THE NEW YORKER PODCAST “BLOOD ON THE TRACKS”

THE NEW YORKER PODCAST “BLOOD ON THE TRACKS”

CAN HORSE RACING SURVIVE?  

In a time of changing sensitivities,

an ancient sport struggles to justify itself.

In 2019, dozens of thoroughbreds died at California’s Santa Anita Park. 

 As outrage built, the industry was forced to contend with an existential question:

 Is racing inseparable from cruelty to animals?

MAY 15, 2021 – By William Finnegan

The linked article is long but a very worthwhile read or listen.

Yes, I said read or listen.  There’s an audio file linked near the top of the article, a podcast –  so you may choose to listen instead of reading.

Published in the print edition of The New Yorker on May 24, 2021, with the headline “Blood on the Tracks.”…

This article is a wealth of information about horse racing, in the United States and the information – and the industry –  includes strong ties to Canada as well.

For that reason we’ve chosen to feature this article for a second time.

P.S. Our followers from Australia and New Zealand will find it interesting too.

What happened at the Breeders’ Cup World Championships in late 2019 looked like the end of horse racing in California, maybe in America.

It was the twelfth and final race of a two-day series, at Santa Anita Park, the storied track near Los Angeles. Sixty-eight thousand people packed the Art Deco grandstand, the apron, the infield, the high-priced suites.

The “handle”—the total betting for the day—was a healthy hundred and seventeen million dollars, but thoroughbred racingitself was on life support.

Since the beginning of the year, thirty-five horses had died at Santa Anita.

Public dismay had risen to the point that Gavin Newsom, California’s governor, had told the Times that racing’s “time is up” if it did not reform.

Dianne Feinstein, the state’s senior senator, had released a letter calling the Breeders’ Cup races a “critical test for the future of horseracing.”

T-SHIRTS IN SUPPORT OF HORSE RESCUE FUND 

LIMITED TIME OFFER FREE SHIPPING CANADA & USA 

CANADA SLAUGHTERS HORSES FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION

It may be hard for some to believe that tens of thousands of horses, including pets, are routinely slaughtered in Canada, for human consumption.

Some of the meat is consumed in Canada and much of it is shipped to the European Union and other markets, including  Japan.

The barbaric slaughter of horses is currently not legal in the United States, BUT  horses, including pets and ex-racehorses, from the United States are shipped to Canada and to Mexico to be slaughtered.

In addition Canada allows for the transportation of live horses to Japan,  to be slaughtered for human consumption, and unfortunately the transportation of horses destined for slaughter within Canada, and by air, is far from humane. 

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

30 HOURS NO FOOD | NO WATER | NO VET CARETHANK YOU to all who worked together to create this story in the Winnipeg Free Press. It's well-written, tugs at the heartstrings, and provides facts and figures. Canadian and want to know what you can do to help ban the...

read more
TATTOO SAVES HORSE

TATTOO SAVES HORSE

A SOFT LANDING | HAPPY ENDINGAlong with all our initiatives here at Ban Horse Slaughter - all the ways we are working to put an end to the slaughter of horses in Canada - including horses imported from the USA - slaughter for any purpose -- we LOVE sharing happy...

read more
17 HORSES SHOT

17 HORSES SHOT

RCMP INVESTIGATE SHOOTING OF 17 WILD HORSES ON CROWN LANDMarch 14, 2023March 15, 2023The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP ) in British Columbia, Canada say that 17 horses are dead after being shot on Crown land west of Kamloops. The Tk’emlups Rural RCMP say...

read more

BAN HORSE SLAUGHTER

FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION OR ANY PURPOSE
DONATESHOP TO SAVE HORSES
HORSE MEAT SOLD AS VEAL

HORSE MEAT SOLD AS VEAL

HORSE MEAT MASQUERADES AS VEAL

AUGUST 26, 2021:  Yet, again horse meat has shown up being presented as another type of meat. This time horse meat is being sold as veal in the EU.

Local media reported the findings had been made as part of Operation Opson X, which is coordinated by Europol and Interpol. DG Sante of the European Commission has supported national investigations looking at horse meat sales. Read more here

SURPRISED?   Well in recent years,  there have been similar cases throughout Europe, the USA and Canada. Numerous cases of horse meat, either being mixed in with other meats, or being presented as other than horse meat.

The 2013 horse meat scandal was a food industry scandal in parts of Europe in which foods advertised as containing beef were found to contain undeclared or improperly declared horse meat – as much as 100% of the meat content in some cases.

