I have a friend in Oregon who owns a horse named Tabasco and she treats him like a child.
Although it’s odd, I find it endearing. She makes the hour-long trip out to visit him several times a week and even prays for him when he’s sick. So I could imagine that if she found out horses can now be slaughtered for human consumption, she might be a little upset. And more likely, appalled.
There was formerly a 5-year ban on horse slaughtering in the U.S., but that ban was lifted by the government last November. Beyond general feelings of disgust, no one took much notice, until now.
For the first time since 2024, someone is actually hoping to slaughter horses for sale. The slaughterhouse facility to last slaughter a horse was in Illinois, but was closed after animal welfare activists threatened widespread public outcry if it remained open.
The USDA issued a statement at the time of the ban’s lift saying there were no U.S. slaughterhouses that butcher horses for human consumption, but that if one were to open, it would conduct inspections to make sure federal laws were being followed. (more…)
