AR-News: On-line today: Illnois Joins Texas in Horse Slaughter

[Mary Finelli]

Noon (EST, 5 p.m. Greewich meridian) on http://www.GoVeganTexas.org and 
http://www.kpft.org


From: Janice Blue <bluevegan at earthlink.net>, host of Go Vegan Texas!

ILLINOIS JOINS TEXAS: ANOTHER HORSE SLAUGHTER PLANT OPENS
June 9, 2004

with guests:
James Tucker, Manager, Cavel International, De Kalb. IL
Dr. Lydia Gray, DVM, Ex. Dir., Illinois Hooved Animal Humane Society
Gail Vacca, Illinois Coordinator, National Horse Protection Coalition

Go Vegan Texas!

Monday at 11am (CDT) on KPFT
90.1 FM-Houston and 89.5 FM-Galveston


"We have a lot of horse people who say it should happen.  They see horse 
slaughter  as a service. We recycle a resource that's otherwise wasted. It's 
marketed in Europe like the other meats"
--- James Tucker
Manager, Cavel International, De Kalb, IL
quoted on CBS Evening News
June 16, 2004


"I find it disingenuous that its defenders claim horse slaughter is a form 
of humane euthanasia akin to veterinary-administered euthanasia. The idea 
that cruelty cases will increase if horse slaughter is banned is just 
absurd, and couldn't be further from the truth. Horse slaughter and equine 
abuse are two separate and distinct forms of cruelty."
--- Dr. Lydia Gray, DVM
equine veterinarian


"And then in the end when we are through with them, we're going to drag them 
to the slaughterhouse and let them suffer a miserable death? ...It's a 
betrayal."
--- Gail Vacca, horse trainer
National  Horse Protection Coalition
quoted on CBS Evening News
June 16, 2004


"A horse is really part of our culture and when you lose your culture, you 
lose your soul."
--- Nick Zito, Spokesperson
winning trainer of the Derby & Belmont Stakes
quoted on CBS Evening News
June 16, 2004


"Here are these exquisite, immensely powerful creatures, who willingly give 
us their labor in return for our stewardship. They have attended us 
throughout history, bearing us across frontiers and into battle, pulling our 
plows, thrilling us in sport, warming us with their beauty. We owe them more 
than we can ever repay. To send these trusting creatures to slaughter is 
beneath their dignity and ours."
--- Laura Hillenbrand
author, "Seabiscuit"


"As the speed of the "kill lines" that prepare thousands of animals for 
slaughter is increased to boost productivity, more and more semiconscious 
and frightened animals pass through their flailing limbs lashing out and 
injuring workers before being brutally hacked off. But the kill line keeps 
going because the pressure to mass produce is intensifying to the point that 
human life is placed on par with that of the animals."
--- Gail Eisnitz
author, "SlaughterHouse"


On the Friday before Memorial Day, doors opened for business  at Cavel 
International in De Kalb, Illinois, for the business of horse slaughter.

One hundred horses will be slaughtered each Monday, Wednesday and Friday and 
each week 30,000 pounds of  US horse meat will shipped to meat markets and 
restaurants in Europe and Japan.  Wednesday, June 9 was the official first 
day horses lined up for the kill line.

CBS Evening News covered the story this past Wednesday and interviewed Jim 
Tucker,
manager of the reopened horse slaughter plant (the first one suspiciously 
burned two years ago).

Tucker claims the slaughter is humane and that they would be "shut down by 
the USDA" if there was any evidence of cruelty but Dr. Lydia Gray, an equine 
veterinarian, who investigates animal cruelty cases and visited the Cavel 
plant before the fire said she witnessed a downed horse be slaughtered after 
other horses nearly trampled the injured horse in the kill line.

Dr. Gray is a passionate advocate for horses and is executive director of 
the Hoofed Humane Animal Society.

Tucker and Dr. Gray will be guests on Go Vegan Texas! today along with horse 
trainer Gail Vacca of DeKalb who headed up the National Horse Protection 
Coalition which tried, unsuccessfully to pass legislation in the state of 
Illinois recently that would have banned the slaughter of horses for human 
consumption.   Vacca said that a survey shows that 83% to 90% oppose the 
slaughter of horses for consumption.

Horses have been considered companion animals in the United States, she 
says, adding"Will we be killing dogs and cats for consumption next?  Our 
culture has to draw a line somewhere and we have never in our history been a 
country that eats companion animals."

Vivian Farrell, founder and president of Fund 4 Horses and member of the Go 
Vegan Texas! collective  will  co host today's show.

Today, we go to De Kalb, Illinois, and talk to people on both sides of the 
debate of killing horses and selling the meat to foreign markets and 
restaurants, as Illinois joins Texas in going into the horse slaughter 
business.

Thank you for listening,
Janice Blue
Host, Go Vegan Texas!
Now weekly every Monday at 11am (CST)
On Pacifica Radio
KPFT, 90.1 FM - Houston and 89.5 FM - Galveston

Listen Live on www.GovVeganTexas.org
(Just Wiggle the Cow's Ears)
Or later on www.KPFTarchive.org

Every animal you eat
Was running for her life
-------------------------------
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Contact Information for Today's Guests/Co Hosts:

Jim Tucker
(no website found)
Cavel International Inc
108 Harvestore Dr
DeKalb, IL 60115
(815) 756-8051

Lydia Gray, DVM
ex dir, Hoofed Animal Humane Society
http://www.hahs.org

Gail Vacca
Illinois Coordinator
http://www.horse-protection.org

Vivian Farrell
founder-president, Fund 4 Horses
http://www.fund4horses.org

Additional LInks:
Society for Animal Protective Legislation
http://saplonline.org

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