Horse Slaughter

I read that it’s more humane to slaughter a horse than to euthanize it by lethal injection. Is this true?

Answer
While the captive bolt (the device used to make a horse unconscious at the slaughter plant) can be a humane way to destroy a horse, if administered by a knowledgeable professional on a carefully restrained horse, unfortunately that is not always the case at the slaughter plant. Therefore it is generally considered more humane for a veterinarian to administer an intravenous tranquilizer to a horse, followed by an overdose of anesthetic solution to euthanize him or her. Approximately 30-60 seconds after the anesthetic injection, the horse will lose consciousness and drop to the ground, where cardiac and respiratory arrest soon follows, that causes death. The horse is unaware of anything once he/she loses consciousness.

For more information on slaughter go to www.hsus.org.