April 9, 2024:

We continue to hear that Bouvry in Fort MacLeod has closed.  

That rumour, a misinterpretation of a post by a well known and much respected by us group persists.  The main FEEDLOT – which is a seperate property from where the plant is has been closed for some months now.

The plant slaughtered horses again yesterday, Tuesday April 9th, 2024.

Our watchers who are all fans of highly marked horses – often referred to as paints, were once again horrified, to see over 50 horses and probably closer to 100 horses – maybe even more lined up at the plant to be slaughtered. 

The descriptions that came to us “young, pretty, lots of highly marked and a really pretty buttermilk buckskin” AND they know as do we that the horses slaughtered will have included pregnant mares.  It’s that time of the year.

The other part of the descriptions we got, “They look like reservation horses.” 

April 4, 2024:

After a couple of weeks of not being sure if there were horses or other precious beings at the Bouvry slaughter plant lined up and ready to be slaughtered on Thursdays…

 Horses were slaughtered today, Thursday, April 4th, 2024.

I know, I know, the rumours are circulating that the plant is closed.

An organization we love and respect out of the USA has been reporting that the FEEDLOT is closed and yes, the MAIN feedlot has been empty for a few months now.

Hopeful advocates have been reading the posts and thinking that the plant has closed, sadly that is not the case. The plant is open and operating and as in years past, NOT all the horses slaughtered at Bouvry sit in the feedlot first.

Today, April 4th, 2024 we know Bouvry slaughtered horses.

MARCH 8, 2024:

We are holding our breath.

Thursdays have for the last number of months been the day of the week that horses were slaughtered at Bouvry but yesterday and last week that was not the case.

Yes, rumours continue to fly that the plant has sold.

If it has sold, there will be nothing preventing the new owners from continuing the barbaric practice of horse slaughter.

We went through a period like this in 2023 where horses were not being slaughtered every week, so we’ll continue to hold our breath till we know for sure what’s going on.

UPDATE:  HORSES WERE SLAUGHTERED AT THE BOUVRY SLAUGHTER PLANT IN FORT MACLEOD, ALBERTA, CANADA ON THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2024

FEB. 14, 2024:

Thanks to several tireless volunteers we’ve had eyes on the Bouvry slaughter plant in Alberta – daily.

Rumours started to fly in early 2023 that the plant was to be sold.

Late 2023 those rumours were more along the lines that the plant was close to being sold.

Early 2024 the rumours became that the plant had sold.

Meanwhile, the slaughtering of horses has remained very consistent.

Almost every week horses were unloaded at the plant – beginning on Mondays and Tuesdays but increasing in numbers on Wednesdays with horses being slaughtered on Thursdays.

Yesterday, February 13, 2024, a very trustworthy, source, a source we have great respect and admiration for,  reported that the feedlots previously used to fatten and hold horses before slaughter at the Bouvry plant, were empty.

AND that the fields and pens at the slaughterhouse were empty but sadly, yesterday, a variety of trucks began arriving and unloading horses, semis with trailers and pickup trucks with stock trailers.

Based on what we’ve witnessed over the last number of months, our best guess is that the horses currently in the pens will be slaughtered tomorrow, Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024.

UPDATE:  HORSES WERE SLAUGHTERED AT THE BOUVRY SLAUGHTER PLANT IN FORT MACLEOD, ALBERTA, CANADA ON THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2024

Scroll down for what you can do to help ban the slaughter of horses in Canada.

Why, do so many of us know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Bouvry buys horses from kill buyers, who scour ads for cheap horses, including pets, sport and rodeo horses and why do kill buyers frequent auctions for the same?  

Kill buyers even pick up horses directly from some horse breeders — including but not limited to those who breed for racing —  and from some First Nations reservations.

How can Bouvry claim that they control everything from breeding to slaughter when even stolen horses, including pet horses, are documented as being slaughtered in Canada for human consumption?

If Bouvry controls everything from breeding to slaughter, why is it that there are fairly regular recalls of drug-tainted horse meat?

Keep in mind that the ONLY two plants slaughtering horses in Canada for human consumption are the two “sister” companies mentioned above, Bouvry in Alberta and Richelieu in Quebec, so drug-tainted, toxic horse meat produced in Canada leads right back to them.

So you may be thinking at this point, “I would never eat horse meat”, especially now that you know how little of it is tested for drugs that are toxic to humans.   Drugs that are routinely used on pet, sport, race, rodeo and other horses — all of which are slaughtered in Canada for human consumption.

Are you aware that you may be eating horse meat without knowing you are?

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) was NOT surprised when a study conducted in conjunction with the University of Guelph found that samples taken from grocery stores across Canada showed that food fraud is alive and well in this country.

The CFIA were NOT surprised that horse meat is showing up on Canadian grocery store shelves marked as other than horse meat.  [Learn more.]

Actually, as early as December of 2022 rumours started to fly and persist that Bouvry (in Alberta) was planning to cease slaughtering horses.

Advocates on both sides of the border started to hold their breath and hope for the best.

