vBriefings

Category: For Food

  • Animal Agriculture: Cruel and Unjust

    Animal Agriculture: Cruel and Unjust

    Since consuming animal products is unnecessary, the systemic exploitation and killing of sentient beings is fundamentally unjust. Despite humane-sounding labels and certifications, farmed animals suffer many abuses before they are violently slaughtered while still young. These abuses include horrid living conditions, painful mutilations, denial of their natural behaviors, debilitating selective breeding, reproductive violations, cruel handling, and violent, painful slaughter.

    Exploiting animals for food is just one of the categories of exploration that results in injustices and suffering. The other forms of animal exploitation are for entertainment, clothing, research, labor and work, pet breeding and trade, religious and cultural practices, and wildlife trade and poaching.

    The root of the problem is viewing animals as mere things with no inherent worth—that exist only for humans and for maximizing profit.

    Killing is unjust even if done suddenly and painlessly (which it is not).

    Killing a sentient being means stealing its life—a life it values as much as we value ours. Because we have no nutritional need for meat, dairy, or eggs, the deaths those products require are unnecessary, as is the suffering.

    Farmed animals suffer many egregious abuses.

    Below is just a sample of the abuses farmed animals face—abuses that also cause stress, depression, and poor mental health.1

    Violent Slaughter: Shooting | Maceration | Throat Slitting

    • Chickens. Chickens are killed in several ways, including manual throat slitting, neck breaking, decapitation, and gassing, all of which are violent and painful. When low-voltage stuns are not effective, many chickens are alive and fully conscious when their throat is slit, and many remain conscious when entering the scalding tank.234
    • Cows. Despite the Humane Slaughter Act, fast line speeds and poorly trained workers mean cows are often improperly stunned and therefore still conscious when their throats are slit. Workers have reported cows blinking and looking around when they should be dead. Many cows have their limbs cut off and even their hides removed while fully conscious.5
    • Pigs. All accepted methods of pig slaughter are inhumane; these include electrocution, gassing, and shooting (via bolt gun or gunshot). Gassing, which is increasing in use, involves lowering pigs into a gas chamber. The gas “acidifies eyes, nostrils, mouths and lungs, meaning the animals feel like they are burning from the inside out.” Meanwhile, they also suffocate from lack of oxygen and violently convulse due to the abrasive poison in their lungs.6789
    • Fish. Instead of being slaughtered, wild-caught fish are often hauled onto fishing boats and left to suffocate. Fish caught at 20 meters (65 feet) or deeper may suffer rapid decompression when pulled to the surface, which can push their eyes out of their sockets or their organs out of their mouths or anuses, resulting in prolapse. Fish that survive being pulled to the surface may still be alive when put into onboard freezers and slowly freeze to death.10

    Horrid Living Conditions: Confinement | Crowding | Fecal Filth

    • Chickens. Chickens in commercial chicken houses may not be caged but are still confined by the mass of chickens around them, which is why Consumer Reports advises to “ignore ‘cage-free’ claims.”11
    • Cows. On feedlots, thousands of cows are crammed into and made to stand in small pens that quickly fill up with waste.12 The huge amounts of manure on feedlots emit gases like methane and ammonia, which may give cows chronic respiratory problems.13
    • Pigs. After being removed from their mothers, piglets are often crowded into pens with little room to move until they reach slaughter weight.14
    • Fish. Farmed fish overcrowding leads to fecal contamination and routinely causes stress, loss of scales, lack of oxygen, gill damage, and heart problems due to insufficient exercise.1516

    Painful Mutilations: Debeaking | Dehorning | Tail Docking | Castration

    • Chickens. Debeaking is painful, causes lasting suffering, impairs feeding, eliminates exploratory pecking, and impairs preening, which can lead to lice.17
    • Pigs. Per standard practices, pigs are often castrated and tattooed and have their teeth clipped, tail docked, and ears notched—often without anesthetic. These practices are painful (sometimes chronically) and can cause inflammation, abscesses, and other health issues.18
    • Cows. Cows are dehorned on 94% of dairy farms (USDA19), usually without anesthetic. The excruciatingly painful20 process involves cutting through bone and horn tissue with a wire, saw, or mechanical gouger.21
    • Calves. Most male calves in the United States are castrated (USDA22) to reduce aggression and prevent reproduction. The process is acutely painful,23 and pain relief is rarely provided.24

    Denial of Natural Behaviors: Free Movement | Courtship | Sex | Roosting | Rooting | Nurturing and Being Nurtured | Playing | Teaching

    • Cows. In the dairy industry, calves are usually taken from their mother soon after birth, which is very upsetting for both. Mother cows have strong maternal instincts and often call for their calves for hours or even days after separation.25 This isolation causes long-term stress and anxiety.26
    • Chickens. Crowding hinders or eliminates chickens’ ability to preen, roost, perch, spread their wings, establish social order, peck and scratch for food, teach their young to peck and scratch for food, and other natural things.27 This causes not only discomfort but also constant fear and anxiety.282930

    Debilitating Selective Breeding: Larger Breasts | More Milk | More & Bigger Eggs

    • Laying Hens. Modern laying hens produce over 300 eggs per year, which is 50 times more than the jungle fowl from which they are bred. This causes both physical and psychological stress.31 This higher production, whether for larger eggs or more eggs, often causes osteoporosis, broken bones, and uterine prolapse32
    • Broiler Chickens. A 2020 World’s Poultry Science journal study found that over the past 60 years, the selective breeding of broiler chickens for rapid growth, larger breasts, and feed efficiency has caused significant problems, including leg deformities, heart conditions, and elevated mortality rates.33
    • Pigs. Pigs have been bred to gain weight so fast that they sometimes struggle to support their own weight.34 This can also lead to joint and leg problems, heart attacks, and stress.353637
    • Cows. Because modern dairy cows have been selectively bred to produce much more milk than their ancestors, they may become deficient in nutrients such as calcium. Many develop metabolic diseases such as milk fever, ketosis, and fatty liver syndrome.38

