HAWC - EYE
Voice of the Hooved Animal Welfare Council
PO Box 7l54, Erie, PA 16510 (814) 739-9680
2005 NEWSLETTER
Annual General Meeting for Election of Officers on Tuesday, June 28th at 7:00 p.m at
9907 East Peach St., Girard, PA
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Election of Officers: Elections will be held on June 28th for Vice President (Sandy Blount), Secretary (Linda Wheeler) as well as two board member positions (Robin Kulik and Joan Rutlege).
May Membership Drive: Please send in your membership or renewal for 2005 now. Family memberships are still $20.00 and Single memberships $15.00. All memberships are tax-deductible. Your membership dollars go directly towards the cost of humane officer training and rehabilitation of livestock. Three of our humane investigating officers will be attending the mandatory 10 hour Humane Officer’s Seminar in Harrisburg in May to remain certified in Pennsylvania. We also have a member that will be attending the 32 hour Humane Society Police Officer training to become certified. The total training cost will be over $1,500. So we need your membership and donations to continue with our rescue efforts now more than ever. Please tear off the attached membership form and send it in now.
Complaint Contacts
HAWC continues its success in improving conditions for livestock through education of owners on proper animal care; but remember you must be willing to give your name along with other pertinent information in order for our investigating officers to investigate a complaint. All complaints are strictly confidential. HAWC handled many complaints last year resulting in 18 cases; all were resolved satisfactorily by educating the owners on proper care. The cases involved cows, ponies and horses. Two horses were surrendered to us, rehabilitated and adopted into responsible homes. Please do not hesitate to notify us if you see neglect or abuse. Please call our Humane Investigating Officers listed below.
Sandy Blount (814) 774-2800 Vicki Musolff (814) 474-5633
Darlene Rosthauser (814) 899-0960 Robin Kulik-Spellman (814) 756-5934
Remember, Pennsylvania Law §5511, Cruelty to Animals states: (c) Cruelty to animals. -A person commits a summary offense if he wantonly or cruelly ill-treats, overloads, beats, otherwise abuses any animal, or neglects any animal as to which he has a duty of care, whether belonging to himself or otherwise, or abandons any animal, or deprives any animal of necessary sustenance, drink, shelter or veterinary care, or access to clean and sanitary shelter which will protect the animal against inclement weather and preserve the animal’s body heat and keep it dry.
Website Address: Please check out the HAWC website address and links to help you find information on livestock care and issues. Remember you can donate to HAWC by purchasing items thru the iGive site and Jeffers (for pet and livestock supplies). If you go to our website and click on their logo to order online, a percentage of your order will be donated to HAWC by Jeffers (8% of your total). It’s easy and a great way to donate. Please check out our web site for more info on donating at www.hawc-eye.org. HAWC has received many emails from people seeing our website. We will continue to do our best to answer all questions accordingly so do not hesitate to email us at majek25@hotmail.com.
2005 Events
NEW!! - Junior Membership Program. We have developed a junior membership program. This program will cover the care, rescue and rehabilitation of hooved animals. Please contact Vicki Musolff at 474-5633 for more information.
Pet Day will be held Saturday, June 11th at the Petco store in Erie at the Millcreek Mall. Come visit us at the HAWC booth. We will be offering our T-shirt, sweat shirts and tote bags for sale. We will be happy to answer any questions you may have about our rescue group.
Dan Rice Days is our biggest fundraiser of the year and lots of fun for everyone. It will be held August 5th and 6th in downtown Girard, PA. Take a chance on the Chinese Auction and raffle item. If you would like to help at the booth or donate an item, please call Sandy Blount at 774-2800. Hope to see you there!
Updates
Horse Slaughter – Good News
The American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (H.R. 503) has been reintroduced in the US House by Congressman John Sweeney (R-NY), Co-chair of the Congressional Horse Caucus, Congressman John Spratt, Jr. (D-SC) and Congressman Ed Whitfield (R-KY). The AHSPA will prohibit the shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling, or donation of horses and other equines to be slaughtered for human consumption. This legislation has the backing of New York Racing Association (NYRA), National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), and Breeders’ Cup. For more on horse slaughter visit this website: www.horse-protection.org
PMU Farms
Since the 1940’s, the urine of pregnant mares has been processed into drugs used to treat menopausal symptoms in women. To manufacture the drug, 40,000-60,000 mares were employed at more than 425 farms in the northern US and Canada. Each year the horses were impregnated in the fall, spent winter inside “pee barns” hooked up to urine collection systems, with no exercise and gave birth in the spring. Many groups have helped to find homes for some of the thousands of foals produced by this process each year. But many of the foals not rescued are sent to slaughter for human consumption in European and Asian meat markets. Most of the mares end up slaughtered as well when they are too old to be impregnated and are considered “unproductive”.
Since 2001, the results of several research studies have alerted women and their doctors to the health risks associated with taking these animal-based hormone replacement drugs. This news sent prescriptions for Wyeth-Ayerst’s Premarin (shorthand for PREgnant MARe urINe) and Prempro plummeting. Do not use Premarin, Prempro, Premphase and Prempac. Ask your doctor to prescribe a hormone replacement drug derived from plants or a synthetic alternative for hot flashes. PMU farms and processing plants can be eliminated only if women refuse to use hormone replacement drugs that are processed from horse urine. Let’s help eliminate this industry completely
If you are interested in adopting a PMU foal or mare, you can contact this website for PMU rescue groups across the US: PMURescue.org. For more information, visit this Premarin website hosted by United Animal nations: www.uan.org.
