The Contest
Alex Brown Racing is sponsoring a YouTube contest that will run from Tuesday, February 10 to Sunday May 10 2009. We will offer a $1,000 prize, to be sent to the horse rescue organization of choice of the winning entry, as of Noon eastern time, May 10, 2009. All entries are to be completed, posted and approved, by Noon on Friday April 10, 2009.
Entrants must read and be familiar with the document: Deconstructing the Horse Slaughter Issue: Chapter Horse Slaughter.
The Rules
Anyone can enter, regardless of age and country of origin.
Each video is to be 1 - 4 minutes in length.
Each video discusses specific aspects of the horse slaughter issue as noted in the above document, whether it is to agree, reinforce or disagree with the issues noted in the document.
Each video must be without gory details, PG 13 please.
Each video must use the phrase "horse slaughter" in the title, and the video must be tagged with the phrase "horse slaughter". The video should also be tagged with the phrase "ABR Video Contest".
Each entrant (video producer) can produce as many videos as he or she desires.
Each entrant needs to add his or her videos to the ABR YouTube group and e-mail Wendy.
Wendy needs to approve each entrant for the contest prize via adding a comment to the video (see the rule re: no gory details).
To be eligible a video must be completed and posted by end of day, April 10, 2009 and must be new content as of February 10, 2009.
All submissions must comply with Youtube's Copyright Infringement Policy:
"YouTube respects the rights of copyright holders and publishers and requires all users to confirm they own the copyright or have permission from the copyright holder to upload content. We comply with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and other applicable copyright laws and promptly remove content when properly notified. Repeat infringers' videos are removed and their accounts are terminated and permanently blocked from using YouTube." If you have questions about how to comply with this policy, please visit: http://www.youtube.com/t/howto_copyright.
Determining the winner
The winner will be determined by multiplying the number of comments the video received, by the rating of the video. And then adding the number of views of the video. This calculation will be made at Noon eastern, May 10, 2009
Entries
Horse Slaughter: Our Forgotten Veterans Deserve Better BrookePSU
Horse Play - Saving Horses From Slaughter horseplayri
No More Horse Slaughter horsesrule925
End Horse Slaughter thoroughbredlover3
Another Chance: Saved from Horse Slaughter millertime83
Please Stop Horse Slaughter sandyelmore490
Horse Heroes - Stop Horse Slaughter wendyu1
Media Coverage
Friday Fun: For the Heart, Head & Soul Diva Marketing Blog, February 28, 2009
Youtube Horse Slaughter - $1000 - Open to all - 1 to 4 minutes - Over Due: May 10th, 2009 The Video Contest Community, February 26, 2009
Teaching An Old Horse New Tricks Triple Dead Heat, February 17, 2009
ANTI-SLAUGHTER VIDEO CONTEST MSNBC Board, February 11, 2009
Horse Slaughter Video Contest
Video contest on horse slaughter issue Horsetalk, February 11, 2009
Videos To Stop Killing The Horse Racing Stars Triple Dead Heat, February 11, 2009
Horse slaughter...Have your say Gathering The Wind, February 11, 2009
Bright Future Thoroughblog (bottom of entry), February 11, 2009
Breaking News Texas Horse Talk, February 11, 2009
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Equine Vet Speaks Out
Equine Vet Speaks Out Against Horse Slaughter
By Lisa Carter, DVM
http://www.hsvma.org/advocacy/news/equine_vet_speaks_out.html
I am a horse person, a true horse person. I get up every morning at the break of dawn, put on my coveralls, boots, hat, gloves, and winter parka to trudge across the snowy yard to take care of my horses. I feed them, water them, turn them out, clean their stalls, and give them the love that they deserve.
Dr. Lisa Carter and her beloved companion, Black Diamond.True horse people are responsible horse owners—but not all horse owners are horse people. Some people treat their horses like a commodity. They ride and feed their horses, pay for veterinary and farrier care, and brag about them.