    Reproductive Violations: Semen Collection | Insemination | Separation or Slaughter of Offspring

    • Chickens. Male chicks born to egg-laying hens are killed shortly after hatching because they can’t lay eggs and aren’t profitable for meat.39 Slaughter methods include maceration, gassing, and suffocation.40 Globally, about 7 billion male chicks are culled each year41 (260 million in the U.S.),42 meaning every laying hen statistically has a brother who was slaughtered at birth.
    • Bulls. Bull semen is collected by either painful electro ejaculation or the teaser method, in which one bull is artificially aroused into mounting another bull, often resulting in tissue damage.43
    • Cows. Cows. In the United States, approximately 78%44 of dairy cows are impregnated via artificial insemination. During artificial insemination, a human inserts a semen injection gun into the cow’s vulva and then inserts their entire other arm into the cow’s anus to feel for and guide the injection gun.45

    Cruel Handling: Beating | Prodding | Transportation | Maceration | Slaughter

    • Chickens. Chickens that are being transported or prepared for transport are grabbed by their feet (four chickens at a time) and thrown or shoved into crowded crates, resulting in crushed wings, bones, and heads. The heat, cold, and jostling experienced during transport lead to exhaustion, dehydration, and injuries, often resulting in pain, disease, wing and leg fractures, inability to stand, lesions, bleeding, bruising, and even death by suffocation.4647
    • Pigs. Multiple investigations by Mercy for Animals and others have recorded pigs being punched, kicked, beaten, shouted at, violently shaken, poked in the eyes, hit with boards, and having their hair pulled out.484950

    Downers: Dragging | Electrocution | Forklifting | Spraying | Left to Die

    Piglets. Sick piglets have been denied veterinary care and thrown into piles and left to die slowly.51

    Cows. Undercover investigations have revealed downed cows being dragged with chains, shocked with electric prods, rammed with forklifts, sprayed through the nose with water, and left to die.525354

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    Farmed animals are slaughtered very young, after living only a fraction of their natural lifespans.

    Animals slaughtered for meat live only 2%–7% of their natural lifespan, laying hens live less than 20% of their natural lifespan, and dairy cows live 30% of their natural lifespan.

    Details

    Dairy cows are slaughtered at around 4 to 6 years old, after living less than 30 percent of a 15 to 20-year natural lifespan.55

    Cows used for beef are slaughtered at around 18 months old, after living less than 7% of their natural 15 to 20-year lifespan.56

    Pigs are slaughtered at around 5 to 6 months old, after living less than 6% of their natural lifespan.57

    In the egg industry, because male chicks can’t lay eggs, males are slaughtered soon after hatching, usually by being ground by steel blades.58

    Laying hens are slaughtered at around 18 months old, after living less than 20% of their natural 8-year lifespan.59

    Chickens used for meat are slaughtered at around 5 to 7 weeks old, after living less than 2% of their natural 8-year lifespan.60

    Humane-sounding labels and certifications are deceptive and largely meaningless.

    Humanewashing, akin to greenwashing, is described by Farm Forward as using deceptive labels and imagery to market animal products, “promoting the illusion of animal well-being while concealing the extent of animals’ illness and suffering.”61

    Consumer Reports determined that cage-free, free-range, pasture-raised, and other labels and certifications are largely meaningless and can be ignored62

    Consumer Reports also found that audits for certification labels, if they happen at all, are infrequent, ineffective, and unenforced, and there were often no penalties for violations63

    The Open Philanthropy Project, in looking at the Whole Foods certification program, found that the enforcement is weak and that the standards, even if followed, offer only slight improvements over standard factory farm conditions.64

    According to Farm Forward’s report on humanewashing, even the more thorough certifications “deceive consumers by branding as humane products from animals raised in intensive confinement on concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), animals deprived adequate exercise and socialization, animals genetically modified in ways that promote disease, cattle whose calves are taken from them shortly after birth, and male chicks who are killed en masse immediately after hatching.”65

    The scope of suffering, as indicated by numbers slaughtered, is beyond imagination.

    Over 70 billion land animals are slaughtered each year (FAO66), and 99% of those have lived on factory farms (Sentience Institute67).

    More farmed animals are slaughtered every year than the total number of humans who have ever lived on Earth.

    Calculation Details

    Public Broadcasting Radio estimates that as of 2022, the total number of humans who have ever lived on Earth is 117 billion.68

    Annually, over 70 billion land animals69 and 51 to 167 billion fish70 are slaughtered.

    The root of the problem is viewing animals as mere things with no inherent worth—that exist only for humans and for maximizing profit.

    This attitude is exemplified in two quotes from two separate farm publications:

    National Hog Farmer:”The breeding sow should be thought of, and treated as, a valuable piece of machinery whose function is to pump out baby pigs like a sausage machine.”71

    Hog Farm Management: “Forget the pig is an animal—treat him just like a machine in a factory.”72

    Claim: We give animals life, meaning, and protection—they should be grateful.

    Note: This claim is covered thoroughly in another briefing.

    Farmed animals are bred for human benefit, facing suffering and premature death, while protections prioritize human interests. Far from feeling gratitude, these animals endure lives of exploitation, highlighting the need to protect them more from humans than natural predators.

    About CAFOs (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations)

    The EPA defines CAFOs as large-scale feeding operations where numerous animals are confined and fed for a minimum of 45 days per year—though often for much longer—with their waste presenting a pollution risk to surface water.73

    CAFOs come in different sizes—small, medium, and large—but the largest, containing thousands or even tens of thousands of animals, most clearly reflect industrialized farming. A major concern is the vast amount of manure produced in these facilities, which leads to significant environmental challenges.74

    In 2022, the United States had more than 21,000 large CAFOs. Estimates based on USDA data indicate that nearly 99 percent of livestock in the country is raised in these intensive farming operations.75

    In addition to the suffering and injustices to farm animals, large CAFOs contribute to environmental pollution, water contamination, air pollution, declining property values, and water shortages while also posing serious health risks such as respiratory illnesses, high blood pressure, cancer, and miscarriages. Their disproportionate placement in communities of color highlights ongoing environmental injustice.76

    Danny Ishay Video to Visualize the Scope of Suffering

    This video will help you visualize slaughter numbers, in support of the key point on the scope of suffering.

