The horse auction in New Holland, Pennsylvania, known as the "New Holland
Killer Sale" is the biggest public horse auction east of the Mississippi
and a privately owned facility. Every Monday, an average of 250 horses goes
through the sale. 80-85% of them are bought by so-called "Killer
Buyers" and will face a horrifying trip to the slaughterhouses in Canada,
Texas, Nebraska, and Illinois at the end of each Monday.
The conditions at this sale are outrageous and inhumane. There is no
separation of aggressive stallions, mares, geldings, and foals of all breeds
and sizes ... They are all packed together in small pens. A horse, that
arrived in good health in the morning can be crippled or even be killed by the
time the sale is over. In recent months, New Holland operators made an effort
to improve the conditions at New Holland, or, at least, they try to make us
believe that. The horses in the auction house have water and hay. However, it
seems that the New Holland operators finally feel the pressure. Nevertheless,
the horses that are tied outside have neither hay nor water, and stand in the
hot sun for hours during summer. The pens are not as packed as they used to
be, but there is still a lot of fighting among the animals on busy days,
because the horses are tied up too close to each other, or are not tied up at
all. The way some people (including the staff) treat these horses is at least
equally disturbing. Whips are used a lot, and some of the riders show neither
ability nor mercy when they ride the horses into the ring.
Once in the trucks of the Killer Buyers, the horses have no opportunity to
lie down to rest ... they would get trampled by other horses. Most are hardly
in the condition to survive these God-knows-how-many-hours-rides, before they
even get into the trucks, and often they don't. But considering the torture
these horses have to suffer until they get to their final destination only to
be killed in a brutal and inhumane manner, death is redemption.
But let's face it: Horse abuse starts long before New Holland. Previous
owners are responsible for the horses conditions ... not New Holland. One goal
is to prevent that horses will be dumped at this sale in the first place.
Another big goal is to convince authorities to make sure that the killer
trucks are not overloaded, double-deckers not used for horses, and that the
regulations for animal transport are met.
The ultimate goal is a law that finally recognizes horses as "men's
companion" and puts a STOP TO HORSESLAUGHTER all together!
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