The maker of Premarin, Wyeth-Ayerst, a drug division of global giant American Home Products, and the PMU industry insist that the manufacture of Premarin is not cruel, but just a form of profitable horse husbandry. You be the judge.
The Premarin Mares
To produce Premarin, an estimated 35,000 mares are forced to stand in barns throughout Canada and parts of the Midwestern United States for about six months out of every year with urine collection devices strapped onto them.Even by the self-serving standards of corporations, Wyeth-Ayerst's suggested (but not mandated) 4 1/2-foot wide stalls for pregnant draft horses weighing up to 1700 are ungenerous. The stalls are deliberately kept narrow to prevent pregnant mares from turning or lying down with their legs stretched out for fear the collection cups will become detached as the urine is "harvested." And, worse yet, many of these mares get little or no exercise for the six months they are forced to stand in the barns. (The most recent "voluntary" Code of Practice for the industry states that the mares only be exercised on an as-needed basis.)
Their water intake also is regulated and restricted, all of which can lead to swollen legs, sore hooves and other health problems. And then, when these mares are too tired, too old or too surly to stand on the "pee lines," their reward is the auctions and a likely trip to the slaughterhouse.
The Premarin Foals
The story is just as tragic for the Premarin foals. The PMU farmers and Wyeth-Ayerst would like us to believe that the estimated 35,000 foals resulting from these pregnancies are sold as companion animals. A very few may be and a few more fillies are allowed to grow up and replace their worn-out mothers. However, most, especially the male colts, are weaned too early, taken to auction where they're sold by the pound to killer-buyers, fattened in feed lots and then sent straight to slaughter.There, these sensitive, highly social young animals are made to wait their turn for death with the smell of blood in their nostrils and the sound of horses screaming in their ears. And for what? So that Wyeth-Ayerst can sell their animal-based hormone replacement therapy (HRT) Premarin when there is plant-based HRT available. And so that restaurants in France and Japan can serve foal steaks to connoisseurs of cruelty! (Foal steak sells for up to $15 a pound in some Paris butcher shops.) United Animal Nations
Premarin mares standing in their "pee" lines
Equilin
Equilin is an estrogen from horses with the chemical name 3-hydroxyestra-1,3,5,7-tetraen-17-one. Equilin is one of the estrogens present in the mixture of estrogens isolated from horse urine and marketed as Premarin. Premarin became the most commonly used form of estrogen for hormone replacement therapy in the United States of America. Estrone is the major estrogen in Premarin (about 50%) and equilin is present as about 25% of the total. Estrone is a major estrogen that is normally found in women. Equilin is not normally present in women, so there has been interest in the effects of equilin on the human body. Wikipedia-Estrogens-Equilin
The slaughter house - final destination for tens of thousands of foals due to the drug Premarin
Get the facts about horse slaughter
Each year an estimated 90,000 horses are slaughtered in the United States and processed for human consumption. In addition, many thousands of live horses are transported across the border to Canada for slaughter. After these horses are killed, their flesh is shipped to Europe and Asia for human consumption. Their owners are often totally unaware of the pain, fear, and suffering their horses endure before being slaughtered.
Who eats horse meat?
Horse meat is not eaten in the United States; it is exported to serve specialty markets overseas. The largest markets are France, Belgium, Holland, Japan, and Italy. The only three horse slaughter plants in the United States are foreign-owned.
Most horses destined for slaughter are sold at livestock auctions or sales. The cruelty of horse slaughter is not limited to the act of killing the animals. Horses bound for slaughter are shipped, frequently for long distances, in a manner that fails to accommodate their unique temperaments. They are usually not rested, fed, or watered during travel. Economics, not humane considerations, dictate the conditions, including crowding as many horses into trucks as possible.
Often, terrified horses and ponies are crammed together and transported to slaughter in double-deck trucks designed for cattle and pigs. The truck ceilings are so low that the horses are not able to hold their heads in a normal, balanced position. Inappropriate floor surfaces lead to slips and falls, and sometimes even trampling. Some horses arrive at the slaughterhouse seriously injured or dead. Although transportation accidents have largely escaped public scrutiny, several tragic incidents involving collapsed upper floors and overturned double-deckers have caused human fatalities, as well as suffering and death for the horses.