    Note: the numbers may differ from those presented in the briefing due to different assumptions, but they are in the ballpark. Also, third-party videos are not fact-checked.

    Related Briefings

    Our briefings on the injustices suffered by cows, pigs, chickens, and fish provide a fuller picture of the horrors they endure.

    Our briefing “We Give Animals Life, Meaning, and Protection; They Should Be Grateful” answers a related objection.

    Other Resources

    If you are not vegan, you really should watch some of the undercover investigation videos that bring the injustices outlined here to life. Hundreds are available with a quick search. One we find particularly touching and informative is “What Cody Saw.”

    Advocacy Notes
    Tips for Advocacy and Outreach

    General Tips

    Your goal is to help them question the justifications they may hold and recognize the fundamental injustice of using animals for food.

    Expose contradictions. Help them see how their actions conflict with their values.

    Make it personal. Encourage them to imagine the suffering from the animals’ perspective.

    Reframe the conversation. The issue isn’t whether animal agriculture can be ‘better’—it’s whether it should exist at all.

    Help Them Recognize Their Personal Role in the System

    Many people see animal suffering as a distant issue, failing to acknowledge their direct participation.

    • If we pay for something to be done, aren’t we responsible for the consequences of that action?”
    • “If you oppose animal cruelty, but your purchases fund industries that harm animals, isn’t that a contradiction?”

    Why? This makes them see that they are not just passive bystanders but active contributors—and that they have the power to stop supporting cruelty.

     Challenge the Discomfort of Avoiding the Truth

    People often say “I can’t watch those videos” because they instinctively know animal suffering is wrong but don’t want to confront it. After asking one of the questions below, suggest they watch “What Cody Saw,” a touching first-hand account on YouTube.

    • “If it’s too upsetting for you to watch, what about the animals who are actually living it?”
    • “If seeing the reality of what routinely happens on these farms makes you uncomfortable, wouldn’t that mean participating in it should make you even more uncomfortable? ” 

    Why? This helps them see that their avoidance is a sign of their moral discomfort—and that the solution isn’t to look away but to stop supporting the cruelty.

    Expose the Reality of Animal Agriculture

    Many people don’t realize the scale of suffering farmed animals endure.

    • “Are you aware that over 70 billion land animals are slaughtered every year for food—more than the total number of humans who have ever lived?”
    • “Labels like ‘cage-free’ and ‘humane-certified’ often mislead consumers—would it surprise you that most of these animals still endure extreme suffering?”

    Why? This encourages people to question the humane myth and reconsider their participation.

    Ask Why Killing Is Justified When It’s Unnecessary

    People assume that if animals are killed quickly, it isn’t cruel—but why is it acceptable at all?

    • “If a sentient being values their life as much as we do, how can taking that life be justified when we have no need for animal products?”
    • “If we agree that unnecessary harm is wrong, why do we justify killing billions of animals when plant-based foods are widely available?”

    Why? This forces them to confront the fact that killing is an ethical issue, not just a matter of method.

    Challenge the Idea That Animals Are Treated Humanely

    Many people believe that welfare laws and humane labels ensure ethical treatment.

    • “If labels like ‘cage-free’ and ‘humane-certified’ truly ensured animal well-being, why do investigations continue to expose horrific abuse?”
    • “If humane slaughter were real, why do so many animals remain conscious when they are killed?”

    Why? This exposes the gap between humane marketing and the harsh reality of animal agriculture.

    Highlight That Farmed Animals Are Denied Their Natural Lives

    Animals raised for food live only a fraction of their natural lifespan.

    • “Did you know that animals in agriculture are slaughtered at just 2-30% of their natural lifespan?”
    • “How can we say we ‘care’ about these animals when they never get to experience a full life?”

    Why? This helps them see that the system isn’t about care—it’s about maximizing profit at the expense of the animals.

    Expose the Reality of Routine Mutilations

    Farmed animals endure painful mutilations without pain relief.

    • “If castration without anesthesia were done to dogs or cats, would people still defend these practices?”
    • “Why do we allow industries to inflict pain on animals for efficiency when it would be illegal in any other context?”

    Why? This makes them question why farmed animals are treated differently from pets.

    Question the Acceptability of Reproductive Violations

    The dairy and meat industries routinely violate animals’ reproductive autonomy.

    • “If cows naturally nurse their calves, why are they forcibly impregnated and their babies taken from them?”
    • “Would we accept similar reproductive control if it were done to humans?”

    Why? This highlights the ethical issues surrounding artificial breeding and forced separation.

    Challenge the Perception That Fish Don’t Suffer

    Fish are often overlooked, but their suffering is immense.

    • “If fish weren’t capable of feeling pain, why do they struggle when pulled from the water?”
    • “Did you know fish can suffer decompression so severe that their eyes pop out and their organs prolapse?”

    Why? This pushes them to reconsider their assumptions about fish sentience and suffering.

    Expose How Animal Agriculture Treats Living Beings as Machines

    Industry language reveals the true mindset behind animal farming.

    “Why do industry publications compare pigs to factory machines, calling them ‘sausage makers’?”

    • “If animals are just ‘production units,’ what does that say about how we value their lives?”

    Why? This exposes the dehumanizing mindset that allows such extreme cruelty to persist.

    Encourage People to Question Their Own Standards

    Most people oppose animal cruelty but still support factory farming.

