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At Our Mercy: The Eating of Animals
I’d always dreamed of having a horse - the wind in my hair, long summer weekends riding bareback through lush fields, a soft nose nuzzling my face. So one day about fifteen years ago, I impulsively adopted a little chestnut colored Morgan mare named Lucky. Not having had the foresight to first arrange food and housing for my new friend, I spent the next few days searching for pasture space. When finally I managed to cajole a local farmer into temporarily lending me some land, there was a caveat -- Lucky would have two roommates, a huge friendly bull named George and a smaller, quite shy one named Glenn -- named, naturally, after the local vet and his assistant. Over the next few months, George and Glenn proved surprisingly amiable pasture mates for Lucky. George, in particular, seemed quite smitten with my little mare. Many a day I’d drive up in my pickup truck to see them standing shoulder-to-shoulder in the soft summer twilight or trailing each other in their meanderings around the pasture. One early spring evening, a friend and I decided to take Lucky out for a trail ride through the vineyards. Carefully closing the pasture gate behind us, we set off, me riding Lucky, Cara walking along beside us. We’d been on the trail just 10 minutes when Lucky abruptly stopped dead and whinnied nervously. We peered around to see what might have frightened her, but saw only row after row of still grapevines. Suddenly, we spotted the source of Lucky’s anxiety -- George. The huge bull was galloping and crashing through the vineyards towards us, bellowing wildly. Had the gate come unlatched? How in the world were we going to get him back into the pasture? As George came charging closer, we braced ourselves for disaster. But as we watched, he gradually began to slow down, eventually breaking to a slow trot and finally coming to a stop at our feet. We stared at him, he gazed calmly back at us, and to tell you the truth, he looked, well, pleased, as though his determination not to be left behind had paid off. As we turned back toward the pasture, George followed closely behind, nuzzling Lucky and making soft mooing sounds deep in his throat. Approaching the pasture fence, we could clearly see the gate -- fastened tightly shut. The only logical conclusion was that George had broken through the four-foot high wire fence. Of course, no one believed us, but that’s the truth. That summer, I found a permanent pasture for Lucky and arrived in my truck and trailer to make the move to her new home. As I loaded her up, George rushed to the fence and began to bellow and wail. He paced and cried ceaselessly while I packed Lucky’s belongings and checked the fence one last time. I can still remember driving away on the dusty road from the farm that day with George’s sad eyes in my mind and his cries in my ears.
By winter, George and Glenn were dead, slaughtered by the farmer and his wife for food. I had always believed in the concept of the "food chain" and all that it implies, but around that time I began to question what it is that separates the animals we love as pets from those we consider appropriate for food. I am convinced that George felt happiness and affection, that he suffered sadness and pain. Anyone who’s had a dog or a cat has seen firsthand evidence of animal emotions. They cringe at harsh words and get beside themselves with joy when we come home at night. We’d object with outrage at the suggestion of killing our dog or cat for food. Yet many of us put our qualms aside when it comes to eating cows and other "farm animals." Why? Several reasons come to mind:
Familiarity Breeds Compassion Do farm animals have the same awareness and intelligence as domestic animals like dogs or cats? Do they feel emotions such as loneliness, fear and pain? Experts say yes, that the intellect and the emotions farm animals feel are as real and as intense as anything Fluffy or Fido might experience. Noted animal researcher and author, Jeffrey Mason says, "I have no doubt that pigs and other animals are capable of the same complex emotions as the animals with whom we share our lives. It seems undeniable that the only difference between pigs and dogs is the way we treat them." Anyone who's cared for a chicken will attest to their surprising levels of sensitivity and intelligence. Lorri and Gene Bauston of Farm Sanctuary, a haven for abandoned and abused farm animals with locations in Orland, California and Watkins Glen, New York, once saved an injured and frightened broiler chicken named Bueford from a slaughterhouse, only to find him curled up asleep with their dog the following morning. When Lorri tried to acquaint Bueford with members of his own species, he merely squawked and ran back to her. Studies confirm experiences like this are not flukes. Dr. Lesley J. Rogers, Professor of Physiology and author of the scientific study, The Development of Brain and Behavior in the Chicken, 1995, notes, "With increased knowledge of the behavior and cognitive abilities of the chicken, has come the realization that the chicken is not an inferior species to be treated merely as a food source." Other scientists studying farm animals have also found clear signs of emotions. In one 1991 study of sows in a typical factory farm, researchers found clinical signs of chronic stress, depression and frustration. Among other things, the animals had chronically elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol, and developed neurotic habits, such as compulsive head waving and repeated licking and chewing of stall bars, as a way of coping with their confinement and inability to move freely.1
Certainly, farm animals don’t share human levels of intelligence or powers of advanced reasoning, but then should intellect be the defining criteria as to whom we kill and whom we don’t? When it comes down to it, we all, humans and animals alike, want to live and be free from pain. As eminent Philosopher Jeremy Bentham, suggested, "The question is not, can they reason? Nor, can they talk? But can they suffer?" To which philosopher Peter Singer adds, "All the arguments to prove human superiority cannot shatter this hard fact: in suffering, the animals are our equals." The Factory Farm Traditional family farming has always been a tough business to make a living in, and with many family farms barely squeaking by, large corporate agribusinesses have, for the most part, taken over the industry. One of the problems with factory farming, unfortunately, is the tendency to treat animals as machinery. To maximize profits, animals are raised in the least space possible, with little consideration for their status as living, feeling beings. Perhaps the attitude can be summed up in the following quote from the magazine, Hog Farmer Management: "Forget the pig is an animal. Treat him just like a machine in a factory."
