This took my breath away...must see.

Pretty much, though I doubt many of those show bred pekes end up crammed in tiny trailers and killed in inhumane ways to end up on plates.. There really is a very small market for horses that do nothing but look pretty (AQHA halter horses anyone.. the 'failed' ones get ridden)

Similar though.

Probably not, Dekka. Although I will admit to wanting to kill a couple in inhumane ways after being "attacked," lol. It wasn't the Peke that had me worried, it was the Doberman coming down the hill behind him to join in while the owners watched from the porch :madgo:

The fate of horses is pretty much a mystery to most of the non-horse public. Not even really that, since we aren't around horses that much -- if at all -- and so it never really enters the public consciousness.

It would probably take a horse that captures the imagination of the average person to start the kind of wide-spread awareness that dogs, cats, dolphins, whales, etc., already have.

To me, a non-horse person, this performance is truly beautiful.

YouTube - Stacey Westfall Briddless Reining --- Live Like You Were Dying

But it happens. Race horses that have won races for people, given their all and then end up in a kill pen when they are broken down and found to be sterile. I am not a huge fan of Fuglyhorseoftheday anymore, but is constantly calling out people who dump horses because they have made them un usable.

For educational purposes (and yes this will be a buzz kill so only click if you want to know WHY we horse people dislike it when people promote fabio and krazykolor horses)

The horses are all headed to be on a trailer to head to out of the US to be slaughtered and end up on someone's plate

BrokerOwnedProgram check out the dates.. and the sheer number of horses going through is scary there is a new selection every week. Many of them are pretty horses. Some are registered, many still are wearing their shoes.

Here are some more from another area
Camelot Feed Lot - Helping Hearts Equine Rescue

Here is a random rescue that has pulled horses from feed lots. See what lovely horses are going to be steaks?
Our Rescues - Helping Hearts Equine Rescue
he is a very pretty boy, every bit as pretty as the one posted in this thread and was found in a kill pen.....

pretty in horses doesn't cut it in horses. At least a pretty confo dog will likely have a pet home even if its fairly useless. Horses can be pretty and quiet and still end up on a plate because pretty and quiet are a dime a dozen.

Jules that brings me to tears every time I watch it. Its lovely on so many levels.

I simply don't think he should be bred and I'll stand by that. I agree that horse has some serious flash factor. He is exactly what they said he is. A story book, fairy tale horse and that is beautiful. But beauty doesn't = stallion quality.

Horses have such a sad fate as we're dealing with such a population crisis with them. Lots of sound, level headed horses are passed by. The only thing we can really do to prevent the sad fate that becomes of these animals is to raise our standards on what is being bred.

not only raising the standard, but breeding what people actually want. Vanners aren't too bad in that respect as most of the people who want the 'storybook' horse aren't really interested in doing more than walking around in fields, and most vanners are very quiet beasts.

Friesians are not the sort to buy if you just want to waltz around the fields under a beginner rider.

The full tragedy lies in the fact that you could substitute just about ANY domestic animal in that paragraph.

Face it, the public is incredibly superficial and fickle.

Fantasy horses -- or any other animal -- should be a rarity, otherwise they become merely mundane.

Oh for sure. The market is saturated with a lot of what people want to get rid of, not what people want.


and Renee you are so right. It isn't just horses. It's dogs, cats, rats, mice, hamsters, rabbits etc.

Except horses aren't just put down. Many US states have banned horse slaughter, so the horses are often put on double decker trailers (illegal) and shipped to Canada or Mexico to be made into roasts.

YouTube - Horse Slaughter in Canada! (warning!!!)

If one cares to one can google double decker trailer and horse and click images. Not pretty. Horses are often shoved to many in as well as it being to low. Horses have been trampled to death on the ride, ended up with parts of their faces missing, broken bones...

Its not the same as being put down in a shelter. Its far far far worse than what happens to unwanted dogs. I am not against the eating of horses, I think cows are tastey. I am against the inhumane transportation and slaughter practices that happen to once loved companions (it would be just as bad if they weren't somone's loved pet, it just seems worse to me that a horse that has known such care and love to then be so abused and alone because people are to cheap, or have no easy method to have a horse pts and the body removed)

That, Dekka, is a testament to how cold and soulless much of the planet really is.

What's your take on Bill C-544? I'm not sure what to think of it at this point since i'm not active in the horse world, but i'd sure like to hear from someone who's involved in horses in canada on the topic. All i know about horse slaughter is there's a horse slaughterhouse 30 minutes away from me and their lot is always packed full of horses young and old.

C-544

I am not ok with it
The problem is then what happens?

There is already a problem in the US with people turning horses loose in desert/scrub land to die. If there was no where to put them what then? Also people want to eat horse, just like I want to eat cow. That would then mean horses else where would likely need to be bred just to be killed.. seems like a waste to me.

wiki on horse meat (who eats it etc) Horse meat - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I am for the humane slaughter, or euthanasia of any animal that can no longer be looked after properly, or to feed people (not saying I want to eat horse). The best would be if the US would fix their problems with horse over population, and open up some HUMANE slaughter houses. Even when done ethically long trailer rides are still stressful esp with horses not used to trailering.

He's gorgeous to look at, a trotting commerical for Mane n' Tail and coat sheen! I have to agree with others though, it made me cringe to think of what it'd be like in the saddle on him...not the best mover, or the most willing. The rider was using spurs on him the entire time.

The horse world is just full of heart break and oddly-placed apathy. We've got a horse in our trail string named Stetson, gorgeous to look at, dumb as a rock. Probably someone's halter horse at one point, or a bit of arena work. He's about useless for anything else, so he went to some sale and that's where Sombrero picked him up and then leased him to us. I don't think he'll be back next year. He's too stupid to even be ponied on the trail, just stands there like a post and goes "Huh?" until you nearly pull him on his face.

That's my thoughts too. My boss blindly accepted to have our store as a petition site (she never has owned or been around horses) and people ask me about it all the time and i refuse to sign it. Where are the horses going to go? It's not pretty that they're being killed but what the hell else is supposed to be done when there's so many?

If they'd clean up the slaughter houses and regulate the transportation and conditions better, that would be 10 times more effective than just banning the whole thing.

Renee>> Even with things like this the general public just wants to ban slaughter. But doesn't want to learn anything about how to fix the actual problem. In many ways its worse than the issue facing cats and dogs because most people have had pets at one point and have at least 1/2 a clue (ok maybe 1/4 of a clue...)

That's the kind of thing that should be widely known by the public. I had no idea. I'd wager not many people who don't follow horses know. The only stories we hear about are the Secretariats -- and the Ruffians

The public does hear about it.. it is how bill are passed and slaughter is banned. They figure that fixes it. Ban it and tada it's done.

In red: AMEN! I need to send that to a lot of horse people who think breeding every beautiful stud they see is OK, when its not. And personally, I think the horse world is a lot nastier than the dog world, so to speak. Having been in the horse world for a long time and not so much in the dog world, but thats just my opinion.

I think they're about equal, but it depends on what part of each world you're in.