    • “If you’re against animal cruelty, why support an industry that mutilates, confines, and slaughters animals?”
    • “Would you personally slit an animal’s throat, or do you rely on paying others?”

    Why? This helps them recognize the disconnect between their values and their actions.

    Leave Them With a Thought-Provoking Question

    Instead of arguing, give them something to think about.

    • “If you could live a healthy life without contributing to suffering, what’s stopping you?”
    • “Knowing what you know now, does it still feel right to support this industry?”

    Why? A strong question stays with them long after the conversation ends.

    1. O’keffee, Jill. “The Inhumane Psychological Treatment of Factory Farmed Animals | New Roots Institute”. ↩︎
    2. Shields, Sara J., and A. B. M. Raj. “A Critical Review of Electrical Water-Bath Stun Systems for Poultry Slaughter and Recent Developments in Alternative Technologies.” Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science13, no. 4 (September 17, 2010): 281–99. ↩︎
    3. Pitney, Nico. “Scientists Believe The Chickens We Eat Are Being Slaughtered While Conscious.” HuffPost, 24:58 400AD.  ↩︎
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    5. Warrick, Jo. “‘They Die Piece by Piece.’” Washington Post, April 10, 2001. Accessed December 3, 2019 ↩︎
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    8. “Is Gas Killing the Pig Industry’s Darkest Secret?“, Phillip Lymbery, November 11, 2021 ↩︎
    9. Compassion in World Farming, “PROMISING NEWS FOR EUROPE’S PIGS, November 13, 2020″ ↩︎
    10. Mood, Alison. “Worse Things Happen at Sea: The Welfare of Wild-Caught Fish.” fishcount.org.uk, 2010 ↩︎
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    12. “Overview of Cattle Laws | Animal Legal & Historical Center.” Accessed November 28, 2019. ↩︎
    13. Haarlem, R. P. van, R. L. Desjardins, Z. Gao, T. K. Flesch, and X. Li. “Methane and Ammonia Emissions from a Beef Feedlot in Western Canada for a Twelve-Day Period in the Fall.” Canadian Journal of Animal Science 88, no. 4 (December 2008): 641–49. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    14. Fox, Michael. “Factory Farming.” The Humane Society Institute for Science and Policy, 1980 ↩︎
    15. Gregory, Neville G., and Temple Grandin. Animal Welfare and Meat Science. Oxon, UK ; New York, NY, USA: CABI Pub, 1998. 209-10. ↩︎
    16. Stevenson, Peter, Compassion in World Farming (Organization), and World Society for the Protection of Animals. Closed Waters: The Welfare of Farmed Atlantic Salmon, Rainbow Trout, Atlantic Cod and Atlantic Halibut. Godalming, Surrey: Compassion in World Farming, 2007. ↩︎
    17. Welfare Implications of Beak Trimming.” American Veterinary Medical Association, February 7, 2010 ↩︎
    18. See https://vbriefings.org/pig-injustices for citations. ↩︎
    19. “Changes in Dairy Cattle Health and Management Practices in the United States,1996-2007.” Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, July 2009. Accessed 3 December 2019 ↩︎
    20. News, A. B. C. “Dehorning: ‘Standard Practice’ on Dairy Farms.” ABC News. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    21. Robbins, Ja, Dm Weary, Ca Schuppli, and Mag von Keyserlingk. “Stakeholder Views on Treating Pain Due to Dehorning Dairy Calves.” Animal Welfare 24, no. 4 (November 14, 2015): 399–406. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    22. USDA: Reference of Beef Cow-calf Management Practices in the United States, 2007–08 ↩︎
    23. “Castration of Calves.” Accessed November 19, 2019 ↩︎
    24. Robertson, I.S., J.E. Kent, and V. Molony. “Effect of Different Methods of Castration on Behaviour and Plasma Cortisol in Calves of Three Ages.” Research in Veterinary Science 56, no. 1 (January 1994): 8–17. Accessed December 3, 2019 ↩︎
    25. Marchant-Forde, Jeremy N., Ruth M. Marchant-Forde, and Daniel M. Weary. “Responses of Dairy Cows and Calves to Each Other’s Vocalisations after Early Separation.” Applied Animal Behaviour Science 78, no. 1 (August 2002): 19–28. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    26. Wagner, Kathrin, Daniel Seitner, Kerstin Barth, Rupert Palme, Andreas Futschik, and Susanne Waiblinger. “Effects of Mother versus Artificial Rearing during the First 12 Weeks of Life on Challenge Responses of Dairy Cows.” Applied Animal Behaviour Science 164 (March 2015): 1–11. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    27. Prescott, N.B. and Wathes, C.M., (2002). Preference and motivation of laying hens to eat under different illuminances and the effect of illuminance on eating behavior.  British Poultry Science, 43: 190-195 ↩︎
    28. Eugen, Kaya von, Rebecca E. Nordquist, Elly Zeinstra, and Franz Josef van der Staay. “Stocking Density Affects Stress and Anxious Behavior in the Laying Hen Chick During Rearing.” Animals : An Open Access Journal from MDPI9, no. 2 (February 10, 2019). ↩︎
    29. Marino, Lori. “Thinking Chickens: A Review of Cognition, Emotion, and Behavior in the Domestic Chicken.” Animal Cognition20, no. 2 (2017): 127–47. ↩︎
    30. Appleby, M.C. “What Causes Crowding? Effects of Space, Facilities and Group Size on Behavior, with Particular Reference to Furnished Cages for Hens.” Animal Welfare13 (August 1, 2004): 313–20. ↩︎
    31. Cheng, H.-W. “Breeding of Tomorrow’s Chickens to Improve Well-Being.” Poultry Science 89, no. 4 (April 1, 2010): 805–13 ↩︎
    32. Jamieson, Alastair. “Large Eggs Cause Pain and Stress to Hens, Shoppers Are Told,” March 11, 2009, sec. Finance ↩︎
    33. Hartcher, K.M., and H.K. Lum. “Genetic Selection of Broilers and Welfare Consequences: A Review.” World’s Poultry Science Journal, vol. 76, no. 1, 21 Dec. 2019, pp. 154–167. ↩︎
    34. Prunier, A., M. Heinonen, and H. Quesnel. “High Physiological Demands in Intensively Raised Pigs: Impact on Health and Welfare.” Animal 4, no. 6 (June 2010): 886–98. ↩︎
    35. Prunier, A., M. Heinonen, and H. Quesnel. “High Physiological Demands in Intensively Raised Pigs: Impact on Health and Welfare.” Animal 4, no. 6 (June 2010): 886–98. ↩︎
