World Horse Day: let's live up to the bond that unites us
For World Horse Day, One Voice is reminding us of the many forms of suffering that we humans, our society and our laws impose on these animals, which have been some of our oldest companions since prehistoric times. Shows, circuses, racing, experimentation, tourism, slaughterhouses, hunting with hounds… we are definitely not living up to the faithful and extraordinary partners they have been and continue to be for the development of our species.
The United Nations General Assembly declared July 11 “World Horse Day”, calling for a celebration of their role in the evolution of the human species: “Few animals have contributed to the progress of humankind as profoundly – and unobtrusively – as the horse”. Unfortunately, this historical link is a one-way street. In France, horses and ponies are still subjected to countless forms of mistreatment, and their final destination is almost invariably the slaughterhouse. These practices, disguised as habits, trivialize the unacceptable.
“Man is the horse’s poorest conquest”
This quotation from Belgian linguist Jules Feller sums up the failings of our species towards equines.
Regarded as disposable, interchangeable objects, some are subjected to nothing but programmed suffering and death in animal experimentation, despite the fact that these opaque practices maintained by laboratories are condemned by public opinion. Others are mistreated, dragged from town to town without respect or dignity in shows or circuses. When they’re not tied up, far from meadows of fresh grass and access to water, they’re forced to wander around in painful postures. Others are forced to give up their lives to the applause and laughter of spectators at bullfights, where the violence is so omnipresent that their eyes are masked.
Whatever their health or weather conditions, humans exploit them to entertain tourists or feed gambling addiction, pushing them to the limit on the racecourse. Let’s not forget the individuals exploited in horse-riding events, hunting with hounds, or those who figure among the many collateral victims of hunters.
Abuse is everywhere, including in equestrian centers that cater for children and teenagers, claiming to offer “experiences rich in sharing and emotion”. Behind the pretty signs, how many cramped, dirty, dark stalls, beatings, loneliness and lack of care? Acts of abuse are sometimes committed in front of the youngsters.
Equidae are also used by certain humans as a means of venting their frustrations, and are victims of acts of cruelty by some, often following on from ill-treatment inflicted in the privacy of people’s homes. One Voice has been working to have this link between animal mistreatment and domestic violence recognized since 2007.
Denounce to better defend them
There is no exploitation of equines by humans that is not unworthy of their sensitivity, empathy and intelligence, and motivated by money.
Long gone are the days when tarpans roamed the plains and forests of Eastern Europe. Today, Przewalski’s horses, galloping across the Kazakh steppes, and mustangs, returned to the wild in the American West, remain the last free horses on our planet.
For more than twenty years, One Voice has been fighting for them, defending them while revealing the unacceptable practices to which they are subjected, and which are deeply rooted in our daily lives.
Denouncing these cruelties also means calling attention to the urgent need for a paradigm shift. If we continue to slaughter our faithful friends for non-essential, commercial food purposes, how can we collectively move towards a world without violence towards animals? How can a law that claims to “combat animal abuse and strengthen the bond between animals and humans” still consider that a stall life fulfills their essential needs as long as it allows them to “lie down”? Where is the consideration we owe them in the legality of their captivity and exploitation in traveling circuses, or their live disembowelment in bullfighting arenas?…
Let’s fight for them, for the recognition of their fundamental rights in our society.
Join us in demanding that horses and ponies no longer be classified as livestock, and that they be granted pet status so that they enjoy the same protection as dogs and cats.