Your Voice is Needed to Ban Cruel Tail Docking

Your voice is urgently needed to help farmed animals. Please use the form below to contact your district representative today to encourage him or her to support the bill to ban the cruel practice of tail docking dairy cows in New York state.

After reviewing MFA's undercover investigation at Willet Dairy, New York's largest dairy operation, Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal proposed a ban on tail docking – A.09732 – similar to the one enacted in California last year.

Tail docking cattle is among the most disturbing practices MFA's undercover investigator captured on film at Willet Dairy. A worker uses a bladed clamp to slice off the ends of calves' tails, severing nerves, skin and vertebrae - all without the use of anesthesia. The calves' legs buckle from the pain, as they stagger and stumble to the ground. The worker then applies a smoking cautery device to the amputations.

The practice is opposed by scientists, animal welfare experts and industry representatives, including the conservative American Veterinary Medical Association, which condemns tail docking as an acutely painful procedure that serves no benefit for animals or dairy workers and can cause chronic, lifelong suffering for animals. Painfully cutting off the tails of horses has been illegal in New York State for decades and it's high time that we extend this same modest protection to cattle.

The New York State Assembly Agriculture Committee will be voting on this issue on June 15 and the animals need your help! Only members of the Agriculture Committee will be voting on this bill at this time. Please select your Assembly Agriculture Committee member from the drop-down menu below and encourage him or her to support the bill to ban tail docking of cattle now.

You can find your Assemblymember using your zip code here.

If your representative is not on the Agriculture Committee, you can still help. Please consider donating to support Mercy For Animals' work on behalf of farmed animals. Click here to make a tax deductable donation.

Select Your District/Town

When you call, remember to leave your name and address so it is clear that you are a constituent. You can say:

"Hello, my name is [name] and I am calling from [town] to ask [Assemblymember's name] to vote YES on A.09732 to ban the cruel tail docking of cows."

After you make your call, please send a polite email to your legislator using the form below. Your state legislators receive a lot of email, so it is important to personalize the subject line and the text so your message will stand out and have a greater impact.

To:	(Select your district or town from the list above)
From (your name):
Email Address:
Message Subject:

Message Text:
Add me to the Mercy For Animals e-mail list