    36. Broom, Donald. “The Roles of Industry and Science, including genetic selection, in improving animal welfare,” Animal Science and Biotechnologies 42, no. 2 (2009): 532–46. ↩︎
    37. Prunier, A., M. Heinonen, and H. Quesnel. “High Physiological Demands in Intensively Raised Pigs: Impact on Health and Welfare.” Animal 4, no. 6 (June 2010): 886–98. ↩︎
    38. Webster, John. Animal Welfare. Chichester, England: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, 2000. 88, 139-140. ↩︎
    39. What Happens with Male Chicks in the Egg Industry? – RSPCA Knowledgebase.” Accessed June 10, 2019. ↩︎
    40. “Chick Culling.” Wikipedia, 19 Feb. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chick_culling. Accessed 11 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    41. Communication, SCIENCE. “Researcher: Seven Billion Newly Hatched Chicks Are Killed Every Year – but a Ban Is Not the Solution.” Science.ku.dk, 21 Mar. 2024. Accessed 11 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    42. Davidson, Ollie. “The Killing of Newborn Chicks Is yet Another Cruel Egg Industry Practice.” LifeGate, 5 May 2021, www.lifegate.com/male-chick-culling-egg-industry-animal-equality. Accessed 11 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    43. Colorado State Animal Science, “Semen Collection from Bulls.” September 2, 2002 ↩︎
    44. Rajala-Schultz, Gustavo M. Schuenemann, Santiago Bas, Armando Hoet, Eric Gordon, Donald Sanders, Klibs N. Galvão and Päivi. “A.I. Cover Sheaths Improved Fertility in Lactating Dairy Cows.” Progressive Dairy. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    45. The Beef Site. “Artificial Insemination for Beef Cattle.” Accessed November 29, 2019. ↩︎
    46. Chickens Suffer during Catching, Loading, and Transport.” Accessed June 12, 2019  ↩︎
    47. Jacobs, Leonie, Evelyne Delezie, Luc Duchateau, Klara Goethals, and Frank A. M. Tuyttens. “Impact of the Separate Pre-Slaughter Stages on Broiler Chicken Welfare. ↩︎
    48. “WATCH: Criminal Animal Abuse Caught on Video at Walmart Pork Supplier,” Mercy for Animals, May 6, 2015 ↩︎
    49. One can find numerous pig abuse videos from multiple sources with this search ↩︎
    50. “The Horrifying Truth About Pig Farms,” NowThis February 25, 2020 ↩︎
    51. “WATCH: Criminal Animal Abuse Caught on Video at Walmart Pork Supplier,” Mercy for Animals, May 6, 2015 ↩︎
    52. Slaughterhouse Investigation: Cruel and Unhealthy Practices. Humane Society of the United States, Youtube, 2008. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    53. “Cattle abuse wasn’t rare occurrence“, ABC New ↩︎
    54. Guest Contributor. “Watch: A Dairy Industry Exposé: Death, Cages and Downers.” The London Economic, 9 May 2018, www.thelondoneconomic.com/must-reads/a-dairy-industry-expose-death-cages-and-downers-88240/. Accessed 31 Aug. 2024. ↩︎
    55. “Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017. ↩︎
    56. “Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017. ↩︎
    57. “Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017. ↩︎
    58. What Happens with Male Chicks in the Egg Industry? – RSPCA Knowledgebase. ↩︎
    59. “Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017. ↩︎
    60. “Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017. ↩︎
    61. “The Dirt on Humanewashing | Publications.” Farm Forward, 13 Dec. 2020. ↩︎
    62. Investigations were carried out in 2016 by Consumer Reports and published on various pages of their greenchoices.org website. These pages have since been removed, but can be reached from this archive link. ↩︎
    63. Investigations were carried out in 2016 by Consumer Reports and published on various pages of their greenchoices.org website. These pages have since been removed, but can be reached from this archive link. ↩︎
    64. “Global Animal Partnership — General Support (2016) | Open Philanthropy.” Open Philanthropy, 30 July 2024, www.openphilanthropy.org/grants/global-animal-partnership-general-support-2016/. Accessed 28 Aug. 2024. ↩︎
    65. “The Dirt on Humanewashing | Publications.” Farm Forward, 13 Dec. 2020. ↩︎
    66. Derived from United Nations FAO statistics for 2017: “FAOSTAT.” ↩︎
    67. “US Factory Farming Estimates.” Sentience Institute. Accessed 2022-06-23 ↩︎
    68. Kaneda, Toshiko, and Carl Haub. “How Many People Have Ever Lived on Earth?” PRB, 15 Nov 2022. ↩︎
    69. Derived from United Nations FAO statistics for 2017: “FAOSTAT.” ↩︎
    70. Estimates are from United Nations FAO data compiled by Fishcount UK. Fish Count UK: “Estimated Numbers of Individuals in Annual Global Capture Tonnage (FAO) of Fish Species (2007 – 2016)“; “Estimated Numbers of Individuals in Global Aquaculture Production (FAO) of Fish Species (2017)“; “Estimated numbers of individuals in average annual fish capture (FAO) by country fishing fleets (2007 – 2016)”; “Estimated numbers of individuals in aquaculture production (FAO) of fish species (2017).” ↩︎
    71. Marina Bolotnikova provided solid visual evidence for this quote in “Forget They Are an Animal”, Current Affairs, August 2022 ↩︎
    72. Marina Bolotnikova provided solid visual evidence for this quote in “Forget They Are an Animal”, Current Affairs, August 2022 ↩︎
    73. Beck, Lena. “Factory Farms Make Bad Neighbors. Meet the People Who Are Fighting Back.” Sentient, 3 Sept. 2024. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025. ↩︎
    74. Beck, Lena. “Factory Farms Make Bad Neighbors. Meet the People Who Are Fighting Back.” Sentient, 3 Sept. 2024. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025. ↩︎
    75. Beck, Lena. “Factory Farms Make Bad Neighbors. Meet the People Who Are Fighting Back.” Sentient, 3 Sept. 2024. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025. ↩︎
    76. Beck, Lena. “Factory Farms Make Bad Neighbors. Meet the People Who Are Fighting Back.” Sentient, 3 Sept. 2024. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025. ↩︎
  • Pig Injustices and Suffering

