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The Animal Welfare Cause
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Loading...Victory for Downed Farm Animals in California
In March the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated a California ban on slaughtering downed animals, or animals who are too sick, weak or injured to stand on their own.
The decision overturns last year’s ruling by U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill, which ruled that a federal food safety law that prevents this from happening means nothing, a decision exemplifying the meat industry’s complete disregard for animal suffering and lack of concern for food safety over profit.
The new ruling means that the state of California has the right to decide which animals are sent to slaughter and has the ability to ban the sale, transport or purchase of downer cows and pigs, despite protests from the National Meat Association and the American Meat Institute who challenged the law in 2008, arguing that the Federal Meat Inspection Act (FMIA) prevents states from having any say in the matter.
“Regulating what kinds of animals may be slaughtered calls for a host of practical, moral and public health judgments that go far beyond those made in the FMIA,” said Chief Judge Alex Kozinski. “These are the kinds of judgments reserved to the states, and nothing in the FMIA requests states to make them on a species-wide basis or not at all. Federal law regulates the meat inspection process; states are free to decide which animals may be turned into meat.”
Aside from the inherent cruelty of kicking, dragging and electrocuting non-ambulatory animals into the slaughterhouse after they’ve suffered miserable lives on factory farms and days of grueling transport, when every animal is treated like a dollar sign, sick ones are going to get into the food supply too. And we all know by now that stressed and sick animals have a much greater risk of harboring bacteria like E.coli and Salmonella, which kill hundreds of people every year.
“The abuse of living, breathing, feeling animals who are too sick, injured and weak to stand is incongruent with Californians’ values of mercy and compassion,” said Farm Sanctuary president and co-founder Gene Baur. “We applaud the Court for refusing to protect the interests of big agribusiness at the expense of the American people and the animals entrusted to our care.”
Read more: animal cruelty, animal welfare, california, downers, slaughter
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227 comments
+ add your ownWhat happens with the downed animals that they decided not to slaughter for human consumption? Are they turned into pet food? Are they dragged into a corner to die a slow painful death? Humanely euthanized? Lots of info left out.
Bad news :-(
Goodness I hope we can save poor animals. I hope we will be human enough to be kinder to our animals. Thanks for the article by the way xx
So totally pitiful!!!
Noted and sign !
It would be nice if people made the correct decision and stuck to it.
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Enforcement will be the key. As previously cited, just because a law is on the books, does not mean it will be followed. The all too powerful meat industry with dollar signs guiding their every move, will not be influenced unless there are regulators with the authority to close down slaughterhouses for non-compliance. In the meantime, countless animals will continue to suffer unmercifully at their hands.
Noted.
Who is going to enforce the law? Capitalism is above the law. Why is that? Because as the article pointed out, our species is blinded by greed. I'm grateful to the Farm Sanctuary.
Nice to know someone cares about these poor poor animals so badly treated by the people farming them it is truly shocking. I am just glad I am a Vegan. Also what about all the battery chickens they have a hell of a life most of them crippled and still are slaughtered for meat. Oh it makes me sick.
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