HSUS Targets Wyoming Pig Farm

The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is at it again with another undercover video allegedly shot at a Wheatland, Wyoming pig farm. I just watched it, and there were instances were handling the hogs wasn't done appropriately. I am saying this as a person who just watched an extreme video, not someone who was actually present at the facilities and was involved in the entire situation the video shows quick blurbs of. I'm also not condoning or defending the people and actions shown in the video as they were mistreating the animals in some of the scenes.
I did also notice a few things that I'm guessing are in the animal's best interest. One example is they showed a sow with an iron ring holding her mouth still, and she was naturally squealing. The video then showed her feet being roped, and her being laid on her side while a voice talked about hurrying to pull the piglets (or something like that). It appeared the workers were trying to help that sow deliver her babies, and had her mouth controlled because a sow weighing several hundred pounds knows how to use her head and teeth on humans. Especially when she's in labor, I'm guessing. That wasn't to hurt her, it was to prevent injury to the people who were helping her deliver her litter of piglets, and to keep her piglets alive and her from suffering any health related issues that would arise if she didn't deliver them (like death...)
Furthermore, I noticed several situations that likely occurred despite any management efforts, like a prolapsed sow. Prolapses just happen, and nobody purposely makes them happen, or can do anything in advance to prevent an animal from prolapsing. The video says she was allowed to live like that for several days, but do we really know if that's the case based on a 3 second blip - no.
It also showed a dead baby piglet in the aisle, with the placenta over his head. This means he died at birth because he couldn't get oxygen, not that someone killed him or beat him. Unfortunately that happens within seconds following birth, and can occur even when you're watching things super close.
Then there was the mother pig eating the dead piglet, which is a perfect example of why sows who are about to farrow (have their piglets) are put in small pens (farrowing crates) where they cannot move around a lot. Some sows will kill their young intentionally, and others will accidentally lay on and accidentally suffocate them. As can also be seen in the video, when a sow is in farrowing crate, there are bars on the back and at least one side that are spaced so the piglets can walk under them. They are a certain length so the piglets are born out the back of the pen, and therefore as the sow continues to deliver her young and move about, she doesn't squish those who have already arrived. Through the bars on one side will be a heatlamp and some straw to keep the piglets warm and safe. Then they can move back under the bars to drink their mother's milk. Farrowing crates are carefully designed for the comfort and safety of both mother sow and baby piglets, and are a temporary pen for the sows during late pregnancy and labor.
One blaring question continues to burn in my mind whenever I watch one of these undercover videos: If the person shooting the video truly cares about animals, how can they simply allow mismanagement or neglect to continue while they film? The HSUS folks are all about attacking animal agriculture, not actually helping the few animals and situations they are able to find where everything is not taken care of in a top notch fashion. To me there is no better example of this than the videos they shoot, edit extensively, add music too, then release in dramatic fashion days, weeks, months (does anyone know the turnaround time?) while the same animals may be in need of help. That puts them at the same level as the person doing the actual abuse.

Here is what the attacked farm had to say in response to the video, and the undercover spy:

The video of a Wyoming Premium Farms sow barn posted online this morning by HSUS shows some practices that are not and will not be tolerated. The owners and managers of the farm are investigating the incidents shown in the video and wish to assure everyone we will take action to correct all problems and to deal appropriately with any employees that were involved.

I was first made aware of the situation when I was contacted on Friday by the Wyoming Livestock Board regarding a video the board had received. On Monday, I drove to Cheyenne to meet with the board and to view a video from the HSUS. Evidently, HSUS had placed an undercover spy in our workforce.

I was told that the undercover spy had pointed out certain items that she had noticed while working there to different people at the farm. However, never once did she express any concerns to me, the general manager and the person responsible for hiring her.

The video I saw at the Wyoming Livestock Board yesterday was troubling, but it did not contain some of the disturbing scenes shown in the video HSUS put online this morning. While still sitting at the Livestock Board’s conference table on Monday, I called the farm manager and asked him if he was made aware of comments from the employee we knew as Whitney Warrington. He said because she was new she always seemed to have new-person type of questions. He said he could not recall everything she said, but added he definitely would have remembered if anything about animal abuse had come out of her mouth.

After my meeting in Cheyenne, I contacted the farm managers and instructed them to conduct a meeting immediately to once again stress with our workers the importance of animal welfare. I then contacted our consulting veterinarian and asked him to join me for an unannounced herd visit. That visit occurred this morning. Our veterinarian also suggested we retain an independent 3rd party to review everything we do on our farm to give us comments and recommendations. We are doing that.

I take these allegations seriously. I am disappointed I did not hear them directly from Whitney Warrington while she was working on our farm so we could have addressed any concerns immediately. We take the pork industry’s We Care initiative seriously and are committed to the well-being of all our animals and to the safety of our workers.

Once again, we will swiftly address any problems that are identified.

Doug DeRouchey

Hopefully Mr. DeRouchey takes care of the problems present in his operation immediately and the final result of this is improved handling and management of the hogs, and hopefully HSUS's delight in releasing a shocking video instead of taking immediate action didn't result in any more hogs being mistreated during the interim.

Here is a link where the video can be watched, and additional statements found. 

