Horse Slaughter in the United States

Horse Slaughter in the United States

Problem:

In 2006, the inspection of horse meat in the United States ceased, causing horse slaughter to come to an end. The closing of horse slaughter plants made the common person satisfied, however it was a nightmare for farmers, ranchers, and most horse owners.

Controversy:

Horse slaughter had become a growing area of concern around the turn of the century. As people began to use horses for sport and recreation instead of work, horses were looked at as a pet or companion animal more than livestock. How could someone possibly perform such an “inhumane and cruel act” on a pet? In addition, horse slaughter didn’t make sense, because people rarely consumed horsemeat in the United States anyways; therefore they felt there was no need.   

When horse slaughter was banned in 2006, farmers, ranchers, and horse owners were torn about what to do with their horses once they couldn’t afford feed or the horse no longer served its purpose. Do we bring them to Mexico or Canada to be slaughtered? Or do we let them starve?  The matter of banned horse slaughter caused many owners trouble, as their only logical options were to turn their horses loose or let them die of starvation; taking them to Mexico or Canada was not worth the expense. 

Solution:

In 2011, horse slaughter was reinstated in the United States. This, I feel, has been one of the best decisions President Obama has made in his entire time in office.  With the reopening of horse slaughter in the United States, there is a place for horses to go that are no longer of use to horse owners, preventing them from enduring unnecessary pain and suffering.

Misunderstanding/ Explanation:

The common misunderstanding in the horse slaughter issue is that although horses may seem like a pet, they are a form of livestock. Livestock are slaughtered for human consumption and various products. As horses become older, they are slowly decreasing in value to a point where they are no longer of use to the owner. When a horse reaches this point, the owner cannot justify spending the money on feed, veterinary, and everyday upkeep on the animal, so they sell them to the slaughterhouse. By selling the horse to the slaughterhouse, the owner is doing the right thing as it allows the horse to be free from any suffering or pain.  When slaughter takes place, it is done in a facility that allows for painless, efficient, and humane slaughter. These facilities have been remodeled numerous times to provide the best atmosphere for the animal, which helps them to feel comfortable up to the point of death. When the actual slaughter takes place, a captive bolt is shot into the forehead of the horse and renders the animal unconscious, causing them to feel no pain.

Impact:

Coming from an animal science student and a horse owner, I cannot express enough how grateful I am for the reopen of slaughter plants. Ultimately this will mean less free-range horses putting human life in danger, less inhumane treatment of horses, and an overall better flow of the horse market in the United States. The reopen of slaughter plants is in turn helping the United States economy as it creates a demand for all horses, young and old, and creates thousands of jobs for people with a background or interest in the horse market. 

A Review of the Silencer Cattle Handling Chute

"Silencer" Cattle Handling Chute

Back when my grandfather ran about a hundred head of beef cattle, it seemed like he called up the entire neighborhood to help when it came time for vaccination in the spring. In the fast pace of modern farming, who has the time of day to help a neighbor vaccinate their cattle?  I know I sure don’t.

Through the recent findings of a talented animal behaviorist, Temple Grandin, and the work by Moly Manufacturing Inc., there is now a cattle-handling chute that can significantly reduce the amount of time, energy, and help needed to work cattle. This chute is called the “Silencer”.

Pros of the "Silencer" Chute

First and foremost, it operates on a complete hydraulic system with a portable remote control or a control box attached to the equipment. Through the flip of a switch, the hydraulics will open/close gates, open/close head chutes, compress/ decompress panels along side the animal, and raise/lower the height of the chute. Because this equipment operates completely on hydraulics, there is only one person needed in the chute handling area, and one or two people needed to round up the cattle instead of the entire neighborhood.

Second of all, the “Silencer” operates on the “Flight Zone Avoidance System”, which allows the cattle to feel comfortable with their surroundings providing a stress-free experience when being worked with. An animal’s flight zone is the 360-degree area surrounding its body. Their flight zone varies according to the animal’s tameness. Once a human enters the flight zone, the animal will then move. If the human is outside of the flight zone, the animal will stand still. Because the silencer operates on the “Flight Zone Avoidance System”, it allows for the animal to feel as calm as possible while work is being done. As the animal becomes used to the equipment, the area of the flight zone decreases drastically.