    Pig Injustices and Suffering

    Pigs are sentient beings capable of suffering, yet they endure systemic injustices in farming practices despite humans having no nutritional need for meat. They are slaughtered at less than 4% of their natural lifespans after enduring harsh living conditions, high mortality rates, and susceptibility to disease. Selective breeding for larger litters and rapid weight gain further exacerbates their suffering, while claims of humane treatment mask the brutal reality of their exploitation and early, violent deaths.

    Loss of life is an injustice even if done suddenly and painlessly (which it is not).

    To take the life of any sentient being is to harm that being by depriving them of opportunities for fulfillment, even if it is done suddenly and painlessly (which it is not, as explained below). 

    We have no nutritional need for pig meat, so denying pigs their lives is unnecessary, as are the other forms of suffering enumerated here.

    Like all farmed animals, pigs are allowed to live just a small fraction of their natural lifespans. They are slaughtered after living 5 to 6 months of a 10 to 12-year lifespan, representing about 5 percent of their natural lifespan.1

    All the accepted methods of pig slaughter are inhumane and include electrocution, gas, bolt guns, or gunshot.

    In the United States, federal law2 mandates that pigs must be rendered unconscious before slaughter using one of four methods: electrical stunning, chemical gassing, a captive bolt device, or a gunshot.3

    Smaller slaughterhouses typically rely on gunshot or captive bolt methods, mid-sized facilities often use electrical stunning, and the largest pork producers in the U.S.—Smithfield Foods, Tyson Foods, and JBS USA—primarily use carbon dioxide (CO2) gas to render pigs unconscious.4

    The four methods of stunning allowed in the United States are used in other countries.5

    Stunning and Scalding Alive

    Pigs are often scalded alive.

    Slaughter lines run so quickly, at an average of 960 kills per hour in a single line,6 that often pigs are not properly stunned.7

    • As a consequence, some are still conscious when they reach the scalding tanks which remove their hair.8

    Note: The USDA is attempting to remove limits on slaughter line speeds.9

    Pigs are physically abused during stunning. Investigators have observed pigs “being beaten, shocked, dragged, and improperly stunned…”10

    Gas Chambers: Burning and Suffocation

    About Gassing

    • Increasingly, pigs are slaughtered in carbon dioxide gas chambers rather than conventional slaughterhouses (Humane Slaughter Association).11
    • “Gassing pigs is still standard practice among the world’s largest pork producers, not because it’s humane, but because it’s more efficient, allowing for faster slaughterhouse operations” (Sentient Media).12

    The Cruelty of Gassing

    • Here’s how Sentient Media describes gassing: “For any living being, pig or human, inhaling high concentrations of CO2 is like being burned from the inside out. With each panicked hyperventilation, the pigs draw the toxic fumes deeper into their bodies, simultaneously suffocating from the lack of oxygen and convulsing violently from the abrasive poison being pumped into their lungs (Sentient Media).13
    • The gas “acidifies eyes, nostrils, mouths and lungs, meaning the animals feel like they are burning from the inside out for 15-60 seconds or more” (Phillip Lymbery).14
    • Gassing “involves lowering pigs into a gas chamber containing CO2, causing them to gasp for breath and hyperventilate, causing pain and panic amongst the terrified animals.”15

    Condemnation of Gassing

    • The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) “affirms that CO2 stunning is incompatible with pig welfare at slaughter” (Eurogroup for Animals).16
    • A statement issued by Eurogroup for Animals, along with nearly 70 member organizations such as Compassion in World Farming and the RSPCA, urged a shift away from the practice of gassing pigs (Phillip Lymbery).17

    Painful mutilations of pigs include teeth clipping, castration, tail docking, ear notching, and tattooing.

    Teeth Clipping

    Piglets have their sharp “needle teeth” clipped to prevent them from injuring each other when fighting over teats, inducing severe pain in pigs as it would in humans.18

    “Piglets whose teeth have been clipped may experience more gum and tongue injuries, and potentially painful inflammation or abscesses of the teeth.”19

    Teeth clipping can result in lasting damage. According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, “clipping has been shown to increase behaviors suggestive of discomfort such as ‘chomping.’”20

    Castration

    Male piglets are castrated, primarily because their flesh can otherwise develop an unpleasant taste and smell.21

    Castration of pigs is generally done by making an incision in the scrotum and pulling out the testes, before cutting the spermatic cord.22

    In most countries, it is legal to carry out this procedure without an anesthetic in the piglet’s first week of life, despite the fact that this is known to be painful.23

    Carrying out castration at an early age is risky because it can lead to incomplete castration and increase the risk of prolapse of the intestine.24

    Tail Docking

    Pigs often bite each other’s tails when stressed, so some farmers cut off pigs’ tails to prevent this.25

    Tail docking can cause acute and possibly chronic pain.26

    Though tail docking is thought to reduce the incidence of serious injuries from biting, it does not eliminate them.27

    Ear Notching

    Ear notching is painful.28

    Tattooing

    Tattooing involves some degree of pain and is stressful.29

    Unlike humans, when pigs are tattooed they are not consenting and don’t understand what’s happening to them.

