Animal Handling Procedures on Factory Farms

First I need to point out that this is strictly an informative article and is not meant to sway you to not eat cows, chickens or animal products. I would like my readers to be aware of the living conditions of animals that are destined to be killed for human consumption and make (or not) their own decisions on what to do with these facts.

What is the difference between ignoring a sick dog and ignoring a sick cow? Some argue nothing, some argue everything. Recently these arguments have been taken to a judicial level sparking lawsuits and new policies for animal care. The legalities of factory farming in this country are changing and as consumers we have a right to information about these updated policies.

Most state laws define abuse and neglect of domestic animals to be felonies. Word is spread about these issues in shows such as Animal Cops on the Animal Planet channel. However, the opposite is true for animals that are bred to be killed for food. Companies actually refuse any media coverage of their operations.

When the idea of animal confinement came up in a hearing, California Senator Dean Florez said "Government has an important role to play in trying to find the right balance. We haven't delved into the California animal cruelty code as much as we should to ask what does it mean, how should it apply? It strikes me that some animals are left out"

His words helped form a new California Committee on Food and Agriculture and spread the word on Proposition 2. Last November Prop 2 passed with a huge lead.

The Humane Society summarizes Prop 2 as requiring "that factory farms provide enough space for animals to stand up, turn around and extend their limbs. It applies to breeding pigs, egg laying hens and veal calves." All institutions have 6 years to adjust to meet these new standards.

Legal actions are being taken in states with high animal product production but the impact of citizen based organizations such as PETA and the Northwestern Animal Rights Network are making a huge difference in the public eye as well.

In 2000 the people for the ethical treatment of animals foundation launched a campaign against McDonalds highlighting the mistreatment of the chickens that go into McDonalds Happy Meals, McNuggets and sandwiches. PETA pulled its advertisements featuring a bloody, evil looking Ronald McDonald when the corporation made some adjustments to its chicken and meat handling policies. However McDonalds still refuses to change the way it's chicken supplier kills the birds.

Happy Meal destined chickens are shackled upside down at the slaughterhouse. The chickens are alive at this point, scared and probably in pain. This causes them to struggle, creating broken bones, biting other chickens and spreading fecal matter and stomach contents. Their throats are then cut but because workers and machine can't keep up with the wriggling chickens, many pass through this phase without bleeding out completely and are still alive when the chickens are all submerged into a defeathering tank of boiling water. The living chickens will try to breathe, inhaling the fecal matter, stomach contents and blood of the previous batch of chickens thus spreading disease.

PETA is urging McDonalds again to change their methods. PETA suggests that chickens are killed via Controlled Atmosphere Killing while they are still in crates. CAK isn't like gassing in a way that introduces poisons but removes oxygen from the air which kills the birds with a considerably less amount of struggle. In the past month PETA has rereleased its McCruelty campaign because McDonalds has failed to change their killing processes.

Chickens and Turkeys aren't the only animals that receive poor punishments. Cow and pig factory farms are also on the radar for such acts. On January 1^st, 2009 California Assemblyman Paul Krekorian passed a law to exclude sick and downed cows and pigs from being put into the human food supply. Animals that cannot walk are often forced into the slaughter houses by being dragged with tractors or being electrically shocked so they stand. Visibly sicked cows most likely have bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad cow disease. Downed cows are also likey to develop E coli and salmonella on top of BSE.

"The lack of concern for public health and the complete disregard for these suffering animals demonstrates pure greed on the part of the meat-packing industry. California's downed animal law is appropriate and sensible, and it should be upheld by the court." Says Gene Baur, President of the Farm Sanctuary.

Eating sick cows makes humans sick. As simple as this concept may seem, the National Meat association and American Meat Institute claim that it is the medical worlds fault for food-bourne sickness and that doctors should better vaccinate and treat ill patients.

The dairy cow industry is about 50% more selective when choosing what cows to use milk from. This however does not make milk safer than meat. They are simply more selective because only female cows produce milk. When a cow gives birth to a male it is usually killed and disposed of or sold to factory farms and fattened for meat.

Californian weather and economy has caused milk production to slow and profits to lessen. In response dairy farmers are increasing the amount of newborns. Slaughtering the surplus of males is becoming too expensive and the factory farms are full. A company has been dumping dead male calves on sides of Californian roads at the rate of 50 per week. The government doesn't know which farm is doing this and has offered a reward for information leading to arrests.

While more and more attention is being brought to these issues and more laws are being passed in favor of the animals, the government and consumers fear that this battle is hardly over.

Until factory animals are under the same protection as domestic pets and all laws are strictly enforced within the industry, animals will continue to be abused in order for Americans to be fed. The consumer dollar is more important to the food industry than legal stature, the combination of voting legally and voting with your dollar for continued progress in animal care will make the biggest difference in the health of the animals and people too.

Sources:

ALDF, (2008, March, 5). Lawsuit Against California Pig Farm Dropped as Company Announces End to Abusive Breeding Practices. Retrieved February 23, 2009, from Animal Legal Defense Fund Web site: http://aldf.org/article.php?id=506

Felsinger, Alex (2009, February, 23). Lawsuit: Should Farmers Be Allowed to Define Animal Cruelty?. Retrieved February 25, 2009, from Planetsave Web site: http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/02/23/lawsuit-should-farmers-be-allowed-to-define-animal-cruelty/

Franzetta, Lisa (2009, January, 27). Meat Industry Seeks to Overturn California Law Barring Sick and Disabled Farm Animals From the Food Supply. Retrieved February 23, 2009, from Animal Legal Defense Fund Web site: http://aldf.org/article.php?id=819 (C3)

Humane Society, (2008, November, 4). Californians Make History by Banning Veal Crates, Battery Cages, and Gestation Crates. Factory Farming Campaign, Retrieved February 23, 2009, from http://www.hsus.org/farm/news/ournews/prop2_california_110408.html (C2)

Humane Society, (2009, January, 27). California Senate Majority Leader Dean Florez: Setting the Stage for Farm Animal Welfare Improvements. Retrieved February 25, 2009, from Factory Farming Campaign Web site: http://www.hsus.org/farm/news/ournews/california_senate_majority_leader_dean_florez_012709.html (C1)

Karp, Adam (2009, February. 6). Washington State's Animal Cruelty Law Exemptions Challenged as Unconstitutional: Foxes Should Not Be Guarding the Henhouse. Retrieved February 23, 2009, from Animal Law Offices Web site: http://narn.org/090206_release_anticruelty_suit.pdf

Pulkkinen, Levi (2009, January, 27). Cruelty laws apply to livestock, lawsuit says. Retrieved February 23, 2009, from Seatle p.i. Web site: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/400950_slaughter21.html?source=rss

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