Factory Farms

(CC) Image by Ethelred The Unusual

Factory Farms are industrial mass-scale factories used to house millions of animals including pigs, cows, sheep, chickens, pheasants, ducks and geese. These farms offer the perfect conditions for infection, virus and disease to develop. These ailments usually go untreated without veterinary care or any anaesthetics. Factory farms subject animals to a life of imprisonment where they are unable to move or turn around. The enormous strain on the animal may cause it to resort to cannibalism and self-mutilation. Even dairy animals are raised on large factory farms where cows are over milked and abused, chickens are kept caged and baby calves are torn away from their mothers. Adding to these abuses, male chicks are gassed and grinded alive at just one day old while male calves are either slaughtered or bred for beef.

Conditions

Animals suffer a life of confinement in cages, pens, or spaces barely big enough to house them. Injuries and health problems are commonplace, due to overcrowding and improper living conditions. Animals are unable to fulfil their social needs and natural behaviour, resulting in stress and shortened life spans. The method of breeding and intensive rearing is also a major problem as animals may be born with health problems and genetic defects that will go untreated for the duration of their short lives. Animals are constantly overfed with feed containing antibiotics which are then passed on to the human consumer. The feed lacks the nutrients and proteins animals need to help them develop so farmers feel the need to use antibiotics instead of providing a more substantial and healthier animal feed.

Slaughter

Chickens and turkeys are loaded on to crates while sheep, pigs and cows are forced onto tightly packed trucks and driven to the abattoir. The journey is often lengthy and some animals die inside the truck because of illness, injury and suffocation. Downed animals who are unable to stand will be kicked, whipped and electrocuted in an attempt to get them onto the truck. The downed animals are considered useless and are either burned, incinerated or slaughtered.

Once the animals reach the slaughterhouse they have to watch other animals being killed until it is their time to die. Animals are hung upside down by their hind legs whilst their throats are slit or in the case of some chickens and pigs they may be boiled alive. A portion of the animals may even be skinned or gutted whilst still conscience. It is rare for an animal to receive anaesthetic as this proves costly and time consuming. Some animals are electrocuted or gassed in an attempt to make them unconscious before they are hung on the conveyer belt system.

Health

Infection is encouraged by the overcrowded conditions and the weakened immune systems of the animals. Once an animal becomes infected , the virus will spread like wildfire often killing thousands of animals. Animals are exposed to large amounts of excretion and urine which again provides the perfect conditions for infection and illness. Meat eating humans also suffer health problems due to the meat industry. They will have a shortened life span, a higher chance of developing disease and can catch salmonella and viruses from uncooked or intensively reared animal meat. Both Swine Flu and Bird Flu strains either developed or were encouraged from conditions on factory farms.

Battery Farming

Battery farming refers to large scale industrial facilities that house thousands of poultry birds for the purpose of selling their eggs to consumers. Around 60% of the world’s eggs are thought to come from battery farms, with the average size of each cage being between 300cm² to 625cm². Almost a dozen hens may be kept in each of these small cages and as a result they are severely restricted in their movement. Hens cannot stand, move or spread their wings. Scientists and activists have suggested hens suffer extreme frustration, boredom and stress because of the poor living conditions. Hens are fed with poor quality grain filled with hormones and antibiotics to make them grow faster so as to produce more eggs.

Pollution

The meat industry causes more pollution than all the world’s transportation put together, with pollution being created from waste, animal feed, pesticides, and massive water consumption. Animal feed is often grown by clearing an area of land such as parts of the Amazon rainforest and spraying large amounts of pesticides and fertilises. The land becomes degraded and the nutrients in the soil are eroded away as a result of the extensive use of fertiliser. The amount of energy and water used to grow crops is considerable. The meat industry in the United States consumes more water than all the other water consuming industries and all the people of the United States put together.

(CC) Image by Hide-sp

(CC) Image by KatjusaC

(CC) Image by Compassion in World Farming

Conclusion

All factory farmed animals are treated as products to be used and exploited for profit. No consideration is given to the welfare and wellbeing of each animal. Farmers overfill their barns and overfeed their animals to ensure maximum production. Both the meat industry and the dairy industry create more pollution than all cars, aeroplanes, trains, buses and boats put together. Even more pollution is created from destroying larger areas of land to make room for grain production and large scale factory farms.