FAQs

What is a PMU Mare?
For decades, Premarin was the most popular drug in the United States, with an estimated 22 million women taking the drug to treat menopausal symptoms in 2002. Because Premarin is made with estrogens extracted from pregnant mares' urine (PMU), thousands of mares are used to produce this bitter pill, contributing to the unnecessary overbreeding of horses.

From October to March, the pregnant mares live in the "pee barns," forced to stand in stalls with urine collection devices strapped to them. The stalls are deliberately narrow to prevent pregnant mares from turning around and detaching the collection cups. In April, the mares are let out to pasture to have their foals and re-bred. A few fillies are kept as replacements and the rest of the foals, sometimes as young as two months, are rounded up and sold to meat buyers.

The manufacturers of PMU drugs would like us to believe that every single foal born as a result of these pregnancies is sold to be used for companionship, recreation, ranching, shows and competitions - what they call "productive markets." The fillies sometimes grow up to replace their worn-out mothers, too. But the horse market is oversaturated as it is, and there just aren't enough homes for another estimated 5,000 foals born from this industry each year. As a result, PMU foals may be at risk for slaughter, their meat shipped to Europe and Japan for human consumption.

Passion Horse/PMU FAQ'S
Or, what we do, and why we do it

What is Passion Horse Ranch?
Passion Horse Ranch is the brainchild and passion of Debra Naismith and her husband Jeff. Debra rescued her first PMU baby, Bailey, 6 years ago and found her calling. Passion Horse Ranch was founded to help the helpless; all the babies born to the Premarin drug industry. Passion Horse Ranch fundraises all year to raise money and awareness to help save some of the babies from the horrific fate of slaughter for human consumption. Deb has saved over 100 babies since she started rescuing 5 years ago.

What's a PMU baby?
There is a drug company that manufacturers a drug called Premarin. It is prescribed to post-menopausal women to help with hormone levels. It is made from the urine of pregnant mares. There are a lot of other hormone replacement drugs and options available, but Premarin is the most widely prescribed. In order to harvest the urine, predominantly draft and draft cross mares, are impregnated every spring and then spend their entire pregnancy hooked up to a collection device in a narrow stall that does not allow them to turn or lay down. Drafts and draft crosses are used because of a higher urine output. The following spring, the foals are born, the mares are impregnated again, the babies are weaned (sometimes at as young as 2 months), sent to feed lots, and the entire process starts over again. The babies that are born every year by the thousands and sent to slaughter are why Passion Horse Ranch was born.

Why are PMU babies so expensive?
For the most part, PMU collection facilities or "pee farms" are located in Canada. There are very few in the US since there are no longer horse slaughter facilities stateside, and transporting the foals to either Canadian or Mexican slaughterhouses is cost-prohibitive. So we have to go to Canada, primarily Manitoba, to buy the babies from the ranchers for more than the feedlot is willing to pay. Then we have to feed them til we can arrange a hauler to bring them to Texas. There are vet checks, border crossing fees, Coggins paperwork, the hauler's fees and a lot of other little expenses that pops up from the time we buy the horses in September til they are sent to us in late October. Whatever we adopt them out for, is almost exactly what we put into them to get them here. Sometimes the ranchers charge more for certain crosses or purebreds. For instance, Clydesdale crosses are more in demand, so the rancher wants more money for them, as well as full Percheron or Belgian foals. Sure you can go to the sale barn and find a foal for a lot less, but these babies are born and destined to a dreadful fate if we don't step in to save them. Adopting a PMU baby is a decision of the heart, not the wallet.

Why on Earth do I want one of those PMU babies? They're huge!!
Exactly!! They're huge!! That's why we love them!! Draft and draft cross horses make the best horses ever, in our humble opinion. Drafts are considered cold-blooded, meaning they have a much quieter and less reactive personality that a QH or TB, for instance. They are safe, sane, smart, quiet, willing, friendly, not spooky, and they are thinkers. Draft crosses have the best of both worlds. They have the draft mind and attitude combined with the agility and abilities of the QH or TB they are crossed with. They are truly "sporthorses." They are versatile as well. Draft cross horses can now be seen in almost every discipline out there, from dressage to trail, and from barrel racing to hunter jumper…they can do it all well, and with style! They also make the best trail horses (except watch out for low branches!).

Ok, you convinced me. How can I help?
There are a number of ways anyone can help, and not all of them involve adopting a baby horse! First and foremost, educate yourself on the facts about Premarin and the PMU industry, and then get out there and talk to women who are taking Premarin, educate them, and get them to ask their doctors to prescribe something else. The fewer women who take the drug, the less demand there is for the urine, and the less babies are born each year. It's really that simple…
Second, either come and volunteer at the ranch, volunteer to help at events that are held periodically throughout the year, or you can help us by coming up with new and interesting ways to raise money to save more babies each year. Get involved!
Third, make a donation to the ranch. Horses cost a lot to feed every week. We typically have anywhere from 6-15 rescue horses on the property at any time in various stages of health. Not all are PMU's. No horse that comes onto the property as a rescue or donation leaves unless it is to a perfectly matched forever home. It can get expensive, but it is worth it every time we adopt a horse to a family and then hear about how well he or she is doing. You can pick one of the horses that live here on the ranch and make a donation to that specific horse via Paypal, or you can make weekly, monthly, or bi-monthly donations. Whatever you are comfortable giving will be well received, greatly appreciated, and utilized as fully as possible.
Ultimately though, the real goal of saving the foals is to find them a good forever home. Consider adopting one yourself. It's the challenge of a lifetime; taking a scared, newly weaned foal that's never had a human hand on him, home, and training it from the ground up. It's a daunting prospect, but the rewards are incredible. There are several PMU rescued horses at the ranch, which belong to the ranch. They are truly gentle giants. They were all hand-raised, with lots of love, and they are all very impressive, to say the least. They are all, also used in the lesson program that Passion Horse Ranch runs. And talk about being noticed out on trail?! Everywhere those horses go; they are the center of attention.

So there it is… Why Passion Horse was founded and what Passion Horse does. If you still have questions about Premarin, PMU babies, lessons, adoptions, or volunteering, please feel free to contact us.