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Simple Summary: Increasing attacks on animal agriculture have forced many people to question the use of animals for food. Grazing livestock are part of a sustainable agricultural future. Vast amounts of land all around the world can only be used for grazing. It is either too arid or the terrain is too rough for growing crops. Rotating cattle, sheep, or other livestock between different pastures can improve both soil health and plant biodiversity. This is a sustainable use of land that cannot be cropped. On cropland, the rotation of conventional crops, such as corn or soybeans, with livestock grazing on a forage crop can improve both soil health and reduce the need for artificial fertilizer. Successful grazing programs must be adapted to local conditions. When grazing is performed correctly, it will improve the land. Many people believe that animal agriculture should be phased out and replaced with vegetarian substitutes. The livestock industry has also been attacked because it uses vast amounts of land. People forget that grazing cattle or sheep can be raised on land that is either too arid or too rough for raising crops. At least 20% of the habitable land on Earth is not suitable for crops. Rotational grazing systems can be used to improve both soil health and vegetation diversity on arid land. Grazing livestock are also being successfully used to graze cover crops on prime farmland. Soil health is improved when grazing on a cover crop is rotated with conventional cash crops, such as corn or soybeans. It also reduces the need for buying fertilizer. Grazing animals, such as cattle, sheep, goats, or bison, should be used as part of a sustainable system that will improve the land, help sequester carbon, and reduce animal welfare issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has clearly shown that short-term stresses during the last few minutes before stunning can result in Pale Soft Exudative (PSE) pork in pigs or increased toughness in beef. Electric prods and other aversive handling methods during the last five minutes are associated with poorer meat quality. Handlers are more likely to use aversive methods if livestock constantly stop and are difficult to move into the stun box. Factors both inside and outside the slaughter plant contribute to handling problems. Some in-plant factors are lighting, shadows, seeing motion up ahead, or air movement. Non-slip flooring is also very important for low-stress handling. During the last ten years, there have been increasing problems with on-farm factors that may make animals more difficult to move at the abattoir. Cattle or pigs that are lame or stiff will be more difficult to move and handle. Some of the factors associated with lame cattle are either poor design or lack of adequate bedding in dairy cubicles (free stalls) and housing beef cattle for long periods on concrete floors. Poor leg conformation in both cattle and pigs may also be associated with animals that are reluctant to move. Indiscriminate breeding selection for meat production traits may be related to some of the leg conformation problems. Other on-farm factors that may contribute to handling problems at the abattoir are high doses of beta-agonists or cattle and pigs that have had little contact with people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the 1970's when I started my career, there were no women working in the feedlots with the cattle. Being a woman at this time was a much bigger obstacle than my awkward social skills due to autism. I created my own internships at Arizona feedlots and the Swift Tolleson plant. I handled cattle along with the feedlot processing crews. There was a nice man who ran a contract processing crew who taught me how to move cattle. The worst treatment I received came from cowboy foremen who were the cattle managers for the entire feedlot. The feedlot owners and the more senior bosses were usually helpful. I made myself highly knowledgeable in the specialized area of the design of cattle handling facilities. At this time there were few people in this field. I learned to sell my work by showing people my detailed drawings and photos of completed projects. Another skill I had was writing, and it really helped my career. After I completed a project, I wrote about it in both local and national livestock publications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Great strides have been made to improve animal welfare. Unfortunately, there are certain problems that continue to persist. The causes of these problems range from a lack of financial accountability for losses, failure to measure them, or repeating old mistakes. Some examples of persistent problems are bruises, failure to vaccinate cattle, and high percentages of lame livestock. Both good management practices and providing the right financial incentives will improve welfare. Poor production and handling practices continue to persist that are both detrimental to animal welfare and financially burdensome. These practices continue to persist for three reasons: (1) a segmented marketing chain where a producer is not held financially accountable for losses; (2) failure to measure and assess chronic painful problems such as lame livestock; and (3) repeating old mistakes, such as housing fattening cattle for long periods of time on bare concrete. Two examples of the first type of losses are bruises caused by poor handling and sick cattle at feedlots caused by failure to vaccinate and precondition weaned calves at the farm of origin. In some segmented marketing systems, there is no economic incentive to vaccinate. When the animals get sick, the responsibility gets passed to the next person. Buyers of meat products can reduce these “passed on” losses by source verification. The first step to reducing problems, such as lame livestock, is to measure the percentage of lame animals and work with the producers to reduce them. Also, transportation payments should be changed and contracts should be based on the condition of the animals at delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2012, the World Organisation for Animal Health adopted 10 'General Principles for the Welfare of Animals in Livestock Production Systems' to guide the development of animal welfare standards. The General Principles draw on half a century of scientific research relevant to animal welfare: (1) how genetic selection affects animal health, behaviour and temperament; (2) how the environment influences injuries and the transmission of diseases and parasites; (3) how the environment affects resting, movement and the performance of natural behaviour; (4) the management of groups to minimize conflict and allow positive social contact; (5) the effects of air quality, temperature and humidity on animal health and comfort; (6) ensuring access to feed and water suited to the animals' needs and adaptations; (7) prevention and control of diseases and parasites, with humane euthanasia if treatment is not feasible or recovery is unlikely; (8) prevention and management of pain; (9) creation of positive human-animal relationships; and (10) ensuring adequate skill and knowledge among animal handlers. Research directed at animal welfare, drawing on animal behaviour, stress physiology, veterinary epidemiology and other fields, complements more established fields of animal and veterinary science and helps to create a more comprehensive scientific basis for animal care and management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]