I want to talk about something that came up in conversation and for which I have strong views. I don’t normally talk about politics, but since this has a relation to horses and how we treat them, I am going to do it anyway.
A few years ago, there was an ongoing debate in Australia about the live export of cattle. On one side, there was the argument that some countries to which we export live cattle do not treat and slaughter our cattle humanely. There was some horrific video captured of the cruelty in Indonesian abattoirs where cattle were slaughtered. On the other side is the view of some cattle producers that they need the live export industry in order to make a living, and it brings a lot of money to the Australian economy. I don’t really intend to discuss the cattle industry, except to say that this issue highlights to me something that is terribly relevant and important to the horse industry.
A friend and I were talking about the export of cattle, and she made an excellent observation. She said, if a bull chases a person out of a paddock or a steer kicks a handler during branding, there is nothing wrong with that. We accept that cattle will do those things. An animal has no choice but to do what it is genetically wired to do. It can’t decide right from wrong. It can’t choose not to kick a person because it thinks it is the wrong thing to do. If the moment takes hold of the animal, it must kick. It can’t choose to do otherwise based on a moral or ethical judgement.
But humans are different. We have the ability to make choices. We can decide right from wrong and can make moral judgments. And if we choose not to make those choices, then we are no better than the animals. In fact, we are worse because we have the choice.
What is the point of having a moral compass and not using it? Everybody I know agrees that some of the practices for slaughtering cattle in other countries are cruel and horrendous. Nobody seems to be okay with it. Yet some people would prefer nothing be done because of the economic effect a ban might have on the income of cattle producers. In my opinion, these are people who have a moral compass and choose not to use it.
It is no different in the horse industry. People know rolkur (hyperflexion) is not in the best interest of horses. People know that soring is not in the interest of horses. They know that jabbing a reining horse in the mouth with a curb bit or whipping a showjumper over the head is morally unethical. They know that throwing a horse to the ground to make it submit is abusive. We all know these things are wrong. Yet some people still choose to do them. The people who do find lots of ways to justify their actions. There is no shortage of excuses for the things we do to horses – or any animal.
What is the point of the gift of being so highly evolved to have a moral compass, yet we choose to ignore that gift when it comes to the animals that we exploit? Perhaps the problem is that we are not evolved enough. Maybe the problem is that we have not yet evolved to the point where we MUST act on our moral compass. A horse or a cow has to act according to their nature – they have no choice. But the nature of humans is to sometimes ignore our moral compass in favour of self-interest. Maybe one day we will evolve to the point that we no longer have a choice between morality and self-interest. When we know something is wrong, we will have to act accordingly to correct the wrong. Then we will be on an equal footing with the cow or the horse.
This is worth watching if you haven’t already seen it.