Hatchery Investigation | Mercy For Animals

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Thrown, dropped, mutilated, and ground-up alive. This is the shocking reality faced by hundreds of thousands of chicks each day at the world’s largest egg-laying breed hatchery – Hy-Line International in Spencer, Iowa.

New hidden camera footage obtained at this facility during a Mercy For Animals undercover investigation gives a disturbing glimpse into the cruel and industrialized reality of modern hatcheries.

The warm, comforting, and protective wings of these newly hatched chicks’ mothers have been replaced with massive machines, quickly moving conveyor belts, harsh handling, and distressing noise. These young animals are sorted, discarded, and handled like mere cogs in a machine.

For the nearly 150,000 male chicks who hatch every 24 hours at this Hy-Line facility, their lives begin and end the same day. Grabbed by their fragile wings by workers known as "sexers," who separate males from females, these young animals are callously thrown into chutes and hauled away to their deaths. They are destined to die on day one because they cannot produce eggs and do not grow large or fast enough to be raised profitably for meat. Their lives are cut short when they are dropped into a grinding machine – tossed around by a spinning auger before being torn to pieces by a high-pressure macerator.

Over 30 million male chicks meet their fate this way each year at this facility.

For the surviving females, this is the beginning of a life of cruelty and confinement at the hands of the egg industry. Before even leaving the hatchery they will be snapped by their heads into a spinning debeaker – a portion of their sensitive beaks removed by a laser. Workers toss and rummage through them before they are placed 100 per crowded box and shipped across the country.

The callous disregard for animal welfare at this facility is not isolated. In fact, the conditions documented during this investigation are completely standard and acceptable within the commercial egg industry. Referred to by Hy-Line corporate leaders as mere "genetic products," these chicks are treated just as they are viewed – as inanimate objects, rather than the sentient creatures they are.

Egg producers have gone to great lengths to hide their cruel practices from consumers. Grocery aisles from coast-to-coast are stocked with egg cartons featuring idyllic images of free-roaming hens and crowing roosters. These deceptive marketing gimmicks conceal the cruel and violent nature of industrial hatcheries and egg factory farms.

Consumers have a right to know the truth behind egg production.

Citing the troubling findings of this investigation, Mercy For Animals is calling on the nation’s 50 largest grocery chains to require that all eggs sold in their stores bear a label reading, "Warning: Male chicks are ground-up alive by the egg industry."

Hopefully, armed with the sobering truth, consumers nationwide will be able to make informed and compassionate food choices.

Driven by consumer demand, the egg industry will continue to exploit, abuse, and kill day-old animals as long as doing so remains profitable. Empowered consumers can put their ethics on the table by choosing kindness over cruelty at each meal by adopting an animal-friendly vegan diet.

Video | Photo Gallery | Expert Statements | Investigator’s Diary | Take Action

 
http://www.mercyforanimals.org/hatchery/

 
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There needs to be a different name for ‘Man’. There simply us not enough ‘humanity’ in humanity. All of the sufferings that people inflict on other people and on animals along with the destruction of our planet shows an absence of humanity within the human race. Humans are consumed with hate, greed, lust for blood and power. Humans are a plague upon the planet a plague upon animals. The beauty of ‘life’ is lost on Man. With the exception of the Animal Rights Activist who are a minority among us I am sickened by ‘Man’ . Where will ‘Man’ be in 10, 20, 30 years from now? Just follow the trail of death & destruction and you’ll find us…..until there is nothing left to kill, until there is no blood left to spill.

Pigs and sheep are seen being kicked, shoved and – in one case – dragged into the stun room, which was packed with frightened animals. In the chaos, animals slip, fall and cry out. The electric tongs used to stun pigs and sheep frequently make contact for too short a time or do not span the brain, and deliver, instead, nothing more than painful electric shocks. Often, the suffering inflicted, the terror experienced and the indifference of the stun operator are shockingly apparent.

Animal Aid filmed:
Pigs and sheep going to the knife without adequate stunning
Pigs and sheep stunned and then allowed to come round again
Pigs, sheep and calves crying out and struggling to escape
Pigs being kicked in the face and sheep thrown to the floor
Pigs and sheep with illness or injury being slaughtered
A sheep too sick to stand – or possibly already dead – being brought to slaughter in a wheelbarrow
A ewe being stunned and killed while her young was suckling her
Ewes watching as their young are killed
Pigs falling from the slaughter line into the blood pit and being dragged out and re-shackled while other pigs look on
An inadequately stunned young calf lying kicking on the floor and the stun operator standing on him to keep him still

Kate Fowler, Head of Campaigns at Animal Aid, says:
‘We believe that millions of animals across the country are suffering untold torment when they are stunned and killed. In the stun rooms, we filmed terrified sheep and pigs running crazily in circles, looking for an exit or trying to make themselves invisible behind the hoist. Two sheep were so desperate to escape that they leapt through the hatch into the slaughter area where they landed in the blood pit below their bleeding and shackled mates. Many animals were partially stunned and left writhing or convulsing on the floor, while the stun operator ignored their plight. Animals were kicked, hit, goaded, sworn at and stood on. In our view, one worker in particular combined incompetence, stupidity and callousness. But even those workers who function as best they can, operate in a system that is pitiless.
‘The film we obtained shows scenes from hell and disposes of the myth that slaughter in the UK is, or can ever be, humane.’

