Would you buy pet food made from horsemeat?

[beanie&boomer]

I might be a minority opinion, but I think if the animals could be transported humanely and also testing done to make sure the meat didn't contain substances harmful to the pets that would consume it, it could improve the current situation. Having access to more slaughter facilities in more geographic locations would probably be more humane than what is happening overall right now.

[Cielo Azure]

RENDERING = DOG FOOD = dead horses, dogs, cats

Your dogs, cats, even horses already eat each other. If you buy commercial pet foods, they almost always include bone meal, blood meal, tallow, grease, etc. Those are rendered products. Those are made from ALL sorts of animals.

http://www.felineinstincts.com/succe...ringplant.html
(this story is full of biases but most of the information is very accurate)

And certain drugs, such as phenobarbital do not degrade.

Just for kicks, I went to the Purina site:
typical product
Purina Dog Chow -Ingredients
Whole grain corn, poultry by-product meal, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), corn gluten meal, meat and bone meal, brewers rice, soybean meal, barley, whole grain wheat, animal digest, calcium carbonate, salt, calcium phosphate, potassium chloride, L-Lysine monohydroch, etc....
(What do you see here? Rendered animals [that means horses, dogs, cats, etc) in the form of meat and bone meal, and probably also in the animal fat. Lots of dead horses and pets in Purina products. Go search the bags of food at your local store. 90% include rendered animals. And sometimes, they will even try to hide it (words such as "meat meal" -is it rendered? Who knows?)

Yes, I use commercial foods and you know what, despite the low risks (which are actually quite few -evidenced by the fact that our pets do live long lives.) and grossness factor, I like that the by-products of our livestock and dead pets are being used. I hate waste. As far as I am concerned, you can take my body, when I am dead, and throw it in that vat too...

[Angela Freda]

If a company were to market a premium pet food product whose main ingredient was horse meat, would you buy it?

No.

[JSwan]

Having access to more slaughter facilities in more geographic locations would probably be more humane than what is happening overall right now.

Seems that there is often a lot of local objection to processing facilities or crematoriums.

Not saying that's a reason for livestock to be hauled thousands of miles, just that it's a shame the concept of the local butcher seems to be such an anathema to so many people. I don't know if the small facility model is practical or realistic anymore, not with the numbers of people to feed and the numbers of inspectors that would be required to oversee such facilities. Still, I feel much better that any animal I raise is slaughtered locally. But the small farm model that sells shares in just a few animals is also not really practical for the entire country.

[arabhorse2]

If a company were to market a premium pet food product whose main ingredient was horse meat, would you buy it?

Yes. It's a shame to waste all that protein, based on nothing more than sentimental clap-trap.

[county]

JSwan brings up a very good point, alot of people say that there should be more slaughter plants to cut down on transport miles. I agree with that but the people of america don't. Oh they do as long as its not near them and thats the problem no one wants a slaughter plant in their town, their all for them as long as their in someone elses back yard. And while I love the so called mom and pop type slaughter plants, have worked in them and had my own animals processed in them their just not practical to supply the meat need for 300,000,000 people. The local mom and pop place here can slaughter and process 18 to 24 beef a week depending on if they want to work 40 hours or 50. The cull cow and bull plant in town does 850 to 1000 a day.

[JSwan]

The local mom and pop place here can slaughter and process 18 to 24 beef a week depending on if they want to work 40 hours or 50. The cull cow and bull plant in town does 850 to 1000 a day.

I don't know what the rate is for larger processors, but I'm going to speculate and say the cost is less per head than a smaller facility. I think right now it's about .60 per lb (hanging weight) - standard cuts. (around here)

[county]

Oh for sure its less just from the larger numbers alone and much faster more expensive and modern equipment. Its pretty much as most business the smaller ones survive due to excellant management and providing a more unique and personal service. For instance the mom and pop place in town will cut and wrap your meat anyway you want it, make any type sausage, etc. The commercial plant sends the meat up the road a mile or so and its processed in very specific ways period. What you see is what you get.

[JSwan]

For instance the mom and pop place in town will cut and wrap your meat anyway you want it, make any type sausage, etc. The commercial plant sends the meat up the road a mile or so and its processed in very specific ways period. What you see is what you get.

Ok - then we're on the same page. Very customized service, including private labeling. Custom cuts, halves and quarters, each animal is tagged, and the plant can process organic, natural, grass fed/grass finished, whatever.

Purely from a numbers standpoint, decentralization of processing facilities, each with a USDA inspector, waste management plan, and all the mess that goes along with zoning, permitting, road use and other infrastructure... I'm just not seeing it except in my dreams. But for a very small producer and customers it's very viable.

