It wouldn't be common, exactly. But out in rural parts of Texas, it also wouldn't be completely unexpected to get into a conversation with some guy with a cattle trailer that resulted in a transfer of ownership.

Of course, anyone who buys a truckload of cattle KNOWS that there's something up, but they'd also be willing to play dumb if they got the cattle for a good price.

The sales pitch was probably something like, "Yeah, I'm taking them in to the feed lot in _______, but it's such a long drive and this truck's about had it. You can take them off my hands if you want; would save me the gas money."

"Hang 'em High", w/Clint Eastwood covered some of this, and Oklahoma extended the "Make my Day" law to cover pasture and yards, not just households. Fooling with somebodies cattle can be a precarious venture, and law in the West regarding cattle and horses is still very much rooted in the 19th century.

Buyer beware; and I can not imagine a rancher purchasing a cow without any background on it. NAIS and other background info is critical to a good herd. Stockyards even want to know where the cow came from before putting it in with the rest. Imagine one cow sickening 100's, etc. Or the dreaded words of the industry, "Mad Cow".

A person may take a single cow into slaughter; but again; info is required about what is going into that facility also.

Buying a cow at a quickie shop would be akin to buying a Corvette at a quickie shop for a real low price. Ain't gonna happen too easy unless the people know each other well.

Considering that the Eiffel Tower has been "sold" on more than one occasion to people who should have known better, I'd say there are rubes in more places than just, as you put it, in the country.

wouldn't an offer to purchase cattle off a truck in a convenience store parking lot set off some alarm bells?

It wouldn't be all that uncommon in New Hampshire, let alone Texas, which is even bigger and more random. My grandmother used to buy barbecue at the gas station. She had to bring her own saucepan to collect it, as they didn't have any product packaging for it.

Oops. I was thinking it was already-processed cow. I was wrong about that.

But participation in NAIS is voluntary. A lot of small growers don't participate. It's expensive for them and destroys some of their margin.

Of course, anyone who buys a truckload of cattle KNOWS that there's something up, but they'd also be willing to play dumb if they got the cattle for a good price.

OK. The same mindset as people who buy socks on the street here in New York. You know it probably isn't kosher but you rationalize your actions and don't ask any questions.