Every horse in this country, no matter how loved, is just one bad sale away from slaughter. To protect horses and the people who love and care for them, we must pass the Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act—federal legislation that would simply add equines to an existing, uncontroversial law banning the slaughter of dogs and cats for meat. Nothing could be easier or make more sense: Americans overwhelmingly oppose horse slaughter, and it is way past time to give them the same protection we give our cat and dog friends. Passing the SAFE Act will give at-risk horses a chance to find loving homes and humane care.
The cruel horse slaughter industry preys on horses, their owners and people who care about them across the United States. Every year that passes without a federal ban on horse slaughter dooms tens of thousands of equines—work partners, athletes, trusted friends—to unnecessary and inhumane deaths.
Survey results published in 2017 revealed that 2.3 million adults in the U.S. have both the desire and resources to adopt a horse. This means that there were more than enough homes for the approximately 20,000 American horses who went over our borders to slaughter last year—if only they had been given the opportunities to find them. Those horses who are suffering from incurable medical conditions deserve kind, humane euthanasia performed by a veterinarian, not the brutal death of slaughter. The ASPCA is helping by directing vast resources into massively increasing horse adoption and safety nets nationwide, but equine welfare will always be at risk while this underground industry is permitted to exist.
What You Can Do
Using the form below, please take a moment to email your members of Congress urging them to take immediate action on the SAFE Act. If your legislator has already supported this bill, our system will instead generate a message of thanks.
On behalf of America's horses, thank you!
