How many horses need die before it ends?

[Ex Animo]

I often find myself weighing up the pros and cons of animal use v. animal rights. Personally, I don't like seeing animals used for entertainment in any way, but that's just my opinion. I can see that many animals do have a good life because of their usefulness to humans. Of course, there are far more who have an horrific life because of their usefulness too.

The biggest question for me is whether it's better for there to be no meat industry, and therefore relatively few food animals alive at all, perhaps on a number of sanctuaries, or whether it's better to have a lot more farm animals experiencing life as part of the food industry if (and it's a big if) that life is worth living at all.

Millions of cows living a life worth living and met by an early (and hopefully quick and painless) death? Or very few cows living a somewhat better (or maybe even similar existence) but enjoying a longer life? Which is better? More enjoying shorter lives or fewer enjoying longer lives? For me, it's not an easy one at all. Though I have considered many times the idea of starting a totally humane farm some time in the future to promote the notion of a great life for those animals destined for our dinner plates. (I'm vegan, but I understand meat-eating won't end any time soon.)

What's your opinion?

[Ducked]

A future solution?