If you've been on a tour with me or had a conversation, you've probably heard me explain how kill pens operate. They attend auctions, purchase donkeys and horses, and then sell them for significantly higher prices. These animals are held captive, with the threat of being shipped to slaughter if exorbitant prices aren't paid. On average, mini jennies at auction go for around $400-600, while jacks can be as low as $200 or less. However, some individuals artificially inflate prices for their own animals or those of their friends, and auction house workers often do the same. This is common in Missouri and the southern region.
Now, let's take a look at the prices set by the Stroud kill pen in Oklahoma. Some so-called kill pens don't even have the necessary licenses to ship animals for slaughter. Instead, they've realized that threatening harm to an animal brings in a significant amount of money, so they employ the same tactics. In fact, these threats generate more money than when we ask for donations to help abused and neglected animals. It's worth considering that every time someone pays these inflated prices and buys from a kill pen, they're essentially funding them to acquire two more animals and giving them ammunition to prevent legitimate rescues from saving them.
What are we saving these animals from? The very kill pens that you're unknowingly supporting by purchasing from them. You're inadvertently funding the slaughter pipeline. Meanwhile, the animals suffer in deplorable conditions at the kill pen, exposed to diseases and often deprived of proper care and nutrition. Some die there, and the majority endure abuse from heartless individuals driven by greed. They beat them and house them with dangerous animals, showing no regard for their well-being. These kill pens don't care about the animals, despite their claims of being saviors. They attend auctions, outbidding families and individuals who genuinely want to provide a loving home for these donkeys, only to turn around and make exorbitant profits.
So, what exactly are they saving these animals from? They claim to be rescuing them from slaughter, yet they are the ones who ultimately send them to their demise. It's perplexing, isn't it? Are they truly saving them by charging you twice the amount they paid for a little donkey and her baby, knowing that the baby will likely die if it remains in their facility due to the rampant disease? These places need to be shut down. Buying animals from them is not the solution to saving animals.