Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
life—transport and slaughter are brief. But these final phases are
fraught with stress and often cause untold suffering.
The more than 9 billion chickens and 270 million turkeys killed
for meat each year in the United States must be caught and crated
before they're stacked onto massive slaughter-bound trucks.
“Catchers” manually gather the birds by physically grabbing
them, carrying several at a time by their legs and even wings,
and throwing them into crates. During an average shift, a single
chicken catcher lifts and crates as many as 1,500 birds in an hour.
With workers moving at such a frenzied pace, the animals can—
and do—sustain severe injuries, including broken legs and wings,
internal hemorrhaging, ruptured tendons, and dislocated hips. A
number of studies report that as many as 20 to 30 percent suffer
injury during the collection process.
Crated and on the truck, the birds are denied food, water, and
even protection from the elements. Wholly unfamiliar with the
outdoors—wind, sunlight, rain, and myriad noises—the birds ex-
perience shock and fear. Transport can even result in death. Birds
may die en route from infectious disease, heart and circulatory
disorders, and trauma experienced during catching and crating. In
fact, dead-on-arrival (DOA) estimates for chickens range from 0.19
to 0.46 percent, which means a staggering 17 to 41 million birds die
during transport every year.
Pigs, cattle, and other farmed animals experience similar condi-
tions during transport—overcrowded confinement and lack of ba-
sic provisions for their health and well-being. Trucking live animals
with already weakened immune systems, not to mention cardio-
vascular, skeletal, and respiratory disorders, is not only an animal
protection issue, but a public health concern, as these animals are
much more susceptible to disease, existing infections, and new
pathogens.
At the slaughter plant, animals face a range of assaults,
