Chris Christie in Iowa for Gov. Branstad's Birthday Bash

Gov. Chris Christie (R-NJ) attends a Birthday Bash for Gov. Terry Branstad (R-IA) in October in Clive, Iowa.

(Steve Pope/Getty Images)

TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie may have angered animal rights activists when he vetoed legislation on Friday that would have banned the use of pig gestation crates in New Jersey.

But he didn’t upset Iowa’s governor.

Gov. Terry Branstad, for whom Christie four times since July in the lead-up to the Nov. 4 elections, said today Christie made a “good decision” when he vetoed the bill, according to published reports.

UPDATE:

Chris Christie trails five other possible Republican 2016 prez hopefuls in Iowa visits

"This is an issue that most people in New Jersey have no clue," Branstad said during a Monday morning news conference, according to the Des Moines Register.

“They don’t raise hardly any pigs in New Jersey, they don’t have farrowing crates,” he said. “But this is something we do have knowledge of in Iowa, and I give him credit for listening to and understanding that this is something we’re very concerned about and that does impact consumers as well because if these baby pigs are crushed and die that means there are fewer pigs and that impacts the price of pork.”

Christie faced criticism from animal groups after vetoing the bill. They argued that the governor, who's mulling a 2016 presidential campaign, was pandering to Iowa voters when he vetoed a similar bill in 2013 and when he told Iowa residents in October he planned to veto the updated version.

Iowa is home to about 20 million pigs and the nation’s first presidential caucus. New Jersey, on the other hand, is only home to about 9,000 pigs. However, an overwhelming majority of New Jersey voters – more than 90 percent – supported the bill that would have directed the state Department of Agriculture to prohibit “the confinement, in an enclosure, of any sow during gestation in a manner that prevents the sow from turning around freely, lying down, standing up, or fully extending the limbs of the animal.”

Christie called the legislation “a solution in search of a problem.”

Branstad said on Monday he spoke with Christie before the governor announced his veto Friday afternoon.

“I did share with Gov. Christie my personal experience and my interest in this and that of Iowa Farm Bureau and the National Pork Producers, all of which are headquartered here in Iowa,” Branstad said.

Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewArco. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.

MORE POLITICS