Can anyone bring some clarity to this issue and the players involved?

A group seeking a return to horse slaughter has called for a boycott of high profile horse advocates and organisations, suggesting it is time to hit them in the chequebook.

The release by the United Organizations of the Horse (UOH) has been condemned by Equine Welfare Alliance representatives John Holland and Vicki Tobin.

They say those targeted - Willie Nelson, Carrie Underwood, Pat Parelli, Sheryl Crow, the Barbie Twins, the United States Equestrian Federation, the Humane Society and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) - have effectively been attacked for exercising their right of free speech over the management of wild horse herds and their opposition to horse slaughter.

The attack came in a release from Wyoming State Representative Sue Wallis in her role as executive director of the UOH.

The alliance described the release as a rambling diatribe.

The UOH release accused the celebrities of taking "dirty money" and selling out to the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta).

The alliance said the UOH "offered no specifics or proof".

The attack comes amid growing press coverage of demonstrations against the Bureau of Land Management and its removal of wild horse from herds in the American West.

In an earlier release, Wallis praised the bureau's actions in removing the horses and she has suggested they be slaughtered and fed to the world's hungry.

Currently, horse meat sells for $US30 a pound in Europe, making such a humanitarian offering unlikely, the alliance suggested.

Curiously, they pointed out, neither the USEF, Peta, nor the HSUS, has taken part in the recent demonstrations or law suits against the removal of mustangs in the Calico complex of Nevada.

Notably missing from the list of organisations attacked in the release were those who actually did participate, including In Defense of Animals, The Cloud Foundation, the Equine Welfare Alliance and numerous other groups.

More than 200 organisations, dignitaries and celebrities as well as over six thousand individuals have signed-on to a unified call for a moratorium on round-ups.

The alliance's John Holland said the attack was using the "Peta/HSUS boogieman" and may be more about obtaining campaign contributions than anything else.

"Even so," continued Holland, "such an attack has the unmistakable aroma of desperation about it."

Disguised as a plea to come to the aide of animal agriculture, the demand for a boycott attacks what the alliance described as one of the farmers' and ranchers' most consistent humanitarians.

Singer Willie Nelson has raised millions for farmers and stockmen facing foreclosure during hard times.

It also attacked Parelli, a former champion rodeo cowboy who went from riding bucking horses to pioneering a more gentle and cerebral form of horsemanship. Parelli clinics fill venues from coast to coast and abroad with horse lovers intent on learning to think like a horse.

The alliance is a dues-free, umbrella organisation with more than 90 member organisations. The organisation focuses its efforts on the welfare of all equines and the preservation of wild equids.

The UOH release said horse people from across the US have joined with the UOH in calling for "common sense and compassion".

"These groups will not stop for any reason and will continue to try to undermine what we know is true and right for the good of our natural resources, our sacred horses, and us included," said Arlen Washines, president of the Northwestern Tribal Horse Coalition.

"What hurts the worst," says Wallis, "are people like Willie Nelson, who has done so much good for agriculture with his Farm Aid concerts, turning against the folks who make their living from the land, and swallowing whole the ridiculous conclusions of radical groups making wild assertions about the extinction of wild horses ... nothing could be further from the truth."

"It is time to hit them where it hurts the worst, square in the checkbook," says Dave Duquette, a working cow horse trainer from Hermiston, Oregon, who is executive director of the United Horsemen's Front.

"we are asking every American who believes as we do that our rights, our culture, and our ability to enjoy animals in our lives is at stake to boycott anyone who promotes HSUS/PETA, any of their affiliates, and anyone who is opposing the responsible management of wild horses."

The release said: "Air-headed celebrities like Carrie Underwood, Sheryl Crow, and the Barbie twins cannot be left unanswered."

The original release is as follows:


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 9, 2010
Contact: Sue Wallis: Executive Director, United Organizations of the Horse 307-685-8248
Dave Duquette: Executive Director, United Horsemen's Front 541-571-7588



Horse owners & rural America call for boycott of Carrie Underwood, Willie Nelson, United States Equestrian Federation, Pat Parelli, & others for taking dirty money and selling out to HSUS and PETA.


