WARNING: Graphic Pig Farm Video November 16, 2009

Posted by Ryan at November 16, 2009 4:46 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 13 ) | TrackBack

Brace yourselves, because this is a tough one ...

Here at PETA, we're used to undercover investigators documenting the gruesome final moments that animals face in slaughterhouses. Surely this suffering alone is reason enough not to want to eat them.

The latest undercover investigation from our friends in Mercy for Animals takes a look at the cruelty animals—in this case, pigs—suffer before their throats are slit. The investigator documented workers hurling baby pigs and slamming them into transport carts; picking piglets up by their ears and tails; cutting off the animals' tails with pliers, and ripping off their testicles with bare hands and without painkillers (the sound of screaming piglets in the video made my skin crawl). Their squealing mothers are shown scrambling to escape workers who slam spiked mallets into the animals' sides.

This is a brutal video to watch, but I ask that you witness for yourself what happens behind the scenes—because these animals need your voices more than ever.

Once you've watched the video, please take the time to comment with the one word that you would use to describe what you saw.

I'm going to go with "despicable."

Land O'Lakes Supplier's Owners Charged With Cruelty September 29, 2009

Posted by Marta at September 29, 2009 7:27 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 9 ) | TrackBack

The following is a guest blog from PETA's Alisa Mullins. Please take a look and then make the pledge to try veganism.
-Marta

At a news conference in St. Paul, Minnesota, today, PETA unveiled footage from our five-month undercover investigation of a filthy factory dairy farm in Pennsylvania that supplies milk to St. Paul-based Land O'Lakes, the largest seller of branded butter in the U.S.

Undercover Footage Shot Inside a Land O' Lakes Supplier

<embed src="https://www.mediapeta.com/videoplayer/video.swf?v=dairy_factory_farm_pa_p2_high" quality="high" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="240" height="180" allowScriptAccess="always"</embed> <BR> <a href="https://secure.peta.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=2521&s_src=plolec09"> Downed Cows Left to Suffer <BR> for Land O' Lakes.</a>.

Our investigator documented abuse and neglect of cows and calves at the facility, including that cows who were in terrible pain and resisted standing were electro-shocked and jabbed with the blade of a pocket knife in an effort to force them to move and that sick and injured cows were left to languish—often so weak that they couldn't even get out of their own waste—for days and even weeks without veterinary care. In one case, workers were told to wrap an elastic band around a cow's gangrenous, infected teat in order to "amputate" it. The cow's condition deteriorated for 11 days before she finally died.

It's a violation of Pennsylvania law to neglect animals, deprive sick and injured animals of veterinary care, and deny animals clean and sanitary shelter. Charges against the farm's owners have been approved and filed by a local magisterial district judge. The factory farmers are innocent until proven guilty, of course, but they would face up to 90 days in jail and $750 in fines if convicted.

We have also called on Land O'Lakes to buy milk only from farms that meet our 12-point animal welfare plan, which would prevent much of the suffering we documented at this farm.

For those of you who can't stomach the thought of eating butter after watching that video, take a minute to tell Land O'Lakes to implement our 12-point animal welfare plan. Then check out one of the many vegan butter alternatives that are widely available. My personal favorite is Earth Balance margarine. It's 100 percent vegan and free of trans fat, and it tastes even better than butter, at least to my taste buds. Best of all, it's also 100 percent free of cruelty to cows and calves—as well as pus.

-Alisa

Undercover Investigator Unveils New Turkey Investigation November 18, 2008

Posted by Marta at November 18, 2008 5:39 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 14 ) | TrackBack

We have a brand-new investigation of a turkey factory farm, and we wanted to let the investigator introduce it to you himself. See what he has to say, then please check out the video.
—Marta

The alarm clock on my cell blares out at 1 a.m. I twist in pain. It can't be time to get up yet. I hit the snooze button twice. Finally I roll over and rub my face with my hands, feeling the calloused-over blisters scratching my cheeks. The insides of my eyes and nose hurt from the dust that I could not wash out from the hours I worked yesterday in the barns where turkeys spend their entire lives.

