Slaughter

Horse slaughter is a highly talked about issue in the realm of animal welfare. Horses endure significant pain and suffering during both the transportation to a slaughterhouse and during the slaughter itself. The United States has recently banned the slaughter of horses for human consumption, which has caused many horses to be shipped to either Canada or Mexico. This means that these horses are traveling in painful and stressful conditions for longer periods of time. Unfortunately in Canada it is legal to transport horses for a period of 24 hours without water, food or rest, this is added on to the initial 5-hour food withdrawal period prior to transportation.

Elite Horse Racing

Horses used for the elite horse racing industry are often transported by air. The International Racehorse Transport (IRT) is a company that specializes in the transport of racehorses internationally since 1972. IRT states that an average of one horse is in transport for every hour of the day! That’s a lot of horses being transported. The horse racing industry has several events that can take place within days of each other requiring quick and easy transport of their moneymakers (the horses!), hence the reason for the introduction of air transport. While you might think that these horses are treated more carefully because their physical health is required for a successful industry there are still several health and behavioural concerns associated with this method of transportation.