA within the last 10,000 years, until they were introduced by Europeans, so again, I agree, they are not a native species, and perhaps do not belong in the wild here. The studies done in Australia under the auspices of the University of Queensland do NOT show that brumbies have wonderful lives, quite the opposite.

I voted for "Horse Slaughter", because I think it can be done humanely and quickly, and I don't believe that life at any cost is a better alternative.

IrideaClyde · Well Schooled

I voted for horse slaughter as I think that with the opening of slaughter/processing plants in the US this will be a huge issue for the horse of 2012. If any person truly believes that slaughter of horses is done humanely, think again.
Horse ownership means the responsibility for a humane euthanasia of your horse if that becomes necessary.

Figarocubed · Advanced

There's a problem with euthanasia. It renders the carcass toxic. It cannot be buried. It cannot be rendered for feed or byproducts. it must be incinerated. This costs money, which some horse owners do not have. Yes, yes, I know, if they don't have the money to afford a horse, they shouldn't have one. This isn't a perfect world!

A horse humanely destroyed in a facility (and I emphasize HUMANELY) can produce hundreds of pounds of meat and byproducts. A much more thrifty and eco-friendly use of the carcass. Horses are, after all, made of meat, just like cattle, chickens, fish, pigs -- and humans (!)

Down at the ranch, occasionally we'd have to dispatch old or crippled horses with a gunshot. Clean, instantaneous relief through death for the horse, and a source of food for the predators, buzzards and microorganisms that make up the "circle of life". But not everyone has a ranch or large acreage where this can be done.

I am hoping that facilities that process horses get redesigned to be more horse-friendly. Temple Grandin has made the handling and slaughter of cattle much more stress-freethrough her corral and factory designs. I feel certain she could do the same for horses.