Massive US spending bill contains good news for wild horses

A 2232-page US spending bill unveiled this week contains good news for horses, with no language that would allow the reopening of abattoirs on American soil and no provisions that would permit wild horses to be sold for slaughter. The massive bill, if passed by Congress, will keep the government running until September 30. However, it must be passed in the next few hours to avoid a further government shutdown. Last-minute changes in relation to such matters in such a massive omnibus bill are highly unlikely. The issue of horse slaughter plants re-opening on US soil is regularly debated at committee level ahead of spending bills, centering on whether federal funding is granted to allow for the mandatory inspections required at horse slaughter plants. If no federal funding is permitted, the plants cannot open and operate. The debate around the fate of wild horses, including the many thousands being held in captivity, arose in recent months, when the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the agency responsible for wild horses and burros, sought the right to be able to sell the animals without limitation. Wild horse advocates objected to the proposal, fearing it would see wild horses sold into the slaughter pipeline. The language in the current bill sees both threats recede...MORE