Day 233 - 26 03 96 - Page 13
DAY 233
HOWARD LYMAN, Examined:
1 of the business. I would say it is very normal.
2
3 MS. STEEL: Right, OK.
4
5 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Does anything to which you have referred so
6 far refer apply to cattle which are out on the range or --
7 however you call it -- grazing?
8 A. Very little. The animals in their natural environment,
9 the amount of herbicides, pesticides, hormones and
10 medication given to them are minuscule. The animals are
11 able to protect themselves with the natural terrain
12 features. I would say that a normal -- that 95 per cent of
13 what we have talked about here does not affect the range
14 animals.
15
16 MS. STEEL: That just reminds me of a point I wanted to ask
17 about. When you are talking about dehorning, does that
18 happen to range animals, or is that just feedlot cattle?
19 A. The majority of animals that are dehorned are the ones
20 that go into feedlots. When they were out on the range,
21 the horns are not a significant factor to other animals,
22 because they can stay away from the ones that are
23 aggressive. When you put them in a feedlot, aggressive
24 animals with horns become a real danger to other animals;
25 you must cut their horns off. So it is not something that
26 has to be done out on the range. Usually, it is not done.
27 It is almost always done in the feedlot.
28
29 Q. So, it is a consequence of being kept in confined -----
30 A. The more confined the animal is, the more aggressive
31 they are and the more problems you have with fighting.
32
33 Q. "Transportation and slaughter used in the present system are
34 far from humane and safe. The cost of moving animals is
35 the controlling factor. If the animal is deemed fit for
36 slaughter or sale, that will be the determining factor in
37 how crowded the transport will be."
38
39 Can you just give us an idea of how far animals are
40 transported in the States?
41 A. The longest that I have ever personally seen is animals
42 transported from Florida to California without stopping.
43 I have been there when they unloaded it. The animals were
44 in a terrible state of health. They are dragged off the
45 truck and left in piles.
46
47 In Montana, having no slaughter facilities within the
48 state, it takes between 24 and 30 hours to load up your
49 animals to get them to a slaughter facility. The amount of
50 animals that you put into the truck was based on the cost
51 of how far they were going, and the cost of the truck; so
52 you put as many as possible that were in there.
53
54 I have seen cattle in trucks during storm conditions where
55 the animals absolutely froze through the side of the
56 truck. The transportation in the United States, moving
57 animals is not about the comfort of the animal. It has to
58 do with the cost of getting them there. They recommend as
59 many as possible in the truck for the distances they are,
60 and it is not unusual to see them move 24 to 30 hours
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