Success Stories

While there is no way to list all of our activities here, we did want to highlight a few of our accomplishments – successes only possible thanks to our kind-hearted and compassionate supporters. Be sure to visit our investigations page for information on our ongoing programs. To stay up-to-date and have AA news delivered right to your email, we encourage you to sign up for our newsletter! 

 

Ongoing Initiatives

• Animals’ Angels undercover investigations continue to expose horrific abuse of horses, pigs, dogs, birds and cows. We conduct hundreds of investigations each year nationwide.

European Consumer Awareness Campaign Going Strong 

• A lot of the horse meat available in Europe is sourced from US horses slaughtered in Canada - a fact widely unknown among consumers oversees. Animals' Angels work is changing that. Our EU Consumer Awareness Campaign, which originally launched in 2012, continues to move forward and create positive changes for horses trapped in the slaughter pipeline. The initial expose based on our investigations uncovering the realities of horse slaughter which aired in Switzerland created a firestorm of reaction with grocers immediately pulling more than 50% of horsemeat products off the shelves.  Switzerland’s largest retailer cut ties with Bouvry Exports altogether, followed by yet another major importer who opted to do the same.

Armed with documentation from our undercover investigations, Animals’ Angels met with the EU Commission to present compelling evidence detailing the stark truth behind the horse slaughter industry. As the only U.S. organization ever invited to make a presentation to the EU Commission about horse slaughter, we are thrilled to have their ear to raise awareness to the atrocities of this predatory industry. We continue to provide routine reports and updates to the EU legislators.

Evidence Leads to Ban on Horsemeat from Mexico

• The evidence provided had a strong effect on European Union legislators which led the EU Commission to completely ban horse meat from Mexico. Since many of the horses slaughtered in Mexico are imported from the US, thousands upon thousands of US horses have been saved since this ban was put into place.

Police Training

• Our groundbreaking training program on the enforcement of slaughter horse transport laws geared directly to law enforcement agencies continues to make the rounds as we meet with law enforcement nationwide to provide this one-of-a-kind opportunity. The program has been met with great success and has not only provided resources to those officers in the field but will also establish a line of communication and a support network for animal welfare calls.

In the News and Art

• Animals' Angels was featured in USA Today and Blood Horse Magazine, discussing not only the atrocities of the horse slaughter industry but the cruelties and appalling abuse that many farm animals face at auction. 
   
• Our reports on Equine Blood Farms, Slaughter Empire of Mike McBarron, and the decline of horse meat imports into the EU were featured in The Inside Rein.
   
• “The Kill Pen” by KNOE News, airing in two segments, exposed the truth behind the Stanley Brothers’ operations but also discussed the burgeoning business of the kill pen/broker program business.
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• Animals’ Angels footage has been used in four fantastic anti-horse slaughter documentaries – “Saving America’s Horses," “Wild Horses in Winds of Change,” "Their Last Ride," and "From the Kill Pen."
   
• Our devotion to horses inspired the hauntingly beautiful song ‘Ride it Out ~ A Song for Slaughter-Bound Horses’ and our footage is showcased in the music video. 

Creating Change and Holding Abusers Accountable

• All across the United States, Animals' Angels undercover investigations have documented and exposed animal cruelty. Countless complaints have been filed with authorities on a federal as well as local level and many cruelty cases have been initiated based on our evidence. Examples include: 
   
• Animals' Angels documentation facilitated the ban on the use of cruel double-decker trailers for the transport of slaughter bound horses. 
   
• We were successful in pushing to close the loophole in the equines to slaughter transport regulations that originally pertained only from auction to slaughter plant or feedlot to slaughter plant, whereas now it encompasses the entire transport routes and includes protections at all transport points. 
   
• Canada enlisted stricter regulations on slaughter horse transport due to documentation from our investigations.
   
• Evidence obtained from our undercover investigations resulted in three separate convictions for animal cruelty against the New Holland Sales Barn, the largest livestock auction on the East Coast.
   
• Our evidence led to the indictment of Dennis Chavez, owner of Southwest Livestock Auction in Los Lunas, NM, garnering international exposure to the issue of horse slaughter.
   
• Animals’ Angels secured documentation of the hidden trade with race horses which led to felony cruelty charges being filed against the offender, Kelsey LeFever.
   
• The undercover footage from our investigation at the Farmerstown Dog Auction in Ohio contributed to the closure of the facility.
   
• Our intervention saved two former race horses from a gruesome death at a Canadian slaughter plant. The horses were returned to the relieved owners.
   
• AA's meeting with auction management and local authorities in Sugarcreek, OH led to significant improvement of one of the most notorious slaughter horse auctions in the country.