Guest guest Posted March 4, 2002 Report Share Posted March 4, 2002 - " Merritt Clifton, editor, ANIMAL PEOPLE. " <anmlpepl " Kim Bartlett, Publisher, ANIMAL PEOPLE " <anpeople Monday, 04 March, 2002 11:44 Re: Jill Robinson on dog-eating legislation Agreed, I think that if the dogs and cats were killed humanely in the same way that our chickens,cows, etc are in western society then half the battle would be over. Granted that there are some terrible holding yards but at least everything is done quickly and with no torture. Apart from the nuances of Asian culture and politics to which Jill Robinson alluded, this offers a remarkably naive view of western agribusiness. The conditions under which hogs and poultry are routinely raised constitute prolonged torture in themselves--and, having seen first-hand how dogs and cats raised for slaughter are treated in Korea, as well as having covered agriculture in the U.S. and Canada for many years with mainstream newspapers, I can testify that the worst aspect of how the dogs and cats are kept in Korea is that they are kept in more-or-less the same manner as battery-caged hens or confinement-reared hogs are here. In terms of intelligence and sentience, dogs, hogs, and hens all rank very highly and very close together. The methods of dispatch? Even though hogs are not deliberately tortured (usually), it is not uncommon that someone beats or electroshocks the hell out of them to get them to walk to slaughter, and the outcome for the pigs is analogous to a Korean butcher flogging the dogs. No one burns the hogs deliberately, but it is not unusual that hogs survive the stun-gun long enough to be still alive as the hair is scalded off their bodies. Poultry are so roughly handled that 29% of ex-laying hens and 3% of broilers suffer broken bones just in transportation and handling, before slaughter. Poultry are not pre-stunned at slaughter at all in the U.S.--they are not even covered by the Humane Slaughter Act. However, they are shackled upside down to a trolley and dipped headfirst into an electrified trough. This is to make their bowels convulse one last time, to squirt out any remaining shit before their heads are chopped off and they are eviscerated. The central issue for me as regards the slaughter of dogs and cats in Korea is that no animal should be treated so badly. Most of the world has restricted the cruelty to a smaller range of species, and most of the world has made a pretense that the animals should not be DELIBERATELY tortured. It would be a small advance if Korea came into compliance with the international standards for the care and treatment of dogs and cats. It would be a larger advance if the premise could be established there--or could be enforced here--that animals of any species should not be made to suffer through either acts of commission or acts of omission. Whether the torture is deliberate (flogging, burning) or incidental to efficient agricultural procedure, such as prolonged close confinement, debeaking, tail-docking, and castration without anesthetic, it really should not be condoned or excused, nor should the incidental kind of torture be presented as " good " or " better " when it does not make a whole hell of a lot of difference to the suffering animal what the intent of the torturer is. Is a dog or cat really going to prefer being raised and killed like a factory-farmed hog or hen? I really don't see that prospect reducing the totality of suffering enough to get excited over. I do see the prospect of recognizing the capacity for suffering of dogs and cats leading toward greater concern for the suffering of other species. Establishing the precedent of trying to reduce the suffering matters; establishing the precedent that another species should be hanged upside down and dragged alive through an electrified cesspool, on the other hand, is really not something that anyone who cares about animals ought to be doing. Merritt Clifton Editor, ANIMAL PEOPLE P.O. Box 960 Clinton, WA 98236 Telephone: 360-579-2505 Fax: 360-579-2575 E-mail: anmlpepl Web: www.animalpeoplenews.org [ANIMAL PEOPLE is the leading independent newspaper providing original investigative coverage of animal protection worldwide, founded in 1992. Our readership of 30,000-plus includes the decision-makers at more than 8,300 animal protection organizations. We have no alignment or affiliation with any other entity.] