Responsible Animal Care

Mahatma Gandi once said “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated”. Although we still see way too many examples of animal abuse in this country, I do see some very positive trends happening.

One group that is working hard to set up reasonable, workable rules is AFAC - Alberta Farm Animal Care. Their tagline is “The livestock industry working together for responsible animal care”.

They provide a Livestock Care ALERT Line staffed with not only an on-call veterinarian but their Resource Team includes farmers and other rural community members. They work offer solutions to improve animal care and strive to assist before animals are in distress. You can call them yourself if you are having trouble caring for your livestock.

I recently heard a respected horsewoman comment that many horses are abused not by being underfed but by being overfed. Overfeeding can cause permanent problems that make a horse unsound. It can cause insulin resistance just like in humans. It stresses their joints and feet. Sometimes owners simply don’t know what an animals real requirements are.

But with so much more awareness and organizations like AFAC trying to get the necessary information out to animal owners, may our nation become even greater and may we make great strides in moral progress. At least may we not hear such sad stories as we have heard this winter. Which reminds me have you checked out the Rescue 100 site lately to see if you can help?

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