Foster Homes Needed - We are still in need of foster homes to help rehabilitate livestock. If you have a barn and pasture and are experienced in hooved animal care, please call us so we can add you name to our list. Rehabilitating an animal can be very rewarding. Call Sandy Blount at 774-2800.
Presentations
If you would like presentations about HAWC for your community group, contact Darlene Rosthauser at
899-0960 or visit the HAWC website for more information.
Weight Loss in Older Horses
Weight loss is often the most visible sign that a horse has entered into old age. Whether it's due to dental problems, reduced digestive efficiency or inappropriate nutrition, horses over age 20 become less able to process and absorb the energy needed to keep them in full flesh. The round, robust horse who has always been an easy keeper may grow thin and ribby after he leaves his teens. Some of the appearance of weight loss is an illusion caused by the changing shape and reduced muscularity of the older body. Weight gain, on the other hand, may occur when retirees from rigorous training or competition continue to eat as usual. Obesity is no healthier than underweight; excess weight stresses arthritic joints, strains soft tissues and exacerbates age-related problems. When sizing up your horse's weight and body condition, take into account age-related muscle loss and slackening of connective tissue that may have occurred. The characteristic swayback and abdominal sag of old horses can give a false appearance of underweight and unhealthy hay belly. When considering the normal horse's ideal body condition, you may not see the outline of the ribs but you can feel them when you run your hand along the horse's side.
Check for dental abnormalities and tooth loss. Possibly the most common and easily overlooked cause of malnutrition or weight loss in old horses is tooth loss or dental damage. Years and years of grazing gritty grass and grinding up hay and grain wear, weaken or even loosen the teeth. Horses' teeth grow for about six years, then, each year thereafter, they undergo a process of wear and eruption that uses up approximately one-eight inch of tooth per year. By the age of 20, the average horse has worn away approximately 1~/2 inches of his 2 1/2~ inch-long teeth. Some horses live long enough to wear their teeth right down to the roots, leaving them incapable of chewing the normal equine diet.
Damaged, infected or unevenly worn teeth can cause a horse to swallow his feed without grinding it, allowing roughage and grain to pass through the gut practically undigested. Poorly masticated food puts the horse at greater risk for choke and colic and severely reduces nutrient absorption. Horses with damaged or painful teeth often dribble grain as they try to process it, or they partially chew a wad of food, then spit it out in a process referred to as "quidding." Checking them for sharp points and abnormal wear is vital."
Owners too often wait until horses exhibit discomfort or have problems eating or maintaining weight before thinking to have dental checkups. Most horses whose mouths are examined throughout their lives can have normal, healthy teeth even into their 30s.
Review nutritional requirements periodically. Geriatric horses' needs are often different from those of their younger counterparts. The "senior" feeds developed in the last decade simplify the dietary management of older horses. These scientifically formulated rations are available in grain-only formulations to be fed with grass/hay or in "complete" formulations containing both concentrates and roughage. Most of these rations contain approximately 12 to 14 percent protein, 14 to 20 percent fiber and 3 to 7 percent fat. Senior feeds also have the added digestive benefit of being extruded - cooked and processed into a paste, then puffed up into pelleted form -- which breaks down the coarser elements. Senior feeds help the older horse absorb his protein and carbohydrates better. Beet pulp is a good substitute for grain because "it is largely digested in the large intestine, the way nature intended digestion to proceed." To further improve the digestibility of feed, particularly for horses with missing or nubby teeth, wet the feed before serving it. If you put warm water on any of these pelleted or extruded senior diets, in 10 minutes you've got a nice soup,. Soaking the feed reduces the chance that the horses will choke, and it gets extra water into them."
It's prudent to introduce dietary changes gradually for any horse, but it's even more important for aged horses. Convert an older horse's gut to new feed by mixing increasing amounts of the replacement ration with decreasing amounts of the old feed, taking three weeks to complete the changeover.
Studies do indicate that older horses need more attention to stay healthy. This "special care" runs the gamut from timely dentistry to changed social arrangements, from arthritis medication to altered feeding and exercise programs. Fortunately we able to meet those challenges with only modest changes to your care-taking routine, assuring your older horse the quality of life he deserves
HAWC
PO Box 7154
Erie, PA 16510
· May is HAWC membership month, so please remember to renew your membership for 2005
NEGLECTED AND ABUSED ANIMALS CAN’T HELP THEMSELVES;
On Behalf of the animals, THANK YOU
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MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION
FOR THE HOOVED ANIMAL WELFARE COUNCIL (HAWC)
Name ____________________________________________ Phone _________________
Address __________________________________________________________________________
City _______________________________________ State _________________________
Single Membership $15.00 Family Membership $20.00
Donations gratefully accepted
Make check payable to: H.A.W.C.
Mail to: P.O. Box 7154, Erie, PA 16510
All donations are tax deductible