55 Years And Counting From The Tractor Seat By bill whitman Both livestock producers and equine owners are under attack from animal rights organizations. It has never ceased to amaze me how a group of people who have no earthly understanding of what it takes to raise animals can tell those tasked with raising livestock for food or recreation how the animals should be treated. If you look at associated animal rights groups, you’ll see that we’re supposed to be vegetarians and these animals have the same rights as human beings. I have no idea how they think we can feed ourselves without raising livestock. And for heaven’s sake don’t talk to me about synthetic or manmade meat. We have no idea what the long-term consequences to our body’s will be, but if history is an indicator… there will be consequences. Add to that the pure volume of food needed to be produced to feed the world is constantly on the increase. I can recall several years ago when a massive effort of animal rights groups managed to put an end to horse slaughter in the United States. If one really cares about the horses, they will realize that without horse slaughter, the grade market was done away with and without a place to take the unwanted and neglected horses, there were literally tens of thousands of horses with no place to go. I loved one of their suggestions to this “unintended consequence and effect on the unwanted and neglected horse population,” which was to hand these horses over to the BLM with the Wild Horse and Burro horses. They want to take domesticated horses and turn them loose in the wild and expect them to survive? Fortunately, the BLM managed to dissuade Congress from this proposal. Funny story, I was talking to one of the Wild Horse and Burro administrators and he said it was the first time he ever opposed receiving more money from Congress for his program in over 30 years of service. Indiana has experienced a growth in the equine industry during the last 15 years. Without a doubt, the dollars exchanged in the thoroughbred and quarter horse racing profession has added significant dollars. Purdue recently released a study that said the equine industry currently represents about $2 billion annually in Indiana alone. There is a bridge to be built between the traditional livestock producer and the racing community. Both are targeted. Yes, every year we see animals that are unwanted and neglected, but by and large, the axiom, you can’t starve a profit out of anything, holds true. The better we take care of our animals the more they retain their value. That’s true with almost everything in our lives. There are other ways that bridges can be built between agriculture and the equine industry. Trail riding has continued to grow throughout the Midwest. We all have heard of or investigated recreation activities providing additional revenue to our farms. Personally, I think I would enjoy developing a corn maze. Working cow horse shows and roping are ever popular, and the warm blood arena has never been stronger. A significant amount of the money equine-related businesses bring into the state is spent on feed. We see the local grain markets positively affected by the demand for horse feed. Associated job opportunities, such as farriers, stall help, trainers are in demand. It took us months to find a qualified farrier, Ethan McQueen, to take care of my wife’s horses. I recently read that the easiest way to start farming is by making hay. These are examples of ag-related work being created by the equine industry in the Midwest. By embracing the equine folk, we have the connection to share agriculture’s message to the urban culture. We have additional resources to protect our livelihoods from those who threaten our way of life. IndianaAg@bluemarble.net |
