Just returned from my first livestock auction, almost cried!!

[Sugar Sand Farm]

Not all of them are bad we go to two up here one in Brandford the other in McAlpine Both of these are very good auctions. They both have Ag inspectors on hand to check all animals before they are sold At Branford he wont sell a sick animals I hav seen him turn away large livestock trailers full of birds just for having fleas. They dont handle all the animals as you would but dont forget some of these animals are on the wild side as well.

 

[Chicks R Friends NOT Food]

I've gone to one several times, the animals are handled kindly enough, not how I would prefer them held, but not hurting them. For instance they pull bunnies up by the scruff of the neck, then place them on a table. Chickens and birds get held by their feet until they calm down. Like I said, not mean, just not how I would prefer it.

 

[chickenshagg]

Right or wrong they are not selling family pets, they are selling livestock. If you purchase an animal and turn it into a family pet, that is on you. We treat family pets differently. If we delt with the mass amount of animals that they do at auctions then we would not be so gentle. I am not saying that they should be abusive but sometimes what we see as being meen is just a practical or efficient way of doing things. Can you imagine how long it would take to get through an auction if they handled every animal like it was there baby. Again I am not condoning cruelty to any animal.

I'm a city slick but have been around farm animals a number of times. Once while helping load a livestock trailer with cattle I nearly got my arm broke when they stopped moving. My Rancher/Farmer buddy tossed me the cattle prod and told me to poke the last one with it. Well being a compasionate one I saw that it was not the one in the back that was the problem so I thought why should she get proded. So I reached trough the rail of the loading shoot and up into the back of the trailer and poked the one that was not moving. When I did that they all jumped crushing my arm agains the rail. I did think that my arm got broke it hurt so bad but I was fortunate to get away with just some bruises and a broken blood vessel. My buddy yelled at me to never stick my arm in there again. He said if I poked the one that was at the back then they all would move. Lesson learned!!

 

[chicken+quail=luv]

I've only been to one, and the animals seemed to be well-cared for. All the stalls for the animals had very clean bedding, and fresh food and water. I did get a little shaken when they were handling them, though, pushing them and shoving them. I guess you have to, though, because you're handling a large animal. I didn't see many chickens or other birds.

 

[fancbrd4me02]

Livestock or family pets- It doesn't matter, all animals deserve to be treated with as much repspect and dignity as possible. If the original OP says the livestock auction was handling the animals too roughly, than since she was there and I was not I will have to take her word for it.

In the name of time and money lots of animals are treated cruelly by animal handlers in many businesses, that's a documented fact. In fact, these industries are cruel and exploit human handlers also. Gathering hundreds of chickens up all day is a backbreaking job for workers at broiler operations, for example. No one said ALL auctions were cruel. The OP said the one they went to was treating the animals poorly in thier opinion.

 

[cassie]

Sometimes it helps to complain to the management. Tell them it is lousy PR. One of the local auctions here cleaned up its act after the SPCA got involved.

 

[herfrds]

I must admit that I have never been to an auction that sold birds. The ones I go to sell cattle and horses. I have seen horses go nuts and dump their riders in the ring and watched ringmen jump behind the barriers as cows and/or bulls try to get them.
I guess it is the type of auction you go to and how many injuries you have due to that type of animal. Right now I have no sympathy for any horse because my right shoulder is extremely sore right. Dislocated by a horse throwing me.
Left hand has arthritis due to cattle. getting kicked by one of these boogers is not fun. My right wrist squeezed between a scale chute wall and a 600# steers head. luckily the wall was wood it flexed or my wrist would habeen broke.

 

[lockedhearts]

There is one here that is extremely well run and clean. Although alot of them are not clean, you just have to toughen up or don't go. I took some excess chickens to the one that is here, sold a bunch of chickens and came home with cash and a Pair of Columbian Wyandottes. I call that a good auction!

 

[usschicago1]

Im sorry it was a bad experience

Thanks for the heads up

 

[chinbunny]

There is one that I go to that is note bad. The animals are placed in pens, or cages and auctioned off. Sometimes you can tell who are the bad buyers/sellers, and who isn't. That one is mostly small animals. the bigest sellers being chickens and rabbits. They also have a household auction, and a flea market. Ive gotten some decent stuff/animals form that place for a very good price.