Skip to main content

Due to decreasing use over the years, I have decided to disable the forum functionality of the site.

Forums will still be available to view but new posts are no longer allowed.

20,000 Horses Starving in Ireland?

Hype or not? http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/thousands-of-horses-left-to-die-in-irel…" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

lipigirl Mon, 11/29/2010 - 15:51

Could very well be true - they have been hit so hard that the UK is bailing them out financially. I can't comment on the TBs but Gypsy cobs were kept as family pets so it seems likely....very sad for everyone.

Monsterpony Mon, 11/29/2010 - 21:20

It wouldn't surprise me. Ireland is the 4th highest producer of thoroughbreds in the world (more than the 5th, 6th and 7th highest producers combined). For a tiny island of only 4 million people (6 million if include North Ireland), that is a lot of foals every year.

Bannerminis Tue, 11/30/2010 - 06:46

Sadly it is close to the truth. There were a lot of syndicates in the TB industry and when the country went belly up so did the syndicates and the horses were either sold or put down.

There was a lot of rubbish bred here everyone had had a stallion and mare bred it even though they should never have been bred from and a lot of inferior quality foals were born from inferior parents.

Since last winter though a lot of horses have died or been put down. There are some shocking cases of abuse (some of it not intentional if you know what I mean).

There was a noticable difference at the fairs this yr and most animals looked in good condition and quality was improved.
Although I hate to think how animals are going to suffer this yr if this weather continues and there is even less money in peoples pockets to feed animals.

Ear to the Ground did do a piece on Horsemeat which horrofies me for its all exported to Italy and other countries where its normal to eat horse meat.

supaspot60 Tue, 11/30/2010 - 07:32

one of my neighbours takes lorry loads of sport horses over to the Uk and on to Europe they are going for meat but although that upsets me its preferable to seeing them starving in the fields , I was feeding a very thin TB all last winter , it cost me a fortune in diesel driving 20 miles everyday for 5 months but there was no alternative other than letting it starve , I did contact the charities but the were unindated with cases and couldnt even send anyone to look at him - the owner could afford to feed him but wouldnt as there was no profit in the animal

rabbitsfizz Tue, 11/30/2010 - 10:34

Could you not have reported him to the Garde? It is a criminal offence, after all. And I do not agree that the SHs get a better deal being sent to slaughter- the conditions once they get to Europe are UNBELIEVABLE. It is about time Ireland got off it's backside and banned live export- it is a win/win situation as the home abattoirs would profit and the exports would still be made, only dead meat instead of abused, hungry, thirsty horses. I have no problem with people eating horse meat, and I have no problem with horses being slaughtered for horse meat. The problem I have is with people off loading venerable, helpless animals that will them be abused all the way form Cherbourg to the toe of Italy- at the border between France and Italy they have to be off loaded and put onto different trucks, and they are...well, go and see for yourself and then decide if it is OK to do this! Google ILPH Transported Horses to Italy for Slaughter, and watch the videos if you can!
Ireland (Eire) is a loophole in the live export of horses that we in the UK are powerless to stop, they cannot go form the UK for slaughter so they take them over to Dublin and they go from there, it is disgusting. It takes very little in the way of legislation, and you should actually get support form a lot of people in the industry.

Bannerminis Tue, 11/30/2010 - 12:15

On ear to the ground the horses were slaughtered here first and they went through the cuts of meat and how similar they were to beef. He was saying how many they slaughtered in a week etc. I agree they should be slaughtered here and not be put through the misery and torture of travelling.

supaspot60 Tue, 11/30/2010 - 17:15

I phoned three different guard stations , they all argued that it was not in their area ,after two weeks of pestering they eventually agreed to have a chat with the owner but nothing changed

rabbitsfizz Wed, 12/01/2010 - 10:08

I think that is disgusting!
I can see that you felt that you had to do it, no-one would want to leave an animal to starve, but I think I should have gone over the Garde's heads and gone to their superiors. It is against the law, and they are supposed to be enforcing the law, after all. It is what I would do with our police, and gave done. Also of course, local radio and TV stations, and the local paper. At the very least I would shame him into doing something, I think, even if it is only putting the horse down. What is happening now, with this awful weather?

