Dairy gets harsh lesson in activists’ hardball agenda, Gary Conklin interview
By Dairy Herd news staff & AgriTalk
Click the arrow to listed to the 30-minute interview with Gary Conklin, Dairy gets harsh lesson:
Gary Conklin’s reaction to the undercover video of alleged animal abuse shot at his family’s dairy near Plain City, Ohio, over several weeks and released May 26 was visceral and immediate: “We absolutely couldn’t believe it, we were devastated. I did not, nor did any family members, have any knowledge of what was going on.”
Conklin shared his cautionary, behind-the-headlines experiences with AgriTalk listeners Monday morning. “It has been extremely difficult,” he says, which is most certainly an understatement.
The video and actions seen on it, obtained by a Mercy for Animals operative who gained employment at the farm, were roundly condemned by animal agriculture, animal activists and Conklin himself. But, as is often the case in these situations, there’s more to the story.
Both former employee Billy Joe Gregg (who faces 12 counts of animal cruelty) and Jason Smith (the videographer and Mercy for Animals affiliate who has stated that he had daily contact with the group) claimed dairy work experience on their resumes and lived nearby. By outward appearances, each seemed qualified to work on the dairy. Gregg was hired last November, Smith in late April of this year.
While officials investigate whether the two men knew each other before their employment at the dairy, it is clear that they at the very least became friends after working there. In fact, it wasn’t unusual for the pair to do activities together during non-working hours.
In addition, due to the dairy’s work scheduling, Gregg and Smith were often the only employees remaining at the dairy in the late afternoon to finish up daily chores after everyone else was done for the day and Conklin was often traveling on business.
Regardless of when it happened, the two generated a stomach-turning video of animal abuse at the farm. The video was edited to ensnare Conklin in the drama, and was released to the public.
“What Mercy for Animals did was have the most salacious, terrible video of animal abuse, and right in the middle of it, stuck me in for three seconds and put my name up,” explains Conklin. “What I did was taken out of context. In the unedited tape, what I was doing was getting a cow up. The cow had just calved and had had some problems and she really needed to get up on her feet. The testimony of all the expert witnesses that came before the grand jury and the sheriff’s department said that taken in context, it was entirely appropriate and necessary and I had done absolutely nothing wrong.”
Conklin was exonerated by the grand jury, and he, as well as all family members and other employees have been cleared of any wrong-doing. The farm has also been investigated by the local humane society, as well as the sheriff’s department regarding animal care. “We’ve been fully inspected by a number of entities and they indicated that everything looked excellent, and as far as our animal care, there was nothing wrong.”
This has opened the door for Conklin to help set the record straight and offer hard-earned advice to other livestock operations.
“The question is,” he notes, “do some of the animal activist groups really care about the well-being of the animals or is there a political agenda that goes beyond [that] and that’s the main goal?” In Conklin’s situation, he says they “evidently felt it was more important to get more video and keep it (the abuse) going longer. If it would have been reported at the first sign of abuse, it would have been stopped.”
Conklin says he was surprised at just how far some animal activist groups are willing to go to push their agendas and try to damage animal agriculture.
Conklin and his family, and even investigators, have received threats.
“It’s like a political campaign,” he says. “The candidate wants to portray his opponent in an unflattering way and that’s what animal activists are aggressively trying to do animal agriculture. They have an aggressive agenda to harm the image of animal agriculture across the nation.”
It’s probably no accident that this video was taken in a state where animal activists were trying to attain enough signatures to put an animal welfare initiative on the November ballot.
“It is incumbent upon the animal industry to join together with a solid plan to tell our side of the story,” Conklin insists. “We have the absolutely safest food and best food in the world and it’s important that that image remains, rather than be sullied by undercover videos and trying to make the general public think this is a daily occurrence that happens everywhere.”
