Farm Animals: Do They Deserve a Good Life?

March 6, 2013
Farm Animals: Do They Deserve a Good Life?
When was the last time that you ate meat? Was it this morning when you had some bacon with your eggs? Or was it last night when you had that nice juicy steak? Whether it was today or yesterday, many people can agree that eating meat is just a way of life. Almost every meal comes with a good helping of some yummy poultry or beef. However, as many of us know, the ways that chickens and cattle are treated before being slaughtered are very unethical and unnecessary. I am happy to report though that there have been many changes dealing with these factory farm animals and the treatment they receive. It is unfortunate that it took the Mad Cow Disease scare in December 2003 before any changes were made, but at least advances in animal treatment are being made (Miller 88). Some of the changes that have taken place include new laws banning gestation, fast-food giants being more particular about where they get their food, and the certification on organic beef. I will be discussing these changes throughout this essay but there have been other changes such as the way cattle are killed. Now, instead of using a sledge hammer, the workers use a captive bolt pistol which is classified as a “more humane” way to kill the cattle.
Before being cut up and served, hogs live a very miserable life. “Pregnant sows live in narrow gestation crates - about 2 by 7 feet, too small to turn around in - with slanted floors that allow waste to drop through” (Miller 90). Obviously, smaller crates would mean that more animals can be raised, therefore more money can be made by the supplier. But the size of these crates is unethical. Sows are impregnated many times until they turn 4 or 5 years old, and then they are sent to the slaughterhouse. The sow’s piglets spend little time with their mother until they are taken away (Wildman). Each time the sow gives birth she is moved to a farrowing stall, which is slightly bigger than the gestation crate (Miller 90). In an effort to stop this cruel confinement of the pigs, Florida Animal Advocate volunteers gathered over 600,000 signatures from registered voters to qualify for the ballot. In November 2002, over 2 ½ million Floridians voted to prohibit the use of gestation crates. This initiative took place in November 2008, after a 6 year phase out period. With the help of the Animal Advocate volunteers and the Humane Society of United States, eight other states have also passed laws to ban the use of the crates - Arizona, California, Colorado, Maine, Michigan, Ohio, Oregon, and Rhode Island (Wildman).
Another change made is that fast-food giants are now more particular about where they get the food they serve to their customers. For example, in 2000 McDonald 's proclaimed “that all of the producers who supplied its eggs must give hens 72 square inches each” (Miller 91). This is about three times the amount than what the hens had originally received. (Miller 91). However, there has been a fairly recent scandal involving McDonald 's and one of its eggs suppliers, Sparboe. Sparboe was the fifth largest egg supplier in the country and had produced all the eggs used by McDonald 's restaurants west of the Mississippi River. In November of 2011, a statement was released by McDonald 's stating that they would no longer be accepting eggs from Sparboe, after undercover footage was released from an Animal Advocate group, Mercy For Animals, showing various acts of animal cruelty including hens crammed into wire cages, live chicks thrown into plastic bags to be suffocated, workers burning the beaks off of young chicks, and many other cruel acts. Afterwards, there was a huge movement toward improving the way factory poultry was treated, particularly since McDonald 's is the largest egg buyer in the U.S. Other efforts made by fast-food chains to get food from producers who treat animals in a “more humane manner” include the purchasing of pork from producers that don 't confine pigs in gestation crates, which Burger King and Wendy 's began doing in 2007 (Polis).
You do not have to be a part of the Animal Advocates or the Humane Society to know that you are making a change in the treatment of these poor defenseless farm animals. You can make a change simply by buying organic. In order to be certified organic, cattle must only be fed pesticide-free and vegetarian feed. They also must be raised without the use of antibiotics or hormones. Although the industries probably prefer to use antibiotics in their animals to avoid disease and keep the animals healthy, the widespread use of these antibiotics has lead to a decrease in the effectiveness against human illnesses. Also, be on the lookout for “grass-fed” labels, these usually insure that cattle spent months walking around in pastures. It is understandable why many cattle suppliers might choose to feed their cattle a high-calorie corn diet, however diets such as this can cause potentially fatal digestive problems (Miller 89). Unfortunately, grass-fed cattle may still spend time confined to a feedlot. Feedlots are terrible places where cattle are crammed into little spaces and are forced to stand in mud and manure. In order to avoid buying beef subjected to this cruelty, look out for labels that read “never confined to a feedlot” (Miller 88-89). Organic pork also has the same criteria to meet as organic cattle, but there are no restrictions on the use of the terms. It is advised therefore, to ask for the details. Although organic beef and pork can cost 50 percent more than the non-organic meat, at least you can eat peacefully knowing that the meat you are eating has been treated more fairly (Miller 89)
As you can see, there have been many improvements and changes to the way factory farm animals are treated. It is unbelievable to think about how these poor creatures are treated and then mercilessly slaughtered. However, with the help and the workings of the Animal Advocates and the Humane Society, I am sure there will be many more changes to come. They have already helped out with creating the new laws banning gestation and have already pushed fast-food giants, such as McDonald 's, Burger King, Wendy 's, etc., to be more particular about what producers supply their food. However, we shouldn 't just let other people do the work to help out these animals by themselves, we too can help and by doing something as simple as buying organic instead of the regular. Even though there is still work to be done, currently the humane society is working with members of the U.S House of Representatives and Senate to pass a legislation banning the use of cages (Wildman). The progress already made is a good indication that there will be more good things to come for these farm animals.

Works Cited
Miller, James S. “Whence the Beef?: The Gruesome Trip From Pasture to Platter,” The Eater Reader. Boston, MA.: Longman, 2011. 87-92. Print.
Polis, Carey. "McDonald 's Animal Cruelty: McDonald 's Drops Supplier Sparboe Egg Farms After Undercover Investigation." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 18 Nov. 2011. Web. 26 Feb. 2013.
Wildman, James. "ARFF - Florida 's Historic Ban on Gestation Crates." ARFF. N.p., 23 Nov. 2008. Web. 27 Feb. 2013.

Cited: Miller, James S. “Whence the Beef?: The Gruesome Trip From Pasture to Platter,” The Eater Reader. Boston, MA.: Longman, 2011. 87-92. Print. Polis, Carey. "McDonald 's Animal Cruelty: McDonald 's Drops Supplier Sparboe Egg Farms After Undercover Investigation." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 18 Nov. 2011. Web. 26 Feb. 2013. Wildman, James. "ARFF - Florida 's Historic Ban on Gestation Crates." ARFF. N.p., 23 Nov. 2008. Web. 27 Feb. 2013.