In the 1980’s there was a great deal of publicity surrounding "factory farms." Some of those pictures from the 80’s may still haunt you – baby calves locked in tiny dark crates, with diets that caused diarrhea and malnutrition. But in the 90’s, the hoopla surrounding factory farming died down somewhat, and many of us assumed that laws had been passed, new regulations enforced, and that we in the United States no longer treated farm animals abusively. The fact is, nearly all animal cruelty laws in the U.S. effectively exempt what’s known as "standard agricultural practices," and sadly, over 90% of farm animals in the U.S. are raised in intensive confinement.2 While abuses are common in many areas of factory farming, some of the most striking instances occur in the farming of sows, dairy cows and their offspring, and egg-producing hens. Babe in the Factory In contrast, pigs raised on a factory farm see no sun in their lives, have no hay to lie on, no pasture to explore or to root in. Sows, or mother pigs, spend their entire lives in metal or cement-floored "gestation" or "farrowing" crates that are so small they can’t walk or turn around. On some factory farms, the sow is literally tied to the floor by a short chain or strap around her neck.5 She is deprived of all exercise and any opportunity to fill her naturally inquisitive nature, and lives in a state of constant agitation.6 Meat industry spokespeople justify this type of intensive confinement by insisting that sows need to be immobilized to prevent them from crushing their young, but long-term university studies and farm records demonstrate otherwise – piglet survival rates are no better with intensive confinement than with more spacious housing.7
On the factory farm, piglets are prematurely removed from their mothers and put into stacked crates or crowded pens with floors of bare wire, metal, or concrete. Without anesthesia, they are castrated and their tails cut off. Confinement results in boredom and frustration, which in turn gives rise to aberrant behaviors such as self-mutilation, cannibalism, and fighting. Although many die, intensive confinement generates higher profits as a whole. As National Hog Farmer, an industry magazine says, "Overcrowding pigs pays."8 While many European countries have outlawed these extreme types of animal confinement, the economical interests of the agricultural industry in the United States has wielded enough political power to continue the practice on a widespread basis. But Drinking Milk is Harmless, Isn’t It? What happens to the calves? The females are raised to replace older dairy cows in the milking line, and the males are typically sold for veal. Veal calves live for up to sixteen weeks in small wooden crates, often chained to prevent movement, and fed iron and fiber deficient diets to produce the white flesh consumers prefer. The Journal of Animal Science reports that up to 25 percent of veal calves suffer from diarrhea and anemia due to these diets. At the end of 16 weeks they are transported for slaughtering. Unfortunately, treatment of veal calves has not changed since the ’80’s. Consumer demand has lessened somewhat, but more than one million veal calves still suffer this fate every year.
Noted physician and author, Michael Klaper, quoted in The Vegan Sourcebook, tells, by way of an anecdote, of the link between veal production and dairy farming: "The very saddest sound in all my memory was burned into my awareness at age five on my uncle’s dairy farm in Wisconsin. A cow had given birth to a beautiful male calf. The mother was allowed to nurse her calf but for a single night. On the second day after birth, my uncle took the calf from the mother and placed him in the veal pen in the barn - only ten yards away, in plain view of the mother. The mother cow could see her infant, smell him, hear him, but could not touch him, comfort him, or nurse him. The heartrending bellows that she poured fourth, minute after minute, hour after hour, for five long days - were excruciating to listen to. Since that age, whenever I hear anyone postulate that animals cannot really feel emotions, I need only to replay that tortuous sound in my memory of that mother cow crying her bovine heart out to her infant." Under humane conditions, dairy cows live up to twenty-five years. According to the American Veterinary Medical Association however, over half of the dairy cows raised on a factory farm will die before the age of four. Why? For a number of reasons. First, more than 50% of dairy cows are confined to indoor stalls – narrow, concrete boxes that allow no access to exercise.9 Second, the practice of feeding extremely rich feeds in an forces milk production to unnaturally high levels. Finally, the use of a synthetic hormone called Bovine Growth Hormone (BGH) further increases milk production. In 1960 the average dairy cow produced 20 pounds of milk per day. Today, according to the USDA, the average yield is around 45 pounds.10 Inducing the body to produce this much milk has side affects for the cow: mastitis, a painful and sometimes fatal bacterial infection of the udders, and laminitis, a painful inflammation of the hoof. So common and severe are these problems that more than 60% of all dairy cows are given antibiotics regularly. Ironically, with all these taxes on her body, the cow looses the ability to produce milk at a young age. After only a few years, she loses her value as a live animal, and sent to slaughter. The USDA reports that roughly two-thirds of all cattle slaughtered are from dairy