Having a cow over horny issue

Perrefitte – Concern over the cruelty of removing a cow’s horns had not been one of Switzerland’s most pressing political issues.

So, when livestock farmer Armin Capaul – inspired by conversations with his cattle – managed to force a national vote on the question following an upstart campaign that began with few resources and no political support, he became a media celebrity.

But Capaul, whose wild grey hair and unkept beard accurately identify him as a man of the mountains, insisted that his insurgent bid to limit dehorning in Switzerland is not about him.

“It’s the cow that’s important, not me,” the farmer, in his 70s, said at his home in Perrefitte, a municipality in the heart of the Jura mountain range. Capaul credits his cows with giving him the idea to push for Sunday’s referendum.

“I always talk to my cows in the barn. They asked me if I could do something for them, if I could help them keep their horns,” he said.

The proposal on Sunday’s ballot does not call for a ban on dehorning. Instead, it seeks a constitutional amendment that would create incentives for farmers to let horns grow. –