The big difference between true horse people and horse owners is the long-term responsibility they take for their horses. True horse people care about their horses, even when they no longer own them or they are no longer "useful."
Taking Responsibility
I currently have a 27-year-old Arabian gelding that I showed competitively on the Class A Arabian show circuit. We won many ribbons and reserve championships. Over time, he became old and arthritic, insulin intolerant, and I was no longer able to ride him.
The easiest manner of getting rid of this responsibility would be to ship him off to an auction house where he would be sold for slaughter. I would make about $200 off the deal and be rid of this high-maintenance horse.
But I am a true horse person. I take the responsibility of horse ownership seriously and know that it is a lifelong commitment. I know that when my geriatric horse's quality of life is gone, I will humanely euthanize him by chemical injection. It is the least that I can do for this wonderful animal.
Easy Way Out
Some horse owners take the easy route to rid themselves of "useless" horses. They send their horse to an auction. He or she is left in a pen for 12-24 hours without food or water, packed up into another trailer (sometimes a double-decker cattle trailer), and hauled hundreds of miles—still without food or water—often incurring injuries during the ride due to the overcrowding.
An American horse enters the kill box at a Mexican slaughter plant.©The HSUSThese horses arrive at a slaughterhouse, which is designed for cattle, in deplorable conditions and are forced into the plant to endure a terrible and painful death.
If they are lucky, they will only be struck in the head once with a captive bolt before their subsequent death. Most are not so lucky. Some very unfortunate horses end up in Mexico, where they are stabbed repeatedly in the neck in an effort to sever the spinal cord. These horses are paralyzed while being butchered, but still fully conscious.
Options are Available
I realize that not everyone has the financial ability to keep a horse that is no longer useful or is in poor health, but shipping a horse off to a slaughterhouse for a quick buck is simply wrong.
There are many options for people that are financially unable to care for their horses—they can relinquish their horse to a rescue organization, sell their horse to a carefully vetted private owner, donate their horse to a riding center, or have a veterinarian humanely euthanize their horse.
What You Can Do
As well as being a true horse person, I am also an equine veterinarian. I cancelled my membership to the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) because I do not agree with their pro-slaughter stance. Their position on slaughter mirrors that of big money making organizations like the American Quarter Horse Association, whose members often use slaughter as a quick and easy way of disposing of "useless" horses while making a quick buck.
Currently there is a bill going through Congress, H.R. 503, known as the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act, which would make it illegal to slaughter American horses for human consumption overseas, as well as ban the export of horses for slaughter.
I beg all of you, especially true horse people, to contact your Congressman and urge them to pass this bill. Horses deserve to be treated in a humane manner—H.R. 503 will make this inhumane manner of horse disposal a thing of the past.
Dr. Lisa Carter is a veterinarian and avid horse enthusiast and owner.
By Lisa Carter, DVM
http://www.hsvma.org/advocacy/news/equine_vet_speaks_out.html
I am a horse person, a true horse person. I get up every morning at the break of dawn, put on my coveralls, boots, hat, gloves, and winter parka to trudge across the snowy yard to take care of my horses. I feed them, water them, turn them out, clean their stalls, and give them the love that they deserve.
Dr. Lisa Carter and her beloved companion, Black Diamond.True horse people are responsible horse owners—but not all horse owners are horse people. Some people treat their horses like a commodity. They ride and feed their horses, pay for veterinary and farrier care, and brag about them.
The big difference between true horse people and horse owners is the long-term responsibility they take for their horses. True horse people care about their horses, even when they no longer own them or they are no longer "useful."
Taking Responsibility
I currently have a 27-year-old Arabian gelding that I showed competitively on the Class A Arabian show circuit. We won many ribbons and reserve championships. Over time, he became old and arthritic, insulin intolerant, and I was no longer able to ride him.
The easiest manner of getting rid of this responsibility would be to ship him off to an auction house where he would be sold for slaughter. I would make about $200 off the deal and be rid of this high-maintenance horse.
