Bad Cows: Are We Good Or Bad?

Cattle across america is proddled, slaughtered, and abused on a daily basis. Similarily, a little less than 80 years ago fathers, mothers, and children were treated under the same circumstances. These cows are, “crammed onto trucks where they typically go without food, water, or rest for the duration of the journey, which can sometimes be days” (PETA). “Cows” can be switched for “human beings” and the recent sentence would have still been true during the halacaust. PETA also writes about how uncooperative animals are beaten if they do not comply. Jews were whipped, battered, raped, shot, and tortured in any other way thought of. Many prisoners were not lucky enough to be put to death right away like cattle, instead they suffered this treatment

A poll conducted by the ASPCA revealed that 94% of Americans believe that production animals, specifically those raised for food, deserve to live a comfortable life free of cruelty and neglect. Despite this belief, many factory farm animals are abused and neglected in such ways that, if witnessed by consumers, would not be accepted. Over 99% of the United State’s farm animals live on factory farms that use them for means of profit, many of them violating the Animal Welfare Act and other laws put in place to protect the humane treatment of animals (ASPCA). This abuse is not limited to any specific type of farm animal. Although different animals are used for different purposes, they all share a common suffering and a need for humane care.

America’s meat industry hides from the consumer, according to Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma. The consumer, as well as corporations, have built walls instead of demanding transparency. Journalists and the general public are not permitted to enter abattoirs of many corporations, leaving the judgement of slaughtering methods to the businesses themselves. State and federal regulations aren’t always enforced, thus corporations decide what is ‘humane’. Profit organisations find the most efficient and lucrative system, yet ignore the secondary costs to natural systems. Pollan argues that in preventing abuse, only transparency holds businesses accountable to regulations. He states in Omnivore’s Dilemma, ‘No other country raises and slaughters its food animals quite as intensively or as brutally as we do’. Many Americans would disagree because they are ignorant of the system. We have chosen not to see what really happens to the animals we eat, understandably, due to the unpleasant truths Pollan uncovers. As a summary, slaughterhouses kill a steer by stunning it, hanging it upside down by its leg and bleeding it out by cutting its throat. However, (according to McDonald’s) they accept a five percent error rate, meaning when the first ‘stunning’ does not kill the animal, the steer continues along the conveyor belt for processing. Animal rights group’s accounts have revealed that live animals have been skinned alive and go through immense suffering. Despite the

As you open your mouth to take a bite out of a juicy hamburger topped with bacon, do you ever wonder what you’re actually eating? I used to not care about what happened to the animals that provided my food, just as long as I had food. It is very rare that we really know what happens to the animals as they are becoming our food. The cow and pig you are about to eat had suffered a great amount of inhumanity before being slaughtered. Animals that are living on slaughterhouse farms have been abused and mistreated in many ways. It is highly unnecessary for us to mistreat animals when they’re providing food for us.

One case of animal abuse in the U.S. food industry is the Central Valley Meat Co, located in Hanford, California. Employees at the Hanford Slaughterhouse were caught on video killing cows violently and inhumanely, neglecting to render cows unconscious before slaughter, and other forms of abuse. Many of the cows appeared to be sick and unable to walk as well. Under federal rules, sick animals can’t be slaughtered for human consumption. (Nidever)

Despite the polling of the 94% almost 10 billion farm animals each year are suffering and if the consumers would have seen how they were treated they might have thought twice before they bought it. Another thing to think about is more than 10,000 american horses die for human consumption even though that 80% say it shouldn’t happen. 1

Animal cruelty looks like being aggressively bred and drugged to produce as much milk as possible in the shortest amount of time possible. Dairy cows are often killed after just three lactation cycles as it is more cost effective to kill them early on instead of waiting for milk production to

Eating animals is normal for any carnivore, but abuse to these animals is unacceptable. There are religions and traditions when it comes to eating and killing animals, usually to be viewed sacred and not like they are nothing. Humans have morals and traditions that separate barriers with farm animals and pets.

Animal abuse is something that has been around since ancient times. Even Aristotle, in his own way, abused animals. He believed that animals were merely possessions. Aristotle even wrote in his Great Chain of Being how he believed the species on earth were arranged in a hierarchy, with humans being at the top and animals at the bottom, and that those at the bottom were only meant to serve those above them (“Animal Rights”). However, because they believed in the transmigration of the soul between humans and animals, the Pythagoreans and Neo Platonists thought that people should respect animals and their interests. So while many people may not have treated animals

“For most humans, especially for those in modern urban and suburban communities, the most direct form or contact with non-human animals is at meal time: we eat them. This simple fact is the key to what each one of us can do about changing these attitudes. The use and abuse of animals raised for food far exceeds, in sheer numbers of animals affected, any other kind of mistreatment” (Coats). The most effective method to stop this cruelty is to learn about where the meat comes from, by supporting the organic and family farms which will ultimately lead to the reducing the amount of animals that have to suffer (PETA). More than 95 percent of animal abuse in America occurs in the meat packing industry (Harper & Low). Animals suffer an unimaginable amount, they are raised to be killed, then bought and then consumed. In order to help fight back against the abuse, there needs to be a cut back on the amount of meat or poultry that is consumed. Seriously consider the option of becoming a vegetarian; by not eating meat, you completely stop supporting animal

Then there are cattle that are raised for beef. The cows that are raised for beef are subject to branding for identification, which is preformed with a hot iron pressed into their flesh. They also have their horns cut or burned off of them (PETA Beef 1). These cows also receive very little veterinary care and result in death from infections or injury (PETA Beef 2). The cows are also fed a highly unnatural diet to fatten them up, causing digestive

My only reaction to this ad is to laugh. I grew up around cattle, so I know that cattle don't stand or walk like humans do. This would not make me want to eat more chicken.

Why would anyone abuse an animal? Animal abuse is rather common, you could be doing it even if you don’t think you are. There are many animals that deal with abuse or neglect, about 1,423 animals a year. That’s in the U.S. alone. Animals are living creatures, just like you, and they’re not cheap. Neglect is another version of abuse, and it can come in many forms. Neglect could be starving them, not giving them medical care, not paying attention to them, etc, etc. Animals are just like humans, I mean, sure they can’t make their own meals, and they can’t drive a car, but that doesn’t mean they have fewer rights than you do. If an animal is abused or neglected the animal will be taken and the owner should be charged. If someone abuses an

What goes on inside a slaughterhouse is something the meat industry does not want you to find out about. They like to portray happy farm animals, but we both know thats not true. In the U.S alone over 500,000 animals are killed merciless every hour for their meat. “Over 56 billion farmed animals are killed every year by humans. More than

You shouldn’t have to be an animal lover to get upset over the treatment of these animals. 99% of animals raised in farms are raised in factory farms, and of those, 97% are tortured. On top of that, most of the animals do not receive antibiotics for the abuse they go through.