Back at Conklin Dairy, employment practices have been changed to help prevent the situation from arising again. “Our vetting process (for new hires) is going to be more detailed,” Conklin says. The dairy has also adopted an official zero-tolerance-of-abuse policy. Any action that is inappropriate by any employee must be reported to management. “They are absolutely responsible to report that to us immediately so it can be dealt with,” he says. “All current employees have agreed to it, and all future employees will have to agree to it, too.”
Meanwhile, the operation is working to repair its reputation and regain customer trust. “We have continued to sell Holstein replacement heifers and our old customers have continued to buy from us,” says Conklin. “But obviously it’s hurt our business. We are working to regain trust and I’m confident we can do so.
“Looking at the big picture, it’s important for animal agriculture to get the message out to the public-at-large how well animals are cared for,” he adds. “It is job security for a dairyman, or pork [producer] or whatever area you’re in to take care of your animals and help them be the very best they can be.”
Related, click HERE to send a message asking for harshest sentence.
Our Compass 
Funny thing about Conklins “defense,” …..some of his own townfolk and neighbors are telling a different story,… indicating that the Conklin Farm has a LONG & NOTORIOUS history of abusing animals…….
Want to get to the truth of the matter, canvas the neighborhood and dont give ANY weight to what the offender says…..he is attempting to defend the defenseless and at the same time, blaming the under-cover video guy. Any body with half-a brain knows it takes time to gather enough evidence to make a case…..but he is right about one thing….animal rights folks do have an agenda,… and that is humane treatment for all animals, and there isnt one thin dime of profit in that for them. For them it is a labor of love and I admire them for that.
I think the best thing for Gary Conklin to do is get out of the animal-ag business, turn the place over to Mercy for Animals, take the write-off and go to work for Micky D’s….at least there he will still get to throw some cow around.
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Here is another thought,…..if you watch the vid, you will hear the offending employee, Billy Joel Gregg Jr,..brag about how he beat a cow in the head so bad the head was swollen “this big” he said,…holding his hands out wide (and laughing) then he goes on to say how the “The Boss” told him to send that cow off to slaughter……so I am thinking,…what does Mr Conklin think happened to that cow? And surely there have been others….just look at some of the stills going round of cows with their heads swollen and eyes beat out….DONT TELL ME Mr. Conklin “didnt know” what was going on. If he was not actually a part of it (besides kicking the downed cow) he surely condoned the conduct of his brutal employee(s),…and that just fits right in with what some of the locals are saying…..that Conklins is a Cruelty Farm….as I have mentioned in my first comment (above)
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Conklin, Please Go straight to HELL,
Thank you,
Sincerely,
The World.
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Conklin you’re a scumbag!!!!
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Having signed all the actions posted by various sites against Conklin I cannot believe he is still at liberty. How can this cruelty go unpunished ?
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I live in England, I have no agenda. I have witnessed a sight from hell that cannot be defended. Weeks of video tape to cover the months of torture that must have been handed out to these animals, hang your head in shame Conklin, to be repentant would have been better, but to play ignorant to this barbaric working practice in your dairy is completely disgusting. You are a fool and from the response it looks like this is the opinion world wide!
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I too live in England, I too have no agenda………until this piece of hick trash and those of this ilk, crossed my view!!
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they should get stiffer penalties for animal cruelty. laws should be changed. these heartless bastards have blood on their hands and souls and should live a miserable life for their actions…we are the voice of the voiceless and should scream out that we are “TIRED OF ANIMAL CRUELTY”…
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Conklin, you a a fucking plonker! You need a bitch slap.
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……and the WORLD is lining up to give it to you GARY & BILLY JOE GREG!
