Buying Horses Out of the Killer Pens

Often dealers are approached by people interested in purchasing horses in the drop off pens. Dealers will generally sell the horses for $50 to $100 more than what they paid for the horse.

Dealers do this for one reason-they are in the horse trading business to make money! If a dealer can make more money selling a horse to a slaughterhouse, than they can make selling it to another buyer, than they will send the horse to slaughter.

Now, dealers have realized that they can sell horses to the rescue/welfare organizations for more money than if they sold the horses to slaughter. At the same time it is a public relations coup for the dealers who state that they contact the rescue groups whenever they have a neglected, sick, or injured horse.

Dealers are not doing this out of the kindness of their hearts, they are doing it because they can make a bigger profit, and look better in the eyes of the public than if they sent the horse to slaughter!

The horse is then saved from slaughter, the rescues are able to proclaim that they have saved a horse, and the horse is rehabilitated and adopted into a new home.

Everybody wins, including the owner who neglected, starved and crippled the horse because none of the players take action to prosecute the people who committed the cruelty to the horse!

This horse on the right destined for slaughter bears a "must kill" tag on his back. Sold at another auction he was offered for sale only to the "killer buyers."

The number of horses purchased from the "killer pens" that have gone on to glory in the show ring could fill a book. The number of horses who have won over 6 figures on the racetrack, and that have later been pulled from the "killer pens" could be a sequel to the first book!

Almost anybody who has owned horses, has at one time or another purchased a horse that was neglected or destined for slaughter.