stock."11 The Life of a Chicken Once the female chicks are sold to egg-producers, they are housed in what are called "battery cages," small wire cages stacked on top of each other. Over 95% of egg-producing hens in the U.S. live five to a cage only 18 inches square, not enough room to spread their wings, and barely enough space to stand. Like a cat, hens naturally like to keep clean, but dropping excrement from chickens in top cages burns their eyes and thwarts any attempt at cleanliness. Their efforts to dust-bathe and to build nests in these conditions have been described as heart-rending. Another custom in the egg industry is the wide-spread use of a process called "force molting," where food is withheld from hens for seven to ten days. Chickens naturally stop producing eggs in the winter, when they concentrate their energies on staying warm and growing new feathers. Egg producers have found a way to produce one more cycle of eggs from hens during this time. By starving them, they are able to induce a kind of physiological shock to the system that produces another round of eggs. The hens that survive this process typically lose up to 30% of their body weight. Great Britain banned forced molting in 1987. Unfortunately, factory farms are a powerful force in the United States, and as of this writing, the practice continues. The lives of non-egg producing chickens (broilers) are somewhat better than their egg-producing counterparts – they’re raised in open buildings that house up to nine birds per square foot. Yet, according to experts, broilers are fed such rich food and grow so rapidly, that their hearts and lungs cannot develop well enough to support the remainder of the body, resulting in congestive heart failure and tremendous death losses.13 A final sad note to the chicken industry is a practice called "debeaking." Chickens naturally love to explore their environment by pecking, but because of the crowded conditions, these urges are turned toward pecking each other. To circumvent this, all chicks are "debeaked," a painful procedure in which their beaks are seared off with a hot blade. Anesthesia is never used and some birds cannot eat after debeaking and starve. Is It Wrong? Here in the United States, we pride ourselves on our altruism, on our penchant for stepping up to undo wrongs, and on defending the under-dog. Yet, every year we turn our backs on millions of animals confined to factory farms. How is this possible? If farm animals have similar levels of intellect, awareness and emotions as dogs and cats, if they experience the same joy and love, and suffer from the same pain and loneliness, how is it they ended up on the wrong side of the pet/food dividing line? Have we perhaps drawn that line arbitrarily, giving the short side of the stick to the animals we’re not familiar with, that we don’t love? And is an animal only deserving of compassion if it’s loved by a human being?
Using animals for food is such a common practice and so deeply ingrained in our culture that many of us have become immune to the cruelty and immorality of it. And perhaps morality has taken a back seat to tradition and long held beliefs. We do what we’ve always done and fail to make conscious choices. What Can You Do? Whether you decide to become a vegetarian or vegan, remember that for most people it’s a gradual process – rarely does anyone make the transition overnight. Many people, for instance, start by limiting meat consumption to once a week. When you’re comfortable with that, you might go a step further by eliminating eggs or milk from your diet. As you cut back, be careful however, not to substitute one animal for another. In other words, don’t give up steak and order cheese ravioli instead. Remember that when you consume milk and cheese, you are supporting the veal industry. We’ll be covering nutrition in another segment, but for now, do take a look a good vegan nutrition book to ensure you get all the nutrients you need. It is absolutely possible, even easy, to be a healthy vegan, it just takes some awareness. Sound overwhelming? Take heart and bear in mind the words of our resident vegan gourmet, Jennye Laws-Woolfe: "The good news about being vegan is that even though many things seem to leave your diet, many new and wonderful things arrive to replace the disappearing ones. For instance, just when you think that you have eaten your very last box of mac and cheese, you find a new vegan Mac and Chreese. When you’re missing the yummy creamy chocolate peanut butter ice cream you once couldn’t get enough of, you come across Organic Chocolate Peanut Butter Soy Delicious. Far from the ascetic lifestyle I had long dreaded, veganism was a joyful expression of how my choices do make a difference. They matter for the animals, they matter for the world, and they matter for me." While every person who loves animals must make their own decisions on vegetarianism or veganism, In Defense of Animals, like other animal rights organizations, promotes veganism on the basis that most living beings have feelings, emotions and the drive to live. There are many environmental and health reasons to go vegetarian or vegan, but perhaps this, the philosophical reason, is the most compelling. Some of the greatest thinkers in history, Albert Einstein, Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Albert Schweitzer, embraced the vegetarian ethic. They saw the sacredness of all life and lived according to that belief. We welcome you to hold that doctrine too. Sources and Additional Reading Footnotes: |