In the UK? Yes there would have been, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was founded in 1824, and became the ROYAL Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in 1840 when Queen Victoria granted it patronage.
A Government act preventing cruelty to cattle came into being in 1922, and more general "Cruelty to Animals Act" came about in 1849 and 1876.