The Unwanted Horse Coalition, which started as the Unwanted Horse Summit during the American Horse Council’s (AHC) annual convention in April 2005, is being folded into the AHC. American Horse Council Chairman Nick Nicholson made the announcement about the initiative today (June 27).

“The issue of ‘unwanted horses’ has faced this industry for some time,” said Nicholson, president of Keeneland Association. “It is an important and challenging national issue that faces all breeds and all activities in the horse world. Putting this initiative under the umbrella of the AHC, which represents all segments of the horse industry, is a natural fit.”

The Unwanted Horse Coalition grew out of a workshop that the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) organized as part of the 2005 AHC National Issues Forum in Washington, D.C.

That meeting, and a subsequent summit in Chicago five months later, drew equine and welfare organizations together to begin discussions about the tens of thousands of horses that are unwanted each year and sent to slaughter facilities