Stop the Slaughter of Horses for Meat in Texas
Only
two horse slaughter plants remain in the United States, both operating in Texas
despite a state law banning the practice. In response to a decision by the Texas
Attorney General that the plants were in violation of the law, the horse slaughter
facilities have filed a federal lawsuit to forestall prosecution, and have now
gotten a bill filed in the state legislature to overturn the law. The bill would
make it illegal to slaughter horses for human consumption only if the consumption
happens in the United States. Since all horse meat slaughtered in Texas is sold
to foreign markets, the bill would allow the continued killing of thousands of
horses a year.
Horses suffer both in transportation to slaughter
and during the slaughtering process. Hauled in trailers designed for cattle, the
horses are overcrowded and often injured. The animals are difficult to render
unconscious with a captive bolt gun, leading slaughterhouses to slit many horses'
throats while the animals are still conscious. Texas is the only state that slaughters
horses for meat, in spite of the special place horses occupy in the history and
culture of the state.
If you live in Texas, please contact
your legislators and ask them to oppose H.B. 1324 to legalize horse
slaughter. You can look up your legislators at Congress.org
and you can write legislators at:
