Equine Rescue France is formed!

[Tia]

Yes I looked.

One of the points I am making is that only one of these companies is a charity. All the other points I have made though are obvious.

 

[ISHmad]

EMW Sanctuaries UK have announced that they are proud to be associated with the NON profit making Equine Rescue France, which is great. EMW do a wonderful job for our own horses needing rescue, and did take one of the French rescues too. They subsequently issued a statement saying that their top priority has to be horses in the UK. But with all their expertise, results and the like over the years I am sure that Equine Rescue France will benefit hugely from their support and help.

 

[Dobsie]

On behalf of Equine Rescue France, I would like to clarify the following points:

We are an independent association that has been formed by a group of individuals with a common desire - to improve the welfare of equines in France. As individuals, many of us have rescue horses, either ones that were on their way to an abattoir in another country or ones that were subject to poor welfare. However as a group, we believe that our united front can contribute to improving the welfare of equines in France through education, campaigning and acting on behalf of equines in need of help.

We recognize that removing an individual horse from the meat chain has little impact on the overall meat chain – but for the individual horse, it makes a significant difference. Furthermore, if these horses are then being effectively used in all walks of life to highlight the anti-live transportation campaign, potentially they do have a longer term impact. It is up to individuals to decide if this route is for them.

But, as we are on the ground in France, ERF can have an impact on the local views – in fact we already are and are gathering local French support for our campaigns. This surely has to help the work underway in the UK through the ILPH and others. Furthermore, by educating local youngsters in France, we hope to have a longer term impact on equine welfare here. We recognize that we cannot influence everyone in France but each person we reach must be a step in the right direction.

Regarding the fattening yards, the debate is as alive in France as it is on this forum – we are concerned that these guys could turn into ‘cheap’ dealers and breeders and this is the reason that we are now being extremely careful about which horses we promote for re- homing. There is a horse meat trade and if the horse has been bred for this reason and killed humanely nearby, so be it. However, we stand by our action to empty the mushroom farmer’s yard – these were animals that were handled regularly, had done a job for man, were young and in generally good health. There will be no re-stocking as the farm has closed.

Finally, to clear up any confusion, we have no formal links with either Equine Section or IH (apart from participating on the forums). Before we were an association in our own right, IH & subsequently ES provided a way to reach a new audience with information on those horses identified as requiring rehoming. This link was essential in the rehoming of the mushroom farmer’s herd, but it was the founders of ERF who visited the yard, organized vets visits and loaded the lorry. Happily, we are now an association in our own right, with our own website and structure, and will remain an independent organization driven by our members. We look forward to working with EMW and benefiting from their experience in this field.

I apologise for this long posting, but rest assured that ERF have listened to all the points raised on this forum and others. We all have a common desire to improve equine welfare and by working together we can make this happen. We are not simply a band of ‘do-gooders’ with a new cause – we are here for the longer term and believe we can have an impact on the ground in France. If you would like to have an influence on our direction in the longer term, please join with us and continue to contribute your views.

 

[peter1959]

people can view topics without registering, i chose to register when I wanted to reply to a comment. Apologies for me not registering years ago, we are all new members at some point, come on give us a break!

 

[Fairynuff]

so refreshing to read an intelligent and well thought out reply! I could listen to you all night Reynold

. Mairi.

 

[blueberry]

As you know Sultan came from the mushroom farmer. Thanks to the efforts of your team he is enjoying a life he would not now have. As you will know he has a wonderful temperament and is a pleasure to own.
He loves being out in the field-his first day out was special, especially as it was his first ever taste of grass. He is out with 2 other youngsters whom he is proving to be the perfect companion with.
I am so glad we made the decision to become involved and save Sultan. He has led to much discussion and i know more people in our local area have signed the petition against live export so its all good.

 

[Fairynuff]

I went to one of the biggest 'agricultural fairs' in northern Italy on Saturday. I made a bee line for the equine stands, as I normally do. I wont go into detail as its pretty obvious as to how things were..but...! Im very proud of myself, I DIDNT buy the little black filly with the snip and one sock who was SKIN and BONE, up to her eyeballs in worms and was tied up with a string headcollar eating mould with some hay stuck to it-she was maybe 6 months old! Nor did I buy any of the others who were desperately needing to go to the butcher. I still think about that little filly and wish I hadnt been so strong minded in NOT fuelling the sad chain

. I feel bloody awful , but the demand has to stop for the supply to run dry. I did it once with Paolino and Doodles-I will not do it again! I did report the situation to the Italian RSPCA (!) and have contacted the various local authorities and animal rights groups. Please-do not buy meat animals or the wrecks that are up for sale-all you are doing is increasing the demand! That poor little filly....

