Virginia: Terry McCoy finally charged with cruelty, but not for tying this poor animal to a flatbed trailer. The truth of what he is alleged to have done is even worse.

• Terry McCoy, of Appomattox, Va., was charged after a photo of the incident went viral on Facebook
• He told authorities the cow had broken hips and was being transported for slaughter from one personal farm to another
• At first, authorities said strapping the animal was the most humane way of transporting it
• But later they found out McCoy did not slaughter the cow as promised

VIRGINIA -- A Virginia man has been charged with animal cruelty after he strapped a cow to his flat-bed trailer for transport.

Terry McCoy, of Appomattox, was charged Thursday after a photo of the incident at Foster Fuels station in Rustburg went viral on Facebook, ABC 13 reported.

Initially, animal control authorities were told the cow had broken hips and was being transported a short distance, from one personal farm to another, for slaughter.

'Probably not the best idea you know, pulling up where everybody can see and showing off to everybody, but when it comes down to it, it's about the only way, the most humane way you could do it,' said Officer Joseph David, of the Campbell County Animal Control department, to ABC 13.

Had McCoy followed the plan as he told authorities, no local laws would have been broken.

I'm calling BS on Officer David's statement that "no laws were broken". This guy KNOWINGLY forced this animal, which was suffering and in horrific pain (what wouldn't be in pain with two broken hips???) to continue to suffer. Think about it. How long did it take to drag the bull to the trailer, wrap straps about the bull and lift him onto the trailer with a tractor, then they had to unstrap him from the tractor and then re-strap him onto the flatbed trailer. Then they start driving on bumpy roads with the animal in excruciating pain. The Animal Control officer says McCoy only drove a "short distance" to his POS friend's farm to kill the animal. If it were only a "short distance" WHY IS HE STOPPING FOR GAS???? And this isn't some rural gas station, I can see a McDonald's sign in the background so he wasn't just driving a couple miles to his friend's farm. HOW FAR WAS IT?

Now imagine, you've been injured and are lying there with two broken hips and all the above has been done to you. It is outrageous that anyone in their right mind would think this was OK. The animal should have been shot and put down IMMEDIATELY to cease its suffering and pain.

But upon further investigation, sheriff's deputies found out otherwise.

The cow was never slaughtered as planned and authorities charged McCoy with animal cruelty, ABC 13 reported. It is unclear if the charge was related to the failure to slaughter the cow or some other incident.

I'll tell you why they didn't put it down.. they were keeping it alive to get its semen. There was another older story of a man who had done the same thing to his stud horse that had a rotten leg that was falling off. He hid it in a stall and kept it alive so he could get its semen to sell.

Authorities are now performing an autopsy on the cow to find out why its hip was broken and how it died.

The picture of the cow shocked locals on Facebook.

'I'm not big into the animal rights movement at all but even I will say this is terrible and there should be stiff penalties for stupid stuff like this,' wrote Danny Martin, a local rancher, on the social network.

Heather Marie Craig wrote: 'Omg how horrible!!!!!'

McCoy is due back in court on Friday.

(Daily Mail - July 1, 2016)

Earlier:

• Virginia: Authorities want you to believe hauling an animal, in horrible pain with broken hips, like this isn't animal cruelty, but would we haul a human being with broken hips this way?