Reply #40: Theoretically, any horse sold at auction or to a slaughterhouse must be verified drug free

[riderinthestorm]

The owner of the horse going to slaughter must sign forms that indicate that it hasn't been given any drugs at all in the past 6 months (I just read that fun fact on google!)

Your point however is valid. Most horse meat in the US isn't tested for drugs in their system, the slaughterhouse just goes by that written paper. That's not good enough in my opinion.

Right now, as it is, I'd bet that the horses going to slaughter in Canada or Mexico probably have enough time for any drugs to pass through their systems before they are killed - ship to auction, auction, transport, wait at slaughterhouse... all of that takes time.

But if we have (HUMANE! PLEASE!) slaughterhouses here in the US, they will be much closer and owners will most likely be driving their animals themselves. There will be more than a bit of lying going on I'm sure. If/when someone builds a slaughterhouse in the US, there must be some way built into the system that the horse is tested for harmful drugs.