Third of all, the silencer utilizes some of the findings of Temple Grandin in its design. One of the features on the high tech piece of equipment is the use of blinds. This prevents the animal from being able to see people as it is going through the chute, keeping the animal calm during the process. However, because of the direction the blinds are facing, the handler can still see the animal and its every move.  Another feature of the “Silencer” cattle chute is the squeeze panels. With the flip of one hydraulic switch, the chute will slowly close in on the calf’s body, creating a calming atmosphere for the animal. The squeeze panels help the animal to feel comfortable as well as allow the handler to do the necessary work on the animal.  

Cons of the "Silencer" Chute

The only con I can come up with for the “Silencer” handling chute is the price, which comes to about $15,400. I can certainly think of a hundred things I could do with $15,400, but I can promise you the silencer chute is worth the money.

Comparison
Brands of cattle handling systems such as Priefert and For-Most are other companies that offer a product similar to the "Silencer", however their systems still have a ways to come before they can be put in the same category as the "Silencer". First of all, their chutes do not use hydraulics. This in turn requires much more man power and helpers than it would with the "Silencer" hydraulic system. Second of all, these chutes do not take into consideration the animal's comfort level to the extent that the "Silencer" does. The competitors do not use the "Flight Zone Avoidance" technique as talked about before which is a variable technique determined by the animal's overall level of tameness and comfort level. Third of all, Priefert and For-Most do not utilize Temple Grandin's design techniques such as solid panels and blinds to keep the animal calm. With that being said, the "Silencer" handling chute is undoubtedly miles ahead of its competitors and there truly is no comparison between them.

Overall

Overall, I would definitely recommend this piece of equipment. There is no other handling chute like it. In the end, the handler will be less exhausted, the cattle will be happier, and your neighbors will be more than thrilled to come help use this high-tech piece of equipment.

http://grandin.com/behaviour/principles/flight.zone.html

http://www.molysilencerchutes.com/ 

Animal Science

What is Animal Science?

Animal science is a very broad term. When people think of animal science, usually the first idea that comes to them is veterinarian. Although veterinarians play a very important role in society, there are many other areas within animal science. Some of these areas include meat evaluation, animal husbandry, business, and communications. No matter the area of animal science, each and every area is important in providing for the growing population.

Veterinary

Veterinary can be broken down into two categories including large animal and small animal. Large animal veterinarians deal mainly with farm animals such as cattle, horses, sheep, and swine, whereas small animal veterinarians deal with house pets such as dogs, cats, hamsters, birds, and rabbits. No matter the area of expertise, their main goal is to provide physical health and wellbeing to the animal.

Meat Science

The main purpose of a meat scientist is to evaluate the live animal and the animal carcass. The meat scientist is involved with the research on the animal to determine its intake and how their intake affects the meat quality. Meat scientists typically evaluate livestock such as horse, cattle, sheep, and swine, as those are the most commonly consumed type of meat. Their main goal is to provide the best meat possible by adjusting amount of feed intake and type of feed to produce the best possible  meat for the consumer.

Husbandry

Animal husbandry deals with the growth and development of animals mainly on a mother/baby operation. This includes the breeding, birthing and raising of livestock. Their job is to evaluate and analyze each animal to determine whether or not their genetics are worthwhile and will be productive in years to come. Animal Husbandry is a difficult area of study, because these people ultimately decide in which direction the animal science industry will go.

Business

The business area of animal science deals mainly with the buying and selling of livestock for profit. These people are able to analyze an animal and determine whether or not this animal will be productive enough to make a profit when the animal is ready for slaughter.  This person also is able to buy and sell crops in the market for use in the feeding of animals. When farmers want to sell their crops at the end of the season, these business men and women are buying these crops to sell to other farmers and grain elevators for the feeding of livestock.

Communication

The communication area of animal science is basically the front line of the industry. They are the people that promote the work of animal scientists and support their findings by writing articles in magazines, blogs, and newspapers. They also have the tough job of combatting any false or misleading information throughout the media, especially lately with the recent post by yahoo about agriculture degrees.  http://education.yahoo.net/articles/most_useless_degrees.htm

Why is Animal Science Important?

Animal scientists have a very important job.  What their job comes down to is providing food for this starving world. At this point in time, farmers are expected to produce more food for the world than ever before. They do this by analyzing production methods and finding more efficient ways to produce animals when there is room for improvement. Because of this, farmers and animal scientists work together to find new ways of producing food using fewer, more productive animals with less space, allowing for population growth as well as enough food to support the numbers. 

Without animal scientists, could this starving world survive?