How are they killed?
Under federal law, horses are required to be rendered unconscious prior to slaughter, usually with a device called a captive bolt gun, which shoots a metal rod into the horse's brain. Some horses, however, are improperly stunned and are conscious when they are hoisted by a rear leg to have their throats cut. In addition, conditions in the slaughterhouse are stressful and frightening for horses.
How can you help?
Individuals can support organizations such as The HSUS that work toward the goal of ending horse slaughter. One of our goals is to reduce the callous overbreeding of both sport horses and pleasure horses so that older, injured or surplus animals will no longer be viewed as expendable. A reduced number of surplus horses would result in a sharp decline in the profits of the horse meat industry because the cost of obtaining each horse would rise due to decreased availability. This would force slaughterhouses to scale down their operations and eventually shut down. Horse owners should think carefully before breeding a mare and consider adopting their next horse from an equine rescue organization.
Horse owners can plan for their animal's eventual death by setting aside funds for humane euthanasia by a veterinarian, if it becomes necessary. Menopausal women on hormone replacement therapy can ask their doctors to prescribe one of the many safe and effective, FDA-approved alternatives to Premarin®. (Contact The HSUS for a free brochure detailing these alternatives.) Finally, individuals can work within their home states to pass laws that afford stronger protections for slaughter-bound horses.
HSUS
We have purchased 6 acres and are starting a small horse rescue here in Oklahoma. You can help us get started by donating even a dollar to help us BUILD A BARN! We have also set up a fund to help save mares and foals that we can't rescue and help them find safe, forever, homes. Thank you!
Check out the view!
Help us rescue Premarin horses by clicking the Paypal button below to make a safe & secure donation!
The two Texas facilities shut down after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit Court upheld a 1949 Texas law that prohibits the sale of horsemeat. A separate decision affirming Congress' intent in the FY06 Agriculture Appropriations language to prohibit the U.S. Department of Agriculture from inspecting horsemeat from slaughtering facilities shut down the Illinois plant for a time. In May, the state of Illinois enacted a ban on horse slaughter, shutting down Cavel International, the last operating plant in the country. Cavel International sought to delay its inevitable closure by obtaining a temporary restraining order, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit upheld the State of Illinois' decision to ban the slaughter of horses for human consumption. With all three horse slaughter plants in the U.S. now closed, passage of a permanent slaughter ban to prohibit American horses from being trucked over the border for slaughter is crucial.
Horses are still being crowded into trucks, enduring hours without food, water and rest, and driven to Mexico and Canada for slaughter. The American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (H.R. 503/S. 311), introduced in the U.S. House by Reps. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), John Spratt (D-SC), Ed Whitfield (R-KY), and Nick Rahall (D-WV), and in the U.S. Senate by Sens. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and John Ensign (R-NV), closes this loophole and prevents the exportation of American horses to slaughter plants in foreign countries. It also ensures that horse slaughter is permanently banned in the United States.
Source: HSUS
WARNING: The following videos are graphic
Map of slaughter houses
Dallas Crown Slaughterhouse located in Kaufman, Tx
Dallas Crown Company Information
Dallas Crown, Inc.
