Taunton abbatoir - not for the light hearted. Video footage

All part of owning an animal; you have a responsibilty for its life and its death. Quite hard to watch from an emotional point of view however having never seen a horse PTS I am pleased at how quickly the bullet kills the animal. The staff looked very professional and skilled; at the end of the day it is a business they need to be quick and effieicent for the animals sake.
 
No, you are right, I cannot relate to that - for an intelligent, well adjusted woman to hit rock bottom because her horse's life had ended just doesn't sit well with me and I find it unhealthy - it also begs me to ask the question as to whether she replaced humans in her life with animals, or if that animal had helped her through a tragic time in her life and his death heralded the end of an era that she found painful. Of course, I can relate to people grieving for horses and missing them - but having a breakdown? Nope, don't think I could ever understand it.

As for dogs - well they are different. The are with us far more and are part of our homes. They leave more of an obvious gap in our lives than horses do - dogs are genuinely pleased to see us, and I know people say horses are and I have had that sort of relationship with my horses, but in the back of my mind I cannot help but wonder if all they want is food!
 
[ QUOTE ]
DieselDog....what was wrong with your mare? Why did you have her put down?

[/ QUOTE ]

I got bored. She was the wrong colour.
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
DieselDog....what was wrong with your mare? Why did you have her put down?

[/ QUOTE ]

I got bored. She was the wrong colour.

[/ QUOTE ]

PMSL!! DD- you Cant say THAT! i LOLed so hard then I nearly fractured my other collar bone!
grin.gif
grin.gif
 
oh dear this has really caused quite a stir, and i agree with some bits that people have said and i disagree with other bits people have said, to me and a lot of people i know horses are not just there to do a job, without them we would not be where we are today as a society and i think people often forget that or simply dont care, if a horse has to be pts then fair enough but to send happy healthy animals then no cannot understand it, to discard a horse because its not doing its 'job' well enough i feel is disrespectful, you couldnt get away with discarding people that dont do their job properly, i have always felt the human race is so distructive and cruel and driven by money, to watch some of the things people do and enjoy to do makes me sick, animals dont go round blowing up others, raping torturing shooting stabbing etc etc so to me the animals are far more intellegent than we give credit,

god i have rambled a bit sorry lol
tongue.gif
blush.gif
 
I have to say having watched all the footage they were all dispatched quickly, cleanly and professionally IMO. The old guy clearly knows his job backwards, none of the horses seem obviously distressed, no more than one sees at a local show being loaded/travelled every goddam weekend!

Personally I would not/could not send any horse of mine away to be shot but if one of them broke a limb in the middle of nowhere, may not have a choice. I actually feel better about the prospect having seen this footage.
 
QR - I have only just seen this post and frankly haven't read all of the replies as the levels of hysteria got a bit much for me. I would just like to say that there is a difference between being callous, hard-hearted etc and being pragmatic. If you take on the responsibility of an animal then you have to accept that there will come a time when you have to make decisions about its future. It is, IMO, a lot less cruel to have an animal put to sleep, in whichever manner you feel is best, then to sell the animal on to an uncertain future while telling yourself you have given it a new lease of life.
It may be kinder or less stressful on the animal to be euthanased at home - who's to say? They are horses, not humans, they don't have the same level of understanding or emotional response as we do. All of our dogs have been put to sleep at the vets - are we cruel for not having it done at home? I really don't think it made any difference to them.
 
I am the world's biggest baby when it comes to footage of this nature and it took me 30 minutes to work up the courage to watch it.

My first horse was shot when he broke his leg in the field - our vet told us that if he didn't shoot him, he'd go down on his bad leg and the last thing he'd feel was pain as the injection took effect.

I can actually say that I would now want my horse shot if push came to shove - I don't think anything was 'dodgy' about the footage. I would hazard a guess that the last horse fell in the yard - how the hell would you pick it up out of a trailer and leave it on the floor like that.

I've seen too many horses with cr@p owners and treated badly and would much rather they were slaughtered - no matter how upsetting it can be.
 
QR
My word this has all got out of hand!

My expereince is that is is rare for somebody who has owned a horse for a long time to take it to somewhere like Potters, although it does happen and one of my friends did take her mare there (not rideable, not suitable for breeding, she couldn't afford a field ornament, I respect her decision)

Usually the horses that end up there have been purchased at auction, sold by soft hearted owners (amongst others) who cannot bear to do what they should do, and sold to a very uncertain future. I know of a number of dealers who would be considered to be professional and legitimate who reguularly send horses there that are not worth bringing on for sale.