CHEYENNE, WY-The members and supporters of the United Organizations of the Horse (UOH) call on every American who supports the rights of horse owners, and the principles upon which this country was founded, to boycott celebrities and organizations who have aligned themselves with the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). Anyone who wants to protect their ability to enjoy animals in their lives; to make a living in the time-honored professions around animals and animal agriculture; and to raise their children in a wholesome environment needs to join this effort. We must block efforts by big, wealthy so-called "nonprofits" and their paid-for-hire celebrities who are becoming a deadly cancer on our society and attempting to constrain and dictate our activities.


HSUS and PETA and their many minions have been bankrolling an all-out assault against the people of the land. These attacks threaten our ability to sustain a valuable culture of responsible, sustainable stewardship of the land and the animals. Recent reports show that HSUS paid 41 people salaries in excess of $100,000 each. Their leader makes over $250,000 per year. These groups spent less than ½ of 1% of their budget to actually help a single dog or cat, let alone a horse. Their dollars all go to hire celebrities, produce media events, and buy off politicians. Their primary purpose is to create drama, manipulate the emotions of those who don't live and work with animals every day, and draw even more dollars into their over-bloated accounts.


"What hurts the worst," says Sue Wallis, Wyoming state representative and executive director of the United Organizations of the Horse, "are people like Willie Nelson, who has done so much good for agriculture with his Farm Aid concerts, turning against the folks who make their living from the land, and swallowing whole the ridiculous conclusions of radical groups making wild assertions about the extinction of wild horses...nothing could be further from the truth. He needs to go to the country, see the devastation of wild horse overpopulation for himself, and work with the rest of us to find a solution that allows our children and grandchildren the ability to see a sustainable number of horses in the wild forever. The approach that he is advocating only leads to miserable starvation for the horses, destruction of the environment for every living species, and devastation of families and communities."


In a move that can only be described as the ultimate hypocrisy, and a blatant example of the prostitution that the allure of big dollars can provide, the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) which bills itself as the national governing body of equestrian sport, has allowed HSUS to become the primary sponsor of its annual convention. Pat Parelli, a prominent horse trainer, has also seen the dollar signs and somehow thought that his betrayal of his fellow horse people would go unnoticed. Celebrities like Carrie Underwood, Viggo Mortensen, Sheryl Crow, and the Barbi twins cannot be left unanswered. All celebrities who choose easy money in exchange for sponsorship of organizations seeking to destroy the ability of American families to support themselves with animals must learn that there is a heavy price to pay.


"It is time to hit them where it hurts the worst, square in the checkbook," says Dave Duquette, a working cow horse trainer from Hermiston, Oregon. "We are asking every American who believes as we do that our rights, our culture, and our ability to enjoy animals in our lives is at stake to boycott anyone who promotes HSUS/PETA, any of their affiliates, and anyone who is opposing the responsible management of wild horses."



Tribal horse people from across the Nation have joined with UOH in calling for common sense and compassion. "These groups will not stop for any reason and will continue to try to undermine what we know is true and right for the good of our natural resources, our sacred horses, and us included," says Arlen Washines, president of the Northwestern Tribal Horse Coalition. Washines is a member of the Yakama Nation which is struggling to find a solution to more than 12,000 feral horses on Yakama lands that are destroying the salmon fisheries, and culturally significant plants in their Washington homeland.


The UOH is working to revive the devastated horse economy and providing a positive solution to the problem of excess wild and domestic horses by restoring the option of humane and regulated horse processing in the US. This will supply wholesome meat to the hungry and a viable export market, increase the value of all horses, and create thousands of jobs. UOH is also working to support the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) efforts to control the number of wild horses on federal lands, and oppose the use of any federal dollars to pay for the upkeep of wild horses in private feedlots and holding facilities off of the federally designated horse management areas as an unconstitutional and inappropriate use of federal funds to establish a welfare entitlement program for animals.


The United Organizations of the Horse, a mutual benefit organization, is committed to the well-being and humane treatment of horses, and the viability of the equine industry in the United States of America. Its companion non-profit group, the United Horsemen's Front, is a charitable and educational non-profit 501c3 organization.


For more information, visit www.UnitedOrgsoftheHorse.organd www.UnitedHorsemensFront.org.