NM Governor Susana Martinez€“ – Against Horse Slaughter . . . Really?

Why Not Ban Horse Slaughter in NM by Executive Order?

New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez has stated publically that she is against opening the proposed horse slaughter plant in New Mexico:

“. . . I believe creating a horse slaughtering industry in New Mexico is wrong and I am strongly opposed,”

However, since at least June of 2011, the Martinez Administration has lobbied the NM State Legislature strongly in favor of horse slaughter (for human consumption). The Executive Director of the New Mexico Livestock Board, lobbied to the NM State Legislature in June 2011:

“. . . the major reason for the increase in unwanted horses is the close of the slaughterhouses. . . Without slaughter, many horses face less humane treatment and death.”

Is she not aware of her administration’s actions? Really?

The Martinez administration recently has shown a strong negative bias against wild horses, as well as domestic:

• While the Livestock Board has come under fire for alleged abuses at the Dennis Chavez South West Auction house, the New Mexico State Veterinarian has now come under investigation for his own actions at Monero Mustangs Wild Horse Sanctuary.

• New Mexico State Veterinarian also recently stated at a meeting at the Albuquerque Public Library:

“€œThe Placitas Horses are not wild. . . and someday they are going to be mine!”

Though Governor Martinez claims to be working to improve New Mexico’s image and Tourism prospects, she has not advertised the three Wild, federal Horse Territories in New Mexico for Clean Eco-Tourism, nor does she advertise any of the three privately operated wild horse preserves in New Mexico. This failure results in a huge loss to our tourism industry, New Mexico’s largest private sector employer and second largest source of revenue, second only to Oil and Gas.

The Governor’€™s administration has also shown a strong negative bias towards wild horse population management by means of immunocontraceptive vaccine, native PZP opting by default for eradication of the horses, along with the eradication of their natural predators, the mountain lions, bears, and wolves. The jaguars, of course, are already gone.

In what can only be assumed to be a misinformed or mistaken statement, the New Mexico State Veterinarian recently told the Monero Mustangs wild horse preserve in beautiful Tierra Amarilla, NM that “PZP is illegal in the State of New Mexico, and must be delivered by a Veterinarian”. This statement is patently false as individuals certified by Dr. Jay Kirkpatrick, at the Zoo Montana Science Center, may administer PZP with a permit from the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).

Why Not a Horse Slaughter Ban in NM, Governor Martinez?
1. Sale of horse meat (wild or domestic) for human consumption in the United States is illegal, as horses receive medicines not made for food animals.
2. States have the right to Ban Horse Slaughter as California and others have done.
3. In 2007, New Mexico passed WHOA’s Wild Horse anti-horse slaughter bill, SB655, carried by the Honorable Senator Steve Komadina, which defined “wild horse,” and banned their sale, auction, or slaughter.

NM Attorney General Gary King – Also Against Horse Slaughter. . . Again, Really?

“A horse slaughtering plant in Roswell is a terrible idea,”€ said New Mexico Attorney General Gary King. “ÂœSuch a practice, while not illegal, is certainly abhorrent to public sentiment, and I strongly suggest it be abandoned. I come from a ranching family but processing horses for food was never part of the plan for raising livestock. Horses are different and should be treated differently.”

Gary King states above that “€œhorses are different” than cattle and “€œshould be treated differently.”€

OK Then, Gary – Why Are Horses Still Exempt From the Animal Cruelty Laws of New Mexico?
Horses are exempted from the NM Animal Cruelty Law just like cattle, as are ALL “€œLivestock”. Where is Gary King’s call for an executive order stating that horses should not be exempt from the Animal Cruelty Law in New Mexico? What is Gary King doing to make slaughter illegal for horses in New Mexico?

Is Horse Slaughter Abusive? Or is it Humane Euthanasia? You Decide

All the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports on slaughter in the US have highlighted egregious practices. The most recent report has even suggested a ban on horse slaughter contrary to its false promotion as a pro-slaughter report. The 2004 GAO Report to Congress on the Humane Slaughter Act states that “€œIneffective stunning and Conscious animal”€ is the #1 violation found in slaughter houses.