Does anybody seriously think that these horses would have a better life if there wasn't this kind of outlet? No, some owners would do the right thing and have them shot at home then sold on the hook, or have the kennels come and dispatch and take them away. Others, at the much lower end of the market would simply discard them. If you don't believe me you should see the travellers ponies I have rescued and rehomed over the years, dumped because they can't squeeze out yet another foal, or because they have broken down - but usually too small or weak to have any value as meat.
 
I think this will always be a subject too personal to debate on.
My take is, if we have ownership of an animal to do purely a job, eg foxhound, pro/semi-pro showjumper, riding school pony... whatever, then we usually do not get as attached to it as an animal primarily kept as a companion, (for us) even if we show/work it.
Perhaps it all comes down to how we value the animal? what it can do for us, versus what it can give to us? Maybe we sometimes do not value them as much as we should?
However I do feel that a salient point was made earlier... if the bullet is quicker, why not use it on dogs/cats?
I know a kennelman who has no qualms about despatching hounds with a bullet to the back of the head, but will not hear of that method for his own labs....who are incidentally used as gundogs.

Personally, purely due to past experiences, lethal injection at home (or at least with owner present) has never been less than swift and peaceful. I feel that whichever method is used(free bullet or injection) the least the owner can do is be there...anything else is passing the buck.

Sure, the slaughtermen in the video are chatting about everyday stuff...they will, they do this every day, they have no attachment, and seem to be decent about the work they do. That said, I would never send a horse of mine there. I realise that I am privelaged to be able to own horses, maybe some take it for granted too much?

I wonder if anyone seeing that vid recognised a horse of theirs? Would be interesting to hear what they thought.
 
I thought the injection method with horses was harder to get right whereas its easier with cats and dogs as they are smaller, and also vets will euthanise cats and dogs every day - whereas a horse is rarer and as such maybe they arent as good at doing it? Thats only what I thought mind, so happy to be disabused of it!!
 
[ QUOTE ]
just to add amy tryon is apparently a disgrace to the equine world. she made a mistake albeit a terrible mistake but how is everyone hating her, and not disgusted by that footage. my father in his capacity as an enviournmental health officer has worked in many abbatiors and found the slaughter men are predominantly sidistic and enjoy their work. bear that in mind!

[/ QUOTE ]

As an (apparently) A Level English student, please rearrange the following words into a sentence....."crap, load of, what a"

Do you honestly think that slaughter men are sadistic and enjoy shooting animals?? At somewhere between 16 and 18, if you're doing A Levels, just how many slaughter men have you known and have told you they enjoy it and get pleasure out of it?

Would you be this upset if it were cows or pigs being taken for slaughter?

As JM said earlier on, we've been through this before. People are upset because they view horses as pets, not as meat like cows or sheep.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I also can not believe how most of you thought that establishment provided a more humane service than those abroad. A lot of those unfortunate horses and ponies filmed were STILL alive after being shot. This was obvious as they
were still thrashing about as they were being chained up.

[/ QUOTE ]

Basic biology - they are actually dead before they hit the ground. They twitch the same way any body would once the brain stem is dead. From your comments I would deduce that you have never seen footage of foreign slaughterhouses, if you had you would know that this one is infinately preferable.

Personally, the video was a lot less upsetting than I thought it would be, none of the horses looked stressed or scared - they were treated calmly and with much more respect than the poor horses in the Mexican slaughter house (where all American horses now go since they banned horse slaughter in the USA). So - hats off to that particular slaughterhouse, I wish there were more like it. Think on this - without that abbattoir - those horses would have been sent live to the continent, if people like Animal Aid are trying to get places like this closed then they will cause untold suffering to thousands of horses.

Before I get accused of being hardhearted, I do have a lawnmower - she is 30 years old, and, for now, fit as a fiddle. When her time comes, I will have her pts at home - was thinking of the injection, but have known this to go wrong, thanks to this video I now feel happier about the bullet.

I do feel that it is NOT the abbattoir who is at fault here, it is the owner who either sent their horse to the sales because they shirked their responsibility, or the overzealous breeder who sent them to the abbattoir for the meat money when they did not make the grade.
 
Chestnutcob, I am replying on behalf of my daughter who is currently in her bedroom doing A Level course work. Firstly, had you read her post properly, you would have noted that her father, an environmental health officer, worked in a slaughterhouse as part of his training. I can well remember him telling me what hard, cruel people the slaughtermen were, describing them as being sadistic and enjoying their work. I think she has sufficient knowledge to comment on this subject.

As for the pigs/cows being slaughtered, yes, we are both moved to tears by this too since my daughter has been a total veggie for seven years (although she is a hunt supporter and used to beat on shoots...."Pheasants have a far better life than some poor chicken in a battery farm"). She won't even eat fish whereas I will eat fish, poultry and game.

