DAYS END FARM HORSE RESCUE - DEFHR

The problem of unwanted horses in the United States has risen to crisis proportions. Although accurate numbers do not exist, estimates run well over a hundred thousand, particularly if you consider those tens of thousands of horses that are transported to slaughterhouses in Canada and Mexico annually.

What to do about unwanted horses is a significant concern of equine welfare organizations like Days End Farm Horse Rescue. “Unfortunately, there is a lack of funding and rescue and retirement facilities in the nation to take care of these unwanted horses,” said Kathy Schwartz-Howe, the Executive Director of Days End. “It is a crisis that the equine community is struggling to address. However, before effective steps can be devised to deal with this heart-wrenching situation, there needs to be a greater understanding of the complexity and dynamics of the forces at work that contribute to this growing problem.”

There are varying reasons why horses become unwanted. Some owners no longer want their horses because of illness, injury, old age, personal burden or expense (the price of corn and hay, coupled with delivery prices, has had a major financial impact on owners). Other reasons for no longer wanting a horse occur when an owner wants a more advanced one for competition, finds his or her horse difficult to control, or the animal is no longer wanted when the family farm is sold.

While it is the responsibility of the owner to act in the best interests of the animal, some decide to avoid responsibility. Some sell their horses at auction, where “killer buyers” purchase them for shipment to slaughterhouses outside the country. Others abandon or neglect them. The dollar value of equines has dropped significantly in the past year, depending on what auction you attend, the average price for a well mannered, young horse is only $500.00, or less.

Adding to the thousands of unwanted horses is the problem of over breeding. Consider these numbers. There are 9.2 million horses in the United States based on a report prepared for the American Horse Council in 2005. That study found there are 2 million horse owners in the U.S., and 238,000 of them are actively involved in breeding their horses. So as the nation struggles with how to cope with thousands of unwanted horses, each year’s new foal crop adds more horses to the population, which worsens the problem over time.

The crisis we face today is what to do with the thousands of other unwanted horses who face an uncertain and dangerous future? Sadly, it is a question with no simple answer.

Many people in the horse community have yet to grasp the severity of this crisis and its consequences. Many are pushing for “humane euthanasia” programs, education, sterilization and more re-homing facilities in the US. All these address the issue, but none bring immediate resolution. We’d like to encourage everyone to consider adopting before breeding, to humanly euthanize rather than sending their horse to an auction, and most important, GET EDUCATED and INVOLVED.

For more information call:
301/854-5037 or 410/442-1564
E-Mail: info@defhr.org

Physical Address:
1372 Woodbine Road
Woodbine, MD 21797

Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 309
Lisbon, Maryland 21765

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