2000 West Fair
Kaufman, Texas 75142
Telephone (972) 932-3436
Fax (972) 932-3062
E-mail sales@dallascrown.com www.dallascrown.com
Beltex Corporation Company Information
Beltex Corporation
3801 N. Grove St.
Fort Worth, TX 76106
PH:817-624-1136
Fax:817-624-4594
President: Eric Nauwelaers
VP: Dick Koehler
Controller: Dennis O'Brien
Cavel International Incorporated Company Information
Cavel International Incorporated
108 Harvestore Dr
Dekalb, IL 60115
PH:(815)756-8051
"The latest show about Jan haagensen was simply shocking - I'll support her case. These "hunters" are a shame on humanity - hunting was a necessity in previous centuries but it's become simply entertainment for cowards. Great you're making Vancouver an international center for discussion!!!" - Andalusia
"The Jan Haagensen interview was excellent and I hope they do invalidate the whole hunter harassment statue because it is unconstitutional. I like this women and her love for animals. Seems quite a lot of people know Jan as their "hero" already, so it's great news. And thank you Anthony for a great radio program." - Tierra
"Really Good interview, Jan Haagensen is a Great Lady!" - Dominique
"That hunter who threatened Jan and her mother should have been charged with making a terrorist threat. Which is also a felony by the way." - Wolf
Anthony Marr will be speaking at the Animal Rights Conference (www.ARConference.org) on his own plan to challenge the Hunter Harassment laws of other states for being unconstitutional.
For 30 years, Jan Haagensen has been harassed and her farm in PA invaded with impunity by hunters, and her NO HUNTING signs and fences repeatedly torn down. 10 years ago, she had had enough, and approached the trespassing hunters to ask them to leave, and asked a hunter engaged in illegal hunting to cease and desist. When a hunter threatened to shoot her and her mother, she called police, which sided chummily with the hunters, and later charged her with 5 counts of "hunter harassment". The "kangaroo court" convicted her on all 5 counts. Being an attorney, she appealed to the appellate court and won, and is now challenging the PA Hunter Harassment Statute in federal court as being unconstitutional for inhibiting free speech and violating property rights. If she wins, doors will be open for challenging the equally unconstitutional Hunter Harassment laws of other states.
Jan will be Anthony Marr's guest on Animal Voices this Friday, July 3, 3-4pm-ET/12-1pm-PT, online live at www.CoOpRadio.org. If you missed it, go to www.myspace.com/AnthonyMarr where the interviews are archived. Call-in hotline 1-604-684-7561.
Listen to Anthony Marr, your AR/Eco activist talkshow host, and his amazing guests, on Animal Voices every Friday, 3-4pm ET/2-3pm CT/1-2pm MT/noon-1pm PT. Listen online live @ www.coopradio.org; or CFRO radio 102.7FM (Vancouver); archive at www.myspace.com/AnthonyMarr & www.AnimalVoices.org; hotline 604-684-7561 Anthony's June 26th guest is Tim Gorski, the "Indiana Jones of AR" - undercover operations in SE Asia (e.g. Thailand and Myanmar), disaster animal rescue (e.g. tsunami and Katrina), film making (award winning), strategic campaigning (cost Miami Seaquarium $44 million). Not to be missed! Anthony's guests for Friday, July 3, will be Brenda Davis, Cory Davis, Sinikka Crosland and Carmen. Brenda, a best selling vegan author and her son Cory (then 15) were Anthony's co-compaigners in his 40-states-in-7-months Compassion for Animals Road Expedition #1. Sinikka and her daughter Carmen are top activist in BC fighting urban wildlife culling and horse slaughter, among other battles..
Listen to Anthony Marr, your AR/Eco Activist talkshow host and his high calibre AR/Eco Activist guests talk up a storm on AR/Eco Activism on Animal Voices every Friday 3-4pm EST/noon-1pm PST, online live www.coopradio.org. CFRO Co-op Radio 102.7FM (Vancouver); archive www.AnimalVoices.org & www.myspace.com/Anthony Marr; hotline 604-684-7561..
Anthony's guest on June 19 will be Angi Metler, head of the New Jersey Animal Rights Alliance (NJARA). Angi, who has been arrested (30X), charged, tried and jailed, is considered an "ecoterrorist" by both hunters and Homeland Security, and NJARA is considered a quai-terrorist organization. Hear Angi and judge for yourself.. Angi in green.. Hunter's "enhanced" version:
Anthony's June 26 guest will be Tim Gorski. Tim is an incredible activist and film producer specializing in undercover operations on the wildlife trade in S.E. Asia. He was there in the disaster zone when the tsunami hit. His work is what Indiana Jones stories are made of. Anthony Marr & Tim Gorski at AR2008
God Bless America
