Euthanizing unwanted horses on the farm is better than slaughtering them for meat, says a Winnipeg animal rights activist.
Twyla Francois, of the Canadian Horse Defense Coalition is concerned about the treatment of horses exported from the United States to Canadian slaughter plants.
She has spoken with Canadian Food Inspection Agency officials about conditions the horses face and she believes there are problems throughout Canada in how animals are examined and slaughtered.
“What we are finding is CFIA head office is saying one thing, but the CFIA inspectors on the ground are saying quite a different thing,” Francois said.
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The Horse Defense Coalition wants a meeting with the United States Department of Agriculture to discuss how culled horses are handled at auctions, gathering stations and border crossings.
Francois also said she has video footage that show sick, lame and old animals being mistreated.
“I have been inspecting this industry all the way from Mexico right up to Canada in Quebec and Saskatchewan,” she said.
Working with Animal Angels and the Horse Defense Coalition, she raised concerns with the plant operators and government officials over practices at Natural Valley Farms horse slaughter facility at Neudorf, Sask.
She said there is evidence after checking the heads in a compost pit that some horses may have arrived dead or may not have been properly stunned with a captive bolt.
She said her counterparts have also followed horses from United States auction markets to the Canadian border between April to June 2007.
Francois followed American horses to a plant in Richelieu, Que. She said the animals were shipped without food or water during the trip.
She said similar instances have been documented in Western Canada at border crossings near Sweet Grass, Montana and North Portal, Sask.
In those cases, trailers carrying slaughter horses crossed the border without official inspections because they were labelled as feeder animals and therefore, did not require inspection.
Other questionable practices included the use of electric prods, which caused animals needless stress, and slaughter areas without adequate visual barriers.
“It seems like such a betrayal to see these often 20-plus-year-old horses that had always seen humans as their companions being the ones who ultimately killed them,” said Francois.
CFIA humane slaughter specialist Anne Allen said she has no concerns about Natural Valley Farms.
Allen, who trained under well-known animal behaviourist Temple Grandin, inspects federal slaughter plants for all species across Canada.
“I have been there. I have done Temple Grandin’s audit seven times. I am comfortable with what is being done well. Our staff is doing the job well and the industry is doing a good job.”
Complaints about horses entering Canada in double decker trucks resulted in inspection changes last fall.
Under U.S. law, horses labelled as pleasure or feeder horses did not require inspection.
In addition, Canadian transportation guidelines stipulate that horses have one inch of headroom clearance for every hand of height the horse stands.
“The regulation says they have to be able to stand in their natural position and not come in contact with the roof or ceiling,” Allen said.
Canadian Border Services has an agreement with the CFIA to inspect double layer trucks carrying any type of horses, she added.
“There is a difference in the rules between the U.S. and Canada. The Canadian rules state that you have to have head room clearance for all horses. In the U.S. they don’t allow (double decker trailers), which is ultimately the same,” she said.
Horses are inspected using ladders that allow people to look into the trailer.
“They are not unloaded unless there are some outstanding circumstances that require them to be unloaded. That would be a rare event,” she said. “The vast majority of them are now being checked.
As for the stunning method used at the Saskatchewan plant, Allen said she could not discuss specifics but said the handling system and type of stunning is appropriate for horses.
In an April 4 interview, Grandin said she has not been inside the Saskatchewan plant, but had seen video footage of the compost pit, which she said was poorly constructed.
Grandin also said that on three occasions she has inspected Bouvry Exports, a horse slaughter facility located at Fort Macleod, Alta., and was satisfied with the practices.
That facility used .22 calibre rifles to kill the horses, but she said captive bolts are also acceptable.
“I’m not that concerned about Canada. I’m concerned about Mexico. All the good ones come to Canada and all the bad, skinny ones go down to Mexico,” Grandin said.
Horses shipped into Mexico may be sold to several dealers before eventual slaughter.
“All my worst nightmares are happening with going to Mexico and there is no way you can close that border. The animal rights people think they can close that border, that is absolute fantasy,” she said.
Improper killing methods have been documented in Mexico and the USDA has promised to clamp down, but Grandin holds little hope.
She added horse plants in Canada must be strictly audited and stunnings and unconsciousness must be measured along with falling instances, vocalizations and cases of animals running into things.
Meanwhile, Francois said she has worked with French CBC, Radio Canada, which produced an hour long documentary showing the checks and balances for proper care and welfare are not taking place in Canada for many species.
“When I started, I really did believe the necessary steps were being taken to ensure their welfare but no, unfortunately they are not.”
