Canada’s prominent horse protection group, the Canadian Horse Defence Coalition (CHDC), will be in Federal Court this week in Vancouver, BC with Rebeka Breder from Breder Law.

Rebeka Breder will be conducting final arguments on behalf of the CHDC’s lawsuit against the Federal government at the Federal Court at 701 Georgia Street, 3rd floor in Vancouver, BC on October 30 and 31, 2019 at 9:30 AM.

In August 2018, the CHDC filed for judicial review in the Federal Court regarding live horse shipments from Canada via air, for slaughter in North East Asia.

The lawsuit challenges violations of two sections of the Health of Animals Regulations (HAR) and names the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food as the respondent. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is responsible for the administration and enforcement of the Health of Animals Act and the HAR.

According to Rebeka Breder, “The law in regard to the live export of horses for slaughter is clear. Sections 141(8) and 142(a) of the Health of Animals Regulations state that horses over 14 hands in height (the size of a large pony) must be segregated, and horses must be able to stand in a natural position. These provisions exist to ensure the humane transport of horses, yet the CFIA consistently violates the law by allowing the overcrowding of horses and by allowing horses’ heads to touch the tops of crates, when live horses are shipped by air cargo to Japan for slaughter.”

Since 2012, the CHDC has studied conditions under which live horses are exported to Japan for human consumption. Photographic and video evidence has consistently revealed that even large draft horses have been crammed together for export purposes, sometimes as many as three or four per wooden crate, and that the ears of very tall horses have been seen to breach the netting covering the tops of crates. There is also evidence of horses dying and injuring themselves.

“This legal challenge pits David against Goliath,” says Sinikka Crosland, Executive Director of the CHDC. “But the CFIA is not above the law. The government has certain legal and ethical obligations, which cannot be swept under the rug.”

Please send inquiries to:
Rebeka Breder or Sinikka Crosland
Telephone – 604.616.4755
sinikka@defendhorsescanada.org