Phil
Lani-girl

From: Rodeo~A legalized abuse of animals for cowards!!
Date: 8/29/2009 2:07:00 PM

Subject: Bad cops of rodeo tries to stop humane investigation.

What happens when the Chief of Police of Altimont and the Sheriff of Effingham County in Illinois sponsor the Illinois High School Rodeo Association? These supposed law enforcement professionals obstruct and harass Approved Illinois Humane Investigators who are simply trying to document a rodeo and a rodeo producer with a history of abuse.

Part 2

Who Sponsors Rodeo Cruelty?

CokeCruelty.com
DodgeRodeoCruel..ty.com
ATTcruelty.com
Wal-Mart
United States Air Force Thunderbirds
United States Army
Southwest Airlines
Enterprise Rent-A-Car
Bank of America
Toyota
Holiday Inn
Anheuser-Busch
McDonald’s
Coors
Jack Daniels
American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA)
Ariat International
Bayer

SHARK

Rodeo Reality Handout

"Tradition should never serve as an excuse for cruelty."

****

PLEASE SUPPORT SHARK’S work to defend animals and investigate and expose cruelty. Also sign our Petition for NBC to expose the TRUTH about Rodeo.

Sign Petition to ask Ask Cheyenne Frontier Days To Ban Cruel Steer Busting

Photographers Helping Homeless and animals (update)

Photo by Tim Hulsizer

I would like to thank the photographers who are donating images to be printed and sold to raise money for 3 grassroots organizations helping animals. Images may be any subject and style. One of those orgs. is Feeding Pets of The Homeless, located in Nevada, but helping the homeless with pet food and vet bills nationally. They work on a shoestring budget and they are very thankful that a handful of photographers they have never met are willing to lend a hand. Contact me if you have images you are willing to loan for this project. zekeloftin@..yahoo.com or www.myspace.com/howardloftin

Zeke Loftin

A Pretty Good Day

Had a pretty good day for a Tuesday
On the street corner down by the mall
Got two dollars here and three dollars there
And pretty soon thirteen in all

And Dusty was cheerful as ever
For reasons I can’t even say
But when everything fails he’s still wagging his tail
All in all had a pretty good day

At Wendy’s we got Number Seven
And outside we sat near the door
The look in his eyes when we shared out the fries
Would have melted your heart to the core

For the burger he waited, so patient
Till I told him that it was okay
I just had to laugh as he gobbled his half
All in all, had a pretty good day

We don’t ask for much from our neighbors
We’re grateful for all that we get
I suppose I could use a nice, new pair of shoes
And maybe for Dusty a vet

And a wide-open space he could run in
And a rent we could manage to pay
You know, that’s not a lot, OH I almost forgot
Maybe just one more pretty good day

Written by Robert Leonard Reid of Carson City, Nevada

photo by Kirsten Bole

Please Feel Free To Repost and Share This Bulletin To Get The Word Out.

FEEDING PETS OF THE HOMELESS
2255 WATERFORD PLACE
CARSON CITY, NV 8973
PHONE: (775) 841-7463
FAX: (775) 841-7163
EMAIL: INFO@PETSOFHOMELESS.ORG
WEBSITE: WWW.PETSOFHOMELESS.ORG
A 501(C)(3) NONPROFIT TAX ID: 26-3010540

Reposted with thanks by:
Martha

Nephesh ~ Abolition, Direct Action and Veganism

Dying to Live

Many who speak of "humane" meat are really referring to the conditions under which animals are raised—not killed. And there’s a big difference. When their bodies are fat enough for the dinner table, spent and overused from producing eggs and milk, and no longer useful in the way they were meant to be, as in the case of male studs on dairy farms, animals from both conventional and "humane" farms are all transported (first to the feedlot in the case of "beef cattle") to the slaughterhouse….. The transportation process is excruciating and often fatal. The only law designed to "protect" animals in transport does not pertain to 95% of the animals killed for human consumption, as birds and rabbits (all classified as "poultry" are not protected). As a result, in transport, animals are forced to endure oppressive heat, bitter cold, stress, overcrowding, and respiratory problems from ammonia-laden urine.

By Colleen Patrick-….Goudreau
..

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Kitten Baked To Death In Oven

Demand Justice For Tiger Lily

Please send polite letters and faxes to the Judge, as soon as you can. Help educate about the link between violence to other species and violence to people.

On May 6, 2009, Cheyenne Cherry (age 17) of the Bronx, New York, and a 14-year-old accomplice (whose name has not been revealed due to her age) ransacked the home of Cherry’s ex-roommate, Valerie Hernandez. Not content to limit their destructive rage to Hernandez’s apartment, in an act of unspeakable viciousness they stuffed Hernandez’s kitten, Tiger Lily into a hot oven and left her there to burn to death.