    Pigs are forced to endure cruel living conditions involving crowded pens, gestation crates, and farrowing crates.

    Gestation Crates

    Pregnant sows are often kept in metal stalls called gestation crates.30

    According to a Humane Society report, “Crated sows suffer a number of significant welfare problems, including elevated risk of urinary tract infections, weakened bones, overgrown hooves, lameness, behavioral restriction, and stereotypies.”31

    Gestation crates typically measure just 6.5 ft x 2.5 ft, meaning sows are not able to turn around.32

    Some larger sows are not even able to lie on their sides (the way pigs normally sleep) in gestation crates.33

    Sows often chew on the bars of gestation crates, a sign of boredom and frustration.34

    Pigs prefer to relieve themselves a long way from where they eat and sleep, which is impossible when they are confined to crates.35

    Gestation crates have been banned in nine US states.36

    Gestation crates have been banned or restricted in the EU and Canada.37

    Farrowing Crates

    A few days before they are due to give birth, sows are moved to farrowing crates.38

    Farrowing crates are slightly larger than gestation crates to allow the sow to lie on her side and nurse her piglets.39

    Farrowing crates have an additional enclosure attached to prevent piglets from being accidentally crushed by the sow.40

    There is no convincing evidence that farrowing crates reduce mortality.41

    Crowded Pens

    The stress of confinement can lead pigs to exhibit unnatural cannibalistic behavior.42

    Slatted floors, often too wide for young pigs and calves, can lead to lameness, as can hard concrete floors for large sows. Additionally, pigs may develop arthritis due to a lack of exercise.43

    After being removed from their mothers, piglets are often crowded into pens where they barely have room to move until they reach slaughter weight.44

    Pigs suffer from high mortality rates and disease.

    Mortality

    Mortality rates for pigs are often high, and their bodies are sometimes left in the pens for extended periods.45

    African Swine Fever

    African swine fever is one example of pigs’ susceptibility to disease because of crowded filthy conditions.46

    African Swine Fever has killed around one-fourth of the global pig population after recent outbreaks occurred in China.47 The global pig population is approximately one billion as of 2024.48

    Outbreaks of African Swine Fever are a continuing problem. From the initial African Swine Fever outbreak in China on August 3, 2018, to July 1, 2022, a total of 218 outbreaks were reported to the World Animal Health Information System of the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH).49

    African swine fever has an extremely high mortality rate of 95-100 percent in pigs 50

    There is no known treatment for African Swine Fever.51

    Selective breeding for large litters and weight gain causes stress and can lead to heart and lung problems.

    Large Litters

    Modern sows have been bred to produce significantly larger litters than their wild counterparts.52

    • Wild pigs produce litter sizes from 2 to 8 piglets.53
    • The average liter for sized liter from framed pigs is over 12.54

    Suckling so many piglets can put immense strain on the sow and cause her to lose body weight.55

    Weight Gain

    The harm to pigs of selective breeding for weight gain are:

    • Pigs have been bred to gain weight so rapidly that they sometimes struggle to support their own body weight.56
    • The rapid weight gain from selective breeding of pigs can lead to joint and leg problems.57
    • Selective breeding for lean muscle has led to the prevalence of a gene that makes pigs very sensitive to stress.58

    Artificial Insemination is invasive, stressful, and denies pigs a natural behavior.

    Artificial insemination of pigs rather than natural breeding is common.59

    Artificial insemination gives farms more control over the characteristics of the piglets.

    Artificial insemination is a stressful procedure60 to which pigs cannot consent. Also, it denies pigs a natural behavior.

    Pigs often endure cruel and brutal handling, including being beaten, punched, kicked, shaken, shocked with prods, and left to die.

    Multiple investigations conducted by Mercy for Animals and others have recorded pigs being:616263

    • punched
    • kicked
    • beaten
    • shouted at
    • having their hair pulled out
    • violently shaken
    • poked in the eyes
    • hit with wooden boards.

    Rough handling causes many pigs to become non-ambulatory.64

    Pigs who cannot move may be beaten, dragged, or shocked with electric prods to move them through the killing line.65

    Pigs may be transported in extreme conditions without rest, food, and water.

    A Guardian analysis using USDA data revealed that 330,000 die annually in the United States during transportation to a slaughterhouse, and 800,000 pigs are unable to walk upon arrival.66

    Pigs are often transported hundreds of miles in extreme temperatures to be slaughtered, which can lead to deaths due to frostbite or heat stress.67

    Legally in the United States, pigs can be transported for up to 28 hours at a time with no rest, food, or water.68

    Pigs have been left to die after natural disasters.

    In the USA, factory-farmed pigs have been left to die in floods following major hurricanes.
    In 2018, Hurricane Florence caused an estimated 5,500 pigs to drown in North Carolina alone.69

    In 1999, flooding from Hurricane Floyd resulted in the drowning of more than 20,000 pigs (and more than 2 million chickens and turkeys).70

    Claim: I only eat pigs that are treated and slaughtered humanely.

    Claim: As a pig breeder, I know that a happy and healthy pig is in both our interests.

    The interests of the pig breeder and the interest of the pig are not generally aligned, and we should not pretend they are.

    If the pig breeder took on the interest of the pig, none of the injustices enumerated herein would happen. In short, breeding would not happen.

    Ninety-eight percent of pigs in the United States are factory farmed.

    Using data from the USDA Census of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency’s definition of concentrated animal feeding operations, the Sentience Institute determined that 98 percent of pigs in the USA are factory-farmed71

    Globally, nearly 1.3 billion pigs are slaughtered annually.