While the presence of undeclared meat was not a health issue, the scandal revealed a major breakdown in the traceability of the food supply chain, and the risk that harmful ingredients could have been included as well.

Sports horses, for example, could have entered the food supply chain, and with them the veterinary drug phenylbutazone (commonly known as BUTE) which is banned in food animals.

The scandal later spread to 13 other European countries… read more here.

USA TODAY REPORTED: 

HORSE MEAT FOUND IN IKEA MEATBALLS

 LONDON FEBRUARY 25, 2013  — It’s been about a month since a factory in Ireland let the pony out of the stable and admitted to finding traces of equine DNA in beef patties it made for export to the United Kingdom.

Since then, dinner tables across Europe have been finding out almost daily that at some point they probably were graced with an uninvited guest.

The latest discovery was made by the Swedish furniture giant IKEA. Inspectors in the Czech Republic said Monday they found traces of horse meat in frozen meatballs made in Sweden for the furniture maker.

IKEA spokeswoman Ylva Magnusson said meatballs from the same batch had gone out to Slovakia, Hungary, France, Britain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Greece, Cyprus and Ireland. Magnusson said meatballs from that batch were taken off the shelves in IKEA stores in all those countries… read more here.

DAILY MAIL:  

ARE YOU EATING HORSE?

RESEARCHERS FIND 20% OF SAMPLES OF GROUND BEEF

SOLD IN THE USA CONTAIN THE ILLEGAL FOOD STUFF 

AUGUST 26, 2015

  • Out of 48 samples of meat studied, 9 had additional animal included
  • Horse meat, which is illegal to sell in the US, was detected in 2 samples
  • This may have been down to cross-contamination at processing facility
  • Lower-cost meat may be intentionally mixed to make a bigger profit
  • Other meats discovered in research included beaver and guineafowl

READ MORE

WHY AREN’T

CANADIAN FOOD INSPECTORS (CFIA)

SURPRISED THERE’S

HORSE MEAT IN YOUR SAUSAGES?

Maclean’s AUGUST 4, 2017:  Beware, summer BBQ-ers: there could be horse meat in your pork sausage. Or pork in your beef sausage. Or beef in your chicken sausage. Or chicken (and only chicken) in your turkey sausage.

Those are some of the examples cited in a new study from researchers at the University of Guelph, which found 20 per cent of sausages sampled from Canadian grocery stores contained meats that were not on the label.

The study was commissioned by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency [CFIA], which, according to the Canadian Press, was “not surprised” by the results.  READ MORE HERE

Did you REALLY get that?

Did you get that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, (CFIA) the federal government agency that is responsible for the safety of food within Canada is NOT surprised that horse meat shows up on Canadian grocery store shelves marked as beef or other meats?

Are YOU really okay with that?

CANADIAN?  

YOU COULD BE EATING HORSE MEAT WITHOUT KNOWING

In addition to the reporting by Maclean’s, CTV, CBC, the Toronto Sun, the Globe and Mail and others reported on the same.  Read more here.

So why is eating horse meat

any different than eating

any other kind of meat?

That’s a great question.

One of the first concerns is that most of the horses slaughtered within Canada for human consumption, whether butchered and shipped to other markets – or consumed within Canadian borders –  have not been raised specifically for meat.

Horses slaughtered in Canada include horses from the USA and Canada –  including thoroughbred and standardbred horses who raced and those who never made it to the track.

 

 

Horses slaughtered also include pet horses, even stolen horses, and rodeo “stock”.

Most horses from these categories will have been treated with wormers at least twice per year, wormers that  state on the packaging, they are never to be used on “livestock” entering the human food chain.

Racing “stock”, rodeo “stock” and pet horses will very often have been treated with a drug commonly known as BUTE, that is administered for a wide range of ailments in horses, everything from arthritis to hoof abscesses and so much more.

Ask any horse owner and they’ll be able to tell you all about how often they worm their horse and that they have most likely administered BUTE or other drugs not meant for use on “livestock” entering the human food chain.

POISON:  IT'S WHAT'S FOR DINNER WHEN HORSEMEAT IS ON THE MENU

A study published in May 2010 in the journal Food and Chemical Toxicology found that substances routinely given to American horses cause dangerous adverse effects in humans.

One commonly used anti-inflammatory drug, phenylbutazone (bute), can be lethal if ingested by people.

The most serious effect of bute on humans is bone-marrow toxicity, leading to agranulocytosis (failure to produce white blood cells, causing chronic infections) and aplastic anemia (insufficient production of red and white blood cells and platelets).

