Could something Like HETA work? I think what it will really boil down to is what everyones definition of cruelty is. Animal cruelty is what we and they are against but our definitions of cruelty are different! I as a hunter and meat eater don't think hunting or slaughter houses are cruel. Taking game or raising animals for food is just a part of life! Living things must die so others can live! Thats natures way. Protecting your home and property against animals isn't cruel either in my mind. Killing mice, rats, groundhogs, squirrels, raccoons, bees, flies, termites, mosquitos, bears or what ever is invading your property isn't being cruel. It's making your quality of life better and safer! Any of these things in my mind are not animal cruelty! In the minds of the anti's these things are murder!
I think both groups would agree that an animal owner who beats or starves or doesn't take proper care of thier animal(s) is cruel. Poachers and people who kill things just for the sake of killing are cruel and should be punished! We have a lot of common goals we can go after to stop cruelty to animals. We will also have a lot of ground that we don't agree on such as hunting and food production!(meat).
There will be grey areas as well like drug testing on animals. Entertainment with animals (circuses, zoos, dog and horse racing ect ect..)Some think these things are cruel and others don't.
The one good thing that can come out of a group like HETA is people would see hunters looking to help animals that have nothing to do with hunting. They wouldn't be able to say we are protecting them so we can hunt them next year like the anti's say about game animals! It would show that just because we kill animals for our dinner tables it doesn't mean we go home and kick our dog every night! We are not being cruel we are just being a part of natures life cycle by eating the animals Mother nature has put here for us! Done right HETA could be a very positive thing for hunters in the eyes of the non-hunter non-anti!
Just my .02