The Paw Print

Run from it
by Julia

Many people do not know what happens to the horses that are too slow for the track or too old for love. You can ask those who work at the slaughter houses, like the one at 3857 Burroughsville Road in Victoria, Texas. These houses are the ones taking horses to a “better place.” Usually one will see unwanted and unloved horses in an auction, and when a new loving owner doesn’t take them, the slaughter houses will.

Sometimes, at auctions, the workers will purposely whack a perfectly conditioned horse in the leg, or some other vital body part, so the horse will appear lame. As a result, the horse will be sold to a slaughter house and turned into dog food. To prevent their horse from being eaten, owners will tattoo their horse’s lip or ear, which slaughter houses are required to check for before slaughter.

There are people that buy large areas of land and turn them into horse sanctuaries like the one at 15130 State Highway 16 in North Medina, Texas. Places like this buy horses from the slaughter houses and turn them loose into the pastures to live the rest of their 30 year life-span with good care. Ponies tend to live longer, and many reside in riding stables well into their 30's.

Unfortunately, there are some horses that need medications for arthritis or joint problems so sometimes they are better off in horse heaven. If you would like to help save horses from the knife, you could do simple things like donating to animal-health societies or perhaps buying your own horse sanctuary. The monthly cost of owning a horse is listed below.

Price to own a horse
Purchase Price $1,500.00 - $15,000.00
Pre-Purchase Exam $70.00 - $1,000.00
Tack & Equipment (Annual) $1,000.00 - $5,000.00
Commission on Purchase 10% of purchase price
Health Care (Annual) $120.00 - $600.00
Ferrier (Annual) $120.00 - $1,200.00
Insurance (Annual) 3.2% - 8.5% of purchase price
Feed & Bedding (Annual) $720.00 - $2,400.00
Supplies (Annual) $200.00 - $1,200.00
Total Full Care Boarding (Annual) $2,400.00 - $7,200.00
Lessons (Annual) $1,290.00 - $7,200.00
Training (Annual) $3,600.00 - $10,000.00


Chart from: Your specially designed section for the FIRST TIME HORSE OWNER