Mustering is when cattle are rounded up and chased by motorcycles, horses, and helicopters. Some stations even use shotguns to scare the cattle from bushes and trees, often fired from the helicopters. Needless to say, cattle can be inadvertently shot and killed. Even worse, some stations fly very low to the ground to scare the cattle with the propellers. Sometimes the pilots are even killed because of the impact of the ground and the propellers. For cattle that are not accustomed to physical contact, mustering is very stressful and when animals do not comply, they will face rough handling. Rough handling increases stress in animals and causes them to be even less compliant. Cattle will be mustered up to 10 miles, pushing them over the verge of exhaustion, hyperthermia, and dehydration. Injured and sick cattle will go long periods of time untreated and sometimes die unnoticed.
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