Problems
There are, of course, also places in Romania where horses are taken good care of. So, what is stated below does not apply to all horses in the country. However, the problems regarding horses' well-being in the northeast, east and southeast of Romania, the country's poorest areas, are huge. And in many other parts of the country the care of horses could well be improved.
There are two groups of horses in Romania that are having a very hard time: workhorses and stray horses. It is very hard to draw the line between those groups. When workhorses stop performing well (due to undernourishment or bad injuries) or when keeping them in winter pas proved too expensive, they might be sent out to the streets to await a slow death. Moreover, the number of stray horses has increased since Romania joined the European Union.
On this page we will give you an overview of the problems with regard to workhorses and stray horses.
Read about the problems with workhorses.
Read about the problems with stray horses.
Look at our video collection of Romanian stray horses
Slaughter
At the end of their career most horses have only three options left, assuming they haven't died already as stray horses. They are slaughtered in the official Romanian slaughterhouses; their throats are cut illegally (there are no hard figures, but these activities are reported regularly); or they are transported to Italy to end up as horsemeat. These transports are horrible, because the animals are very weak and have to stand upright in cattle-trucks for hours without food and water.
Politics
What are politicians doing to end this abuse?
To our regret, Brussels only points at Romania and does not take its responsibility by calling the country to account for the serious animal abuse.
As from 2008, animal abuse is illegal in Romania. Upholding this law, however, leaves rather a lot to be desired in a country where the norm considering animal welfare is profoundly different than in, for example, the Netherlands. Several animal welfare organizations in and outside Romania urge both Bucharest and Brussels to take action. Unfortunately, it has had little effect so far.
Education
Besides offering emergency aid to horses that badly need it, something has to be done to reach long-term solutions. This should be reached through politics, but education is essential too. How do you take care of horses? How much food do they need? How to take care of hoofs and wounds? When does a harness fit well? How long do horses have to rest in order to be able to do their job well? In addition to emergency aid, the foundation's projects try to offer structural solutions through education.
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There are, of course, also places in Romania where horses are taken good care of. So, what is stated below does not apply to all horses in the country. However, the problems regarding horses' well-being in the northeast, east and southeast of Romania, the country's poorest areas, are huge. And in many other parts of the country the care of horses could well be improved. There are two groups of horses in Romania that are having a very hard time: workhorses and stray horses. It is very hard to draw the line between those groups. When workhorses stop performing well (due to undernourishment or bad injuries) or when keeping them in winter pas proved too expensive, they might be sent out to the streets to await a slow death. Moreover, the number of stray horses has increased since Romania joined the European Union. On this page we will give you an overview of the problems with regard to workhorses and stray horses. |
