Inspectors Scan Auctions for Thieves

On a cold January morning, Pat McGuigan stood on a catwalk overlooking hundreds of head of cattle. The cows mooed while bulls snorted -- their noses running from the cold air whipping through the Longview Livestock Commission Co.'s sale barn. On the flank of each head of cattle was a yellow sticker placed there by auction workers as sellers drove up to the barn with the cattle they hoped would fetch a good price during the day's auction. On this morning like most mornings, McGuigan, a market inspector for the Texas Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, is taking information, indicating any brands on the cattle and he is looking for anything that does not seem right. "On a busy day here at this particular sale barn we would normally see about 500 to 600 head of cattle come through here on sale day," he said. Armed with a pen, pad and inspection forms, he is looking for cattle that could be stolen. If McGuigan sees something that doesn't fit, he begins asking the person who brought the cow into the auction questions. "We don't accuse anyone of stealing. We give them a chance to explain how they came to have that cow," he said. "But we will get to the bottom of it." McGuigan and other market inspectors like him are one line of defense to help stop cattle rustling, a crime that costs producers across the state millions each year collectively. According to the TSCRA, Special Rangers, the association's team of law enforcement commissioned by the Texas Department of Public Safety, and market inspectors like McGuigan, recovered 44,892 head of stolen cattle from 1997 to 2007. The data also indicates the association has recovered 1,066 horses, 999 saddles and 253 trailers. The total value of livestock and property recovered during the 10-year period exceeds $48 million...Tyler Morning Telegraph