No attempt is made to render the animals unconscious or to reduce their suffering in the 66 incidents of cruelty documented for authorities, says the animal welfare group, based in Chicago.
The 55-acre Catfish Corner breeds and stocks in artificial ponds as many as 12,000 pounds of captive fish at one time. The animals are slaughtered and sold to the public as food. MFA also believes fish from Catfish Corner are used to stock State of Texas lakes like Lake Ray Hubbard and lakes near Grand Prairie.
In recorded video, the owner of Catfish Corner states on film that he skins and dismembers the animals alive, despite the government's instruction to "electrically shock them." MFA says it has documented other Texas facilities which electrically stun fish prior to skinning the animals in order "to render them unconscious and reduce their suffering."
In a letter to MFA declining prosecution of Catfish Corner, Assistant Dallas County District Attorney Melinda Edwards writes that "Texas animal cruelty law lacks precedent that would support criminal prosecution for the conduct you brought to our attention."
The ability of fish to feel pain is no longer in dispute.
The skin of the fish "contains sensory receptors for touch, pressure and pain," says the Standing Committee of the European Convention for the Protection of Animals Kept for Farming Purposes and is the "first line of defence against disease and provides protection from the environment."
Researchers at the University of Edinburgh's Division of Biological Sciences say the fact that fish "can learn to avoid an adverse stimulus such as electric shock ... and hooking during angling," proves their responses are not "simply a nociceptive reflex."
And Dr. Temple Grandin, the leading farmed animal welfare expert and an advisor to the US Department of Agriculture, says "Research shows that fish respond to painful stimuli in a manner that is not just a simple reflex." Upon viewing the Catfish Corner video she added, "People processing live fish should first render the fish insensible before skinning, removing meat, or other invasive procedures."
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
2
1
1
