Sent: Friday, January 23, 2004 3:24 PM
Subject: [againstslaughter] California Abuse and
Neglect
The following was taken from an article in the July 2002 issue of Horse
Illustrated in regards to a follow up on the concern for the incidences of abuse
and neglect in California following the 1998 ban on horse slaughter.
Dr. Stull was one of the animal welfare specialists who opposed the legislation
to ban horse slaughter, stating that the welfare of horses would be in jeopardy,
should horse owners not have the slaughter option available. This is proof
that the Horsemens Council of Illinois, has no basis in FACT for the claims of
increased abuse and neglect since the 1998 CA ban.
From Horse Illustrated - July 2002
"Carolyn Stull, Ph.D., animal welfare specialist at the Veterinary Medical
Extension at the University of California, Davis, has been watching the horse
slaughter business in California since the passing of the anti-slaughter
initiative.
"I have heard that not a lot of horses are being
auctioned off these days," she says: It seems the slaughter business has
moved to neighboring states."
Stull also notes that there has been no increase in the number of horses being
neglected in California as a result of the law. "One concern when the law
was passed was that there might be an increase in neglected and starved
horses," she says. "This has not been the case."
Gail Vacca
DeKalb, Illinois