Slaughterhouse

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SageGoddess320
SageGoddess320 Posts: 2,589 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am officially going VEG as of right now! "The shocking story of greed, neglect and inhumane treatment inside the U.S. Meat Industry" couldn't be a more accurate description of the content of this book. It was (without a doubt) the most horrifying, disturbing and chilling piece of work I have ever had the displeasure of reading. For any of you considering becoming a vegetarian/vegan.....read this book by Gail A. Eisnitz and help put an end to the inhumane treatment of animals at factory farms and slaughterhouses today!

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  • becky123456
    becky123456 Posts: 75 Member
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    Thank you so much for posting that.. I have been a vegetarian for several years now - my teenage son has been veg even longer.. People just don't understand why we do this - even though our lifestyle is more accepted now than it was in the past, there is still quite a stigma.. They call me a "tree hugger" and I LOVE IT!! Follow your compassionate heart - there are so many reasons for starting a vegetarian or vegan diet - but the most important is to help stop the cruelty of the innocent animals! They have no choice, and I just don't think that they are ours to eat.. No way..
  • Ms_Natalie
    Ms_Natalie Posts: 1,030 Member
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    Hi there, thanks for your highly informative post =) I am currently not a vegetarian and have never considered it in the past, however, I understand your thoughts and feeling regarding the choice of lifestyle. I live in the UK where we have acknowledged the slaughter of animals for food highly over the past few years, including the programme catch it, kill it, cook it and it displayed the slaughter of animals in the most humane way possible. Although it was highly disturbing (as many meat eaters dont make an association between meat and the animal it has come from), it showed the UK public that the way we obtain our meat is done in the most professional manner possible.

    Saying this though, I am not a big meat eater and could live the rest of my life without eating pork, lamb, chicken again. However, I enjoy steak and this would be my biggest downfall...also saying this, I understand that many other food products contain additives derived from meat and this would also be a challenge for me.

    You have made a very important decision and I am inspired by your determination to try and challenge the way meat is produced in your country x
  • Ms_Natalie
    Ms_Natalie Posts: 1,030 Member
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    P.s...well done on the non smoking! amazing achievement =)
  • writer190
    writer190 Posts: 51 Member
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    There is also the environmental and health aspects of vegetarianism to consider. The movie "Food, Inc." does a good job showing the various problems with our food (mostly in the US), especially with the meat industry. I only eat poultry and fish now (and am looking into cutting out poultry, at least).
  • KimmyBee
    KimmyBee Posts: 158 Member
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    Sorry but I have to disagree. Those books and other similar books are naught but propaganda created simply to promote the vegetarian way of life and inspire people to give money to charities etc.

    I can say this having been both a vegetarian AND having worked in the meat industry, including dairy and beef farming and a very brief encounter down at a slaughterhouse. Including animal welfare (and other related subjects) at agricultural college. And I have never seen anywhere that has ever mistreated an animal. All farmers and others working within the animal industry that I have ever met pay the utmost respect to the animals in their care and strive to provide with the highest of quality food, bedding, housing and veterinary care. i have never seen an unhappy cow! (and I have seen many... many cows in my time!)

    Do not believe everything you read, especially if it is one sided. Look at clear factual information with pros and cons to both sides of the arguement before allowing yourself to just be subdues into however the creator of the article wishes you to feel!
  • Barneystinson
    Barneystinson Posts: 1,357 Member
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    There are some of us who DO have a huge appreciation of where our food comes from. I grew up in a family who hunted and had close ties to a local slaughterhouse. There's a humane way to farm; to slaughter, and there's the factory way. Choose your local farmer and don't buy into propaganda.

    Like KimmyBee says, don't believe everything you read.
  • CasperO
    CasperO Posts: 2,913 Member
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    There are some of us who DO have a huge appreciation of where our food comes from. I grew up in a family who hunted and had close ties to a local slaughterhouse. There's a humane way to farm; to slaughter, and there's the factory way. Choose your local farmer and don't buy into propaganda.

    Like KimmyBee says, don't believe everything you read.
    +1,,, been there, done it. Properly done, farming and even slaughter are not cruel.
  • KimmyBee
    KimmyBee Posts: 158 Member
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    +1,,, been there, done it. Properly done, farming and even slaughter are not cruel.

    Perfectly right. I've witnessed hundreds of culls and slaughters. The animals are kept calm and unaware, when it comes time they are dead before they even hit the floor.

