Argentina | Gualeguay | Slaughterhouse Entre Rios | Horsemeat Import
White mare that looks pregnant and thin horse with injured hind leg.
Horses slipping and falling on the smooth concrete floor of the lairage.
At 7:15 we arrive at the horse slaughter plant in Entre Rios that we already visited last week. It is still dark. There are several groups of horses in the lairage area. Conditions are very crowded and it is therefore not surprising that the horses are observed biting each other. A worker starts moving a group of horses to the slaughter area. He ushers the animals with a long stick with a flag on it, which he also uses to hit them. The smooth concrete floor is extremely slippery. At least six horses fall down as they are rushed to the exit of the pen and bump against each other.
At the back of the plant, there are around 60 to 80 horses in larger paddocks. Once again, we see a group of horses in a paddock without feed or shelter. Several hungry animals are observed searching the dirt floor for something to eat. We notice some worn shelter in a few pens; the majority of the pens however offer no shelter at all. Several horses are thin and their ribs showing. We detect an emaciated chestnut horse that is standing behind a group of horses. His spinal cord and hip bones are protruding through the skin. Another horse with a large open wound on the hind leg is standing next to a white mare that has an enlarged abdomen suggesting that she is pregnant. Many horses have scratches and abrasions on their bodies and heads, likely from transport on inadequate trucks.
