Technology is moving quickly to help cattlemen reduce the use of traditional management practices that cause needless pain. From individual identification to castration, Bernie Rollin, Colorado State University animal science professor, gives an overview of how cattlemen can continue improving their daily practices.
Source: Drovers CattleNetwork, March 8, 2017.
If asked to justify the infliction of a third-degree burn morally, cowboys will cite the trade-off involved in living extensively in exchange for a short-term burn pain. However, in addition to the cost of the animal in terms of pain, there is an actual monetary cost to the industry. Branding has been estimated to cost the Canadian beef industry $3.57 per head of $9.5 million per year due to hide damage (Schwartzkopf-Genswein, 2000).
INSIGHTS: Change is hard. Rollin offers documented reasoning to avoid inflicting pain in livestock and to use anesthesia and analgesics. In addition to what he presents here, Colorado State’s Temple Grandin, renowned animal science professor, has noted that lost performance due to pain can never be recovered. As animal health pros, it is up to us to lead the industry to think about ways to manage livestock better than tradition calls for.