SASKATOON (Staff) – Britain’s leading animal welfare group will tour Canadian farms in the new year to see first hand if there is abuse of horses on Canadian PMU farms.
“We have analyzed the issue and we consider there are ethical concerns about the use of animals to produce products for human use,” said Dr. Maggie Jennings of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
The RSPCA will join a group of Canadian animal welfare organizations on a tour of PMU farms.
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The group will tour PMU barns and discuss the Codes of Practice with Ayerst Organics, the Brandon, Man., company which contracts farmers to collect the urine.
In Britain, the use of hormone pills developed from Pregnant Mare’s Urine is the hottest issue the RSPCA has dealt with since cosmetic testing using animals.
“People do need to be aware of the ethical implications of what they are taking,” said Jennings, head of the research animal department, in London.
Although the organization has some ethical concerns about the PMU industry, their goal is not to eliminate the industry, but see if conditions can be improved for the horses, she said.
“Our primary goal is to improve the welfare of the horses. We’re an animal welfare society.
“We’re concerned about the ethical issues as well as the welfare issues,” Jennings said.
Jennings also said the organization has seen no evidence of abuse of animals connected with the PMU industry.
