My training as a veterinarian has been a strong force in making animal advocacy a top priority for me as a legislator. As one of only two veterinarians in the Senate, I have been working on the federal level to stop the neglect and mistreatment of animals in several areas.

I recently introduced an amendment to the Fiscal year 2006 Senate Agriculture Appropriations bill that will stop the slaughter of America’s horses for human consumption abroad.  On September 20, 2005, my amendment passed the Senate by an overwhelming bipartisan margin of 68-29. 

I am well aware of the love that Americans have for their horses.  When thinking of George Washington’s horses, the legend of Paul Revere’s ride, and the Pony Express, we recognize how strongly our nation’s history and cultural heritage is associated with these animals.  The Depression Era race between Seabiscuit and War Admiral raised the spirit of our nation. 

Americans don’t eat horses, and we don’t breed them for human consumption.  However, just last year 65,000 American horses were slaughtered in the United States for human consumption, while another 30,000 were shipped across our borders to Canada and Mexico for slaughter there.  The meat is then sent to Europe and Asia, where horse meat is considered a delicacy.  Work horses, race horses, and even pet horses, many of them young and healthy, are slaughtered for human consumption overseas.

Some people have questioned whether this law will result in the abuse and neglect of unwanted horses.  However, statistics do not support this claim at all.  Recently released figures show that the number of abuse cases dropped significantly in Illinois from 2002 to 2004, the period in which the state’s only horse slaughtering facility was closed due to fire.  Also, since California passed a law banning the slaughter of horses for human consumption, there has been no discernible increase in cruelty and neglect cases in the state. 

My amendment will save the lives of horses, and that is why it has the strong support of the animal protection community, which represents more than 10 million Americans, as well as much of the horse industry and many veterinarians nationwide.  In fact, Congressional measures to end horse slaughter are supported by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, Churchill Downs, Inc., and dozens of owners and trainers of champion racehorses, including Kentucky Derby winners.

The time to end this slaughter of an American icon is now.