Heart of Phoenix, since our founding over a decade ago, has spoken out against the support of kill pen schemes. Please understand, they are simply a money racket.
And they hurt horses in many ways.
What if I told you the way to solve overbreeding in the pet world from puppy mills was to purchase all the puppies from the unethical breeds each week?
I hope you would see how THAT could NEVER solve the problem; I hope you can see how that would only ever make the situation far worse.
But did you know that is EXACTLY what well-meaning people do daily with Broker lots and Kill Pen Scheme sites?
I understand, if you don’t think about all the components behind the scenes, you may not realize this, so that is why education on the subject is so important.
I saw a graphic the other day circulating online that made the puppy mill comparison with the Broker lots, and it was absolutely accurate. I will link to it if I can find it again in the comments. It was excellent.
Ending Slaughter Exports will first require we STOP supporting kill pen schemes.
As long as goodhearted horse lovers fund these pretend kill pen sales, those making a fortune with them will continue to work harder and harder to keep the slaughter channels open. The money in actual slaughter isn’t significant anymore, and it is nothing compared to the money made in these scam kill pen businesses.
But what would these businesses do if the borders were closed? They would not be able to lie to you and extort money from people across the county who think they are saving lives from slaughter, anymore.
So while they aren’t sending these numbers of horses to slaughter, being able to lie to you and claim they are means a LOT of money in their pockets weekly, year after year. Fortunes are being made on the backs of nice people who just don’t know better.
And many of the horses suffer, as a result.
The horse market is currently strong. And the number of horses exported for slaughter was under 20,000 in 2022, which is down from 166,572 ten years ago.
https://fundforhorses.org/2021/06/02/u-s-horse-slaughter-export-numbers-1989-2020/
That is not because of anything OTHER THAN less demand outside of the county. It isn’t because anyone purchased the horses from kill buyers.
I feel sure that borders could have been closed some years ago with legislative action had well-meaning, but extremely misguided people, stopped supporting the side industry of “kill pen buying.”
Had we never allowed a massive money making abuse system to grow from the low end auction and/or slaughter of horses, had we called it what it was from day one, the fight to put an end to the export would have been easier, and it actually may have ended before now.
When people purchase these horses being held for ransom, many times, they end up going to people not prepared for the horse they are receiving – donor money paid for the “bail” – the horses arrive somewhere thinner and more injured than they were when they ran through an auction, and over the years, many people have reached out, even other rescues, to turn these horses into us for actual help.
We’ve, most often, actually really ended the cycle for those horses, but they would not have needed it if these sales had no support.
These days, it is impossible to argue that slaughter need remain when so few are shipping and demand internationally for American horses has almost dried up.
But fact is, no matter where you stand on the issue of slaughter of American horses for human consumption, the fact is broker lot schemes hurt ALL horses in many ways.
- Do not support, share or donate to kill pen scams.
- Share with others the reasons not to.
- Reach out to your legislative members and tell them the numbers of horses going over our borders continues to go down yearly, that slaughter isn’t needed to control our horse numbers and request they support an end to export of horses for human consumption.
- Give to organizations that steer clear of broke pen scams.
That is how you really help.