Similar blood conditions such as leucopenia, hemolytic anemia, pancytopenia, and thrombocytopenia may also occur in people who consume bute.

The National Toxicology Program has determined that bute is a carcinogen.

For these reasons, the FDA bans this substance for human consumption.

And BUTE is not the only drug commonly used on horses that is not intended to ever end up in the human food chain.

But surely there’s paper work to be presented before a horse is slaughtered in Canada – right?

Surely there are protocols in place so that horses treated with toxic drugs such as wormers and BUTE don’t end up in the human food chain.

Well, you are right there is paperwork but it’s on the honour system.

Yes, in Canada those presenting horses to be slaughtered simply fill out an EID (Equine Identification Document) stating they are the rightful owner of the horse, and that the horse has not been administered drugs not meant to enter the human food chain.

Do you want to trust your health to a system that is based on the honour system, especially when there have been cases where stolen pet horses have been slaughtered?

And as you learned above, as long as horses are slaughtered in Canada – you may be eating horse meat, including toxic horse meat without knowing it.

T-SHIRTS IN SUPPORT OF HORSE RESCUE FUND 

LIMITED TIME OFFER FREE SHIPPING CANADA & USA 

CANADA SLAUGHTERS HORSES FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION

It may be hard for some to believe that tens of thousands of horses, including pets, are routinely slaughtered in Canada, for human consumption.

Some of the meat is consumed in Canada and much of it is shipped to the European Union and other markets, including  Japan.

The barbaric slaughter of horses is currently not legal in the United States, BUT  horses, including pets and ex-racehorses, from the United States are shipped to Canada and to Mexico to be slaughtered.

In addition Canada allows for the transportation of live horses to Japan,  to be slaughtered for human consumption, and unfortunately the transportation of horses destined for slaughter within Canada, and by air, is far from humane. 

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

30 HOURS NO FOOD | NO WATER | NO VET CARETHANK YOU to all who worked together to create this story in the Winnipeg Free Press. It's well-written, tugs at the heartstrings, and provides facts and figures. Canadian and want to know what you can do to help ban the...

read more
TATTOO SAVES HORSE

TATTOO SAVES HORSE

A SOFT LANDING | HAPPY ENDINGAlong with all our initiatives here at Ban Horse Slaughter - all the ways we are working to put an end to the slaughter of horses in Canada - including horses imported from the USA - slaughter for any purpose -- we LOVE sharing happy...

read more
17 HORSES SHOT

17 HORSES SHOT

RCMP INVESTIGATE SHOOTING OF 17 WILD HORSES ON CROWN LANDMarch 14, 2023March 15, 2023The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP ) in British Columbia, Canada say that 17 horses are dead after being shot on Crown land west of Kamloops. The Tk’emlups Rural RCMP say...

read more

BAN HORSE SLAUGHTER

FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION OR ANY PURPOSE
DONATESHOP TO SAVE HORSES
ACTOR KATE DRUMMOND DONATES

ACTOR KATE DRUMMOND DONATES

NOVEMBER 23, 2021:

ACTOR KATE DRUMMOND DONATES

YET AGAIN

“Seem a little too easy to make a HUGE difference?? Well, it’s not! 🙂 Every dollar helps.

Many wonderful people are trying to do many wonderful things, but they need our help to keep going.

 If this is in line with your heart, please join me in making a donation.

xo”

Kate Drummond is currently starring in Utopia Falls on Hulu and CBC Television Gem.

Fans of the TV show Wynonna Earp will recognize Kate Drummond because she played Agent Lucado.

In addition she’s starred in Being Human and Dark matter.

You may recognize her from the long running CBC TV show Heartland, or from video games like Blacklist, Splinter Cell and Tom Clancy’s, the Division.

Did you know that Kate made a career change from teaching to acting about a decade ago?

Kate loves inspiring others and to that end she’s been featured on TedxTalks with a presentation titled Chasing Dreams and Beginning Again with over 600,000 views!

So those are just a few of the reasons you may recognize Kate but we recognize her because in 2018 she very humbly introduced herself, and asked how she could help  ban  horse slaughter in Canada AND asked where she could donate to make a difference.

Kate was one of the first celebrities in Canada to use her social media platforms to educate Canadians, and others, about the horrors of horse slaughter within Canada and beyond.

In addition to educating others, she’s constantly donating funds to support many causes, including horse rescues.

Recently Kate supported Horse Rescue Fund with a very generous donation in aid of a fund raiser we spearheaded for a horse rescue and sanctuary in Nova Scotia. 