For those not familiar with HSUS, you can read about how they spend the dollars raised from videos like this one and through other extreme fundraising efforts here

Animal Abuse

I just finished watching the Mercy For Animals video depicting animal abuse on a Texas dairy farm, and was disgusted. This is by no means the norm in animal agriculture, and several questions were raised as the three minute video progressed.
First, if Mercy for Animals truly cared for animal welfare, why did they wait weeks, then release a video? Why didn't they immediately report the abuse to the proper officials, and end the abuse their undercover person/people witnessed? I know if I had seen some of those actions firsthand my immediate thought would have been making a positive change for those cattle, not producing a sensational video.
Second, as I just mentioned, what kind of Mercy for Animals person can stand there and participate in those actions? The one man with a video on him was speaking Spanish, and I wonder if he was paid off, or truly a member of this organization? Either way, if they were truly interested in the animal's welfare, there are a number of different actions that would have been far more beneficial to the actual animals than a video.
Third, the video ends with a solution - to practice vegetarianism, which will in no way end animal abuse. I would suggest a different solution - get to know farmers and ranchers and ask them questions. Learn about where your food comes from and the actual practices that are used by the vast majority of producers in the U.S. Go see them and their crops and livestock, I'm sure they would be happy to meet with you.
As a livestock producer it is extremely frustrating and sad to see these videos that are toted as common practices on farms and ranches. My family and every family I know put their animals first, regardless of weather, plans, events and other work. I encourage you to look at the entire picture and not take one sensational videos word for something - especially one where the so-called "merciful" people stood by, and possibly even participated in animal abuse simply to get footage.

You can find a number of ag-related links in this post that tell the true story of animal agriculture, and discuss the use of videos by animals welfare groups tell a false story about animal agriculture.

Crystal Cattle also did a post on this subject, and provided a number of links as well, you can check that out here.

Death

In my last post I commented on the topic of livestock owners being kind and compassionate to their animals. I received some feedback arguing the point that killing animals is actually cruel and in-humane.
I personally separate the raising and death aspects of agriculture into two different areas, but have realized not everyone does.
So, I'm back today to cover the death/killing part. Yes, it happens. Cattle, sheep and other livestock species are raised to be harvested for food. Any meat you eat did come from an animal. They don't "make" meat at the grocery store.
I believe we as humans are charged with caring for animals, and that we also have dominion over them. This is stated in the bible, starting in Genesis, Chapter One, continued in Leviticus, and repeated again in other chapters and versus.
For example:
Leviticus 11:1-3
¹ The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, ² “Say to the Israelites: ‘Of all the animals that live on land, these are the ones you may eat: ³ You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof and that chews the cud
From the New International Version.
That's where my perspective is based. That's why I believe it's okay to raise animals and harvest them for meat. That's why I don't believe in vegetarianism, or veganism, or any other -ism that doesn't believe in meat consumption.
As for the actual part in the process where animals are killed. A vast amount of time, energy and resources have been invested to to ensure the practices used cause the least amount of stress and pain possible for the animal. You may have heard of Temple Grandin, who is one of the most well-known people involved in improving harvesting methods. This is something we're constantly working on and improving. We don't want them to suffer any more than is absolutely necessary.
But, the ultimately, in order to get meat, death occurs.
What would happen if it didn't? What if we let all animals live to a ripe old age, and die of natural causes? This seems to be the most common alternative presented to how animals are managed today.
First, there isn't enough land, grass, hay or grain to feed animals if that situation was allowed to perpetuate. They would starve to death. Even if every person in America tore down their house and moved into high rise apartments and reduced their land footprint significantly, there wouldn't be enough to feed the animals. Personally, I believe that starving to death is a much more gruesome, and in-humane way to die than a quick, almost painless death.
Second, as a species becomes overpopulated, the instance of disease becomes much more prevalent, as do disease carrying bugs, parasites, viruses and bacterias. Again, while the idea of letting everything just live without any management sounds "nice," the reality is that all livestock species would become much more susceptible to disease. This is another thing that doesn't sound very appealing to me when it comes to a way to die. Some diseases can take years to die from, and have serious and painful side effects. Some of these diseases could also be spread to humans much easier, and faster, without the management methods farmers and ranchers keep in place.
If this sounds a little far fetched, consider the parts of the world that overpopulated with humans. Think about the people that starve without food, and the diseases we've haven't in seen America for decades that are still serious threats.
Third, while the idea of not eating meat, or using any animal by-products may also sound "nice," to some, there is more to it than that. There isn't enough plant-based material in the world to feed the human race for one thing.
Some present the argument that people could eat the plants that animals do. That's incorrect, as most of the plant-based materials animals eat, and convert to meat, are indigestible to humans. We lack the ability that animals with a ruminant stomach do at converting them to energy. A cow can eat grass that you or I couldn't get any nutritional value out of, and she can convert it to pounds of meat, which we can eat, and meet our nutritional needs with.
The other side of that statement is that if we are eating all the plant-based materials, what are all the animals we are no longer raising for meat eating?
Fourth is the cost of almost everything you use daily. Did you know animal by-products are in everything from tires to glue to toothpaste to makeup? Adding animal by-products to some plastics help them bio-degrade faster. If animal by-products weren't used, these and countless other everyday items could go up in price, some significantly.
98 percent of an animal is used, and of that percentage between 55 and 60 percent is usually meat. So half of each harvested animal goes into products that aren't meat.
I don't like the thought of animals dying, but I realize it is a necessary part of life. Myself, and other ranchers do everything in our power to keep our animals happy and healthy during their lives, and we also do everything possible to make their death as quick and painless as possible. The alternative to modern agriculture practices are much more painful, harmful and hurtful to all livestock species in the long run than those we currently use to provide our consumers with the safest and most nutritious meat product in the world.