Horses

Kill pens are organizations that exist solely to purchase unwanted horses and sell them to slaughter plants. Although slaughtering horses has been outlawed in the United States since 2007, Canada and Mexico both have a thriving equine slaughter industry, as many other parts of the world still eat horse meat. A shocking 60% of all horses in these slaughter plants come from the United States. For more information about horse slaughter, visit animalsangels.org.

As a result, kill lots place profit over horses’ well-being and very little, if any, consideration is given to the horses’ physical needs for food, shelter or medical attention. According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), “It is common for horses purchased from [kill pens] to arrive at their new locations [starving], sick, injured, capable of spreading disease and/or in need of veterinary attention and isolation.” Negative psychological behavior can also develop in horses due to kill lot conditions.  Hope & Serenity has housed its fair share of rescued horses who arrived with depression, anxiety and aggressive tendencies.

Yes, horses can be purchased from these kill pens which in turn, removes them from the possibility of being slaughtered. However, the key word is “purchased”, not “adopted”, meaning that there are no requirements to purchase a horse from a kill pen; kill pens do not care who buys them as long as they get their money.

This is where the controversy lies in rescuing horses from kill pens; some believe that buying a horse from a kill pen is only helping keep these kill pens in business. Especially since the kill pens often play on people’s emotions to get them to spend high amounts of money to rescue a horse that they have no business purchasing in the first place due to a lack of horse knowledge and experience. For more information on this viewpoint, visit aspca.org.

The alternative viewpoint to this is yes, kill pens are terrible, but these horses need to and can be saved right now.  This is also why horse rescue organizations are needed because they are intended to provide a home where all physical and emotional needs of the horses are met from people who know what they need and how to properly care for them.

The answer to this question arises from the controversial “horses as vehicles vs. horses as companions” debate in the equine world. Those who view horses as a vehicle or tool enable an ongoing throwaway culture, squeezing as much work and money from a horse as they can before finally discarding them. For example, horses trained in competitive jumping are used at most, eleven years of their life before their chances at reaching championship are hugely decreased, often by permanent injury from years of jumping. Racehorses are only used for three. On average, horses live between 25 to 30 years, which means these now discarded horses need a home for the next 20+ years. While there are some wonderful horse owners who do keep their horses for the entirety of their lives, the reality is, that the majority do not.

There are from 7 to 10 million (*) domestic horses in the United States. Of those, approximately 200,000 are unwanted annually. There are little more than 500 equine rescue organizations in the US.

Besides the low numbers of organizations actively rescuing horses, the cost of caring for horses is can be more than most people can afford.

Which leaves the kill lots.

(* The American Horse Council estimates 7 million horses.

The World Animal Foundation estimates 10 million horses.)

A sad reality is that not all rescued horses who come to our sanctuary, or any rescue foundation, will have the opportunity to live out a long happy life. There is a regional term called a “twilight purchase” which is when you purchase a horse knowing it does not have long to live.

The purpose of a twilight purchase to provide that horse with comfort and safety for the rest of its short life and to prevent the terror and abandonment of being slaughtered instead. Gentle Giants Draft Horse Rescue (www.gentlegiantsdrafthorserescue.org) in Mt. Airy, MD is known for purchasing dying drafts from kill pens so that they may at least experience a peaceful death in a safe and loving space.

Hope & Serenity has recently experienced the loss of a twilight purchase: Journey, our spirited Paso Fino mix pony.

Journey was mere days away from being sent to slaughter when we rescued her. She had been given up due to a severe leg injury that we hoped would heal in time.

Sadly, it grew worse until she could no longer walk and was in chronic pain. We had to make the painful decision to euthanize her. She was only 11 years old, which is very young for a horse.

She is very missed by staff and volunteers alike but there is much comfort in knowing she died in a safe place where she was loved and happy.

At Hope & Serenity, we strongly encourage that you do not rescue a horse on your own without doing serious research on what goes into owning and caring for a horse.

The best way you can make a difference is by contributing to a horse rescue organization like Hope & Serenity. This provides the much-needed funding to people with the knowledge, experience, and resources to be properly care for these wonderful animals.  

Rescue Breed, 25+ years old

Fully sponsored by Dina Gottesman & Amy Leekoff

Bailey is a very old gentle soul and is good at sensing when you need some horse love. He likes to hold things in his mouth like his reins or the corner of your shirt. He has excellent manners and never causes trouble or mischief. If you are unfamiliar or cautious of horses, Bailey is a wonderful horse to spend time with to increase your overall comfort level with horses.

Bailey came to us as a starvation case. He was living with a stallion (an unneutered male horse) that would not allow him to eat. The owners refused to make changes and he was confiscated and brought to us by our veterinarian.  Bailey is now eating well and is back to a healthy weight. Bailey was originally used as a lesson horse at H&S but he has since retired and very much enjoys his free time.