Mairi.

 

[dieseldog]

[ QUOTE ]
people can view topics without registering, i chose to register when I wanted to reply to a comment. Apologies for me not registering years ago, we are all new members at some point, come on give us a break!

[/ QUOTE ]

I think you will find that you were being commended for the effort you showed in joining, and now that you are a member you could also contribute to some of the other posts on the forum

 

[JCWHITE]

I see there is quite a debate about ERF. What I will comment on is that, for those living here and wishing to get involved in some small way, we can UNDERSTAND this new site. French is not my first language. So I applaude those who are trying to make a difference.

 

[Tia]

Thank you for that Noisette; yes I think, from what you have said, that you are starting to educate the French people around you and this will undoubtedly make some sort of an impact on the larger picture.....because you are living, working and breathing over there. ILPH will always be the one who has the clout; they are large enough to be able to command a far bigger audience; however smaller companies like yourselves who are pragmatic and can see the full picture will, I hope, make a difference locally. In my opinion you are doing it for the right reasons with a clear picture of your goals.

Well done - and the very best of luck to you.

 

[Dobsie]

Thanks Tia and JCWhite - hopefully we can all work together to improve equine welfare over here.

 

[lisacarrera]

A quick message from www.equinesection.com re all the comments positive and otherwise. It seems that there is allot of confusion about who we are and what we are about so i felt a post was needed here. Please don't knock the round the clock working hours by many, we have families and jobs away from running equine section as well as looking after our own equines.
The mare now for re homing is not for sale she has an owner and it is a new loan home that is required. She is not owned by equine section but her plight was raised through us and another forum.
We would like to make this clear on our standing, we are not a non profit making organisation, we are not a charity and we are not a profit making organisation. We are a 100% voluntary set up. We list horses and the plight of these horses are now in many papers and now in magazines raising awareness to end the live export for slaughter. We also will be supporting the main problem and reason for these horses plight in the 1st place "indiscriminent breeding". However not all of these horses there are what many would call .... well you have your own names for them personally i love them all whether badly designed or not, However whether wrong in confirmation or failed racers or just bred randomly these horses are suffering and paying the price. So we will be raising awareness for this too. The ILPH do a wonderful job and we are right behind them just as much as any registered charity, using actions as well as words and the plights of these horses. We are not saying please go to France or any other country and save one however if there's a home out there we are happy to help the odd one. (odd one meaning its only a tiny number in comparison to the amount who take the deadly journey). We cannot save them all. The ILPH as you are all aware have hoof not hook campaign underway, so please support this. Slaughter is to me still unbearable yet i have no intention to try to abolish this, it has been done in other countries where the repercussions are worse than the slaughter itself e.g. farmer's D.I.Y methods. There is a need for disposal. Slaughterhouses are now few and far, i think and will research further feel we need more not less in the UK. There will always be a welfare issue and sadly in my lifetime we cant deal with it all but by getting behind some people/organisations who are trying their hardest to bring reality home you we will get more done in our lifetime than we would sailing on alone. Well done to everyone who is backing the ILPH campaign. We "all" of us who do something as simple as sign the petition will be contributing in a huge way.
We have no finantial funding nor do we ask for any so therefor have not set up as a recognised association of any sort, we are not a registered company. One day we may set up officially but there are sunstantial costs in order to do so.



Thank you for taking the time to read.
Kind Regards - Equine Section

 

[Suzibn]

Hello Everyone,

First, let me praise the efforts of our friends in France to help horses so badly in need of help. Fantastic effort, and may you succeed in your efforts. We are behind you 100 per cent!

I too am helping with equinesection. I can verify absolutely that no money is changing hands on equinesection and there is absolutely no attempt to collect money for ourselves in the transactions between farmer and buyer. All we do is list and picture various horses that are in imminent danger of taking a trip of thousands of miles with no concern for their welfare.

