Bea directed me to an interview with Dr. Elizabeth Parker , the "chair man " (my emphasis) of the Animal Agriculture Alliance at CattleNetwork, which apparently is "The Source for Cattle News." MORE

Here is an interesting article about cattle rustling. Known for a distinctive hump at the base of the neck, Brahman cattle are rare here and would be easily spotted at a local auction, leading investigators to think the rustlers already had a buyer — or a butcher — lined up. Crashing through a gate in the dead of night, thieves using trucks and trailers recently robbed a farmer here of 53 Brahman crossbreed cows valued at some $50,000. MORE

By comparison, Bangor University used 1,464 mice and 664 fish, Aberystwyth used 289 cattle, 153 mice and 102 sheep and Swansea used 1,208 fish. Here's an article about an increase in animal experiments at Cardiff University in Wales. According to a Wales on Sunday investigation, the number of animals used at Cardiff has risen by 13 percent since 2006. MORE

From the perspective of the land ethic a herd of cattle, sheep, or pigs is as much or more a ruinous blight on the landscape as a fleet of four-wheel drive off-road vehicles. One of the more distressing aspects of the animal liberation movement is the failure of almost all its exponents to draw a sharp distinction between the very different plights (and rights) of wild and domestic animals. But this distinction lies at the very center of the land ethic. MORE

It would require farms or ranches with more than 25 dairy cows, 50 beef cattle or 200 hogs to pay an annual fee of about $175 for each dairy cow, $87.50 per head of beef cattle and $20 for each hog. I don't know how seriously to take this, or if it's just the ag industry pulling an NRA stunt (ie. knee-jerk reaction to anything and everything.) There was} a proposal Thursday, Dec. 4, 2008 by the Environmental Protection Agency to charge a fee for air-polluting cows and hogs. MORE

Cesar’s Australian adventure is not over yet — he meets Australian red cattle dog Astro, who barks incessantly at the oddest activities, including making the bed, riding a bike or carrying an object out of the house. Two great shows on the National Geographic channel tonight! MORE

Suppose someone enjoys drinking the blood of cattle and hogs. For an explanation of this feature, click on “Moral Vegetarianism” at the bottom of this post. What Is an Animal Part? The last example suggests the difficulty of making a clear distinction between an animal part and an animal product. If a genetically engineered animal’s legs periodically fell off, would not its legs be more like a product of an animal (analogous to eggs) than a part of the animal? MORE

Tags: meat USDA cattle MORE

If beef cattle who could not feel pain were developed, then it would be permissible to eat them. KBJ: Martin seems to think that people who abstain from meat on the ground that meat-eating causes pain would not eat “beef cattle” even if they could not feel pain. Suppose that by genetic engineering we could develop beef cattle that were born unconscious and remained unconscious all of their lives (they would be fed and bred artificially). MORE

Carnivores killed less than 1% of cattle (0.18%) and approximately 3% of sheep produced in the U.S.; • Out of Step with American Values - Americans value wildlife and abhor animal cruelty. Environmental groups have called on Obama to get rid of the USDA's Dept. of Wildlife Services , which is involved in mainly predator control programs (coyotes are a big target). Ranchers oppose the move. MORE

It's even got Chuck Jolley from the Cattle Network riled up. Overlooked this one. Another nasty farm animal abuse story. Whatever you think about PETA, I admire them for exposing this crap. Bottom line: If you’re running a business where you allow the kinds of shortcuts that let animal abuse happen, please sell it and leave the industry now. Find another line of work. If you’re caught by PETA or HSUS, please do not plead ignorance and vow to clean it up. It will be too late. MORE

Cattle might be overproduced because of government subsidies and new markets found for meat. For an explanation of this feature, click on “Moral Vegetarianism” at the bottom of this post. The Argument from Actual Practice Still, it may be objected that this is to overlook actual practice. In fact, animals used for food do suffer a great deal. Not only are they killed in cruel ways, but it is well documented that they are raised in ways that cause them great discomfort and agony. MORE

They are often crammed into trucks built for cattle and pigs and subjected to starvation, exposure and abuse. To the Editor: As sponsors of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act , we take issue with Christa Weil’s views on the horsemeat industry ( Op-Ed , March 5). The horse slaughter industry in the United States has nothing to do with feeding hungry people and everything to do with animal cruelty. MORE

Just ask former cattle rancher Howard Lyman , who is now a vegan and animal rights activist. I'm not one of those people who thinks family is composed of only humans or humans who are biologically related. That's one of the reasons adopting wasn't a stretch for me at all mentally. MORE

