A Win for the West's Wild Horses
In a significant victory for America's wild horses and their supporters, a federal appeals court has temporarily halted plans by companies in New Mexico and Missouri to reopen equine slaughterhouses. This decision marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing battle to protect these majestic animals.
Last Friday, horse advocates faced a setback when a federal judge in Albuquerque dismissed a lawsuit by The Humane Society. The lawsuit alleged that the U.S. Department of Agriculture had failed to conduct proper environmental studies when it issued permits to the slaughterhouses. However, The Humane Society filed an immediate appeal and successfully secured an emergency injunction.
"We've got a chance now," said horse advocate Leland Grass, who opposes horse roundups in his home Navajo Nation, where they have been ongoing since last July.
Grass emphasized the importance of yesterday's decision, stating that if slaughterhouses remain closed, it "will open the door for Congress to approve the SAFE Act. If they remain open, it probably won't go our way." Grass and his group, Nohooká Diné, have sent a resolution to legislators in Washington, DC, urging them to pass the Safeguard American Food Exports (SAFE) Act, currently pending before Congress. He stressed that a national bill is critical to ensure there is no incentive for horses to be taken from Navajo land or elsewhere for slaughter.
According to federal authorities, America is on the verge of a wild horse overpopulation crisis. They estimate that roughly 33,000 wild horses roam freely on public lands, with more on tribal lands, impacting fragile ecosystems, overgrazing, and often suffering from thirst in the drought-prone, arid West.
In September, I traveled to the Navajo Nation and witnessed horse roundups firsthand. Erny Zah, communications director for the Navajo Nation, stated, "We don't want to send horses to their demise. We're just doing what we can with our limited resources to protect our land." He noted that without operational equine slaughterhouses, horses can still be sold, but they don't fetch "as high a price."
Critics of horse slaughter argue that it is a profit-driven enterprise fueled by business interests such as cattle ranching and extractive industries that seek to clear land for development. Eliminating slaughterhouses removes the market and, thus, the profit incentive.
The Obama administration has included a proposal in its 2014 budget that would effectively ban the slaughter of horses for human consumption by preventing money from being spent on the inspection of slaughtering facilities.
Originally Posted By Esquire