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“AMERICAN HORSE SLAUGHTER PREVENTION ACT” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Agriculture was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1677-E1678 on Sept. 8, 2006.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
AMERICAN HORSE SLAUGHTER PREVENTION ACT
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speech of
HON. SHEILA JACKSON-LEE
of texas
in the house of representatives
Thursday, September 7, 2006
The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 503) to amend the Horse Protection Act 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:
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of H.R. 503, the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act.
Mr. Chairman, horses have served humans throughout history, carrying us on their backs to safety, tilling our fields, drawing wagons and carriages across the great plains and grand prairies, enriching our lives as friends and companions. But they have never served the people of the United States as a source of food. Yet today, American horses are being killed so their meat can satisfy the palates of overseas diners in Europe and Asia. Show horses, racehorses, wild horses, and family horses can all be destined for the slaughterhouse and exported as foodstuff to foreign lands.
This trade in horsemeat is hidden from most Americans and the industry wants to keep it that way. To quote the operations manager of a horse slaughterhouse located in Canada:
Talking about horses is kind of a scary thing, especially in the West, where people think it's more of a pet than protein. When anybody starts writing about horses, everybody gets up in arms. Every time we say anything about horse in the paper, there's always an uproar, so I don't want to talk about it.
Mr. Chairman, it has been reported that most of the horses that end up being slaughtered are brought in by jobbers who serve as middlemen for the slaughterhouses. These jobbers readily purchase as many horses as possible at livestock auctions around the country and haul them to the plants to be butchered. Many horses are sold at auction by irresponsible owners seeking an easy means to dispose of animals they no longer want. Others, however, are consigned by caring owners who simply have no idea of the fate awaiting the animals.
Additionally, hundreds--perhaps thousands--of horses are stolen each year. Horse thieves make fast money by unloading their stolen bounty to jobbers or slaughterhouses, which typically kill and process the animals within 24 hours, making it virtually impossible to trace and recover the stolen animals in time.
Currently, there are foreign-owned slaughterhouses operating in the United States that slaughter horses for human consumption. They are Beltex Corporation in Ft. Worth, Texas; Dallas Crown in Kaufman, Texas and Cavel International in DeKalb, Illinois. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 65,976 horses were slaughtered in 2004, up from 50,564 the previous year. In addition, thousands more horses are transported under deplorable conditions across our borders to Canada and Mexico to face a similar fate.
Conditions of transport can be brutal. It is not unusual for horses to be hauled for more than 24 hours without rest, water or food in trailers that provide little protection from the elements. Many horses--sick, lame, pregnant or blind--are in distress even before being loaded.
Once at the slaughterhouse, the suffering gets worse. Horses are left for long periods in tightly packed trailers, subjected to further extremes of heat and cold. In hot weather, thirst is acute. Downed animals are unable to rise. All the horses are moved off forcibly when it's time to unload and hurried through the facility into the kill box. In the face of these deplorable conditions, including overcrowding, deafening noise, and the smell of blood, the horses typically become desperate, exhibiting fear typical of ``flight'' behavior--pacing in prance-like movements with their ears pinned back against their heads and eyes wide open.
Despite the Federal mandate that horses be rendered unconscious before being put to death, many horses are killed alive by repeated blows to the head with captive bolt pistols. While writhing in pain, the coupe de grace is administered by a slit of the throat. The dead animal is then processed for shipment overseas and destined for a foreign dining table.
Mr. Chairman, I support this legislation because I do not wish to sanction the abuse of another noble creature of the American West. The magnificent buffaloes that at one time roamed the Great Plains were killed by too many settlers and pioneers for sport when they should have been used the way they were by Native Americans--for food and clothing and fuel. How ironic it is that horses--magnificent, powerful, graceful, and athletic--are being used for food instead of sport and husbandry.
Mr. Chairman, I support H.R. 503 because it bans the shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling, or donation of horses and other equines to be slaughtered for human consumption. This is not a fitting end to the animal that has played such an important role in defining American character and culture. I urge my colleagues to join me in protecting an enduring symbol of the West and the favorite animal of Americans everywhere. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 503.
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