But I am a true horse person. I take the responsibility of horse ownership seriously and know that it is a lifelong commitment. I know that when my geriatric horse's quality of life is gone, I will humanely euthanize him by chemical injection. It is the least that I can do for this wonderful animal.
Easy Way Out
Some horse owners take the easy route to rid themselves of "useless" horses. They send their horse to an auction. He or she is left in a pen for 12-24 hours without food or water, packed up into another trailer (sometimes a double-decker cattle trailer), and hauled hundreds of miles—still without food or water—often incurring injuries during the ride due to the overcrowding.
An American horse enters the kill box at a Mexican slaughter plant.©The HSUSThese horses arrive at a slaughterhouse, which is designed for cattle, in deplorable conditions and are forced into the plant to endure a terrible and painful death.
If they are lucky, they will only be struck in the head once with a captive bolt before their subsequent death. Most are not so lucky. Some very unfortunate horses end up in Mexico, where they are stabbed repeatedly in the neck in an effort to sever the spinal cord. These horses are paralyzed while being butchered, but still fully conscious.
Options are Available
I realize that not everyone has the financial ability to keep a horse that is no longer useful or is in poor health, but shipping a horse off to a slaughterhouse for a quick buck is simply wrong.
There are many options for people that are financially unable to care for their horses—they can relinquish their horse to a rescue organization, sell their horse to a carefully vetted private owner, donate their horse to a riding center, or have a veterinarian humanely euthanize their horse.
What You Can Do
As well as being a true horse person, I am also an equine veterinarian. I cancelled my membership to the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) because I do not agree with their pro-slaughter stance. Their position on slaughter mirrors that of big money making organizations like the American Quarter Horse Association, whose members often use slaughter as a quick and easy way of disposing of "useless" horses while making a quick buck.
Currently there is a bill going through Congress, H.R. 503, known as the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act, which would make it illegal to slaughter American horses for human consumption overseas, as well as ban the export of horses for slaughter.
I beg all of you, especially true horse people, to contact your Congressman and urge them to pass this bill. Horses deserve to be treated in a humane manner—H.R. 503 will make this inhumane manner of horse disposal a thing of the past.
Dr. Lisa Carter is a veterinarian and avid horse enthusiast and owner.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Found In USNews......
Obama, Congress Should End Horse Slaughter
March 02, 2009 03:25 PM ET Bonnie Erbe Permanent Link Print
By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/erbe/2009/03/02/obama-congress-should-end-horse-slaughter_print.htm
Desperate economic times aren't just bad for people—they're terrible for animals, too. The New York Times ran an eye-opening piece this weekend about the cruelties visited on horses when owners come up short on cash and the courageous humans trying to help the horses. It's worth a read.
Even more eye-opening is a blog entry that's been circulating recently in my part of the horse world (I show in the Maryland hunter-jumper world) about a woman who recently rescued a horse from what's called a killer buyer auction in New Holland, Pennsylvania. The auction is s a disgusting, inhumane locale where blind, bleeding and injured horses are routinely beaten by unfeeling "killer buyers" who sell them for slaughter and "processing" into meat. There is no vengeance painful enough for people who make money in the animal slaughter business, as far as I'm concerned. Here's a link to pictures of New Holland, then read the blog entry below, written by a woman who saved a perfectly rideable, gorgeous young horse from a cruel fate, as the inarticulate, uneducated "meat man" tried to talk her out of it:
Rita and I looked at some other horses, but I couldn't get it out of my mind... The locked eyes earlier, the scared eyes in the kill pen, did I really feed this horse his last treat? I decided I would approach him (the meat guy) again.... He had a smirk on his face this time, but was still very mean....I told Rita my plan was to poke holes in what the horse was worth, by asking it's age, and is he registered, etc.... I walked up to the meat buyer who is standing with the broker who sold him the horse... He laughed at me and said "back so soon?" I said "How old is this horse?" Broker said "5" I asked if he was registered broker said "should be, he got a lip tattoo, he's off the track, they don't race sh*# horses, although this one's crazy, and that's why he's here." The meat dealer then said "You got cash? I said "yes, but not 500.00", he said 400.00" I said "350.00" he said "375.00, let me see it" I took the money out and put it in his hand and he said to me "now look, you gotta go get the horse out of that pen, I ain't goin' in there with all those other crazy horses, and I ain't touching your crazy ass horse, and when this horse hurts you, I don't want you comin' up to me next auction cryin' about it, it's buy at your own risk, and you just did, ( as he shoves the money in his pocket) now go get your horse out of my pen, and good luck to you, cause you're gonna need it!" I then heard him mumble under his breath as I was walking away "crazy ass broad."