NZ Appaloosas Fri, 12/03/2010 - 21:08

I think these starving horses need to be delivered to all the bleeding heart liberals who want all horse slaughter to be stopped. Let them take of the horses.

Diane

rabbitsfizz Sat, 12/04/2010 - 09:42

Well, something needs to be done. Maybe a government run, no profit, facility, just to get rid of all the animal that cannot be cared for at the moment. I also think that if someone uses such a facility they should be automatically banned from breeding for five years.
I do not agree that slaughter is the long term answer, only the short term. Long term, living up to your responsibilities and putting animals down at home for no profit is the answer.
If you cannot care for them do not breed them
Currently I have (I think) 13 animals for sale, however they will stay, and be fed and cared for, until they are rehomed, and consequently I have only five possible births next year (possibly less).
I do not however, nor have I ever, sent my unwanted animals to slaughter. That is unacceptable.
If there really are that many unwanted animals in Ireland then they need to be taken care of, humanely, as soon as possible. Which should mean slaughter at home, not shipped out in from hel l conditions to the toe of Italy.
Slaughter is a tricky subject, so I do not differentiate between horses and other food animals when I say that slaughter is OK so long as the animals are treated with respect and humanity. They should be transported as live animals, not hauled like goods, and they should be dispatched quickly and painlessly.
Since I do not know of [i]any[/i] horse slaughterer that transports horses for slaughter, that adheres to these conditions, I do not find horse slaughter acceptable.
At the very least it should be illegal to take a horse across a border for slaughter.

pablo Sun, 12/05/2010 - 07:17

Years ago in Ireland the only people breeding horses were the people that were born into horses . The Celtic tiger destroyed that ,you had people with spare cash in their pocket moving out of the cities ,building huge houses and the final status for them was a pony for the kids and a few broodmares.
Unfortunately they bred from inferior broken down tb mares ,you and I know if you bring an inferior mare to a top stallion it doesn't mean it will be a topclass foal. Also they sold most of our top irish sporthorse and Irish draught mares out of the country for top prices . So where are the top broodmares now ? Gone !!! Exported!! All for money and greed.
I do not agree with the live export of horses for meat , the conditions they travel in are appaling ! There are slaughter houses here who kill here and do not export
the meat outside this country too. Yes ! The amount of syndicate racehorses that are being sent to the abbatoir is unbelievable !! But like I said these people that owned shares in them were not true horse people and only saw them as a status symbol. Any of the older horse breeders I know are riding out the storm and keeping them although there is no money out of them .
You see over here ,if we euthanase a horse at home it is illegal to dig a hole to bury your animal and can be heavily fined, at one time if a horse died you could send the carcass to the local huntsmans kennels for the hounds ,the goverment has made this to illegal . So what do they do ?
I have 20 horses . 10 are minis and 10 are big horses .
My big mares range in age from a 3yr old ,13 yr old ,21 yr old ,12 yr old and 28 yr old . All have been here since foals or yearlings .
And here is were they will stay .
Going back to being a loop hole for live export ,you are 100% correct rf
they are sneaking them in from the uk ,to be exported from here ,eventhough defra do know who to watch and are keeping a close eye on the native ponies.
I hope I haven't bored you all but I don't want all the Irish people to be tarred with the same brush! :-|

Jenks Sun, 12/05/2010 - 07:28

Amen RF to being responsible. Something needs to be developed in the US too. I've wracked my brain, and I think something like your traveling renderer would work if people would actually call. Unfortunately, I think most would rather close their eyes and pretend the scrub is enough or send to an auction where they fool themselves into believing all go to a home. The only other option I see is something like the dog and cat impound where, for a fee, you turn your animal in and if not found a home or adopted out in a matter of time? They are euthanized.