AND YET again she donated in support of a hay drive where because of a serious accident, resulting in a brain injury and wheelchair confinement a family is in need of help with their hay bill for their horses.

As of November 23, 2021 there is still a need to help this family! 

From the bottom of our hearts…

THANK YOU KATE

FOR ALL YOU DO FOR SO MANY

P.S. If you’re on Instagram follow Kate there – her Twitter account is great too.

T-SHIRTS IN SUPPORT OF HORSE RESCUE FUND 

LIMITED TIME OFFER FREE SHIPPING CANADA & USA 

CANADA SLAUGHTERS HORSES FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION

It may be hard for some to believe that tens of thousands of horses, including pets, are routinely slaughtered in Canada, for human consumption.

Some of the meat is consumed in Canada and much of it is shipped to the European Union and other markets, including  Japan.

The barbaric slaughter of horses is currently not legal in the United States, BUT  horses, including pets and ex-racehorses, from the United States are shipped to Canada and to Mexico to be slaughtered.

In addition Canada allows for the transportation of live horses to Japan,  to be slaughtered for human consumption, and unfortunately the transportation of horses destined for slaughter within Canada, and by air, is far from humane. 

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

30 HOURS NO FOOD | NO WATER | NO VET CARETHANK YOU to all who worked together to create this story in the Winnipeg Free Press. It's well-written, tugs at the heartstrings, and provides facts and figures. Canadian and want to know what you can do to help ban the...

read more
TATTOO SAVES HORSE

TATTOO SAVES HORSE

A SOFT LANDING | HAPPY ENDINGAlong with all our initiatives here at Ban Horse Slaughter - all the ways we are working to put an end to the slaughter of horses in Canada - including horses imported from the USA - slaughter for any purpose -- we LOVE sharing happy...

read more
17 HORSES SHOT

17 HORSES SHOT

RCMP INVESTIGATE SHOOTING OF 17 WILD HORSES ON CROWN LANDMarch 14, 2023March 15, 2023The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP ) in British Columbia, Canada say that 17 horses are dead after being shot on Crown land west of Kamloops. The Tk’emlups Rural RCMP say...

read more

BAN HORSE SLAUGHTER

FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION OR ANY PURPOSE
DONATESHOP TO SAVE HORSES

HORSE RESCUE FUND 50 50

HORSE RESCUE FUND 50 50

HORSE RESCUE FUND

50/50 CASH JACKPOT RAFFLE 2022

March 2022

HORSE RESCUE FUND is proud to announce that the province of Alberta has issued us  a “lottery” license – and we are once again running a 50/50 jackpot draw.

As we are sure you know — the more tickets sold, the bigger the jackpot for the winner will be and the more good we can do.

Proceeds from this 50/50 will aid several Alberta based equine rescues & sanctuaries and our emergency hay fund.

If you are not in Alberta – we will be running 50/50’s in other provinces soon.  Make sure you’re on our mailing list below, so you don’t miss out.

P.S. There’s a limit to the number of tickets we can sell… don’t delay.

NOT in Alberta?  There’s still loads you can do to help with the work that Horse Rescue Fund does.

Check out the wide range of eco-friendly, no animal testing products they offer.  20% of your purchase supports Horse Rescue Fund.  Who knew doing laundry, and reducing our plastic use could save the lives of horses?

Take a look at the t-shirts, sweat shirts and re-usable/grocery tote bags.

And or make a donation,  every bit counts and as we saw recently with the #BettyWhiteChallenge $5 donations can go a very long way.

T-SHIRTS IN SUPPORT OF HORSE RESCUE FUND 

LIMITED TIME OFFER FREE SHIPPING CANADA & USA 

CANADA SLAUGHTERS HORSES FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION

It may be hard for some to believe that tens of thousands of horses, including pets, are routinely slaughtered in Canada, for human consumption.

Some of the meat is consumed in Canada and much of it is shipped to the European Union and other markets, including  Japan.

The barbaric slaughter of horses is currently not legal in the United States, BUT  horses, including pets and ex-racehorses, from the United States are shipped to Canada and to Mexico to be slaughtered.

In addition Canada allows for the transportation of live horses to Japan,  to be slaughtered for human consumption, and unfortunately the transportation of horses destined for slaughter within Canada, and by air, is far from humane. 