Cherry admitted to the police that the two fled the apartment so that they wouldn’t hear the kitten screaming and desperately scratching at the oven door. At her court appearance, Cherry admitted that she left the apartment knowing the kitten was in the oven with the heat turned up to 500 degrees. She told police that action was committed as “a joke.”

The shocking case of animal cruelty is expected to come to a close next week with the probationary review of Cheyenne Cherry in Bronx Supreme Court.

A plea bargain in July reduced Cherry’s felony animal cruelty charge to a misdemeanor, though she was convicted on the felony burglary charge. She was sentenced to one year for felony burglary and one year for misdemeanor animal cruelty, to run concurrently (one year total).

However, at the July 31 hearing for sentencing, it was revealed that Cherry had violated her probation. Not surprisingly, Cheyenne Cherry is a dangerous criminal with a prior record of armed robbery. We say "not surprisingly" because the link between violence to other species and violence to people has been conclusively proven, so much so that the link is utilized by FBI profilers.

Adolescents who commit brutal crimes against people usually begin with non-human animals. Indeed, the intentional burning of an animal is a "particularly significant predictor of violent and even homicidal behavior," says Dr. Randall Lockwood of the ASPCA’s Anti-Cruelty Initiatives and a frequent law enforcement consultant.

The case has been adjourned to September 2 for probationary review, so all comments must be received by the Judge by September 1. IDA is hopeful that the latest additional information about Cherry’s violation of probation will lead Judge Clancy to conclude the two one-year sentences should run consecutively, not concurrently.

Polite letters are needed to Judge Margaret Clancy to ask that the two sentences run consecutively so there is independent punishment for the animal cruelty charge. Scroll down for talking points for your letter, and contact information for the Judge.

The unnamed 14-year-old was sentenced to 18 months in juvenile detention. According to news accounts, she was the initiator of the plan to place Tiger Lily in a hot oven, though Cherry made the decision that they should flee to avoid hearing the kitten’s cries.

Contact Info:

It is important to keep letters polite to be effective. This case has generated a great deal of anger, but that anger should not be vented on the Judge. Write (and fax) to:

Case #:02546-2009
RE: Cheyenne Cherry
Honorable Judge Margaret Clancy
Bronx County Supreme Court
265 East 161st Street
Bronx, NY 10451
Fax: 718-618-3573

Talking Points:

• Thank Judge Clancy for this review of the case, expressing that you are hopeful the review will result in a longer jail sentence for someone with such a violent past.
• Emphasize that Cherry is a repeat offender, with two prior armed robberies.
• Cherry should be barred from ever "owning" or working with animals in the future. In July, Judge Clancy ruled that Cherry be barred from "owning" animals for only 3 years. This is not enough. Given the reckless disregard for animal suffering she exhibited in this case, and her lack of remorse reported in the press, the prohibition should be imposed permanently.
• Ask the Judge for Post Release Supervision of Cherry along with psychological counseling for both Cherry and her juvenile accomplice. This is extremely important because of the tendency for animal abusers to commit repeat offenses, as well as escalate crimes. Adequate psychological counseling for both Cherry and her accomplice is the only way to address the root cause of their violent actions and total lack of empathy for living beings.
• Adolescents who commit brutal crimes against people usually begin with other species. Indeed, the intentional burning of a non-human animal is a "particularly significant predictor of violent and even homicidal behavior," says Dr. Randall Lockwood of the ASPCA’s Anti-Cruelty Initiatives and a frequent law enforcement consultant. Dr. Lockwood’s conclusions about "the link" have been confirmed and cited by the FBI.

New York City demonstration for Tiger Lily outside courthouse.

Welcome: Email – Contact Judge For Kitten Baked In NYC Oven

Pregnant Mother and Baby Murdered

from The PETA Files

If you visited PETA’s Web site during the month of November, you probably saw turkey slaughter footage. And no, I don’t mean Sarah Palin’s infamous turkey pardon fail.

But have you ever seen slaughter footage from Turkey? Turns out animals are killed as cruelly there as anywhere else.

This video was taken in a slaughterhouse in Turkey, but pointlessly cruel abuse like this can happen to any animal anywhere—from the 8-day-old calf who was beaten and kicked while on her way to slaughter in the U.K., to the conscious chicken plunged into scalding-hot water in an Indian slaughterhouse, to any of the animals enduring the many horrific abuses we’ve documented in the U.S. at Pilgrim’s Pride, Smithfield Foods, Butterball, and AgriProcessors facilities, among others.

If this video upsets you, please run, don’t walk, over to GoVeg.com and order a copy of our free "Vegetarian Starter Kit." For those of you who are already vegetarians, keep this video handy and show it to the next person who asks you why you refuse to eat anybody who had a mother.

Posted by Jeff Mackey