This one was saved, but hundreds of thousands are sold for slaughter to Canada and Mexico each year. This inhumane treatment could be ruled illegal. Breeders could be regulated and prevented from breeding more horses than there are caring owners to buy them. Any time money can be made off of animals' misery, the market unfortunately governs. I will continue to write about and expose this ugly underbelly of American society until Congress and the president shut down the slaughter industry.
March 02, 2009 03:25 PM ET Bonnie Erbe Permanent Link Print
By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/erbe/2009/03/02/obama-congress-should-end-horse-slaughter_print.htm
Desperate economic times aren't just bad for people—they're terrible for animals, too. The New York Times ran an eye-opening piece this weekend about the cruelties visited on horses when owners come up short on cash and the courageous humans trying to help the horses. It's worth a read.
Even more eye-opening is a blog entry that's been circulating recently in my part of the horse world (I show in the Maryland hunter-jumper world) about a woman who recently rescued a horse from what's called a killer buyer auction in New Holland, Pennsylvania. The auction is s a disgusting, inhumane locale where blind, bleeding and injured horses are routinely beaten by unfeeling "killer buyers" who sell them for slaughter and "processing" into meat. There is no vengeance painful enough for people who make money in the animal slaughter business, as far as I'm concerned. Here's a link to pictures of New Holland, then read the blog entry below, written by a woman who saved a perfectly rideable, gorgeous young horse from a cruel fate, as the inarticulate, uneducated "meat man" tried to talk her out of it:
Rita and I looked at some other horses, but I couldn't get it out of my mind... The locked eyes earlier, the scared eyes in the kill pen, did I really feed this horse his last treat? I decided I would approach him (the meat guy) again.... He had a smirk on his face this time, but was still very mean....I told Rita my plan was to poke holes in what the horse was worth, by asking it's age, and is he registered, etc.... I walked up to the meat buyer who is standing with the broker who sold him the horse... He laughed at me and said "back so soon?" I said "How old is this horse?" Broker said "5" I asked if he was registered broker said "should be, he got a lip tattoo, he's off the track, they don't race sh*# horses, although this one's crazy, and that's why he's here." The meat dealer then said "You got cash? I said "yes, but not 500.00", he said 400.00" I said "350.00" he said "375.00, let me see it" I took the money out and put it in his hand and he said to me "now look, you gotta go get the horse out of that pen, I ain't goin' in there with all those other crazy horses, and I ain't touching your crazy ass horse, and when this horse hurts you, I don't want you comin' up to me next auction cryin' about it, it's buy at your own risk, and you just did, ( as he shoves the money in his pocket) now go get your horse out of my pen, and good luck to you, cause you're gonna need it!" I then heard him mumble under his breath as I was walking away "crazy ass broad."
This one was saved, but hundreds of thousands are sold for slaughter to Canada and Mexico each year. This inhumane treatment could be ruled illegal. Breeders could be regulated and prevented from breeding more horses than there are caring owners to buy them. Any time money can be made off of animals' misery, the market unfortunately governs. I will continue to write about and expose this ugly underbelly of American society until Congress and the president shut down the slaughter industry.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)