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

30 HOURS NO FOOD | NO WATER | NO VET CARETHANK YOU to all who worked together to create this story in the Winnipeg Free Press. It's well-written, tugs at the heartstrings, and provides facts and figures. Canadian and want to know what you can do to help ban the...

read more
TATTOO SAVES HORSE

TATTOO SAVES HORSE

A SOFT LANDING | HAPPY ENDINGAlong with all our initiatives here at Ban Horse Slaughter - all the ways we are working to put an end to the slaughter of horses in Canada - including horses imported from the USA - slaughter for any purpose -- we LOVE sharing happy...

read more
17 HORSES SHOT

17 HORSES SHOT

RCMP INVESTIGATE SHOOTING OF 17 WILD HORSES ON CROWN LANDMarch 14, 2023March 15, 2023The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP ) in British Columbia, Canada say that 17 horses are dead after being shot on Crown land west of Kamloops. The Tk’emlups Rural RCMP say...

read more

BAN HORSE SLAUGHTER

FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION OR ANY PURPOSE
DONATESHOP TO SAVE HORSES
DO LAUNDRY SAVE HORSES

DO LAUNDRY SAVE HORSES

THINGS YOU USE EVERY DAY

CAN BE ECO-FRIENDLY AND

SAVE HORSES’ LIVES…

If you haven’t already become a fan of  the MANY eco-friendly products offered by this Canadian based company –  with world wide shipping  – then let us fill in a few blanks for you.

The product that was the first to put this company on the map…

Ultra-concentrated, hypoallergenic, eco-friendly cleaning laundry strips, pre-measured strips of detergent – that you just toss in the wash.

 

  • New zero-waste compostable packaging
  • No measuring & no mess
  • Dissolves completely in Hot or Cold Water.
  • Works in all washing machines, including HE. Front loads or top loads.
  • Helps keep 700,000,000 plastic jugs out of landfills per year

Oh, and did we mention there are ALL KINDS of other eco-friendly products available and when you use our link, Horse Rescue Fund recieves 20% of the purhcase price.

Certification

  • Paraben-free
  • Phosphate-free
  • Readily biodegradable in accordance with OECD 310D
  • Hypoallergenic, certified by independent dermatologists

Vegan: no animal-based ingredients or testing on animals by the manufacturer — or by their ingredient suppliers.

“I was skeptical when I ordered these.  Really, a small strip can do a whole load of laundry?   But I was attracted to the no-plastic packaging. I need not have worried. This product cleans effectively and issupremely easy to use. Also very easy to cut off a small piece for hand laundering. I will certainly re-order.”

“I started with the laundry strips and OH MY DAWG, the drier balls are amazing too!  Then I realized there are also mesh bags to use when buying fresh fruits and vegetables.  I love that I’m no longer using all those ‘one time use’ plastic bags!”

100% Satisfaction Guarantee

If you don’t absolutely love any of these eco-friendly products, the company doesn’t  want to keep your money!

After you receive your FIRST delivery, if you don’t think it was worth your money, email them for a refund.

T-SHIRTS IN SUPPORT OF HORSE RESCUE FUND 

LIMITED TIME OFFER FREE SHIPPING CANADA & USA 

CANADA SLAUGHTERS HORSES FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION

It may be hard for some to believe that tens of thousands of horses, including pets, are routinely slaughtered in Canada, for human consumption.

Some of the meat is consumed in Canada and much of it is shipped to the European Union and other markets, including  Japan.

The barbaric slaughter of horses is currently not legal in the United States, BUT  horses, including pets and ex-racehorses, from the United States are shipped to Canada and to Mexico to be slaughtered.

In addition Canada allows for the transportation of live horses to Japan,  to be slaughtered for human consumption, and unfortunately the transportation of horses destined for slaughter within Canada, and by air, is far from humane. 

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

30 HOURS NO FOOD | NO WATER | NO VET CARETHANK YOU to all who worked together to create this story in the Winnipeg Free Press. It's well-written, tugs at the heartstrings, and provides facts and figures. Canadian and want to know what you can do to help ban the...

read more
TATTOO SAVES HORSE

TATTOO SAVES HORSE

A SOFT LANDING | HAPPY ENDINGAlong with all our initiatives here at Ban Horse Slaughter - all the ways we are working to put an end to the slaughter of horses in Canada - including horses imported from the USA - slaughter for any purpose -- we LOVE sharing happy...

read more
17 HORSES SHOT

17 HORSES SHOT

RCMP INVESTIGATE SHOOTING OF 17 WILD HORSES ON CROWN LANDMarch 14, 2023March 15, 2023The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP ) in British Columbia, Canada say that 17 horses are dead after being shot on Crown land west of Kamloops. The Tk’emlups Rural RCMP say...

read more

BAN HORSE SLAUGHTER

FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION OR ANY PURPOSE
DONATESHOP TO SAVE HORSES

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