United States
So where did the modern horses come from, the ones that spawned America’s cowboy myth? Historians believe that Spanish explorers brought the animals with them on their voyages to the New World in the 1500s. Let loose upon the land, they soon reclaimed the prairies that had once been theirs alone, producing vast herds of wild horses. Even today, as HORSES shows, tens of thousands of wild horses roam the American West. To prevent the herds from destroying their habitat, the U.S. government captures hundreds each year and puts them up for adoption. For some of the proud new owners, the chance to ride a wild-born horse is a dream come true — and the continuation of an age-old relationship that has made the horse one of our most revered and fascinating animal partners.
Learn about wild horses...
For some weird reason, the problem of wild horses is being solved in a brutal and inhumane way (as if the people who passed/support this law like to watch or think about torture)...
HORSE SLAUGHTER HAS BEEN BANNED SINCE 2006 IN THE UNITED STATES. Since 2006, horse slaughter has been banned in the U.S. In the annual agriculture appropriations bill, language with bipartisan support has been carried that eliminates federal funding for any activity involving the inspection of horse meat for human consumption. This restriction has effectively closed horse slaughter for human consumption facilities in the U.S. But this year the language was not included by the subcommittee for the first time in five years. Last week, Jim Moran introduced an amendment during full committee markup to restore the ban on horse slaughter in the U.S. The language was approved, but a floor fight on the issue looms in the near future.Jim Moran wants to convince all of his colleagues of the need to continue to uphold current law making this inappropriate practice off-limits, and I want YOU, MY REPRESENTATIVE to continue to uphold current law making Funding of USDA Inspections for Horse Meat for Human Consumption ILLEGAL in the United States. HORSE SLAUGHTER IS NOT HUMANE. Dr. Lester Friedlander, DVM & former Chief USDA Inspector, told Congress in 2008, “The captive bolt is not a proper instrument for the slaughter of equids, these animals regain consciousness 30 seconds after being struck, they are fully aware they are being vivisected.” (IN PLAIN ENGLISH that means that they are SKINNED ALIVE and CONSCIOUS as their insides are ripped out.) DO WE SLAUGHTER DOGS AND SEND THE MEAT TO COUNTRIES WHERE DOG MEAT IS EATEN? While horse meat is considered a delicacy in some countries, it is not in the U.S. There are moral implications for allowing a practice that upwards of nearly three-quarters of the American people oppose. Just because there is a market for horse meat in some countries does not mean the U.S. must be their supplier. There is a market for dog meat in some societies, too, and an overpopulation of them in the U.S. Should man’s best friend face a similar fate? Of course not, and the same principle should hold true for horses.
There are alternatives to killing horses - you can sterilize them or even break them for consumers to use.
Australia
(Above: NOT the type of camel in Australia, for Australian type see link below - Intelligence level is the same though)
I thought it was funny that this solution was actually offered...
Australia Considers Killing Camels to Tackle Climate Change
Eliminating Camel Farts to help the environment: A commercial company, Northwest Carbon, has proposed culling more than one million camels in the Australian Outback to eliminate that gas emissions, according to AFP. 2. Innovative solutions from an innovative nation: "We're a nation of innovators and we find innovative solutions to our challenges -- this is just a classic example," Northwest Carbon managing director Tim Moore told Australian Associated Press.
The motivations for such an action could be;
1. laziness to shift resources,
2. don't want to lose even a dollar of profit in the short run,
3. hate animals or don't care about anything but themselves.
From The Colbert Report... Junk Food Feed: The crippling drought forces American cattle farmers to think outside the box they pack their cows in. http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/420363/october-18-2012/junk-food-feed
ReplyDeleteCOMMENT: Cows being fed candy is actually the least of our worries. Do you think the the cows are being fed horses and camels? i.e.
Afterall, we have evidence of cows being fed cows... i.e. "FDA has published two rules to protect animals and consumers against BSE by prohibiting the use of most mammalian protein in the manufacture of animals feeds given to ruminant animals and by removing high-risk materials from all animal feed. These rules were published in 1997 and 2008.
In 1997, FDA published a final regulation designed to prevent the spread of BSE through animal feed. The 1997 rule prohibits the use of most mammalian protein in the manufacture of animal feeds given to ruminant animals, such as cows, sheep, and goats. The regulation also requires process and control systems to ensure that feed for ruminants does not contain the prohibited mammalian tissue. The two cases of BSE detected in U.S. cattle were both born before the 1997 feed ban.
In 2008, FDA published a regulation that strengthened the 1997 rule by prohibiting the tissues that have the highest risk for carrying the agent thought to cause BSE in animal feed. These high risk cattle materials are the brains and spinal cords from cattle 30 months of age and older. The 2008 rule also prohibits the use of entire carcass of cattle not inspected and passed for human consumption, unless the cattle are less than 30 months of age, or the brains and spinal cords have been removed." http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/GuidanceComplianceEnforcement/ComplianceEnforcement/BovineSpongiformEncephalopathy/default.htm
NOTICE... they said MOST mammalian tissue, i.e. herbivore animals are being fed a mixed diet that includes carnivore food AND Chicken Shit = http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-greger-md/mad-cow-disease-california_b_1450994.html
Related: Why You Should Be Worried About the California Mad Cow Case http://www.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2012/04/mad-cow-california