The vast majority of my friends consider their horses to be their pets with the possible exception of a friend who has point-to-pointers but even he was devasted when his home bred mare, this year's East Anglian Champion mare, cracked her pelvis in two places on the gallops. Any other horse would have had dispatched, but this one he nutured back to health (she's now being ridden).

We are getting off the point; my point is, if you love your horse, you have it dispatched at home. I only know one woman who sent two horses to slaughter and she has been vilified by the local horse people who know her.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Chestnutcob, I am replying on behalf of my daughter who is currently in her bedroom doing A Level course work. Firstly, had you read her post properly, you would have noted that her father, an environmental health officer, worked in a slaughterhouse as part of his training. I can well remember him telling me what hard, cruel people the slaughtermen were, describing them as being sadistic and enjoying their work. I think she has sufficient knowledge to comment on this subject.

As for the pigs/cows being slaughtered, yes, we are both moved to tears by this too since my daughter has been a total veggie for seven years (although she is a hunt supporter and used to beat on shoots...."Pheasants have a far better life than some poor chicken in a battery farm"). She won't even eat fish whereas I will eat fish, poultry and game.

The vast majority of my friends consider their horses to be their pets with the possible exception of a friend who has point-to-pointers but even he was devasted when his home bred mare, this year's East Anglian Champion mare, cracked her pelvis in two places on the gallops. Any other horse would have had dispatched, but this one he nutured back to health (she's now being ridden).

We are getting off the point; my point is, if you love your horse, you have it dispatched at home. I only know one woman who sent two horses to slaughter and she has been vilified by the local horse people who know her.

[/ QUOTE ]

This 'holier-than-thou' tone is quite irritating from someone who appears to be desperately trying to sell her horses on another post. Did these particular horses not count 'as pets' then? Double standards in the extreme. Or maybe I should take my cue from you, and sell my old horses...after neatly moving them from my mental 'Pet category' to my 'Sell for as much profit as I can category'.
And good luck to your daughter in her A level English...
S
smile.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
I will NEVER for the life of me know how any of you "horse lovers" would want a horse to end its life with an undignified bullet. When mine goes it'll be at home, in familiar surroundings with an overdose of euthanol or whatever it is vets use. If you or a relative were terminally ill, what would you prefer the ending to be? A projectile which can not be relied upon to be successful first time or a carefully measured dose of morphine?

I also can not believe how most of you thought that establishment provided a more humane service than those abroad. A lot of those unfortunate horses and ponies filmed were STILL alive after being shot. This was obvious as they
were still thrashing about as they were being chained up.

These animals have given their all to humans and this is how we repay them. Disposing of them as if they were meaningless inanimate clapped out old bangers being sent to the scrappy.

You make me sick!

[/ QUOTE ]

1st paragraph...me thinks your rosey specs are a little too tinted

2nd paragraph...what utter tosh...nerve endings stay active after thet are brain dead...

3rd paragraph....cant argue with that

4th...here, have a bag.
 
SirenaXVI, I concur with your final paragraph completely. I have been attacked from all angles since my horses are my PETS and when they die (I have lost two in the past, one I'd owned for 22 years) the last possible thing I would do would be to send them off on a lorry to slaughter. One was shot (and I said to myself "Never again") and the second died by lethal injection, peacefully. It is COWARDLY and UNCARING to send a sick/old/injured horse away to die! This is my argument (I have not and will not watch the video)! I have spoken to several people and each and every one of them has said, if you care for your horse, you owe it to them to have them put down at home, NOT transport them to a slaughterhouse. Finally, I was particularly upset by the person who posted on the forum referring to my crocodile tears - I will respond to her separately.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I only know one woman who sent two horses to slaughter and she has been vilified by the local horse people who know her.

[/ QUOTE ]

don't tell me...burnt at the stake, no doubt.......
 
[ QUOTE ]
I have been attacked from all angles since my horses are my PETS

[/ QUOTE ]

Except for the ones you are trying to sell on quickly for a profit then?
Don't get me wrong, that's fine to do, and you have a right to do what you like with your property.
But so do the posters on here who choose to send their horses to Potters, without you having a go at them, or bullying them, sorry, I mean 'villifying'.
S
 
If you have not and will not watch the video I fail to see how you can have a valid opinion on this debate.

I wasn't sure if I could watch it, especially as I recently have had to consider that I may need to make the decision to put my mare to sleep - fingers crossed not yet though...but I did watch it. I didn't feel what I thought I would.

Personally for me, the body is a vessel and I think what's more important is the way we treat our animals when they are alive.