For such a vegetarian, a borderline case would be the consumption of animal products not, in the ordinary course of nature, produced by the animal; for instance the drinking of cattle blood as practised by the Masai. There are two approaches a vegetarian might take in arguing that rearing and killing animals for food is morally offensive. He might argue that eating animals is morally bad because of the pain inflicted on animals in rearing and killing them to be eaten. MORE

Unlike domestic animals, there are minimal organizations or lobbyists to defend these animals, therefore leaving public opinion to be shaped only by the insincere comments of the cattle industry. Tags: animal cruelty proposition 2 cattle farm animal welfare agribusiness This is really interesting. How many people know this about the Animal Welfare Act? I certainly didn't. No wonder there is so much "farm" animal abuse out there. MORE

The interests in nourishment and in gustatory pleasure lead man to kill and eat cattle, fish, and fowl. This cuts down on the long-range satisfactions of the cattle, the fish, and the fowl. Love demands, as every interest demands, that it should dominate life completely. MORE

The University of Puerto Rico, an "1862" LGU founded in 1900, operates a slaughter facility killing small ruminants -- typically goats and sheep, cattle being large ruminants. Responsible Policies for Animals Members & Friends! Today, March 30th, at 3:00 East Coast time, Susan Soltero of Puerto Rico will interview me live on the air at WALO Radio about Responsible Policies for Animals' 10,000 Years Is Enough campaign to get our universities out of the meat industry! MORE

the nation's largest restaurant user of beef, also wants the FDA to prohibit the feeding of so-called poultry litter to cattle. Well, you learn something new every day. A coalition of food and consumer groups that includes Consumers Union and the Center for Science in the Public Interest has asked the Food and Drug Administration to ban the practice. McDonald's Corp., MORE

It may be true that in some trials scientists have found ways to reduce methane emissions from cattle, but until these methods are in widespread use, they are simply not relevant to the consumer choices we face. To the Editor: Nicolette Hahn Niman (“ The Carnivore’s Dilemma ,” Op-Ed, Oct. 31) is simply wrong in suggesting that grass-fed beef produces less methane than feed-lot meat. It is the other way around, with grass-fed animals producing up to three times more methane. MORE

June 29, 2007 The writers are cattle ranchers. To the Editor: Re “ Don’t Cry Over rBST Milk ,” by Henry I. Miller (Op-Ed, June 29): Monsanto’s genetically engineered hormone has not held up to scrutiny. When recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH; also known as rBST) is used, it elevates levels of insulin-like growth factor 1 in milk, which has been linked to increased risk of breast, prostate and other cancers. MORE

This physical evidence of properly handled cattle would go a long way toward ensuring healthier meat while lifting the shared burden that comes with consigning millions of animals yearly to a terrifyingly cruel death. To the Editor: Your Feb. 21 editorial “ The Biggest Beef Recall Ever ” made some excellent points. MORE

The court upheld regulations permitting pig and calf confinement, the transport of ill and injured cattle, and force molting of birds. Thanks to Farmed Animal Net for this information from August 8. In a unanimous decision, New Jersey’s Supreme Court rejected a broad challenge by animal protection advocates to the state’s rules on the care of farmed animals) but struck down regulations that regard husbandry practices as being “humane” merely because they are routine. MORE

The disease can attack domestic pets, such as dogs and cats, as well as livestock, such as horses, chickens, and cattle. We would like to thank Leslie Douglas for this great guest post! A lot of very important information for pet owners, especially as we go into the summer season. MORE

The action of exploiting or turning to account; productive working or profitable management (of mines, cattle, etc.). Ian asked about the history of exploit and exploitation according to the Oxford English Dictionary a couple of days ago. I have another post in the works for today as well, but for now, here they are: I won't get into exploit as a noun (e.g., 1755 SMOLLETT Quix. 1803) II. 24 The glory of having undertaken such an exploit no malice. MORE

This last implies of course an improvement in ethics, as opposed to morality, as I have defined it, unless we already understand 'Do as you would be done by' as applicable to whales, cattle, chickens, and so on, as it is to human beings. MORE

According to the HPMAJ column, "Loos told cattle producers the livestock industry must show the public that there are moral and ethical justifications for taking the life of an animal to feed a person. A column entitled "Ag Industry Threatened by Animal Rights" appeared in today's High Plains/Midwest Ag Journal [ HPMAJ ]. MORE

The sale of cattle and calves was a $1.82-billion industry in California 2008 and fifth among the state’s top 20 commodities. Beef cattle are raised in nearly every California county. Nationally, California ranks behind Texas, Kansas and Nebraska in total cattle numbers. Potentially bad news for California Agriculture. Read the full story here at the LA Times. MORE

