Archive for
June, 2009
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New Alliance Unites Horse Owners
Comments OffMay 12, 2009
For Immediate Release
Contact: Sue Wallis Dave Duquette
Sue.Wallis@vcn.com info@UnitedHorsemensFront.org
307-680-8515 541-571-7588
New Alliance Unites Horse Owners
United Organizations of the Horse unveils new website, www.UnitedOrgsOfTheHorse.com, and rallies all facets of the equine community around its goals of
advocacy, education and assistance
In response to the growing number of public policy challenges facing American horses, their owners, and horse-related organizations, a diverse group of horsemen and –women today unveiled a new umbrella group: United Organizations of the Horse.
“We need a voice that is capable of coherently and articulately communicating to a misinformed and emotionally manipulated American public,” said Sue Wallis, a Wyoming state legislator and United Organizations of the Horse founder.
The United Organizations of the Horse seeks to unify all like-minded equine associations and individuals in support of its mission–to promote the humane care and management of horses, and the continued viability of the equine community in the United States of America.
The group is organizing around three pillars:
The United Horsemen’s Front, already established as a non-profit 501(c)3. This pillar educates the public about the unwanted horse issue and seeks humane, realistic solutions. A new initiative will establish a nationwide rapid-response network of horse owners and others who can mobilize trailers, hay, feed, veterinary care and additional support for law enforcement or other groups rescuing horses in crisis.
The United Horsemen’s Alliance, a trade group serving as a national voice for horse owners’ concerns at the federal level. The Alliance is open to horse owners, equine professionals, breed registries, recreational groups, businesses and others who share the United Organizations of the Horse’s core principles. This arm will also ensure that equine groups at the local, state and regional levels have the resources they need to influence and address issues.
The United Horsemen’s Political & Legal Action Fund, a future political action committee and legal defense fund, providing an effective, adequately-financed voice at the local, state and federal legislative levels. It will also provide expert assistance for members facing court proceedings, and an avenue for initiating legal action.
The United Organizations of the Horse is founded on the core beliefs that the humane care and management of horses is paramount; policy decisions should be based on sound science and guidelines developed by equine professionals; and policy should safeguard horse owners’ private property rights and options to the greatest extent possible.
The United Organizations of the Horse leadership team includes current and former legislators at both the federal and state level; agricultural public policy experts; horse trainers; print and broadcast journalists; farmers and ranchers; representatives from tribal, breed and horsemen’s associations; and celebrities from the world of country music and cowboy poetry.
Visit www.UnitedOrgsOfTheHorse.com and its news/communications site, www.EquuiVox.org, to learn more about the group and a unique opportunity to actively participate in this new and powerful alliance. The United Organizations of the Horse has scheduled its first annual Leadership Summit on June 14, 2009 in Washington, D.C., inviting anyone who adheres to its core principles to attend.
June 3, 2009
For immediate release:
Contacts:
Sue Wallis, Founding Leadership Team Chase Adams, Chief Executive Officer
United Organizations of the Horse American Horse League
(307) 685-8248 sue.wallis@vcn.com (605) 347-1730 ceo@americanhorseleague.com
The American Horse League Teams Up with the United Organizations of the Horse
The American Horse League has teamed up with the United Organizations of the Horse in order to further their common goals. Both believe the collaboration will prove to be a winning combination with the United Organizations of the Horse’s nation-wide network of equine industry supporters; their already proven track record of effective political action at federal, state, and local levels; and their ability to communicate with the public—combined with the American Horse League’s determination to focus on pro-active court action and legal defense to protect private property rights, and the continued right to manage, use, and enjoy horses.
The American Horse League is dedicated to the responsible management of horses nationwide, and looks forward to combating assaults on agriculture as a whole, private property rights, and the humane treatment of livestock. Their mission includes taking this fight for our livelihoods and our rights to the Courts, the media, and to our Nation’s Capital.
The American Horse League will hold its first fundraiser at the St. Onge Livestock’s Horse Sale in St. Onge , South Dakota, Sunday, June 14, 2009 with an aggressive membership drive to follow. A horse rescued from neglect and starvation will be auctioned. “This horse typifies the need for a humane and responsible option for the marketing of unusable and unwanted horses,” said Chase Adams of the American Horse League.
The United Organizations of the Horse was formed in response to the growing number of public policy challenges facing American horses, their owners, and horse-related organizations. “Our main objective is to be a voice for horse owners at every level, and to every audience…we need a voice that is capable of coherently and articulately communicating to a misinformed and emotionally manipulated American public, and to policymakers,” said Sue Wallis, a Wyoming state legislator and United Organizations of the Horse founder.