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I THOUGHT FARMS WERE PLACE LIKE A ZOO MEANT TO TREAT OUR ANIMAL FRIENDS WITH SOME RESPECT AND LOVE IF IT IS GIVING THEM THEY WOULD BE HAPPY TO REWARD GIVE THE ANIMALS ABUSE AND I AM SURE THEY CAN TURN. DO TO THESE PEOPLE WHAT THEY HAVE DONE TO THOSE POOR DEFENSELESS CREATURES EYE FOR AN EYE TOOTH FOR A TOOTH PUT THEM IN THE STOCKS AND LET THE PUBLIC HAVE THEM
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ANYBODY ILL TREATING OUR DEFENSELESS VOICELESS POOR ANIMALS SHOULD BE PUT IN THE STOCKS AND LET THE PUBLIC DEAL WITH THEM I AM SURE WHEN ANIMAL LOVING PEOPLE GET THEIR HANDS ON THEM THEY TOO WISH THEY WERE NOT BORN. WHY DO SOME HUMANS THINK THEY CAN INTIMIDATE SOMETHING MORE WEAKER THAN THEMSELVES DON’T THEY REALIZES THEY TOO FEEL PAIN AND CRY
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I am so angry with this article and Conklin’s “defense”. I’m speechless. 😦
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totally, and trying to say that activists may not be concerned with the animals well being????WTH? why else would thousands of people be outraged,for an ‘agenda’?
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I do not believe one word that Gary Conklin has said to defend himself! He is just upset because he got caught. So now he is like a criminal that has been cornered and is throwing out any excuse his idiot brain can come up with. I bet he is embarrassed, he should be! How grown men can commit such abuse and physical harm to such sweet defenseless, voiceless dairy cows is so far beyond my comprehension, this whole matter has haunted me 24 hours a day. I have nightmares about it at night and I am sick at heart during the day. I want this troll do be put out of business and never be allowed to have anything to do with any animal for the rest of his life and that goes for his cronies too! The whole world was aware of this horrible abuse and the state of Ohio’s Dairy industry should have done their job and put this jerk in jail for a long, long time. I had several Jersey Dairy cows for about 25 years and I treated them with the utmost love and the greatest care above and beyond humane. Gary Conklin is a big liar and I am embarrassed that he lives and farms in the USA. SHAME ON YOU OHIO FOR LETTING THIS COW ABUSER OFF THE HOOK! You failed miserably at dealing out justice!
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My comment is written above.
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I am from England. I am absolutely appalled that the farm is still being allowed to operate. It should be closed down – full stop. I became a vegan since watching that video and vow that I will never touch milk again. The images from the video still haunt me 2 months on. I loathe those people.
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Oh how twisted they can get to save their image when the almighty dollar supports them. All means is welcome. Conklin, you did wrong and that’s it. There is no “well” treatment in exploitative industries such as yours. You are not deceiving us. And to blame the animal activists.. convenient again. Your actions will be remembered by many and I hope it hurts your sick business. You make money off of innocents, and your care is only for the bank account, not their welfare, or that they can be “the best they can be”… Get a grip – maybe it’s too late, you lost it long ago.
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I have read too many comments left here..Why hasn’t it ever been mentioned about the poor dead cows laying out in the field..floating around in water and rotting….tooo many to count..decomposing..unable to give an exact number…..”that”..Gary Conklin was told to bury…OR be fined!!?? Come on now…tell me he didn’t know what they were talking about…YES he did..because he called the investigators a day ahead of the deadline to say it was taken care of because HE had to drain out the water BEFORE the cows could even be buried..Billy jo remarked about dragging the cows around out in the fields and shotting them too! I bet alot of those dead cows would have alot to say about these so called people if they could talk! The really hurt/dying and tortured ones…never made it to slaughter..you can bet on that!!
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The fact that Gary Conklin is even in the dairy business to begin with proves that he is a heartless piece of shit!
As far as Jason Smith supposedly befriending Billy joe Greg, that what going undercover is about. You get in, make friends, win trust, get your shit and get out!
Undercover police and such do it everyday. Those in the undercover narcotics dept even have to go so far as to participate in drug use to build a case… And that’s exactly what Jason Smith was doing, building a thorough case!
We all know how lax the punishment for animal cruelty is. Had Smith went to Gary Conklin and/or the authorities with the first incident, Billy joe would still be abusing, beating and punching cows, if not at Conklins, somewhere else.
This whole incident is disgusting to me, as is the dairy industry and this interview with Conklin.
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