I just finished reading the August 29, 2011 edition of Ozarks Farm & Neighbor and in particular “Life is Simple” by Jerry Crownover. What were you thinking when you published this? If it was meant to be humorous, it failed on every level.
Crownover claims to be a farmer but he is obtuse and an embarrassment to the livestock industry. For starters, he should be monitoring cattle health on an ongoing basis, not just at breeding time. The bull was crippled for some time and should’ve been marketed at the onset if the condition was “irreversible.” Furthermore, shooting cattle with a shotgun or any gun for that matter is not only inhumane, but just plain stupid. Running them for hours using an ATV is equally inexcusable. It gives PETA and every other animal rights group the evidence and ammunition it needs to condemn the industry. He’ll be lucky if he’s not arrested for animal abuse.
Moving on to other issues – most responsible cattlemen would simply fix the fence. Evidently he hasn’t heard about the rampant Bovine Trichamoniasis outbreaks and he has potentially exposed two herds to the disease. Just by following the Old Farmer’s advice – keep your fences horse high, pig tight and bull strong, the problem is avoided.
And finally, when this bull is killed and processed into burger, meat loaf, bologna or even into the school lunch program, there is the huge risk of metal contamination from the shot. It can damage equipment, contaminate and cause the loss of thousands of pounds of meat and even end up in the food stream. His stupidity can result in a Class I recall.
I work in the beef industry as a certified animal welfare specialist and we raise cattle and sheep. I don’t appreciate this type of publicity. It’s people like Crownover that gives the beef industry a bad name. This story is not funny – it should have never been written, much less printed. By printing it, you are condoning this reprehensible behavior. Perhaps you should look for a contributor that raises livestock in a responsible and humane manner.
Sincerely,
Twila D. Leierer
Branch, AR