To the Editor: Re “ Greening the Herds: A New Diet to Cap Gas ” (news article, June 5): Your article about reducing methane emissions from dairy cows is welcome because of the attention it draws toward the substantial contribution that both beef and dairy cattle make to global warming. Given this potency, an 18 percent reduction in methane emissions from cattle isn’t going to be anywhere near enough to turn dairying or beef production into sustainable industries. MORE

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A total of 33,000 wild horses are degrading the environment, but around 3 million to 4 million cattle are not? To the Editor: Re “ Mustangs Stir a Debate on Thinning the Herd ” (front page, July 20): The Bureau of Land Management is charged with protecting wild horses and burros on the Western rangelands. Faced with budgetary constraints, however, it might put to death some of the 30,000 horses it is holding—a herd as big as the community of free horses still roaming the West. MORE

Finishing the cattle on grass is a far “greener” method. Of course, the meat is more expensive since it takes lots of real estate to freely graze a herd, and it’s tougher than typical supermarket fare (Americans are used to a style of marbling that’s caused by grain diets and flabby cattle, whereas grass-fed cows are trim from their daily ambles). To the Editor: Re “ From Hoof to Dinner Table, a New Bid to Cut Emissions ” (front page, Dec. MORE

This year, the European Commission will issue a research contract, worth up to €1 million for a study into alternatives to the castration of pigs and dehorning of cattle. They castrate piglets in Europe for sanitary purposes (to avoid taint in the meat), but the methods are not terribly humane. MORE

Yet the turkey she raises is a much smaller factor in advancing global warming than the cattle on her ranch because they produce meat much more efficiently. Birds need only a fraction of the food that cattle do to gain a pound of meat. Niman’s natural environment they’re even more environmentally beneficial than cattle because of their diet. To the Editor: Re “ The Carnivore’s Dilemma ,” by Nicolette Hahn Niman (Op-Ed, Oct. 31): Living “green” is not easy. MORE

Animal rights activists are behind the burning of cattle trucks at Harris Farms in western Fresno County early Sunday, according to a statement released by a clearinghouse for activists. The statement purports to describe how the fire, which heavily damaged 14 tractors and several cattle-hauling trailers, was set and says the attack was aimed at "the horrors of factory farming." MORE

Kilimanjaro in Kenya, lions are attacking Maasai cattle, as they have for hundreds of years. As promised, another sneak peak! Tonight’s program is called Lion Warriors and premieres Wednesday, December 8, at 9PM ET/PT. On the Great Plains below Mt. And the proud Maasai warriors have hunted them ruthlessly in return so that now only about 2,000 remain in the country. If their numbers drop any lower, their populations will not be sustainable. MORE

It is argued that beef cattle and hogs are protein factories in reserve. In order to produce one pound of beef, cattle eat approximately sixteen pounds of grain; and in order to produce six pounds of pork or ham, hogs eat approximately six pounds of grain. It is estimated that the amount of grain fed to cattle and hogs in the United States in 1971 was twice that of U.S. KBJ: Yes, beef cattle can be fed on waste materials, but they’re not (at least exclusively). MORE

18): As a microbiologist, I know that study after study has highlighted the human health threat from using antibiotics as feed additives for hogs, chickens and cattle, creating super-bugs—bacteria that no longer can be treated with antibiotics. To the Editor: Re “ Antibiotic Runoff ” (editorial, Sept. MORE

Besides depleting the ocean’s supply of fish for those animals normally feeding on them, the factory farming of cattle, pigs and chickens uses excessive water and pollutes our land. The number of chickens, turkeys, pigs, cattle and other animals raised and slaughtered in the United States has been growing steadily for decades. To the Editor: Re “ The Protein Pyramid ” (editorial, Nov. 10): Thank you for pointing out the unsustainability of the so-called protein pyramid. MORE

The mining company says she only wants the land to expand her cattle operations. A mining company is fighting the widow of Steve Irwin over the use of some leased land. She claims that mining it will damage plants and animals. Looks like a long and nasty fight ahead MORE

The same goes for pigs and cattle that are exploited and forced to live in substandard conditions. MORE

In this film, we see farmers interacting with the animals they will eventually transform into food (chickens, pigs and cattle). The film Partitions (running time: 14 min) by Audrey Kali gives an intimate glimpse of the ethical struggles that five small-scale meat farmers face when their animals are slaughtered. The farmers in the film confront very difficult questions posed by the filmmaker about why they think their approach to processing of meat is different than that of factory farming. MORE