An animal rights enthusiast from San Antonio is threatening a lawsuit against Lubbock's American Museum of Agriculture. This is over the two mules that were euthanized then stuffed for a museum exhibit.
The museum's director says the animals were purchased from a trader; both were elderly and destined for Mexico for slaughter.
Designers of the exhibit on early harvesting recommended displaying professionally-preserved animals to be more accurate. They located a pair of mules about to be destroyed when no preserved ones were available.
Patrick Greene of San Antonio says the museum's actions are offensive and immoral, and also illegal. He will file suit if the museum does not surrender the animals to a horse rescue operation for a proper burial by September 30.
"They did it for the worst reason of all, for a display in the museum," Greene said. "That is an incredibly horrible reason to do it. So people can look and stare and gawk?"
Greene says museum-goers would learn just as much if the mules had been put out to pasture and a picture of animal-drawn harvesting would be put on display.