The United Organizations of the Horse seeks to unify all like-minded equine associations and individuals in support of its mission—to promote the humane care and management of horses, and the continued viability of the equine community in the United States of America.
Besides the American Horse League, the United Organizations of the Horse has recently teamed up with the United Horsemen’s Front, the National Tribal Horse Coalition, and the Horse Welfare Alliance of Canada. To learn more visit their website, http://www.UnitedOrgsoftheHorse.org, and subscribe to their free e-newsletter.
The United Organizations of the Horse will hold their first annual Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C. on June 14th at the Liaison Hotel on Capitol Hill, and are looking forward to communicating their message to horsemen and women gathered for the American Horse Council’s annual meeting, as well as lobbying on the Hill on behalf of the horse owners of America.
The United Organizations of the Horse Introduce the Concept of a H.O.R.S.E. Act to Washington, D.C. and the Country
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June 18, 2009
For immediate release:
Contacts:
Sue Wallis, Acting Executive Director Dave Duquette, Executive Director
United Organizations of the Horse United Horsemens Front
(307) 680-8515 sue.wallis@vcn.com (541) 571-7588 info@unitedhorsemensfront.org
The United Organizations of the Horse Introduce the Concept of a H.O.R.S.E. Act to Washington, D.C. and the Country
The United Organizations of the Horse has proposed the Humane and Optimal Restoration and Sustainability of Equines (H.O.R.S.E.) Act, and has presented the concept to U.S. Senators and Representatives and their staffs on Capitol Hill, Agency Heads, and to the horsemen and women gathered for the American Horse Council’s Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.
State horse councils, breed associations, trade organizations, and equine related nonprofit organizations all sent representatives to Washington D.C. to explain the concept, which is currently being drafted. The actual bill language for the H.O.R.S.E. Act will be available shortly after the 4th of July. The concept includes several key points including humane euthanization, strengthening enforcement of transportation regulations for horses being transported for processing, and better management and population control of feral wild horses and burros in order to ensure the sustainability of both wild horses, native wildlife, and the useful production of our public lands for our children, grandchildren, and generations to come.
“Everyone agrees,” says Frank Bowman, Illinois State Horse Council, “that the humane care and management of horses from birth to death is of utmost importance.” The H.O.R.S.E. Act ensures that horses that are to be euthanized for any purpose—mercy or processing—that euthanization, (or literal “good death” that is quick, painless, and as stress-free as possible) should occur in a manner that is approved by the American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Association of Equine Practitioners—the veterinarians who know and understand equine behavior and physiology.
“The point we try to make,” says Sue Wallis, Wyoming State Representative and one of the founders of the United Organizations of the Horse, “is that once that ‘good death’ occurs, that all legal, moral, and ethical obligations to the well-being of that animal cease. What happens to the carcass in terms of how it is disposed of, or how it is utilized, is entirely the right, prerogative, and responsibility of the owner. I am proud that the proposed H.O.R.S.E. Act includes provisions that will protect the rights of owners who never want to see their horse go to processing, and safe guards to make sure that doesn’t happen, as well as protecting the private property rights of those horse owners who want or need to recoup the monetary value of an unusable horse.”
People across the country are beginning to realize the horrific unintended consequences of the complete destruction of a market for lower-end horses, and a ban on horses processed for the export market. The last U.S. horse processing facility was closed through state action in 2007. Currently the only market available for unusable horses are those that are big enough, healthy enough, and close enough to the border to be worth the trucking to either Canada or Mexico. All U.S. horses that cross either border for processing only go to European Union inspected facilities where the entire process is strictly controlled to ensure humane handling, and humane euthanization prior to processing. Please see the Journal of Veterinary Medicine, http://www.avma.org/onlnews/javma/mar09/090301h.asp, for documentation of this fact.
Both Canada and Mexico use horse meat for human food, a nutritionally high quality source of protein (twice as high in protein, and 40% less fat than beef), as do all of Asia, most of Europe, and South America. China is the largest consumer, followed by Mexico, then Europe with Italy, Sicily, the Scandinavian countries and France and Belgium close behind. About 1% of U.S. horses have been utilized for human food in recent years. Nonetheless, with the total loss of a market for mares, weanlings, yearlings, dangerous horses, horses in poorer condition, or horses who cannot be ridden or used in some manner, the value of all horses nationwide has plummeted 30% to 80%. Equine business owners that have spent their entire lives working to improve their breed, or advance their sport, have seen their assets disappear.
