Court: No Horse Slaughtering in Texas

[Faster horses]

We haven't had a cancer eyed cow for years. But when we did,
we treated them ( had the cancer cut off or the eye removed).
We got so we could see the cancer when it was the size of a match
head. In W. Montana we had 25% of our cows get cancer eye
each year. I don't believe cattle catch it from one another, I believe
it to be GENETIC. We had a line of cattle that was susceptible to
cancer eye. Not to make anyone upset, but that is why we changed
to Black Angus cattle.

As for selling them, they sold through the sale ring as "SUSPECT".
They were tested and if that cancer was anyplace else besides the
eye, the cow went into the tank and you got nothing for her. If she
was clean, you got market price. Therefore, not many people let
a cancer eyed cow get bad enough to shoot.

[Denny]

You could haul a load of broken leg cancer eyed cows to Long Prairie packing Co. if they could walk off the truck and tested disease free they will pay you for her.

[RoperAB]

<<We haven't had a cancer eyed cow for years. But when we did,
we treated them ( had the cancer cut off or the eye removed).>>

The thought is around here, if you shoot the scrubs you are not allowing them to pass on their genetics anymore than possible.


<<We got so we could see the cancer when it was the size of a match
head. >>

Nobody has cows that I know of around here that are going to allow you to get that close to them except maybe once a year when you ivomanac them.
Most of he time when you call a vet out around here foer anything the cow ends up dieing anyways and your just going to end up with an expensive vet bill.

<<In W. Montana we had 25% of our cows get cancer eye
each year. I don't believe cattle catch it from one another, I believe
it to be GENETIC. >>

Vets will agree with you, Cattlemen <that I know>that have been in the industry all of their lives wont. Its like that old discussion we had a while back about agricultural college. A good friend of mine spent two years up at Olds over 30 years ago. According to him for the first few years he sounded a lot like everybody on Ranch Talk<weighing calves, feed analist, %s , weight gains and stuff, then he just went back to doing everything like his father was doing and his father before him.
.
<<We had a line of cattle that was susceptible to
cancer eye. Not to make anyone upset, but that is why we changed
to Black Angus cattle.>>

I agree with you about black angus or black baldies. They are good mothers, they fight off predators, they have the pigment in their teats and dont get sun burnt,they seem to have better feet under them, they are very low maintance.
Its always a Hereford for the most part that gets cancer or needs some kind of doctoring. I have only seen herefords calve and then forget about the calf.

<<As for selling them, they sold through the sale ring as "SUSPECT".>>

The buyers dont want SUSPECT cows up here. If someone was to try to pass off a suspect cow up here that buyer would tip off the other buyers and the seller would end up being black listed. Nobody that I personally know or when I worked at the auction mart I never seen any sick or injured cattle going through the sales ring. Even if a cow has "hardware" people around here shoot them.
At the auction mart that I used to work at<before I worked there> One local guy tried to sell a sick cow. The owner of the auction mart shot the animal when the guy unloaded it. They drug the animal brand side up to the front of the auction mart where everybody who came to the auction mart includeing the buyers could see it. As far as I know that was the last time anybody tried to sell a sick animal at that auction mart.
Thats why people were so angry at that American who had Canadas first case of BSE. He tried to sell the cow at an auction mart. He should have known better than to even try to sell a sick cow. Anyway I guess things are much different in other countries?

<<They were tested and if that cancer was anyplace else besides the
eye, the cow went into the tank and you got nothing for her. If she
was clean, you got market price.>>

How would you test a cow for cancer? Old cows are just not worth bothering with up here. If SPCA or some other animal wacko group starts taking pictures of injured or sick cows being sold at market couldnt this hurt the industry?

<<Therefore, not many people let
a cancer eyed cow get bad enough to shoot.>>

You see thats what old timers tell me, its the ones who dont cull right away who seem to have the most trouble in the long run with cancer eye.

[peg4x4]

I've never eaten cat,dog,rat or horse,never been hungry enough-yet--I hope and pray it'll never come to that...But--honestly,the way things are going,-----well,I hope not---


As bad as I hate to say it,the slaughter plants are needed,BUT any animal headed for slaughter should be treated with care..Right size transport,feed,water,such...

[Rafter G]

The whole movie cowboy (icon) not eatin' his horse scenario as justification for not slaughterin' horses is just plain usin' folks sympathy and emotion for politics. Politics makes money for those in it. Movie stars drive away in cars they use throughout the whole movie and we still have junkyards. Scrap metal prices provide baselines for used autos, tractors. Never eaten horse myself, that I know of. I don't think it would be bad. They smell better than cows on the outside. Why is it that we eat cows and ride horses? I just don't think mounted on a cow that I could catch up to and rope a horse. Horses out cut cattle in the lot. I think too that horses got a lot more savvy. Had it been the other way around we'd be lookin' through a set of horns instead of sightin' down your pony's ears. I had to go trim and shoe some horses for a client. 4 were regular sized horses of various breeds. 5 were minis. Those minis now were just plain rotten. Small enough that you could hold'em easy enough but I sure 'nuff wanted to french fry those little rascals.Prolly fit in a turkey frier too.