Instead of bitching on about how cruel people are for sending their animals to the slaughterhouse you should be more concerned about the idiots that ruin their lives in the first place.

It is not cowardly to send a horse to away to die, mostly it's the hardest decision there will ever be, and I think that the majority of people make it with the animals best interest at heart. It looked quick and stress free in the video... but then you wouldn't know that.... ignorance is bliss eh!
 
[ QUOTE ]
SirenaXVI, I concur with your final paragraph completely. I have been attacked from all angles since my horses are my PETS and when they die (I have lost two in the past, one I'd owned for 22 years) the last possible thing I would do would be to send them off on a lorry to slaughter. One was shot (and I said to myself "Never again") and the second died by lethal injection, peacefully. It is COWARDLY and UNCARING to send a sick/old/injured horse away to die! This is my argument (I have not and will not watch the video)! I have spoken to several people and each and every one of them has said, if you care for your horse, you owe it to them to have them put down at home, NOT transport them to a slaughterhouse. Finally, I was particularly upset by the person who posted on the forum referring to my crocodile tears - I will respond to her separately.

[/ QUOTE ]

The thing is, there will always be people who use an abbattoir, like someone has already said "If you have livestock, then you also have deadstock". Although I would personally have my horses put down at home, in the real world there are always going to be people who for whatever reason can't/won't.

By not watching the video, you are not qualified to comment on this particular abbattoir, or the humanity or otherwise of their staff. Whilst I respect the fact that you do not want to watch it, that is your choice, but by not doing so you cannot make informed comments.
 
I have been around horses since 1963 and I think I am in a good position to make informed comments. I am sick to death with this debate but equally I cannot turn my back on certain people who slag me off knowing nothing whatsoeveer about me,
 
Sorry but you can't form an opinion based on third hand evidence. I did my PhD last year and if i'd tried to publish papers based on "what my dad said" I would have been laughed out of my exams! Neither you nor your daughter has formed their own opinion on this matter, you have taken someone else's opinion and made it your own.

A couple of months ago I went to look round a yard with the people who, at the time, were going to loan my pony. They are heavily involved with the Hunt and I was taken to meet some of the hunt staff at the kennels. While we were there they took a "delivery" from the knacker man of several young deer, which were skinned and gutted whilst I was there. These guys carried on chatting and laughing whilst it was happening - it's just a job for them. Now I know it's not the same as shooting the animal themselves but it really is just their job - do you want them to shed a tear for every animal?

These guys aren't there to be sentimental, they are there to do a quick, hopefully painless job. I have friends in the Police who see all sorts of sights and they have all said that after a while you don't feel anything anymore, you just get on with it and find ways to deal with it.

Personally, I want the hunt to deal with my boy. He's out on loan and the loan contract states that he must be PTS by the hunt staff unless they can't get to him and he's in pain. I personally wouldn't want to take my horse to the slaughter house because it's not for me, but that doesn't mean it's not a valid choice for other people.

You need to remember that horses are a business as well. We don't all have the funds and the land to keep every horse we ever own until the end of its days. Incidentally....the people who I bought my pony from had one of their horses PTS at home by injection (they owned a RS, the rest were all taken to the abbatoir or the hunt came/took them). They said it was the worst of the lot, and as the vet insisted on doing it in the stable, it took so long to arrange then have the stables taken down and a JCB in to remove the body that the site was absolute carnage by the time they'd moved the body....so having it done at home isn't always rosy either.
 
Ok OK, Ill say my bit. Fortunately never been in the position, myself, to have a horse PTS.

TBH, after watching the vid, I would def take my orse to Potters. They have a good reputation and the secret filming showed nothing to disprove that.

The horses were calm, they were fed and it looked very professional.


As it has already been said, I wont go into the injection versus bullet issue, it is basic phsyiology as to which method is the most effective.

As for the slaughtermen being cold hearted-er why? Do you expect them to blub everytime they shoot an animal? Its simply not going to happen is it?
mad.gif
I can say this, from experience, having dealt with dead babies (of the human variety) and having briefly worked in a mortuary.

"Priorities" springs to mind.....
mad.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
We are getting off the point; my point is, if you love your horse, you have it dispatched at home. I only know one woman who sent two horses to slaughter and she has been vilified by the local horse people who know her.

[/ QUOTE ]

Quite apart from some of the conflicts in your previous posts and your refusal to consider any other point of view than your own; your apparent sanctioning of the above completely takes my breath away. Yes, vilify somebody who ill treats or neglects their horses if you don't have the wit or the will to do something about it, but to ostracise and criticise somebody who has simply taken the decision to positively deal with their horse rather than send it to auction for somebody else to deal with is so wrong, mean spirited, cowardly and reflects very poorly on you.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top