A horse processing plant at DeKalb closed on Thursday morning and 200 horses were turned away, according to Illinois State Veterinarian Colleen O'Keefe.

"The horses were being sent back to their farms of origin," said O'Keefe.

The Belgian-owned Cavel International Inc. horse processing facility was closed following a federal appeals court decision Wednesday by Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly that prevents the U.S. Department of Agriculture from providing inspectors for a fee to the DeKalb-based plant.

Cavel was the last operating horse slaughter plant in the United States. The slaughter plant was specifically designed for horses and opened two and a half years ago, notes O' Keefe.

The recent ruling follows a federal court decision in January that upheld a Texas state law banning the sale of horsemeat for human consumption. The January ruling forced plants in Fort Worth and Kaufman, Texas to quite sending horsemeat overseas for human consumption.

Congress stripped funding for horse slaughter inspections two years ago, but the USDA opted to provide inspectors to horse slaughter plants for a fee. The judge ruled that the USDA did not follow proper procedures for setting up the program. In the U.S., any animals slaughtered for human consumption have to be inspected before and after slaughter, notes O'Keefe. "By removing staff members no slaughter can occur."

The court decision gives impetus to those trying to pass state and federal legislation to ban horse slaughter. In this spring's session, Illinois lawmakers are considering House Bill 1711 which calls for an end to horse meat processing in Illinois.

Horse slaughter is a highly contentious issue that pits animal protection groups against the Horsemen's Council of Illinois and some 200 veterinary, horse, cattle and ag groups that defend the humane slaughter of horses.

About 90,000 horses go to slaughter each year in the United States, with most of the meat exported to Europe and Asia for human consumption. While the idea of eating horses is disturbing to most Americans, HCI President Frank Bowman of Pleasant Plains believes that horse slaughter is a necessary management option for the country's unwanted, unsafe and unsound horses.

"This is not a feel good issue. Nobody wants to slaughter horses," Bowman says. "But I'd rather see a horse go to slaughter than starve in someone's backyard."

Sheryl King heads the equine science program at Southern Illinois University. She's an animal scientist dedicated to teaching and promoting the humane care of horses. Like Bowman, she defends the need to keep horse slaughter as an option for horse owners. A ban would lead to an increase in abuse and neglect cases which often originate from an owner's lack of financial resources, she says.