Alongside dogs and cats, horses have been humans’ loyal companions throughout history. Thanks to the strength and agility of horses, invaluable advancements have been made in agriculture, transportation, and the expansion of civilizations. However, despite the strong bond horses have with humans, they are all too often mistreated and viewed as a commodity by people.

Many of us are aware of the battles that have been waged against American wild horses for years by the U.S. government and wealthy cattle ranchers, but few realize how often American domestic horses (those used for working, racing, or as companion animals) are also targeted.

According to a petition on Care2 written by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), 100,000 American horses are killed each year for human consumption. As the petition explains, American horses are not bred for human consumption, and they, therefore, are not under the same regulations as animals who are bred for consumption, meaning these horses are often given drugs and medications that HSUS says could be risking the health of the people who eat them.

There are no horse slaughterhouses in the U.S., but as the petition states, when horses are put up on the auction block, they are often purchased by horse meat sellers, who then load the horses onto cramped trucks without food or water. From here, they are transported to Canada or Mexico where they are inhumanely slaughtered and subsequently sold to countries all around the world.

According to HSUS, these American horses could be protected under the Safeguard American Food Exports (SAFE) Act, which would ban both domestic horse slaughter and the export of horses to be slaughtered in foreign countries.

If you love horses and hate seeing them mistreated this way, please take a moment to sign this petition addressed to U.S. legislators, pressing them to co-sponsor the passing of the SAFE Act that will protect our horses. Please share this with your network to garner more attention for the cause – American horses are counting on you to help make this change!

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