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October 16, 2008 at 22:41:46
Hog hell: Investigators uncover shocking abuse at pig farm by By Dan Paden (Posted by PETA) Page 1 of 1 page(s) |
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Every time PETA has sent an undercover investigator into a factory farm or slaughterhouse, we’ve found egregious animal abuse. Our latest case is no exception. Raising and killing animals for food is an ugly business even under the best of circumstances, but only a sadist could swallow what PETA’s investigators saw at a Greene County, Iowa, farm that produces piglets destined for Hormel and other pork companies. Supervisors and workers were caught beating pigs with metal bars, kicking them repeatedly, shocking them in the face and spraying paint into their nostrils and all over their faces. They slammed the heads of piglets who were deemed too small to be profitable onto the concrete. This common industry practice, known as “thumping,” is supposed to kill the animals instantly, but many of the piglets at this farm survived the blows and some were still writhing in pain more than 12 minutes later. Employees took pleasure in the animals’ pain. One worker said that the pigs deserved to be hurt and that the more the pigs suffered, the better he liked it. He encouraged PETA’s undercover investigator to pretend that a pig had scared away a “willing” 17- or 18-year-old girl and to punish the pig for it. Another worker said he “get[s] a lot of aggression out” on the pigs and laughed as he suggested they be shot in the vagina with a captive-bolt gun. Managers behaved no better. One supervisor rammed a cane into a pig’s vagina and boasted about shoving metal gate rods up pigs’ anuses. The same supervisor—who instructed PETA’s investigator to “beat on the b***h” and to “[m]ake her cry”—repeatedly kicked a downed sow. She gave birth the next day and was thought to be in labor during the abuse. 
Lacerations were found on dozens of sows at the farm; one pig’s injuries lasted for nearly two weeks. Farm Sanctuary, an animal protection group that is caring for pigs who were rescued during flooding in southeastern Iowa, found wounds on the animals consistent with those documented by PETA’s investigators, indicating that such abuse is systemic in factory farms.
PETA’s exposés of other hog farms have led to felony cruelty charges and the termination of employees for animal abuse. But even when factory-farmed animals aren’t gratuitously abused, they still suffer greatly. Pregnant pigs are confined to metal gestation crates so small that they can’t turn around or even take a single step in any direction. Their piglets are taken away from them, castrated and mutilated—without the use of painkillers. In slaughterhouses, pigs are hung upside-down, bled and scalded, often while they’re still conscious.
People who eat pork are paying to support these routine, industrywide acts of cruelty, but meat-eaters and vegetarians can still agree that the willful abuses witnessed on the Iowa farm are wrong and must stop. When Dr. Temple Grandin, the world’s foremost expert on farmed animal welfare, reviewed PETA’s undercover footage, she said, “The treatment of sows on this video is atrocious animal cruelty. These people should be prosecuted. This is some of the worst abuse of sows I have ever seen.”
PETA is calling on Hormel to enact and rigorously enforce strict animal welfare guidelines for its facilities and for the facilities it supports. Among other things, employees who abuse animals must be terminated and prosecuted, and cameras must be installed in animal areas and randomly monitored by a third party. It shouldn’t take a PETA investigation to bring cruel behavior to a company’s attention—or to remind consumers that by buying bacon, sausage, ham and hot dogs, they are supporting suffering. The best thing any of us can do to end abuses on factory farms is to stop eating animals.
Dan Paden is a research associate in People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals’ Cruelty Investigations Department, 501 Front St., Norfolk, VA 23510; www.GoVeg.com.
The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author
and do not necessarily reflect those of this website or its editors.
