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Illinois Equine Humane Center

ILEHC Shipshewana Auction Rescue

Miss Bo Dottie Sugar (left) grazing alongside Lindy Lou Lishan

On Friday, June 12, the ILEHC went to the notorious kill auction in Shipshewana, Indiana to do some investigative work and to hopefully rescue a few horses.

For those of you who may not know, Shipshewana is your run-of-the-mill, "low-end/kill" auction, complete with all the cruelty and indifference to animal suffering that one might find at Sugarcreek or New Holland. Please forgive me if I'm hesitant to go into great detail just yet, but the investigative work at Shipshy remains incomplete and unfortunately, we'll need to go back there again soon to gather more information.

Upon arrival we soon discovered that that the "loose" horses had already been sold to the "meatman," a kill-buyer named Jaron Gold. As we looked down at this particular group of horses from the catwalk above their pen, I noticed a Thoroughbred mare that was clearly lame and in substantial pain. Given her stance, I suspected that she was likely suffering from laminitis. I decided that if nothing else I would try to purchase her hoping to spare her further suffering during the long and grisly journey to slaughter in Canada.

One of the young Amish auction workers pointed me to Jaron Gold and I asked him if he'd be willing to sell me the TB who was hip # 329. As we walked back to the kill-pen, Gold insisted that none of the horses he had purchased for slaughter were Thoroughbreds. After wading through the kill pen filled with horses Gold finally reached hip #329, looked at her briefly, and insisted that the mare was not tattooed and that she was not a TB. He said the mare was lame in front and that she would not be suitable for riding. I told him that it didnt matter and that I'd like to purchase her anyway. He said to see him following the sale and we could talk about it later.

Once Gold left, we walked around the pen trying to figure out how best to safely gain access to the mare to check on her and to see if she was tattooed. Thankfully, she had situated herself at the far end of the pen away from most of the other horses which enabled us to get a good look at her. Sure enough, the mare was tattooed and is indeed a Thoroughbred. Her tattoo is partially illegible, so her identity as of yet remains to be determined.

By then the saddle horse sale was just about ready to start, so we quickly went through the barns to look at all the horses that were to be offered for sale. For the most part, the horses were in good condition. I did see one young paint horse who was quite thin and had a snotty nose. This horse was never offered for sale that day, and I'm sorry to say that we dont know what ultimately became of him.

There were several Belgians and draft crosses in the pens including one Belgian who competely stole my heart. He was tied in his pen and when I scratched his head and spoke to him he looked me dead in the eye as if to say, please get me out of here. I found him to be a gentle old soul and was completely shocked when I flipped his lip to check his age and discovered that he was a mere 2 year old baby! I watched for him to go through the sale and prayed he wouldnt be sold to slaughter. He was purchased by a private buyer, and while he is safe for now from being sold to slaughter, I worry what will ultimately become of him...will he be worked to bone for years only to once again be dumped at Shipshewana and ultimately shipped off to slaughter? I hope and pray that this will not be the fate of this kind intelligent horse.

The most disturbing group of horses was a pen filled with POA mares and their offspring of varying ages. Some of the mares had foals at their side who ranged from yearlings down to only a few months of age. One mare had a foal by her side that absolutely could not have been anymore that 2-3 days old. It was the most callous and reprehensible treatment of a newborn foal that I've ever witnessed in my entire life. What kind of dispicable individual does it take to bring a newborn foal to a place like Shipshewana? Even the auction staff and the kill-buyers were shocked that this tiny baby was made to endure this kind of callous treatment. To add insult to injury, the lot of POA's were the last to be sold through the sale that day. They ran the entire lot into the sale ring all together, and thankfully, all were purchased by someone wanting to give them a chance. I pray that they went to a loving home and that none will ever be returned to Shipshy.

As the sale went on kill-buyers were present on the floor of the auction ring, however, Jaron Gold (clearly the main man) was actually seated up in the auction booth along with the auctioneer. Talk about running the show...its plain to see that Gold pretty much has the run of things at Shipshy.

The vast majority of the horses sold that day were Standardbreds being traded by the Amish. To be perfectly honest, I think that if I were a horse I'd almost rather be slaughtered than to be sold as an Amish buggy horse. The buggy horses at Shipshy are the horses made to suffer the most. The horses are driven at full speed - many miles over asphalt roads to the sale only to be tied outside, fully harnessed and hitched to their buggies all day long. They are made to stand tied day long with not so much as tarp above their heads to shelter them from the hot summer sun. They stand on concrete, stomping flies, and their sheer misery is evident in their sad and tortured eyes. My heart absolutely breaks for these poor creatures.

Could someone please explain to me why this auction is allowed to operate like this? I mean really, would it be so difficult to install shade pavillions above their heads and to install rubber mats atop the concrete to afford them a little bit of comfort? I most definately intend to look into ways in which we might be able to affect some changes here. The treatment of these poor buggy horses is just simply intolerable.

Lindy Lou Lishan enjoying some grass at Sue and Mike's

Ok, sorry for rambling on... now for the 3 very lucky horses horses that we were able to save. The first is a 3 year old, very well mannered, saddle broke, registered Appaloosa filly, named Lindy Lou Lishan. She was ridden into the ring by her former owner and she behaved like an old seasoned horse well beyond her years. The only one bidding for her was Gold, so my colleagues, Mike and Sue purchased her for $250.

The next horse saved is a 17-year-old registered AQHA mare, named Miss Bo Dottie Sugar, who came with a note indicating that she was used as a 4-H mount only last year in Michigan. This mare is absolutely kid-safe and bombproof. The crime for which she was sentenced to be sold at Shipshy was that she simply failed to conceive a foal this year for her current owner. Again, only Gold was bidding for her, so Mike and Sue purchased her for $300.

That is pretty much how the remainder of the sale went. Some very nice and completely useful horses were sold to slaughter simply because the kill buyers were there to outbid private buyers.

As the sale was winding down, Gold waved me over to talk to him about the TB mare. Once again we walked back to the kill pens where he then agreed to sell me the mare for $300. If nothing else, I'm thankful that we were able to be there that day to spare this sweet girl any further suffering.

Hip # 329 - Thoroughbred mare grazing peacefully with her two new "gal-pals!"

The 3 rescued horses are safe and enjoying their newfound chance at life at Mike and Sue's farm, which is located only a short distance from the ILEHC farm. Mike and Sue have a beautiful farm complete with a wonderul little quarantine barn and they were gracious enough to offer use of their barn and paddocks so that we could safely quarantine the three new girls.

We had the vet out yesterday to radiograph the TB mare's feet. I will know more later today about the cause and extent of her lameness when he calls me with his findings. I will keep everyone posted on our three girls who Mike and Sue have affectionately dubbed "Charlie's Angels."

I would like to express my deepest thanks to each of you who pitched in to help us save these horses and an extra special heartfelt thanks to Sue and Mike for all they did to help make this rescue possible. None of this would have been possible without their help.

Mike and Sue went above and beyond the call of duty in purchasing Lindy and Sugar, and the ILEHC will be working to assist them with the rehoming process for both horses, as well as the ILEHC-purchased TB mare. We are going to have some expenses involved in providing for the needs of these girls until new homes can be found, so if you are able to contribute to their ongoing care, please visit www.ilehc.org to make an online donation, or if you prefer to send a check, please mail to: ILEHC - 9N673 Kendall Road - Elgin, IL 60123.

Thanks again to each of you who supported this effort. Because of you, three wonderful horses are alive and safe and will now be afforded every opportunity to live long and happy lives.

All the best,

Gail Vacca, President
Illinois Equine Humane Center, NFP