Didn't intend to hijack - I thought the cost of processing and the difference between the types of facilities might be of interest to some people, even if it's not specific to horses. The plant here handles a variety of species (not horses), and an additional cost and management effort is to set up and break down processes for each species.

One benefit to a horse owner (or for other livestock the owner wants rendered), is that having small facilities nearby may mean the renderer does not charge as much for pickup of a horse that has been put down - the stable/farm may be on or near his route.

[Moesha]

No.

I'm with you No as well.

[deltawave]

Yes, if slaughter was humane. Not a problem for me.

[Guin]

I might be a minority opinion, but I think if the animals could be transported humanely and also testing done to make sure the meat didn't contain substances harmful to the pets that would consume it, it could improve the current situation. Having access to more slaughter facilities in more geographic locations would probably be more humane than what is happening overall right now.

I completely agree with this. I don't think I'd personally feed horsemeat to my pets because I find it a little conflicting, but as long as they are humanely dispatched (with a bolt, not euth. juice), I don't see any harm in using the meat.

[wendy]

you buy commercial pet foods, they almost always include bone meal, blood meal, tallow, grease, etc.

only the cheap unhealthy pet foods contain these sorts of ingredients. I'd never feed them to my pets, and would not feed horse meat unless it was somehow guaranteed to be free of drug residues. However, I do feed cute little humanely raised and slaughtered bunnies to them. Yummy.

[SmokenMirrors]

County your being evasive...I am asking have YOU PERSONALLY sold any of your horses for slaughter or for meat? Not what someone else you have sold to did with them. YOU not them...so have you?

[vineyridge]

I would absolutely buy pet food made from horsemeat with humane transport and killing provisions. To me this is the "circle of life." A herbivore dies that a carnivore can eat. Heck, using horsemeat would probably provide better quality food than the cruddy meat by products that so many food manufacturers use. With horse, the dogs and cats might get some muscle.

Of course I'm not opposed to horse slaughter as a general proposition as long as the process is truly humane.

[arabhorse2]

County your being evasive...I am asking have YOU PERSONALLY sold any of your horses for slaughter or for meat? Not what someone else you have sold to did with them. YOU not them...so have you?

You dredged up this old thread from November just to blast county? Seriously?

Why don't you just PM him, instead of dragging up every old thread in which he's posted?

[RogersChapelFarm]

When I was a child-I am now mid 30's-Purina said horsemeat on the can plain and simple. It was even on the front of the can. 1970's nobody noticed. I would go to the Piggly Wiggly and hide the cans behind everything else...I don't know what purpose I thought that served. But I didn't want to see it.

[county]

Belplosh are you actually that dense? How many ways and times can a person say yes? And eaten horse also.

[paohatch]

Feeding horse meat to our animals

Why let meat go to waste?

Just admit it...we have the luxury of this debate. If we were truly poor or very practical, we wouldn't have this debate at all.

Hunters have always fed their hunting dogs 'home slaughtered' wild venison, or farm raised steers and sometime horsemeat. Zoos have always fed their big cats fresh frozen beef and horse meat. For example, Zoo Exhibits with bird predators actually buy live small animals for their animals since hawks, eagles and owls won't eat previously killed or rendered meat. ONLY LIVE KILL

I think we all agree that if we allow slaughter of any livestock (be it poultry,beef, pork, or equine) it must be done humanely. I for one have no problem with this use and am quietly seeking out this cycle of life with the local hunts in the area when the time comes.

[eurofoal]

Would you donate your horse for this...

Yes, I would feed my dogs horsemeat. In fact, as so many have said, it's important NOT to be wasteful. Does it mean that for every horse that ISN"T used for meat, a cow will die for pet food? The cow is ok to kill for meat but the horse is not? Our dogs, zoo animals, exotic animal sancutaries... they all need meat. It's so very wasteful to not utilize it well. As many others have brought up, too, the plight of slaughter bound horses to Mexico is simply unconciounable. At least in the USA we've got efforts/oversight to make it a humane death. Now those poor horses are denied that in a misguided effort to "save" them, they suffer....

I'll pose another question that came up last night with a friend... would you donate a horse to be humanely put down (shot) to a tiger or wolf rescue? We have both types of rescues here in So. Cal... the poor wolves and tigers are mostly ones that the movie industry has used up ;and found unsuitable (cross-eyed tigers don't get screen time). The Wolf rescue lady is an aquantance of mine... an Native American. She's got something like 17 rescue wolves and little money. Like any other rescue, she operates on donations (usally money). These animals are carnivores... wheat meal just doesn't cut it as a diet staple.