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How I have to point out
that in China, you don't see any of this type of cruelty being administered to animals at live markets that are slaughtered for human consumption. by Stanimal (2 articles, 228 quicklinks, 38 diaries, 1259 comments [235 recommended, 2 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 17, 2008 at 5:32:07 PM  (0+)
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Reply: stick to the story man
You have to point out what??? that you use words like "before you go accusing" i beieve that the report was about going undercover and discovering animals in IOWA which is in the USA....where this abuse is going on. Bottom line is its about the intense sadism that is being highlighted and the sheer abuse to defenseless creatures that are put through hell before they end up on your plate as you are about to take a big bite of "fear, suffering, abuse and hatred" and you call it "dinner".... bon apetit!!! YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT!!! **Go Organic and Be Vegan" by dart boe (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 1 comments) on Sunday, Oct 19, 2008 at 4:09:59 PM (0+)
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Reply: China bashers with reason
You need to go on the internet and view "The Fur Markets of China." You also should enter in "The San Francisco Live Food Markets." If you have done so, I would really like to know what you think. by Suzana Megles (66 articles, 0 quicklinks, 22 diaries, 364 comments [43 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Monday, Oct 20, 2008 at 1:42:13 PM (0+)
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Cruel? Yes...
Yes, I don't like the fact that this abuse takes place...however, it won't change my eating habits. (or anyone in my family) by Mr Stq (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 37 comments [1 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Sunday, Oct 19, 2008 at 8:23:04 PM (0+)
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Come of man's problems are because of meat
We are an overpopulated and supposedly advancing society and mature spiritual people do NOT eat meat and one of the reasons for this is that meat consumption increases aging. Only animals are supposed to eat animals to keep nature in balance. Man is out of balance on this planet. Man can have SMALL amounts of dairy, the phosphate in it is hard on the kidneys, and causes osteoarthritis, and eggs of hens raised in kindness, ditto cows and goats. The bodies of these HUMANELY raised animals can be used for pet food. Higher man never eats meat if he wants to expand his longevity. It is especially bad to eat tortured animals, they put out a lot of death hormones. This article is disgusting in America, that this continues to happen says something about this country. Ditto the Iraq war etc, and that it continues and is OK with the people. We are a fallen country. The number of animals raised for food is harsh on the environment. That a lot of sh*t and urine to be processed. When fallen man and angel were imprisoned on this planet is fully animal bodies, they were given chickens for eggs only, for the cholesterol these bodies need. The chicken itself, raised with compassion, and killed humanely was to be pet food. This is a low life planet STILL after being a prison world for 200,000 years now. This is the final battle of good and evil and man is NOT doing well in general. by Candace Frieze (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 30 comments) on Sunday, Oct 19, 2008 at 9:14:17 PM (0+)
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Why eat pork
Maybe the Muslims and Jews knew somethig, such as why pig farmers/butchers/consumers were not so healthy. Pork contains retro-virii which heat does not destroy. (mercola.com). Pork is loaded with parasites which careful cooking destroys. If you get up-to-date on the science, (keeping in mind that mainstream medicine took four hundred years to accept the fact that vitamin C cures scurvy, which means you have to look outside the box)), you will discover in The Cure and Prevention of All Cancers, 2007, H R Clark PhD, ND, that pork contains the plant phenol, phloridzin. This plant phenol degrades the pituatary gland, and this is the start of all cancers. The degraded pituatary parts then circulate, match up with degraded hypothalamus and pancreatic parts to form the cancer nucleus. When this cancer nucleus, together with another complex, enters an organ, you start a malignancy. The uncontrolled release of HGH and stem cell factor from the pituatary parts damage chromosomes in the targeted organ, accelerating the malignancy. So whether pigs are treated well or not prior to slaughter, you should not be eating ANY pork product if you care for your health.. In time, when this information gradually reaches the public, pigs will not longer be bred nor slaughtered for human consumption. by Thomas Turk (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 1 comments) on Monday, Oct 20, 2008 at 12:50:44 AM (0+)
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Reply: Why eat pork
Why eat meat at all? Animal raising is detrimental to global warming beause of their methane production. Animal raising requires copious amounts of water and grain. Animal raising has led to the destruction of some rain forests. Because of our factory farms from hell, animal raising is inherently cruel to animals who have basic needs like ourselves. And lastly, meat protein is not the best for our health. Just like with pork, we are a lot better off eating the wonderful alternatives that we have today. Earlier people were not so lucky. Sadly though we have not progressed much if we eat meat. by Suzana Megles (66 articles, 0 quicklinks, 22 diaries, 364 comments [43 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Thursday, Oct 23, 2008 at 9:09:19 AM (0+)
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