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 6, 2002 Report Share Posted March 6, 2002 Please note that the paragraph below " Agreed, I think ....... with no torture " was written by Bryony Young, not Jill Robinson. I apologise that the format made it unclear. The rest of the post was written by Merritt Clifton. John. - " Merritt Clifton, editor, ANIMAL PEOPLE. " <anmlpepl " Kim Bartlett, Publisher, ANIMAL PEOPLE " <anpeople Monday, 04 March, 2002 11:44 Re: Jill Robinson on dog-eating legislation > > Agreed, I think that if the dogs and cats were killed humanely in the > > same way that our chickens,cows, etc are in western society then half > > the battle would be over. Granted that there are some terrible holding > > yards but at least everything is done quickly and with no torture. > Apart from the nuances of Asian culture and politics to which Jill > Robinson alluded, this offers a remarkably naive view of western > agribusiness. > > The conditions under which hogs and poultry are routinely raised > constitute prolonged torture in themselves--and, having seen first-hand > how dogs and cats raised for slaughter are treated in Korea, as well > as having covered agriculture in the U.S. and Canada for many years > with mainstream newspapers, I can testify that the worst aspect of > how the dogs and cats are kept in Korea is that they are kept in > more-or-less the same manner as battery-caged hens or > confinement-reared hogs are here. > > In terms of intelligence and sentience, dogs, hogs, and hens > all rank very highly and very close together. > > The methods of dispatch? > > Even though hogs are not deliberately tortured (usually), it is > not uncommon that someone beats or electroshocks the hell out of > them to get them to walk to slaughter, and the outcome for the pigs > is analogous to a Korean butcher flogging the dogs. > > No one burns the hogs deliberately, but it is not unusual that > hogs survive the stun-gun long enough to be still alive as the hair is > scalded off their bodies. > > Poultry are so roughly handled that 29% of ex-laying hens and 3% > of broilers suffer broken bones just in transportation and handling, > before slaughter. > > Poultry are not pre-stunned at slaughter at all in the U.S.--they > are not even covered by the Humane Slaughter Act. However, they are > shackled upside down to a trolley and dipped headfirst into an electrified > trough. This is to make their bowels convulse one last time, to squirt > out any remaining shit before their heads are chopped off and they are > eviscerated. > > The central issue for me as regards the slaughter of dogs and cats > in Korea is that no animal should be treated so badly. Most of the world > has restricted the cruelty to a smaller range of species, and most of the > world has made a pretense that the animals should not be DELIBERATELY > tortured. > > It would be a small advance if Korea came into compliance with the > international standards for the care and treatment of dogs and cats. > > It would be a larger advance if the premise could be established > there--or could be enforced here--that animals of any species should not > be made to suffer through either acts of commission or acts of omission. > > Whether the torture is deliberate (flogging, burning) or incidental > to efficient agricultural procedure, such as prolonged close confinement, > debeaking, tail-docking, and castration without anesthetic, it really > should not be condoned or excused, nor should the incidental kind of > torture be presented as " good " or " better " when it does not make a whole > hell of a lot of difference to the suffering animal what the intent of the > torturer is. > > Is a dog or cat really going to prefer being raised and killed > like a factory-farmed hog or hen? > > I really don't see that prospect reducing the totality of > suffering enough to get excited over. > > I do see the prospect of recognizing the capacity for suffering of > dogs and cats leading toward greater concern for the suffering of other > species. > > Establishing the precedent of trying to reduce the suffering > matters; establishing the precedent that another species should be hanged > upside down and dragged alive through an electrified cesspool, on the > other hand, is really not something that anyone who cares about animals ought > to be doing. > > Merritt Clifton > Editor, ANIMAL PEOPLE > P.O. Box 960 > Clinton, WA 98236 > > Telephone: 360-579-2505 > Fax: 360-579-2575 > E-mail: anmlpepl > Web: www.animalpeoplenews.org > > [ANIMAL PEOPLE is the leading independent newspaper providing original > investigative coverage of animal protection worldwide, founded in 1992. > Our readership of 30,000-plus includes the decision-makers at more than > 8,300 animal protection organizations. We have no alignment or > affiliation with any other entity.] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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