Big victory for our equine friends...

[Ingrid Taskin]

One of my boarders just sent this to me....

"May 14, 2010
 
South Florida S.P.C.A. Instrumental in the Signing of The Florida Horse Protection Bill

While other States (notably Montana, Wyoming, Tennessee, Missouri) are working furiously to bring horse slaughter houses into their environs, Florida has made our great State safer for them and the people who love them.

The Florida Horse Protection Bill that we all worked so hard for was signed into law by Governor Crist on Friday, May 14.  It becomes effective July 1, 2010 as Chapter 2010-87 of Florida Statutes.

There are so many people to thank I hardly know where to begin.  For starters, the media, local, national and international, pressed hard to inform the public of the horrible slaughter of horses in South Florida.  To Dr. Sara Pizano, director of Miami-Dade Animal Services, who invited us to a meeting with Miami-Dade Sen./Commissioner Javier Souto, to discuss the matter.  To the entire Miami-Dade County Commission who unanimously voted to send the bill written by Commissioner Souto to Tallahassee.  To State Representatives Luis Garcia and Joseph Abruzzo who co-sponsored the bill in the House and to State Senator Victor Crist who sponsored the bill in the Senate.  In fact, thank you to the entire Florida Legislature that voted unanimously to send the bill to Governor Crist.

And, thank you to Governor Crist for signing it into law.

Special thank you to Capt. Scott Andress of Miami-Dade Police Ag Patrol for his valuable input in the writing of this legislation.  Scott asked for enforceable laws with significant penalties.  That's what this new law does.  This bill increases penalties from misdemeanor to felony, including minimum sentencing of one year in prison with a $3,500 fine.  The new law criminalizes butchering horses for personal use and commercial uses and closes a loophole in current law to protect all horses in Florida. 

The new law also protects polo ponies from the ghastly scene of horses staggering and dying at a Wellington polo match last year after ingesting an improperly mixed and dosed substance that had been given to them.  The new law requires these substances to be administered by a qualified equine veterinarian.

The Humane Society of the United States and the ASPCA were also very supportive and helped to get this legislation passed.

Last, but not least, thank you to some very brave and courageous SFSPCA members who doented these grisly horse slaughter atrocities first-hand at considerable personal risk.

Thank you, thank you to all of you.  This is a proud day for Floridians.

Jeanette

Jeanette Jordan
President
www.helpthehorses.org"

Ingrid

[Norma]

That is indeed great news- now we have to educate local law enforcement to take action when necessary.

[kali]

I am thoroughly and completely against horse slaughter of any sort. But ... does anyone have an answer for what to do with all the unwanted horses? They're everywhere down here, and there's no rescue that can take them all. We see them starving to death in backyards daily, but the rescue societies and big-hearted barn owners are full--older horses, lame horses, horses whose owners can't even feed their family, etc. I hear that, up in KY, people are just letting them run loose to fend for themselves. I really don't know whether it's better to be sent to slaughter or to starve to death. Neither option is humane, but what other options are there? I don't mean to be inflammatory at all--I just wonder what the solution to all the unwanted horses is, if there is one. All those horses on Craigslist ... will they end up being shipped to Mexico for slaughter, or is there a permanent and safe home for them?

[Jeny]

I agree with slaughter. Regulated. Monitored. Inspected.

[polomare]

One of my boarders just sent this to me....


The new law also protects polo ponies from the ghastly scene of horses staggering and dying at a Wellington polo match last year after ingesting an improperly mixed and dosed substance that had been given to them.  The new law requires these substances to be administered by a qualified equine veterinarian.

A)  I don't get what this has to do with an anti-slaughter bill.

and

B) "The new law requires these substances to be administered by a qualified equine veterinarian."
I thought the polo ponies were given selenium, albeit a toxic dose.  This law can't seriously demand that all doses of such supplements be physically administered by a vet?
I hope this is just a case of mis-reporting. Otherwise, the law makers in Tallahassee may have a very mistaken notion of what those polo ponies were given. So many people still think those polo ponies were given "performance enhancing drugs" (AKA some kind of illegal mix of steroids) because of what the local news erroneously reported . . .

If any one has the actual verbage of the bill, I would very much like to read it.

[Texas]

There is nothing humane about slaughtering any animal and for that reason alone - I hate it.  It seems the killers actually enjoy tossing them around, dropping them and worse. 

I am very happy about this Bill but don't know what it is - never explained here in the original post. Can someone explain a bit and how it differs from the laws already on the books?