New Mexico AG requests further injunction on horse slaughter

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

New Mexico AG requests further injunction on horse slaughter
Updated: 09/13/2015 2:45 PM | Created: 09/13/2015 2:41 PM
By: The Associated Press

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico attorney general is asking a state district judge to take further measures to prevent horse slaughtering in Roswell.

The Albuquerque Journal reports that the AG is asking the judge to expand an injunction against a horse slaughter operation in the city to prevent another firm from starting one.

A. Blair Dunn, the lawyer for Valley Meat Co., says federal action has blocked slaughtering horses and the organization doesn't intend to do so in Roswell. He called the AG's request harassment.

The AG sued Valley Meat in 2013 and a preliminary injunction prevents the plant from operating. The next hearing in the lawsuit is scheduled for Sept. 22.


Read more: http://www.kob.com/article/stories/s3905276.shtml#.VfXyMuSFPhI

[duhneece]

1. A Blair Dunn is the son of our Land Commissioner

In January, New Mexico Land Commissioner Dunn hired Otero County Commissioner Ronnie Rardin for $7,500 a month. In February, Commissioner Ronnie Rardin tried to have our county fire our regular county attorney and hire Land Commissioner Daddy Dunn's son, A Blair Dunn, a real loser and virulent take-back-ALL-public lands to state or county and sell them if the state or county can't afford to fight forest fires, etc. Until this past week, our county has paid $5,000 a year into American Land Council...and spent over $500,000 on fighting to 'take back the land from the (federal) gubment'.

[bklyncowgirl]

2. I have mixed feelings about this.

If I could believe that these slaughterhouses would be properly inspected and humanely run it would be a better solution to the problem of unwanted horses than what we have today. Americans, revolted by the practice, pushed to ban the slaughter of horses. As a horse lover I emphasize, yet despite rescues, there remain horses who no one wants.

Since there are no facilities to slaughter horses in the U.S. for human consumption, animals are trucked under horrendous conditions thousands of miles into Canada and worse yet to Mexico which has absolutely no rules regarding humane treatment or slaughter. The problem is that horses are difficult beasts to kill in a commercially viable facility. Trying to stun a panicked horse with a humane killer or shoot it with a gun is not easy.

There are no easy answers. Like dogs some horses will never find a home. I'll give you an example. Friend of mine, a lifelong horseman, bought a horse in Texas from someone he thought was a reputable dealer and brought it to New Jersey hoping to sell what he thought was a broke to death roping horse at a good profit. But when the got it home and tried to pick up the animal's hind foot the horse went beserk, lashed out and ended up putting him and one other person who happened to standing nearby in the hospital. His wife examined the horse and found that he had old rope burns around his ankles. Whenever they needed to trim or shoe this poor horse he must have been cast and hog tied. It wasn't the horse's fault--likely he'd been mismanaged--badly but like a pit bull once used for fighting, he was dangerous.

The wife who ran a small boarding stable with kids hanging around couldn't keep an animal like that on he property without fearing that someone might set the horse off. She couldn't sell him privately, she would not take him to the auction and put him in the ring--what if someone bought him for their kid? She could, I suppose have had her own vet put the horse down but that is an expensive proposition in New Jersey you cannot bury a dead horse on your own property and like a lot of horse people, she was not wealthy. In the end she took the horse to the auction and had him put in the kill pen.

Sad yes but what else was she to do. Her husband was in the hospital as was one of her boarders, both by the way experienced horse people--and a good thing too--someone else might have sued her for everything she was worth.

I personally think that the best solution would be for strictly regulated slaughter facilities in the US especially designed for horses. It's doubtful though that these would be commercially profitable even if the animals were killed in a manner that made the meat usable.

[Sunlei]

3. your friend calls the vet and has the animal put down. costs less then 1 month boarding.

Certainly costs well less then hauling a horse from texas to new jersey.

[jmowreader]

4. Disposing of the carcass is the big expense in horse euthanasia

[Sunlei]

5. still less then the price of a months boarding or it could be low cost /w enough land.

plenty of other options as well.

[bklyncowgirl]

7. A few points I should make clear. Things are not so black and white.

The people who owned this horse own a small boarding stable. Like most horse people they run on a pretty narrow margin. It's a labor of love for them. Yes, you're right, they could have shelled out a couple hundred bucks to euthanize the horse. I could also mention that both of these people are older people who have health issues. There's not a lot of spare cash floating around.

As for the trip to Texas, this horse, a big flashy Appaloosa was bought to sell. A ranch horse will sell for several thousand dollars more in New Jersey, where wannabe cowboys will pay big bucks for made roping horses, than what he cost in Texas. Selling the Appaloosa was how he was going to finance the trip and the purchase of the gelding that was going to be his new heeling horse. Having many contacts in the local rodeo community he would have made money on this deal. He'd done this successfully and profitably many times before.

I don't know whether I would have made the same decision as to the horse's fate, but I am not going to judge her. She could have put the horse into the regular auction where he would have sold for easily three times what the killer paid for him. That was a moral judgment she made. Her husband was in the hospital with a ruptured spleen and the border who was injured had a broken arm. You can't blame her for not having warm fuzzy feelings for the horse (needless to say the husband who bought the beast without handling its feet or noticing that the horse may have been given a big dose of tranquilizer got a piece of her mind as well

By the way, the other horse he bought on that trip is still with them (this was ten years ago) and has to be honest hit the horsey lottery as my friend is no longer able to ride. He hangs out in a nice grassy field, gets regular hoof trims, vet care, worming etc. every once in a while someone gets on him and rides him but he's in his late twenties. If necessary, when the time comes, he will be euthanized by their regular vet.

[TexasBushwhacker]

6. Do they have humane slaughter methods in the EU

or in Australia? Surely we aren't the only country that cares about animal welfare. I realize we don't eat horse meat in the US, but they do in some countries in the EU and Asia. If they have to control the population of wild horses and dispose of those that are dangerous or old, it makes more sense to me to slaughter them in the US and export the meat.

[bklyncowgirl]

8. I'm not sure. There are some small facilities in western Europe--most get shipped to Eastern Europe

The killer buyers and slaughterhouse operators of course are in it to make money and labor costs and regulation are les stringent in Eastern Europe. Some of these facilities are pretty shady--remember the horsemeat scandal a few years ago where horse was switched for beef.

I know that the E.U. requires humane slaughter and were threatening to ban horse meat from Mexico because of the bad publicity and lack of regulation--don't know if they ever went through with it.

I think the problem is that slaughtering horses in a manner that's both humane and profitable is something that's very hard to do.

[Sunlei]

9. They,EU require ID & vet records of each animal. Many *meds are banned for human consumption.

*common medications that are extremely toxic to humans and even dogs & other animals. Some of these meds are banned from use in 'normal' livestock animals as well.

The USA has no ID system (required microchip & pet passport) or requirement for actual lifetime tracking of horses. Actual signed Vet records do not follow usa horses through the thousands of horse/livestock auctions in America.

Far as the wild horses go, our Federal BLM always claims that many are escaped horses, so these would be animals that have been given common medications.

It is expensive to own a horse about 300-600 a month easy. People who own companion animals have to know there are end of life decisions with all companion animals.

It's very easy for anyone to 'dump' an old dog or horse at the local humane society or take the horse to any of the local horse auctions if they don't want to pay a Vet to do a 'good death'.

[duhneece]

10. I agree 100% I wish the owners had hired an experienced attorney

This man, A Blair Dunn, is a joke. Maybe now they'll change attorneys.
As long as we justify the killing of some animals....