Texas livestock owners face possibility of animal cruelty laws

Animal cruelty and abuse has been a topic of several blog posts from the Texas Farm Bureau in recent months. This important issue for Texas livestock is a touchy one for many Texas farmers and ranchers. While it is important for animal cruelty to offenders to be punished, enacting broad reform and animal cruelty laws across the livestock industry in Texas could have negative consequences. It is often the actions of a few that cause harm for the rest of the industry, something the animal agriculture industry in Texas may be facing soon if things do not improve.

Publications Director for the Texas Farm Bureau, Mike Barnett recently wrote about this topic on the Texas Agriculture Talks blog:

"As pointed out in recent blogs—Who defines humane treatment of animals? and The ethics of livestock production. Will you do what’s right?—a few bad actors in the Texas livestock industry are setting a scenario where all producers will suffer. And that’s unfortunate.

"Not that any of us are for animal mistreatment. The sad fact is that it’s out there. It’s highly visible. And extreme cases tend to end up on television and newspapers which adds fuel to the forces who seek changes that could profoundly affect the way you do business…and not for the better.

"Those two blogs have generated a lot of comments, many phone calls and a ton of emails. Some of the musings observe that all animal production in this country is cruel and I take that for what it is—the beliefs of people whose motives will never jive with my assertion that we must produce an abundance of safe and wholesome food."

About Texas Farm Bureau:
The Texas Farm Bureau is committed to improving the lives of America’s farmers through advocacy, education and awareness. It is our goal to tell not only members, but the general public, about TFB's mission and commitment to providing a voice for farmers, ranchers, rural citizens and everyone interested in preserving and protecting this way of life. To read the full blog post by Mike Barnett on the need for reformed Texas animal cruelty laws for livestock, visit the Texas Agriculture Talks blog at http://www.txfb.org/TxAgTalks/. Learn more about the Texas Farm Bureau on the Web:

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