They are crammed into pens, sometimes 600 or 800 to a pen. There are almost 8,000 turkeys in one barn. Each of these turkey farms has two or three barns. The dust inside the barns is sickening. I can't even go in without a respirator mask. I cough and choke from not being able to breathe. I see the turkeys panting much of the time. I think about grabbing one of them and carrying her outside and putting her in the grass where she could breathe and walk freely. It is so sad that they are reduced to this miserable existence just to make some profit.

There are times when I have to hold back the tears. To see the workers torture these animals is infuriating. Today we are loading a truck with male turkeys who have been bred to weigh 80-plus pounds—the same weight as my 10-year-old cousin. I will spend the next four hours watching men slam them into cages on the back of a semi truck in temperatures near 20°F. I have seen these guys stomp turkeys' heads on the concrete. The sound of cracking beaks and breaking bones makes me cringe, but I can show no emotion. I am forced to watch in silent pain as these innocent lives are being destroyed.

Turkey factory farms endorse suffering. They sell death. They make money on abuse. They do not want to show people what happens here. Everyone should know what happens here. I have spent two and a half months in hell so that people will know what it means to have a turkey on the table. Watch the video, and show people the truth. Make this world a better place by reducing pain and suffering. And please do not eat turkey this Thanksgiving.

22 Charges Filed Based on PETA Investigation at Hormel Supplier October 23, 2008

Posted by Marta at October 23, 2008 10:13 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 8 ) | TrackBack

Here's a special guest blog from PETA's Christine Dore.

It's with a proud and ecstatic heart that I report this news today! Our investigation into an Iowa pig farm that breeds piglets destined for Hormel has resulted in 22—that's right, count them—22 criminal charges.

The Greene County Sheriff just announced in a news release that six individuals employed by the farm at the time of PETA's investigation now face a total of 22 counts of livestock neglect and abuse. Those charged include a former farm manager—who we understand still works on another pig factory farm—and a supervisor, as well as two individuals who still punch the clock at the Iowa factory farm as we speak.

A whopping 14 of the counts are aggravated misdemeanors—the stiffest possible charges under Iowa state law for crimes committed against farmed animals—carrying up to two years behind bars. To PETA's knowledge, this is unprecedented.

Charges based on PETA's undercover investigations are now pending against pig factory farmers in both Iowa—the nation's top pig-raising state—and North Carolina, which occupies the second rung on that dubious list!

This is a small victory for farmed animals, but we mustn't forget that Hormel, which financially supports this farm, has by all appearances yet to make any changes as a result of this investigation. It has refused to meet with us or even watch all of the footage, which we have repeatedly offered to show the company. Maybe now that the law has spoken up, Hormel will finally listen.

Please, urge Hormel to take action now.

-Christine

UPDATE: Hormel Supplier Investigation October 20, 2008

Posted by Marta at October 20, 2008 4:41 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 6 ) | TrackBack

Remember the shocking footage from an undercover investigation of a factory farm in Iowa that raises pigs destined for Hormel? PETA's undercover investigators documented workers repeatedly hitting pigs with metal gate rods and canes, a worker slamming the heads of piglet "runts" into the floor, and a supervisor who shoved a cane into a sow's vagina and talked about sexually abusing pigs.

Even after the farm changed ownership and management during the investigation, this horrifying treatment and abuse of animals continued.

That being said, we have just released previously unseen footage from the investigation, showing the farm manager kicking and shocking a crippled pig. Can you believe he's still the manager on the farm?!

Other Viewing Options
In the video, the manager is seen shocking a pig with an electric prod and kicking her—both violations of the farm owner's own written policy—in a prolonged attempt to make her stand, which is a requirement for pigs sold for slaughter. The suffering sow, who was unable to stand due to crippled hind limbs, was left in pen for two days, bleeding from a severed hoof, until she was ultimately shot and killed.

