The notorious Bouvry Exports horse slaughterhouse in Fort Macleod, Alberta, has permanently closed! After years of illegal abuse, the Canadian Horse Defence Coalition (CHDC) has confirmed the slaughterhouse has finally ceased operations. This marks the end of a dark era for horses in Canada.
A Legacy of Illegal Cruelty & Suffering
For years, Bouvry Exports has been repeatedly exposed for horrific abuse of horses. In 2010, disturbing hidden-camera footage appeared to show conscious horses being hoisted upside down and having their throats cut—a violation of slaughter laws.
In 2022, the CFIA suspended Bouvry’s slaughter licence over food safety concerns.
More recently, in 2023, Animal Justice filed a legal complaint after an investigation by Animals’ Angels and the Animal Welfare Foundation revealed horse carcasses strewn across the property and many horses suffering from severe illnesses and injuries. Several horses also had extremely overgrown hooves and painful hoof conditions such as laminitis.
In 2025, Bouvry was convicted and fined after horses were left to suffer at its slaughterhouse. Government records obtained by the CHDC show heartbreaking cruelty to five young horses who arrived at Bouvry in “awful condition” in 2021. The horses, aged only one to two years, were referred to as “cripples” and “canners”. They showed varying degrees of lameness and were clearly in pain.
Bouvry staff failed to help these compromised animals, leaving them to suffer overnight. In the morning, CFIA agents found one of the horses trapped under a fence after what could have been hours of struggling. Both that horse and another horse who collapsed were shot—the others were tragically sent to slaughter.
Insufficient Penalties for Severe Abuse
The legal consequences for Bouvry Exports have been a mere “slap on the wrist”. In 2023, the CFIA laid 12 charges against the company, with many focused on animal suffering.
However, Bouvry Exports reached a plea deal, pleading guilty to only a single paperwork-related offense. As a result, the court fined the company a mere $17,000. This small fine was a far cry from the $250,000 maximum available for such an offense.
Help End Live Horse Exports
The closure of this facility leaves one remaining horse slaughterhouse in Canada—Viande Richelieu (a division of Bouvry Exports) in Quebec.
While the closure of Bouvry’s abusive Alberta slaughterhouse is to be celebrated, there are still thousands of horses suffering in the live horse export trade every year. Terrified horses are shipped from Canada to Japan in cramped wooden crates, denied food, water, and rest for the entire journey. Once they arrive, they are fattened and slaughtered for a delicacy known as basashi.
The Liberal government promised to ban this cruel practice back in 2021—but over 11,000 horses have suffered and died in this industry since this commitment was made. A ban on this practice can easily be achieved by simply amending existing regulations, and we will keep fighting to stop this cruelty once and for all! Please join us in speaking up for horses today.
