Horse hauling

From ANIMAL PEOPLE,  October 2011:

WASHINGTON D.C.–-A new USDA rule amending enforcement of the Commercial Transport of Equines to Slaughter Act to cover horses at every stage of transport to slaughter took effect on October 7, 2011.  The old rule,  in effect since 2001,  prohibited hauling horses to slaughter on double-decked trailers,  and required that horses going to slaughter must receive food,  water,  and six hours of rest before each travel segment,  but horses “never move directly to slaughter,”  USDA Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service farm animal welfare coordinator Gary Egrie told Heather Johnson of the North Platte Telegraph.  “Buyers move them to feedlots or other assembly points until they have a full truck,”  Egrie explained.  The rule now covers collecting horses to be slaughtered,  as well as the final haul.