Glendale woman fighting return of horse slaughter U.S.

Here is the spot I did on the evening news.


AZ Family.com (CH3 Phoenix.)

by Crystal Cruz

azfamily.com

Posted on December 1, 2011 at 1:39 PM

Updated today at 2:41 PM

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If there's one thing Barbara Beck is passionate about, it's her horses.
"They become our companions, pets and family members to a lot of people," the Glendale woman explained.
When Beck learned horses could soon be slaughtered in the United States for food, her nerves were shaken.
"Slaughter is a dirty, dirty business," said Beck.
The last American horse slaughterhouse folded in 2007, following a ban on funding for horse-meat inspections. Until then, horses were slaughtered and the meat exported to foreign countries where restaurants served it as a delicacy.
Congress has now lifted that five-year-old ban, which means the way is clear for horses to be slaughtered and butchered here in the U.S.
"It's not acceptable to us because that's not a good end for a horse, someone who’s been your companion for years or maybe their entire lives," Beck argued.
Beck, who is a volunteer with the Arizona chapter of Americans Against Horse Slaughter, calls horse slaughter inhumane.
"They're strung up by a hind hoof and many are butchered alive," she said.
Since the ban a few years back, horse slaughter supporters say they've seen a spike in horse neglect. Others pro-slaughter supporters argue bringing the plants back will provide jobs and make sure sick horses aren't abandoned.
The same folks are now working to get a plant up and running in the Midwest within the next few months.
"People really need to call their Congress people if they think it's wrong. They need to hear from you, otherwise they don't know," Beck said.