Lol! I must say I've learned loads about what not to post on H&H Forum. Having said that there are many calm and reasonable and sensible posters on this thread as well as those just getting defensive and using personal insult.
I wonder if anyone has identified the women/girls?
some right classics!
FYI, one cannot extrapolate from the voltage of the supply to the voltage, current or energy in the shocks delivered by a device.
Do you have a citation for that? Not saying you're wrong, but it would be useful to see that in black and white.
What if the prod was targetted deliberately at the horse's genitals (if it was a mare)? Would that be cruel if it wasn't before? Does intent have anything to do with it or just the end result of an action? However... a sick sadist could claim they were merely using the prod to load the horse! Could you prove they were lying? As far as the horse was concerned the pain wouldn't be much different if the prod was applied a few inches to left or right - so arguably it doesn't actually matter where the prod is applied as long as it gets the horse to move forwards. Who are you (we) to say it's cruel or not?
I agree with you that anyone who claims horses and cattle don't feel comparable pain from electric shocks because their skins are different is on a sticky wicket. However, they are potentially different in the way they react to a prod behind. I cannot imagine a cow double-barrelling at the prodder or rearing up and falling over backwards, both possible reactions of a horse. Furthermore, the consequences of getting shocked in this way are likely to differ vastly in relation to how we train the two species. With cattle, a prod is just to make them move (usually forwards); with horses, one is presumably involved in teaching them something a bit more sophisticated - like loading into a horsebox when required - and any other consequences of inflicting momentary pain have to be reckoned with, such as creating fear or bad associations or confusion as to what is being asked.
But no more or less cruel, it could be argued, as they both cause pain. The law is as it is to protect public sensibilities, I suspect.
I which case I completely agree with you!
My worry is that all the talk and threats of RSPCA investigation will make it less rather than more likely that the two in the video will come to understand the error of their ways.
True to an extent but let's be realistic - noone will pay Monty or Maxwell to load their cattle kindly and willingly onto the meat lorry now will they??? It's a oneway journey
OK, I think it's cruel to use an electric prod full stop. I haven't moved my goal posts, I was explaining the difference in using it on cows as opposed to horses. It's use on horses is surely to 'train' it to go, in this example, into a van. Just using it to move a horse forward is not enough in this instance and the fact that those girls did so many other things to block the horse and used the prod at incorrect times for the horse to associate it with stepping forward anyway (imo) makes it even more of an unreasonable use leading to one totally confused horse with a big memory of pain.
I thought I was being very low key but not for the cattle. I have much improved now and Farmers no longer look to the skies when they see me approaching to offer assistance. 
