Well known Nevada Kill Buyer ships 224 Stallions to Dennis Chavez!
Animals’ Angels has received confirmation that on January 15, 2015, Ole Olson transported 224 stallions to the New Mexico’s largest and most notorious kill buyer Dennis Chavez. Records obtained from the New Mexico Livestock Board indicate that the agency inspected the 224 stallions and 64 mares at the Los Lunas Feedlot. While it cannot be confirmed that these horses are indeed a part of the Dann Sister herd, it is possible.
However, regardless of the origin of these horses, it is important to question how these stallions were shipped. The Commercial Transport of Equines to Slaughter Regulations require that every stallion is segregated inside the trailer to avoid fighting and the risk of injuries. Given the fact that Olson shipped 224 stallions, it is unlikely that this requirement has been met. One can only imagine the chaos inside the trailers with so many stallions packed together fighting for dominance. The risks for injury during slaughter horse transport is always great but given the sheer number of stallions Olson was transporting, the danger for grave and debilitating injuries, not to mention the horrific distress, would have been tremendous.
According to the New Mexico Livestock Board’s inspection form, the horses were consigned to Dennis Chavez – we’re all too familiar with his operation, so we know where these horses are potentially headed and the conditions under which they may suffer at his feedlot. While the horses may be sold at his auction, it is also possible that they will end up in Mexico. It remains to be seen if Chavez will trouble himself with gelding the stallions (a requirement if he wanted to export them as slaughter horses), or if he will ship them straight to Mexico labeled as “work horses”. AA investigators have seen the sad results of Chavez’ clumsy gelding procedures during previous feedlot visits; yet another reason our heart goes out to these poor souls caught in the pipeline. While we continue to keep an eye on Dennis Chavez and his Southwest Livestock Auction for abuses that can be reported to the authorities, we are also going to take measures to hold Ole Olson accountable for the recent shipments. Animals’ Angels has filed a complaint with the USDA and has urged IES to launch an investigation into the true purpose of these transports and the final destination for these stallions.