This shocking footage was recorded the very next working day after PETA's undercover investigator reported the abuse of pigs that he had seen at the farm to this very manager.

I seriously can't believe that this man is still the farm manager. Think about it: he is responsible for overseeing other employees and how they treat the pigs in that factory farm. Do you think someone who is treating pigs this way is a good example for his employees on the humane handling of animals?

Our demands of Hormel stand firm despite the company's continued failure to respond to our attempts to work with them. Join us in renewing our ask of Hormel. Demand that they enact meaningful reforms to prevent this sort of abuse from occurring on its suppliers' farms.

What do you think about the fact that the same man is still the farm manager?

Update: We wanted to make sure that it's clear to our readers that we offered several times to show Hormel and the farm's management ALL the footage that was taken during PETA's undercover investigation at the supplier's farm—including the above footage of the manager. Neither Hormel nor the farm's management took us up on our offer.

♥ Marta

Your Chance: Ask Our Undercover Investigators A Question October 16, 2008

Posted by Marta at October 16, 2008 3:19 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 17 ) | TrackBack

Have you ever wondered what it's like to be an investigator? Someone who goes undercover in factory farms, slaughterhouses, laboratories, and other animal abusing facilities to film what's really happening for the world to see?

These brave men and women have nothing but my utmost respect. After all, to me, being an undercover investigator seems like one of the hardest jobs out there.

Remember this investigation into a pig factory farm in Iowa? Please check it out if you haven't yet, and ask Hormel to follow PETA's eight-point policy to govern future pig-farming operations.

The incredible people who went undercover for this particular investigation have agreed to answer some questions for you. We hear from curious people all the time who wonder what it's like to be an undercover investigator, so this is your chance to find out. What would you like to ask the investigators? Comment below with your question.

My question would be: How were you able to keep yourself from screaming when the piglets were being slammed into the ground? I would have lost it.

We'll post the answers to 5-10 questions here on the blog (unfortunately, we can't have the investigators answer all of your questions), so be sure to keep an eye out.

♥ Marta

(Warning: Graphic Photo) Torture, Tails, and Testicles September 16, 2008

Posted by Marta at September 16, 2008 6:50 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 63 ) | TrackBack

By now, you're likely well aware of how awesome pigs are—remember, they're even smarter than dogs!

That makes what I'm about to share with you that much more disturbing. It's horrifying to imagine any animal being slammed head-first into the ground, right? Imagine this happening to a piglet...

A new PETA investigation of a pig factory farm in Iowa—which breeds and supplies piglets to be grown and eventually slaughtered for Hormel (maker of SPAM and Dinty Moore), has captured extremely disturbing footage of workers abusing sows and their piglets.

In the video, you'll see pregnant pigs kept in gestation crates so small that the mothers-to-be cannot even turn around, workers and supervisors kicking pigs maliciously, beating them with metal rods, and piglets being slammed against the floor to kill them (a "standard practice" in the pig meat industry). Some of the piglets convulsed for more than 12 minutes before dying.

Also documented by PETA's undercover investigators:

• A supervisor repeatedly urinating near crated pigs, his urine running into the only area where food was dropped and animals could lay their heads.
• Dead piglets' entrails removed, ground into a stew and set under heat lamps to grow bacteria. This stew—called "feedback"—was then mixed with feed and fed to the sows.
• Workers cutting off piglets' tails and pulling out piglet's testicles—without any pain killers—as the small animals screamed next to their mothers. Their tails and testicles went onto a pile on the shed floor.

Tails and testicles from baby pigs

This makes me shudder. Seriously, can you believe all this stuff happened before these pigs were even sent to the slaughterhouse?

Watch the undercover video for yourself, forward this investigation to everyone you know, and take action to stop this abuse today!

♥ Marta

PS - Notice the PETA mention at the end of the video. Little did they know!