As 2023 progressed there were reports of fewer than normal kill buyers at auctions in the western part of Canada.

Wishful thinking?  We held our breath.

There were fewer and fewer horses on the lot at the Bouvry plant in Alberta and the ones that were there — were there for 24 hours or less.  

Advocates who phoned the plant were told that Bouvry was no longer slaughtering horses.

June 28th, 2023.  Once again there are horses in the pens at Bouvry.

June 29th, by the end of the day, the horses are gone.

It turns out Bouvry is still slaughtering horses for what they say is “pet” food.  Remember we know that they’ve slaughtered horses for years to sell to zoos – including zoos in the USA – we’re not sure that when they say “pets” they are being 100 percent truthful.

Once again on August 9th, 2023 there are horses at the Bouvry plant.  

August 10, by the end of the day, the horses are gone.

Again, it turns out Bouvry is still slaughtering horses.

Although we’ve been told that it seemed there were some auctions earlier in the year that were not attended by kill buyers – or in some cases it felt there were fewer kill buyers at auctions in western Canada, there ARE multiple reports of kill buyers at recent auctions – and they are back to buying every horse they can.

Additionally, during this same week and the week following, multiple rescues in Alberta are watching local kill pens and are able to purchase horses who are on their way to slaughter.  Not all are purchased, but at least some were saved.

Welfarm reports that when they followed up earlier this month (August of 2023), Système U claims to have terminated “all national trade agreements for the marketing of horsemeat originating outside the European Union”.

That includes horse meat from Australia and Canada.

The fact that one of the largest distributors of horse meat in France claims to no longer be selling horse meat originating from outside of the European Union is a HUGE win for Canadian, American and Australian anti-slaughter horse advocates — it is definitely a step in the right direction.

Congratulations horse advocates!

Hopefully, other distributors in France – and beyond – will follow suit. [Learn more.]

Unfortunately, horse slaughter at the Bouvry plant in Alberta, Canada continues.

 August 30, 2023, volunteers estimate there are 75 to 100 horses at the Bouvry slaughter plant with a big truck and trailer unloading more when one of our volunteers drives by.  

Yet again, the heartbreak continues and our tears start flowing.

And you guessed it, by the end of the day August 31st, the horses were gone.

The tears continue from all in the know.

MORE horses at Bouvry and a truck/trailer unloading even more!

For those still perpetuating the rumour that Bouvry is NOT slaughtering horses – please, please stop circulating that rumour.

Trucks and trailers continue to arrive at Bouvry.  Even more horses are unloaded and all the horses are in the pens closest to the plant – with the next step being slaughter.

It’s Thursday and the horses are gone, slaughtered.

Again…

For those still perpetuating the rumour that Bouvry is NOT slaughtering horses – please, please stop circulating that rumour.

2 NEW RUMOURS YESTERDAY.

First rumour, the plant has been sold or is about to be sold to an EXTREMELY LARGE beef producer. Names have been named.

The second part of that rumour is that horses will not be slaughtered at Bouvry.

NEXT, as you may or may not know…

There is another plant in Alberta that has in the past slaughtered horses – known as “Lacombe” –  the current, credible rumour is they will slaughter horses.  And of course – we know that there is a horse slaughter plant in Quebec.

So… even if Bouvry STOPS slaughtering horses/equines — our work as advocates is far from over.

We will not rest until the slaughter of equines is banned in Canada for ANY purpose –

and the export by any means of equines for slaughter for any purpose is banned.  

And of course, we will not stop until we see the same in the USA, Australia or any other market.

This week horses started showing up at Bouvry on Monday.  We can tell from the wide variety of trucks with trailers dumping horses – that many of the horses are not from existing Bouvry “stock”  — but instead from a variety of sources.

Today, we noticed this on the Bouvry website:

Once again, horses were slaughtered yesterday – Thursday.

To those keeping watch and letting us know exactly what’s going on – thank you – it’s heartbreaking enough knowing horse slaughter in Canada is legal –  without seeing the horses about to be slaughtered – you truly are heroes for watching the lot house horses again – and then realizing that by Friday they are all dead. 

The pattern of horses arriving at the plant on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday – delivered by a wide variety of trucks with trailers from semis with BIG trailers to pick-ups with stock trailers —  persisted through the later part of 2023 and continued into January 2024 (and beyond).  

AGAIN:  October, November and December 2023 and January 2024…

Horse slaughter has continued at the Bouvry plant – almost every week.

We do know kill buyers in the West are still buying horses and telling us that Bouvry is buying.

Have information – or live near the plant?  Contact us.  Anonymity is guaranteed.

Once again, this week there are horses being dropped of at the Bouvry slaughter plant in Alberta.

If the pattern we’ve seen over the last 6 or more months holds, we expect that they will be slaughtered tomorrow, Thursday, February 15, 2024.

Sadly, once again today, Thursday, February 15, 2024 – despite rumours stating that the plant was closed – or at least has stopped slaughtering horses…

Horses were slaughtered at the Bouvry slaughter plant in Fort MacLeod, Alberta, Canada.