It was another busy day at the weekly horse and farm animal auction in New Holland. When investigators arrived at 9:00am, the parking lot was already completely full. The investigators noticed immediately that Cranbury Sales Stables/Never Ends Farm was there with several trucks and trailers. Horse trader Mario Garcia, who owns Cranbury Sales Stables was already making his rounds in the auction ring announcing that he had several high-end horses to sell. Also present were horse trader Carl Fisher from McVeytown, PA and former kill buyer turned broker program king pin Brian Moore. Fisher arrived at the auction in a newer Dodge 3500 HD truck ( DOT # 5512) pulling a single deck stock trailer. A review of the displayed DOT number reveals that it is currently inactive, which is a violation of § 392.9b of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations and could warrant a fine against the operator.
Investigators entered the horse barn and checked on the condition of the horses present. The majority of them were in average condition with the exception of a few thin draft horses with overgrown, cracked hooves. One of them had an open sore on his hip. Several Standardbreds very, very thin. An emaciated Paint was standing motionless in between other horses, holding his head low. He appeared lethargic and depressed. In the outside pen area, a group of donkeys, some ponies & minis as well as some younger, unhandled horses with briars in their manes were kept.
The sale started and bidding between the different horse traders was fierce. However, the vast majority of horses went for well above meat price, an indication that they were bought for re-sale via the various broker programs. Mario Garcia bought a horse for more than $7000.00, Brian Moore bought a nine-year-old Thoroughbred for $1000.00. The investigation showed again that the market continues to react to the decline of the horse slaughter industry and buyers as well as sellers are focussed on the flourishing re-sale programs. AA will continue to monitor the development.