What is an unwanted horse? An unwanted horse is a horse within the domestic equine population that is deemed by its owner to no longer be useful or needed, said Nat Messer, DVM, Dipl. ABVP, during the Horseman’s Day session at the 51st annual AAEP Convention in Seattle, Wash., Dec. 3-7, 2005.

Messer explained that unwanted horses range from being essentially normal, healthy horses of varied ages and breeds to horses with some type of disability or infirmity. They could be horses that are unattractive, or horses that failed to meet their owners’ expectations–lacked athletic ability, had behavior problems, or were dangerous.

How big is the unwanted horse population? In 2004, about 60,000 horses were sent to slaughter in the United States, another 20,000 were sent to Canada, and about 4,000 were sent to Mexico, according to Messer. Additionally, the Bureau of Land Management held 17,000 feral horses in short- and long-term facilities, and another 20,000 pregnant mare urine (PMU) industry mares and foals were in need of homes. This adds up to more than 100,000 unwanted horses to be concerned about. In addition, approximately 100,000 horses were euthanatized or died of natural causes, making the total number of potentially deceased horses in 2004 in excess of 200,000.

“We have to ask ourselves, is our current system capable of handling this many deceased horses every year?” Messer challenged the audience. “Will it be capable of handling it in the future, and what will happen if we eliminate the means of disposing of unwanted horses such as the slaughter industry?”
Messer said that the slaughter industry has been highly criticized by welfare groups and individuals as an inhumane way of dealing with these unwanted horses. Many veterinarians have been targeted by in the criticism for not speaking out against slaughter