We are also trying to educate those who need help with rescues, and that is no small task! It takes hours of voluntary help to post our suggestions to those who need help.

It is absolutely hidious that in our "humane" society of horselovers some people are not getting behind this effort in one way or another. However, everyone is entitled to their opinions and we all know that some people in the horse business are in it only to make the all mighty dollar. This, obviously leaves a bad taste in our mouths. We've all been there, and it's not pleasant to be on the biting end of rascals and theives. The only way to know we are serious is to watch us go on and succeed. We aren't going anywhere until the practice of long haul shipment of horses is banned. We all know horses are not cattle or sheep, they don't stand a chance of emerging from the meat wagons in good shape. The actual slaughter in some countries is cruel and makes horses suffer needlessly.

As our Global Administrator says, if you do not like what we are doing, you can simply sign the petition against live transport of horses for slaughter, but please stop think about the horses first. They don't deserve this treatment. They have gone to war with us, pulled our wagons across new countries, given their lives for us. It's time we paid them back for their loyalty and love.

To those who have made such terrific comments about equinesection I thank you from the bottom of my heart. And to those who have actually saved horses from torture, I praise you to the heavens and hope God blesses you for many years to come.

Please come and join us if the spirit moves you to do so. We need all the help we can get, and I know there are many experienced horsemen/women on this forum who could share their knowledge to the benefit of horses everywhere.

You do not need to actually save a horse to share our mission which is to stop transport of horses for slaughter. You can sign the petition, post a note, tell us about your horses, achievements and how you won or lost. Tell us about your training methods, or who your favorite horse guru is!

Thank you, and God Bless,
Suzibn

 

[peter1959]

I believe this is sultan (blueberry.s colt) on his first time out on grass

 

[blueberry]

Thankyou for the help with the pic laraloo.
Now at least there is a face to the name!! I may be biased but what a handsome boy he is!
This was his first day in the field, he was just making his way over to two other youngsters . To me, his expression says it all.

 

[wilder]

i replied on the last thread waves hello mairi i don,t think you were shot down in flames but your argument of people paying more than the meat weight price was shot down as you never answered my question as weight per euro ratio on my horse worked out cheaper, and by the way the swiss do eat imported horsemeat not homebred, can i just say when this started i had no intention of buying another horse but i couldn,t let this one be crammed on a lorry for his journey to italy so he came home to me he is not a scrawny ready to drop horse but a stunning french normandy cob there was no reason for him to die except to substain the appetite,s of people who don,t care that the meat on their plate had some quality and dignity of life which to me is abhorrent
he has been here just over 5 weeks he is now ridden and may i add jumps like a stag, over 70 horses have been saved and if one or two people find they can,t cope we are there to support them not say i told you so,
as for the argument there is always more to fill the space again wrong dept 86 farm is now shut down no more horses will ever go through there and the last ones now face a brighter future
and as for the argument charity begins at home i think you will find that many of us already have rescued horses from our own countries
nobody is asking for anyones approval but maybe just take time to read some of the stories and try not to be blinkered in your opinions

 

[Shabbycat]

I have been reading with a great deal of interest the post threads regarding Equine Section and Equine Rescue France, and have been quite stunned to see some of the hostile responses which have been aimed at Blueberry (amongst others) and the sheer rudeness of some regular responders such as ISH_Mad. This person reminds me of the story about the scorpion and the frog crossing the river! It's just in their nature.
I feel that the people at Equine Section and Equine Rescue France should be applauded for every horse that they can save from the cruelty these animals suffer due to the inhumane transport conditions which are used and which we all are fighting to stop by petitioning through ILPH, and the more people who are made aware the better and thus the more signatures.
I have looked at Equine Sections Site and was pleased to see that they are promoting this petition very strongly indeed, and was very heartened to visit the rescued section and see how many fine animals they are saving.
The argument that the money would be better spent by donation to ILPH is possibly true but why should we rudely attempt to stop these kind people from rescuing and enjoying many years of happiness with these animals, the price of which in the UK may be more than they can afford due to the greed of many so called breeders and trainers.
In conclusion, I would say support for people who are actually doing something is better than sitting on some forum and running down their efforts just to score a meanminded point or two.