The 2010 GAO Report to Congress on the Humane Slaughter Act

“€œMultiple unsuccessful captive bolt stuns Multiple misplaced electrical stuns. . . FSIS also does not have a current workforce planning strategy for allocating limited staff to inspection activities, including HMSA enforcement. FSIS has strategic, operational, and performance plans for its inspection activities but does not clearly outline goals, needed resources, time frames, or performance metrics and does not have a comprehensive strategy to guide HMSA enforcement. “

The 2010 GAO Action Needed to Address Unintended Consequences from Cessation of Domestic Slaughter. What GAO Recommends :

“€œGAO suggests that Congress may wish to reconsider restrictions on the use of federal funds to inspect horses for slaughter or, instead, consider a permanent ban on horse slaughter. GAO recommends that USDA issue a final rule to protect horses through more of the transportation chain to slaughter and consider ways to better leverage resources for compliance activities.”

“€œLeveraging resources for compliance activities” will cost tax payers much more than it could possibly benefit them, even if it were likely that compliance activities would be properly funded. It is clear from the GAO reports through time, that regardless of the regime, unconscionable abuse at slaughter houses will continue.

Popular (ie successfully promulgated) Misconceptions:
• The 2010 GAO Report listed above is being misleadingly promoted by pro-slaughter advocates including the Executive Director of the New Mexico Livestock Board, as suggesting that slaughter plants need to re-open in order to solve the “€œunwanted horse issue in this economy”€. However, this report clearly shows that horses headed for slaughter need more protections en-route and more protections against conscious slaughter, and which they are not likely to receive. And, moreover, that a BAN on slaughter would resolve all of these issues.
• The US slaughter ban caused horses to go to Mexico where slaughter is unregulated; – Horses were going to slaughter in Mexico, through New Mexico, and other states, prior to the closure of domestic slaughter plants.
• Due to the economy the need for horse slaughter has increased. No excuse for abuse here. Utilizing veterinary assisted euthanasia and rendering service totals about $185, just $35 dollars more than the cost to keep your horse one more month as it costs about $150 per month to maintain a horse at your own home.
o Horses can be sold, given away, or euthanized by a vet for a mere $70. Trip fee if needed, is $45.
o The renderer will pick up your dead horse or cow for a fee of 10 to $ 70.
o Crematories will pick up, and cremate your horse.
o Horses in rural areas can be humanly shot in the head.
o For ranching type or large industries, composting is a cheaper alternative than rendering.
o Some landfills accept dead animals.
• Wild Horses are competition for the US Cattle Industry. Beef Imports, not wild horses, are the real competition for the US Cattle Industry. “U.S. livestock producers face strong competition from Canada and Mexico in domestic livestock and meat markets, causing some livestock producers to question the wisdom of the NAFTA, which opened our markets to competition from the North and South.”€

IN SUMMARY:

Governor Martinez and Attorney General King have the power to take immediate action against having New Mexico become “The Land of Dismemberment”, “The Land of Disenchantment”. Perhaps they are already working on this, as the Wild Horse Observers Association in NM has recently proposed again. We wait for decisive action, not just “feel good” words from leadership.

1. Please ask Governor Martinez to issue an Executive Order against Horse Slaughter in NM.
2. Please ask Governor Martinez and Attorney General Gary King to change the NM Animal Cruelty law so that horses are not exempted from it as Livestock.

Governor Martinez- Phone: (505) 476-2200

Attorney General Gary King – Phone: (505) 827-6000

This is not a political issue-it is a matter of common decency.

Martin Luther King Jr. “Never, never be afraid to do what is right, especially if the well being of a person or an animal is at stake . . . ”

Horses are Slaughtered (live) for human consumption, not dog food. Horse Flesh is not approved by the US FDA for human consumption. This is because horses are not raised as food animals and are given medicines and wormers which are neither safe or approved for human consumption.