    Even forgetting welfare and looking at it perfectly from a business point of view you still want to do it swiftly and without pain. A scared animal will bolt and trust me, an 800lb-1000lb head can cause a lot of damage.

    No matter which way you look at it you don't want that animal to be unhappy!
  • JimROCDS
    JimROCDS Posts: 23 Member
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    Books like this along with movies like Food Inc. show bad farming practices, which have nothing to do with
    whether eating meat is bad for you or not.

    Fact is, meat is part of a healthy diet. If you doubt it, try living off the land in
    areas where we have long winters and see how well you do on a purely vegetarian diet.

    There are good farms which raise grass fed beef, along with truly organically raised chickens.

    http://www.polyfacefarms.com/ is one, and I hope more farms like this come into existence around the country.

    Jim
  • aliceofwonderland
    aliceofwonderland Posts: 38
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    www.cowsarecool.com
  • KimmyBee
    KimmyBee Posts: 158 Member
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    www.cowsarecool.com

    Another fine example of propaganda
  • KimmyBee
    KimmyBee Posts: 158 Member
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    Actually, IVe just read through that site and went to view an article, it redirected me to PETA.

    I proceeded to an article called "Cow's Milk: A Cruel and Unhealthy Product" and I must say I'm practically shaking with rage!

    As mentioned before I have worked in the dairy industry, grew very close to my herd and the memories there are some I will treasure forever. and most of the things said in that article are nothing but BLATANT LIES!

    I am a strong advocate of animal welfare, to the extent of screaming in tears and running home to fetch a glass of water to pour over a slug that someone had put salt on (yes, I did do that). I will never sit back and watch an animal be harmed in any way. How could someone like me work in a place as described in that article? I couldn't.

    How anyone can spew out that crap and have other people believe it is just beyond me!
  • Jennplus2
    Jennplus2 Posts: 984 Member
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    Sorry but I have to disagree. Those books and other similar books are naught but propaganda created simply to promote the vegetarian way of life and inspire people to give money to charities etc.

    I can say this having been both a vegetarian AND having worked in the meat industry, including dairy and beef farming and a very brief encounter down at a slaughterhouse. Including animal welfare (and other related subjects) at agricultural college. And I have never seen anywhere that has ever mistreated an animal. All farmers and others working within the animal industry that I have ever met pay the utmost respect to the animals in their care and strive to provide with the highest of quality food, bedding, housing and veterinary care. i have never seen an unhappy cow! (and I have seen many... many cows in my time!)

    Do not believe everything you read, especially if it is one sided. Look at clear factual information with pros and cons to both sides of the arguement before allowing yourself to just be subdues into however the creator of the article wishes you to feel!

    I agree that the farmers unfairly get a bad rap. But I have not read the book nor have I been to a slaughterhouse in many many years so that is all I will say about that.

    What I don't like is the people who stand on the corner with huge pictures of bloody skinned animals saying not to kill animals for food. You eat what you want and I will not say a word but show my 2 and 4 year old kids that picture big as life again and I just might hit you with my car! That's NOT OK! My son still cries at night! :angry:
  • sniffles
    sniffles Posts: 295
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    Sorry but I have to disagree. Those books and other similar books are naught but propaganda created simply to promote the vegetarian way of life and inspire people to give money to charities etc.

    I can say this having been both a vegetarian AND having worked in the meat industry, including dairy and beef farming and a very brief encounter down at a slaughterhouse. Including animal welfare (and other related subjects) at agricultural college. And I have never seen anywhere that has ever mistreated an animal. All farmers and others working within the animal industry that I have ever met pay the utmost respect to the animals in their care and strive to provide with the highest of quality food, bedding, housing and veterinary care. i have never seen an unhappy cow! (and I have seen many... many cows in my time!)

    Do not believe everything you read, especially if it is one sided. Look at clear factual information with pros and cons to both sides of the arguement before allowing yourself to just be subdues into however the creator of the article wishes you to feel!

    Thank you. :) I'm from a family of ranchers and farmers... I've never been involved in the big food making industry but the animals on our farm were treated VERY well and slaughtered quite humanely. With some animals (sheep for example) they CAN'T be scared/upset when they die or it spoils the meat (or at least I've been told - our sheep were always quite happy and content when it was slaughter time because of this belief).

    I totally respect people who decide that eating meat isn't for them (I rarely eat meat - not for ethical reasons but because it makes me feel crappy) but I hate the tactics people use to promote meatless diets. It's so underhanded and ruins all credibility for this movement.

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