 

[ISHmad]

And there was I being supportive of things when Sherman first posted...

Hey ho, I donate to many equine charities but most particularly ILPH, Brookes and EMW - so two out of three supporting the campaign against live travel isn't bad.

Not quite sure where I've been rude, or any ruder than Blueberry. A forum is for discussion/debate not just to say what people want to hear!

 

[blueberry]

Thankyou for that

The recent replies/comments on this subject have been heartfelt and now offers the opportunity for this discussion to become an open and balanced debate.

 

[Suzibn]

Hello Blueberry!
Your boy is truly beautiful! How lucky you are to have him, and how lucky is he to have you! He is going to be one heck of a beautiful fellow when he growns up!
I'm sorry that many have given you such a hard time, you certainly don't deserve it!
May God continue to bless you for stepping in and saving such a beautiful creature.
And to those who have been nasty and mean, may I say, please apologise. It only takes a minute.
Please come and post Sultans story on www.equinerescue.com. There you will get support and happiness! Thanks you for sticking your neck out and telling Sultan's story. Those who truly love horses will understand!
Love you
Suzi

 

[JM07]

[ QUOTE ]
Those who truly love horses will understand!


[/ QUOTE ]

What a DumbAss thing to say........


and the rest of your post isn't much better........

 

[Suzibn]

"God grand me the courange to change the things I can, the serenity to accent those I cannot change, and the wisdom to know the difference.
But God, grant me the courange not to give up on what I think is right, even though I think it is hopeless"
St. Francis of Asissi

 

[blueberry]

Thankyou and i will post Sultan's story. Your words are very kind.
Even though some comments have been offensive on this topic, i personally don't need an apology-i have broad shoulders

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and i am not objectionable to a good healthy debate though i have refused to accept the almost slanderous comments and suggestions that have been made towards me. Now THAT i do take personally and i don't think such nature of comments are healthy and have any place in a this or any other debate.

Just 2 days ago i had a visitor to my shop who questioned who i was and mentioned the discussion on this forum-obviously the individual chose to remain anon to me (slightly unnerving) but i realised that this discussion has gained much interest which can only be good.


sincere thanks to the lovely support from yourself and other kind souls!

 

[Suzibn]

No, thank YOU for rescuing Sultan and loving him so much!
Love you,
Suzi

 

[Tia]

Wow! It's all turning a little Evangelical here......

 

[Onyxia]

[ QUOTE ]
but i realised that this discussion has gained much interest which can only be good.

[/ QUOTE ]
Absolutly!
We might disagree on how best to help these horses but we all want to help them

 

[Suzibn]

Thank you, this is our aim. We will all hang in there together or separately, until live shipment to slaughter is banned.
Suzi

 

[JM07]

[ QUOTE ]
Wow! It's all turning a little Evangelical here......

[/ QUOTE ]

more Billy Graham......

 

[Fairynuff]

Hi PVS- I still stand by what I said-its an emotional con and you are fueling the fire, but hey ho thats up to you! Re the euro to kilo-you may have gotten a bargain but I doubt if it can be said of the majority!
The Swiss do eat home produced horsemeat and up untill a few years ago (maybe even still) had a rather archaic method of slaughter. A foreleg would be held up while a knife was introduced into the heart = the horse going down slowly and positioned as to how it went down= less bruising of the meat and less adrenalin in the meat. My sister was married to a Swiss German and lived near Zurich and worked in the hotel/rest business-she also rode and ate horses (meat).

 

[JM07]

[ QUOTE ]
Hi PVS- I still stand by what I said-its an emotional con and you are fueling the fire, but hey ho thats up to you! Re the euro to kilo-you may have gotten a bargain but I doubt if it can be said of the majority!
The Swiss do eat home produced horsemeat and up untill a few years ago (maybe even still) had a rather archaic method of slaughter. A foreleg would be held up while a knife was introduced into the heart = the horse going down slowly and positioned as to how it went down= less bruising of the meat and less adrenalin in the meat. My sister was married to a Swiss German and lived near Zurich and worked in the hotel/rest business-she also rode and ate horses (meat).

[/ QUOTE ]

hi mairi.....

glad someone mentioned the slaughter methods of some countries.....

as for the fueling..you know my thoughts on that.....