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2008 Policy Book
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Livestock production and the way farm animals are raised has changed significantly in the last 20 years. No one has greater concern for the care and welfare of farm animals than the farmers who raise them.
The concept of animal welfare/animal rights has become one of the most challenging issues facing the livestock industry. The advancement of organizations such as the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), Animal Liberation Front (ALF), and Farm Sanctuary have led to additional restrictions being placed upon the livestock industry.
Recent ballot initiatives to eliminate the use of gestation stalls in Florida and Arizona have the livestock industry concerned about future actions. Veal calf production, the practice of castration, dehorning, cage utilization and livestock confinement have all been the target of activist groups.
We recommend that Michigan Farm Bureau provide leadership in the development and implementation of a consortium of all participants in the food production chain, including consumers. Actions of the consortium should include, but not be limited to:
- Legislative solutions
- Member and consumer education
- Producer education
- Full implementation of the Animal Care GAAMPs
We urge Farm Bureau members to respond knowledgeably to misleading information on animal care. We urge members to understand the difference between organizations that support sound science and animal care versus those that are promoting animal rights and attempting to eliminate or greatly restrict livestock production in the United States. Members should continue to tell the success story of modern animal agriculture wherever the opportunity is found. MFB should coordinate action on animal care issues with animal industry and related groups.
We urge our land grant colleges and USDA to continue to research and develop programs which will realistically and economically enable farmers to continue to enhance the care and management of livestock and poultry.
A number of laws now exist for safeguarding the proper care of animals and, if properly enforced, will provide the necessary protection animals need.
Livestock owners have been increasingly subject to extreme scrutiny. People not familiar with standard animal care do not have the right, because they think the animal is being abused, to have another person's livestock confiscated from the owner's property without a judicial review and determination prior to seizure of animals.
We support a sensible approach to the substantiation of animal abuse accusations including:
- Requiring reported abuse cases to follow uniform administrative procedures to confirm abuse before any legal action is taken.
- Contacting the local law enforcement agency or animal control authority.
- Local law enforcement agencies obtaining the opinion of two unbiased local livestock professionals.
- All costs associated with the resulting investigation be paid for by the accuser if no abuse is found.
- Cruelty cases of farm livestock be handled through the Michigan Department of Agriculture (MDA).
- Mandatory education for convicted cruelty offenders to help them understand proper animal care including, but not limited to, the GAAMPs for the Care of Farm Animals developed under the Right to Farm Act.
We are opposed to the concept of animal "rights" and oppose the expenditure of public funds to promote the concept of animal rights. We further oppose regulatory and legislative actions that would restrict the farmer's ability to produce at an economically feasible level.
In the event that animal care guidelines are required by food industry officials in order to market products, we urge the involvement of livestock industry experts in the development of those guidelines to ensure that sound animal science protocols are used.
Animal research is necessary to ensure more effective human and veterinary medical practices. Therefore, we oppose legislation which prohibits or unduly restricts the use of pound animals in research. If this practice were to be forbidden, research into prevention and treatment of many diseases, including cancer, would be greatly hindered. We are concerned about the potential elimination of "real" animals in the teaching and training process at our educational institutions and oppose any attempts to eliminate them.
We support legislation that makes it a felony to destroy or release animals lawfully confined for science, research and production, and provide for strong punishment and required restitution for losses or damages.
We support the MDA taking the lead role in the development of Michigan Animal Health Emergency Management guidelines.
We support updating laws and regulations to coincide with current industry standards and practices as they relate to animal care and management including, but not limited to, horse racing laws, horse training and showing, and livestock exhibitions.
The utilization of dogs on farm operations is a normal part of an agricultural enterprise. We support amendments to the Dog Law to more clearly define a "farm dog." We encourage county Farm Bureaus to work with local animal control offices in an attempt to educate them about current agricultural production practices and standards. We urge MFB to work to change operating procedures that govern all county animal control departments to mirror the same procedures as state law enforcement, which requires establishment of probable cause and obtaining either a search warrant or consent of the owner before entering the property.
