LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — A West Texas museum has purchased two old mules and euthanized them for a farm display.
The American Museum of Agriculture in Lubbock says in a statement that it bought the two mules from a local trader after a long search for already preserved animals came up empty. The mules were euthanized for eventual display.
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One mule was 28 years old. The other was 32.
Museum officials said in a Monday statement that the mules would have otherwise been sent to Mexico and slaughtered. The museum said using real animals will allow a more accurate portrayal of they’re used in the field.
However, a Tuesday statement from the Humane Society of the United States said “the killing and stuffing of animals solely for museum exhibits is frivolous and unnecessary.”