rabbitsfizz Sun, 12/05/2010 - 07:44

Yes, because that idea worked with the mustangs!! Can you[i] imagine[/i] the outcry.? Myself, I would rather see all those mustangs quietly, carefully euthanised, a few at a time, just keep at it steadily till they are all gone. Yes, a few that would have been adoptable will slip through the net and die. So what??? They are, at the end of the day, [u]only[/u] dead. They are beyond abuse and stupid stupid owners who think that breeding mustangs is a good way to make money then, when that does not work, leave them to starve. Where is the dignity|?? For god's sake these animals are your HERITAGE!!! The US Government disbanded the SEVENTH CAVALRY! They have NO idea whatsoever, do they? Yet, the first thing all Americans do when they come here is go the Buckingham Palace and watch the changing of the guard, why? For the pageantry, That could have been yours! I know people who would pay good money to watch the Seventh charge over a hill....failry easy peasy against organising the Queens Birthday or the Changing of the Guard!
But I digress. The way forward is like wading through treacle, every time you think you are making headway you find that you are stuck. Now we are getting, yet again, news of thousands of ponies starving on Dartmoor. These are NOT Dartmoor Ponies, these are worthless mongrel ponies that the bloody farmers have bred because they have grazing rights and everything that they make form them is profit! The Government should go in, take the lot off Dartmoor, put them down and say "Never again!" Only Dartmoor Ponies should be allowed out on the moor, like on Exmoor. The Law? Change it.
Simples.

Third Peppermint Sun, 12/05/2010 - 10:56

[quote="rabbitsfizz"]Simples.[/quote]

If only everyone else had sense... I usually avoid having conversations with people about breeding their animals, or even buying an animal, because for some reason it's a touchy subject.

I remember talking with a lady who was an instructor for therapeutic riding and she mentioned how you can never stand in the way of a woman and a horse. I guess she used to try to talk inexperienced people out of buying a horse, but it always failed and just pissed the women off. Sadly enough, those women would eventually learn that horses aren't magical creatures that let you ride off to Narnia or whatever. People just don't listen to reason and then suddenly, when they learn they should have probably not bought that 2 year old untrained colt, they dump it at an auction.

Over here in Columbus all of the animal shelters are full. All of the rescues and city/county run shelters are PACKED. The only place that will accept any animals is the county shelter, but it costs $60 to dump your pet and about $20 to dump a stray you find. From what I understand, the cost is for euthanasia and to help with the overcrowded conditions. And to deter people from dropping anything off.

Unfortunately, I can see this happening with horses. As soon as someone opens a horse shelter for unwanted horses it will be PACKED. Judging by how poorly some shelters are run in parts of this state, you'd have conditions worse than slaughter houses or feed lots.

I guess the only thing is for people to get a clue and stop breeding crappy animals that no one wants, but I highly doubt that will happen.

I REALLY like the idea of people that have to turn animals over, or that neglect animals, be banned from owning or breeding for 5+ years. That's a good idea. :)

rabbitsfizz Sun, 12/05/2010 - 11:33

Whenever I try to broach this subject with people I know I never fail to be amazed anew at the sheer self aggrandisement of the people I am talking to. The answer is, almost always, "Oh, but MY horses will not end up at slaughter, they are too expensive." and "[u]I[/u] never have any trouble selling [i]ALL[/i] my animals for top price" (The insinuation being, of course, that I am having a problem because my stock is cra p, not because the bottom has fallen out of the market. And, of course, my only motivation is because I cannot sell my horses, not because I happen to care what happens to not only mine, but ALL horses!)
No-one seems able to separate their own problems form the BIG problem. They are only upset/involved when it affects them (as it is beginning to) and then, of course, they think everyone should buy [i]their[/i] horses because......well, because they are them, as far as I can see, and therefore far more important than, for example, me!!
And now that the situation is starting to bite, hard, they are leaving, in droves. But they really do think that they should be able to get back all the money they laid out. All that hugely inflated price money they laid out. Of course, they feel NO responsibility to refund the enormous fees they themselves charged for often second rate animals, because, of course, they are different.
Certainly are.
In a class of their own!!!

OK, OK, rant over!

Jenks Sat, 12/11/2010 - 07:07

We have a group in GA that will assist people short term with horse feed, hay, and vet care - for those who care and aren't digging themselves in deeper - then they will take horses that are given and re-home. It's become such a HUGE network I wonder how they manage it.....but they have horses all over the place and will keep them until they are placed, then take them back if asked. I cannot fathom how it's funded. But anyway, NO impounds put horses down unless they are beyond help/healing. Not like they do dogs. When the dog and cat shelter is full, they start putting them down....