Horse rescue, retirement, and recovery organizations are full and overwhelmed; with no market and no options horse owners who are losing their homes and jobs because of the economy are resorting to desperate measures like trying to euthanize their horses themselves with often traumatic experiences for themselves and more suffering for the horse, or turning horses out to fend for themselves where they invariably starve and die a long, painful death. Dave Duquette, the founder of the United Horsemens Front, a nonprofit that has allied itself closely with the United Organizations of the Horse, has been documenting both the unprecedented scope of equine suffering, and the “gross perversions of the truth” being spread widely by radical animal rights groups like the Humane Society of the United States, and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (HSUS/PETA). “These groups have made it clear,” says Duquette, “that their goal is to end all human interaction with animals, and to end animal agriculture.”
The United Organizations of the Horse was formed in response to the growing number of public policy challenges facing American horses, their owners, and horse-related organizations. “Our main objective is to be a voice for horse owners at every level, and to every audience…we strive to be a voice that is capable of coherently and articulately communicating to a misinformed and emotionally manipulated American public, and to policymakers,” said Sue Wallis. The United Organizations of the Horse seeks to unify all like-minded equine associations and individuals in support of its mission—to promote the humane care and management of horses, and the continued viability of the equine community in the United States of America.
To learn more visit their website, http://www.UnitedOrgsoftheHorse.org, and subscribe to their free e-newsletter.
Press Releases from UOH
Comments OffFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 22, 2009
Contact: Cindy Schonholtz, Animal Welfare Council President
719-440-7255 – awc@animalwelfarecouncil.org
SURVEY OF ANIMAL CONTROL CENTERS SHOW LACK OF COUNTY FACILITIES TO CARE FOR THE UNWANTED HORSE
A survey of 94 government supported animal control centers was conducted to identify and review resources available to care for unwanted horses within the districts of the 104 cosponsors of H.R. 503 as of March 11, 2009. Of those surveyed, 19.15% responded. The survey results show that up to 83% of shelters cannot house and care for any horses, others can only care for a limited number, only 6% of personnel are very well trained, facilities have budget limitations, and recently (within the last 12 months) there has been an increase in number of calls related to abandoned and neglected horses
Horse neglect and abuse cases often originate from a lack of economic resources needed to adequately maintain a horse’s health. To date, no proposed state or federal law has addressed funding of care for unwanted horses, long-term placement of affected horses or established guidelines for standards of care at retirement and rescue facilities. Failing to address these core issues adversely affects the welfare of horses. H.R. 503 is a proposed federal bill to prohibit the shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling, or donation of horses and other equines to be slaughtered for human consumption, and for other purposes. The purpose of the legislation is to ban the processing of horses for human consumption does not take into account the unintended consequences should it pass. The care of abandoned or neglected animals whether they are companion animals (dogs and cats) or livestock (horses and cattle) is the ultimate responsibility of each county. Many facilities throughout the country do not have resources to house and care for horses.
A few highlights of the survey results:
Seventy-two percent (72%) were considered the primary animal control facility in the county.
Seventy-eight percent (78%) house and care for dogs and cats while far fewer, 17% house and care for horses.
Seventeen percent (17%) could care for only 10 or fewer horses.
Over the past six months, 6% were forced to turn away 11 to 20 horses due to budget limitations.
The average cost per day to keep a horse at a facility is $16.75 per day; $502 per month; $6113.75 per year.
When the lead administrator was asked how well trained their staff is in their capacity to house and care for horses only, 6% say they are very well trained.
Fifty-three percent (53%) acknowledge there are no rescue facilities for horses in the area.
When asked how horses are removed from their facility, only 28% said that they could successfully place a horse at a retirement, sanctuary, or rescue facility.
Only 7% have funds appropriated for future expansion to house and care for additional horses.
In order to improve facilities to accommodate (more) horses, 40% will need more than $100,000.
While 57% have an established working relationship with a local equine veterinarian, 43% do not.
Responses came from the states of, California, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, and Virginia.
The Animal Welfare Council is a non-profit, tax exempt 501(C) (3) organization established for charitable and educational purposes. Membership includes organizations and business entities who are actively involved in caring for animals in recreation, entertainment, sport and industry.
via Press Releases.
Support Animal Agriculture & Oppose Criminalizing Horse Meat : Take Action and Contact Congress |
Comments OffSupport the H.O.R.S.E. Act
The Humane and Optimal Restoration and Sustainability of Equines
Horse owners and concerned citizens have come together with real solutions to ensure the humane care, management, and euthanasia of horses; to ensure the long-term sustainability and viability of the equine industry; and to restore the market for all horses.
There is no disagreement—all animals should be treated humanely from birth to death.
For more information, check this link:
Support Animal Agriculture & Oppose Criminalizing Horse Meat : Take Action and Contact Congress |.
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