The Unwanted Horse Coalition attempts to reduce the number of unwanted horses and to improve their welfare through education and the efforts of organizations committed to the health, safety, and responsible care and disposition of these horses. The Coalition represents a broad alliance of equine organizations that have joined together under the American Horse Council to educate the horse industry about the unwanted horse issue.
They did a survey in 2007 (results in the graph above) which dramatically reported that 81% of the people surveyed said that they could no longer afford the horse. And that was BEFORE the current financial collapse and 10% unemployment. The U.S. economic disaster of the past two years has had a huge impact on animals that we as a society must address. They estimate that at least 170,000 horses are returned or abandoned each year.
You can get more information at their website by clicking HERE.
And the very interesting survey results can be found HERE.