Horse Slaughter Case Study

602 Words2 Pages

In 1997, when Michigan native Jo Anne Normile's children left home, she found herself looking for something to do with her free time. The kids had always been interested in horses; Normile decided to get involved herself. She leased a broodmare for one dollar, picked out a stallion and was soon in the racing business. A hands-on owner, Normile found herself constantly at the track. One day, a trainer asked her to look at a horse he needed to sell- gorgeous, sound and tall, but not fast enough to race. Normile couldn't buy a third horse, but took it upon herself to contact several of the barns she knew from her children's participation in equine sports to see if she could find someone who could. Normile now realized that there was a need for …show more content…

So Normile came up with the idea of maintaining a "Horses Wanted" list. She then contacted all of the horse associations in Michigan and encouraged them to submit a "wish list." She took these lists around the track and left them in the cafeteria, restrooms and barns. In the four months that followed, Normile's system facilitated the sale of more than 50 horses. In 1998, a friend offered to build Normile a website, where she could post pictures of horses for sale along with trainers' contact information and asking prices. The Communication Alliance to Network Ex-Racehorses (CANTER) was born, and has rehomed more than 200 horses in each of the six years since its inception. Unfortunately, from an animal welfare perspective, these horses are sold outright without going through an adoption process. Given the alternative, however- Normile views this as a win-win situation. Horses are sold to nonrace homes only, and their selling price effectively precludes an individual from reselling them at auction. While the $1,500 to $5,000 that trainers normally ask is a reasonable amount, it is still far more than the $300 to $600 an auction would

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