Dairy and Eggs
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Compassionate Giving Does Not Involve Cruelty to Goats
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What Kind of a Person Eats Katie the Lamb?
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It Is Our Job to Fight for All of Them, Not Only Some of Them
Investigation: Abhorrent Cruelties for Land O'Lakes Dairy
Published October 01, 2009 @ 06:36AM PT
By now, you may have heard about the undercover video and investigation details released earlier this week by PETA. If not, here's the rundown: Someone from PETA spent five months at a dairy in Pennsylvania as an undercover investigator. The dairy is a Land O'Lakes supplier. And the extreme suffering, horrid conditions, and excruciating, debilitating injuries and illnesses the cows are forced to endure are indisputable. It is all documented clearly. The post continues after the below video, so don't forget to click the "Read More" link:
Summer and Freedom, from Dairy to Sanctuary
Published September 24, 2009 @ 07:34AM PT
You've seen (and will continue to see) Marji's wonderful posts at the Animal Place Sanctuary blog included often in the Animals in the Blogs roundups lately (and hopefully, you've been following those links to check out her posts; if not, now's the time). Please welcome her for her first guest post here. -S. Ernst
On a cool spring day, Summer and Freedom were born at separate dairy farms. Like almost all calves in the dairy industry, they were taken from their mom mere seconds after birth. The most powerful bond between mother cow and her calf was immediately denied. Since these two calves were male, they were of no monetary value to the farmer. Male dairy calves are sold when they are only a couple days old –- purchasers raise them for veal or “cheap” beef. At auction, the calves are sold for $3-20. Dairy farmers make no money off of male dairy calves.
Summer and Freedom did not even sell -- Summer was so malnourished that every rib was painfully visible; Freedom lacked a tail, a congenital defect that may cause lifelong digestive problems. Because of their poor start, Summer and Freedom required intensive care. They spent their first four days at a veterinary hospital receiving IV fluids and other medications to keep them healthy.
Cow Collapses on Man -- Guess Whose Condition Is Unknown?
Published September 19, 2009 @ 06:45AM PT
I just saw this news piece from the AP, out of Florida:
The St. Lucie County Fire District reports that a man in his early 30s, who was not identified, was milking cows early Friday morning when one of the animals fell on him. . . .
His injuries were not considered life-threatening, and he was released from the hospital later in the day.
It's not clear if the cow was injured.
The human is fine, but his experience warrants a news release. The cow whose collapse led to the man's injuries? We don't know what happened to her or why she collapsed or fell in the first place. Because no one really cares. Because she was just a milk machine.
Another Undercover Look at Eggs: How Much Cruelty in Your Dunkin' Donut?
Published September 15, 2009 @ 01:54PM PT
Last month, I wrote about Compassion Over Killing's "Dunkin' Cruelty" campaign (link best opened in a browser other than IE) aimed at getting the popular chain to remove egg and dairy from its doughnuts, in addition to providing vegan menu options. But despite COK's concerted efforts and the many e-mails, calls, and letters from customers and potential customers of Dunkin' Donuts, the company has all but ignored the campaign and the information provided on the cruelties of dairy and eggs.
They'll have a hard time ignoring this latest aspect of the campaign.
When Sweet Is Sad and Adorable Is Ironic
Published September 06, 2009 @ 07:44AM PT
At the Sustainable Food blog last week, substitute blogger Mike posted a photo that instantly made me sad. I assume, of course, that it was intended to be--and that most see it as--adorable. And there are photos out there of cute, chubby-cheeked kids and sweet-faced, beautiful cows that would bring out my "aww" reflex. But this isn't one of them.
The Undercover Hatchery Investigation--Not Just for "Factory Farms"
Published September 02, 2009 @ 02:25PM PT
Mercy for Animals' undercover investigation into what happens at hatcheries for the egg industry, about which I told you yesterday, has been getting lots of attention, via mainstream news and blogs and animal rights blogs alike. But one terribly frustrating aspect of reading some of the mainstream blog coverage and comments has been these repeated themes: "Well, this is another reason not to buy industrial eggs"; "I buy free-range, so I'm proud to say I'm not a part of this"; "If you buy local, this doesn't happen."
Not true. Many seem to be missing the point that hatcheries supply free-range operations, "local" egg producers, feed stores, and backyard hobbyists with their hens too; hens exploited for eggs, no matter where you're buying the eggs, come almost entirely from hatcheries that do exactly what the video shows.
This is not a factory farming problem. This is an animal agriculture, eating-of-eggs problem, even if you're buying "free-range."
Undercover Egg Industry Investigation Shows Chicks Ground Up Alive
Published September 01, 2009 @ 07:18AM PT
Edit: See also this follow-up post: "The Undercover Hatchery Investigation--Not Just for Factory Farms."
Numerous posts have appeared on this blog in the last year describing and showing the standard cruelties inherent to all egg production (whether battery or free-range), from the gruesome killing of 250 million malechicks each year at U.S. hatcheries to the ultimate slaughter of all egg-laying hens.
Today, you can see clearly for yourself what happens at the hatcheries, how and where large egg farms and backyard operations alike get the female chicks they will use as egg-laying hens -- and what happens to the other half of the hatched chicks, who are unfortunate enough to be male and of no economic value to the industry (because they have not been bred to grow fast enough for the flesh industry). Mercy for Animals has just released the following video obtained during an undercover investigation at the world's largest hatchery for egg-laying operations: "Thrown, dropped, mutilated, and ground-up alive. This is the shocking reality faced by hundreds of thousands of chicks each day at the world's largest egg-laying breed hatchery."
Please watch. And please remember -- this is not an investigation revealing unusual cruelties. These are the standard, accepted, long-known-about, and defended practices across the egg industry. Read and see more from the undercover investigation on MFA's site dedicated to it. Now is the time to kick the egg habit.
Image and video courtesy of Mercy for Animals