    Over 1.3 billion pigs are slaughtered annually, according to an analysis by the Our World in Data Group using United Nation data.72

    In the United States, over 127 million pigs are slaughtered annually.

    Over 127 million pigs are slaughter annually in the United States, according to a 2024 analysis by Statista.73

    Pigs are typically slaughtered at 5-6 months, which is less than 4 percent of their natural lifespans.

    Slaughter age of pigs74

    • Slaughter Age: 5-6 Months
    • Natural Lifespan: 10-12 Years
    • % of Life Lived: ~4 %

    Pertinent Quotes:

    “Forget the pig is an animal—treat him just like a machine in a factory,” recommended Hog Farm Management in 1976.75

    “We tolerate modern hog farming because we’re kept in ignorance of it. If we had a chance to look pigs in the eye, we might have trouble looking at ourselves in the mirror.” (Mark Essig, New York Times)76

    “Your pig almost certainly came from a factory farm, no matter what anyone tells you,” so says Matthew Prescott, of the Human Society of the United States, writing in a Washington Post op-ed.77

    “The breeding sow should be thought of, and treated as, a valuable piece of machinery whose function is to pump out baby pigs like a sausage machine,” National Hog Farmer advised in 1978.78

    Lineage

    Lineage

    Pigs were domesticated approximately 9,000 years ago from various subspecies of the Eurasian wild boar.79

    Domestication occurred separately in Europe and Asia, though there is evidence that interbreeding later took place.80

    Pigs were brought to North America by Spanish explorers in the 16th century.81

    Related Briefings

    None yet.

    Other Resources

    Current Affairs: “Forget They Are an Animal,” August 2022.

    One only needs to search for “investigations: pigs suffering on farms” for thousands of results.

    Advocacy Notes
    Tips for Advocacy and Outreach

    General Tips

    Your goal is to challenge their assumptions, reveal the scale of harm, and make them see pigs as victims of injustice, not just food animals.

    Make it personal. Ask how they would feel if they were in the pigs’ position.

    Reframe the conversation. Shift their focus from how pigs are killed to the injustice of killing them at all.

    Have Them Acknowledge That Taking a Life Is an Injustice

    People often focus only on suffering and ignore the injustice of taking pigs’ lives. Make sure they understand that even “humane” slaughter deprives pigs of their right to live.

    • “No matter how well an animal is treated, does that make it morally acceptable to take their life when we have no need to?”
    • “Would it be ethical to kill a six-month-old dog just because someone enjoys the taste of dog meat? Why should it be any different for a pig?”

    Why? This shifts the focus from “humane slaughter” to the fundamental injustice of unnecessary killing.

    Expose the Brutality of Slaughter Methods

    Many people assume pigs are killed painlessly. Make them confront the reality that all accepted slaughter methods cause extreme suffering.

    • “When pigs thrash, scream, and gasp for air as they are being gassed to death causing carbon dioxide fills their lungs, how can the industry claim that their deaths are humane?”
    • “Slaughterhouses sometimes fail to stun pigs properly, leaving them fully conscious as they are lowered into scalding tanks. If that were happening to dogs, how would you react?”

    Why? This makes them question the validity of humane slaughter claims.

    Make Them Aware of Routine Mutilations Without Anesthesia

    People rarely consider the painful procedures pigs endure before slaughter. Show them that pigs suffer from birth to death.

    • “What justifies clipping piglets teeth and cutting off piglets’ testicles without anesthesia, when doing the same to a puppy would be considered animal cruelty?”
    • “If factory farms were truly concerned with animal welfare, why do they rely on painful mutilations instead of improving living conditions?”

    Why? This forces them to recognize how normalized cruelty is in pig farming.

    Challenge the Idea That Pigs Are Treated Well in Farms

    People often believe that pigs are raised in comfortable conditions. Show them the reality of confinement.

    • “Why do so many pigs gnaw on the metal bars of their enclosures until their mouths bleed, if they are supposedly well cared for?”
    • “Imagine being locked in a cage so small you couldn’t turn around. Would that feel like a life worth living?”

    Why? This exposes how factory farming strips pigs of all natural behaviors.

    Show That Pigs Are Treated as Commodities, Not Individuals

    Most people assume that farmers care about their pigs. Reveal that pigs are viewed purely as profit-generating machines.

    • “Industry manuals describe mother pigs as ‘breeding machines’ and piglets as ‘units of production.’ Does that sound like an industry that prioritizes animal welfare?”
    • “If pigs were truly treated with care, why do industry practices focus on maximizing efficiency rather than allowing them to live naturally?”

    Why? This makes them question industry claims of humane treatment.

    Explain That Pigs Are Selectively Bred for Profits, Not Health

    Many people don’t realize that pigs are genetically manipulated in ways that harm them. Show how selective breeding forces them into bodies that cause suffering.

    • “How much suffering is caused when mother pigs are forced to give birth to twice as many piglets as their bodies were naturally designed for?”
    • “What happens when pigs are bred to grow so large, so quickly, that their own legs struggle to support them?”

    Why? This reveals that even their biology has been distorted for human gain.

    Address the High Mortality Rates and Disease in Pig Farming

    People assume disease and death are rare in farming. Show them that pig farming is rife with suffering even before slaughter.

    • “Millions of pigs die before even reaching the slaughterhouse. How can we call this system humane?”
    • “Factory farms claim to be highly regulated, yet disease outbreaks like African Swine Fever continue to kill massive numbers of pigs. Why does this system still exist?”

    Why? This makes them realize how cruel and unsustainable pig farming truly is.

    Reveal the Cruelty of Transport Conditions

    Most people don’t think about what happens before pigs reach the slaughterhouse. Show them how pigs suffer during transport.

    • “What does it say about animal welfare when pigs are packed onto trucks for over 24 hours without food or water, exposed to extreme heat or cold?”
    • “Every year, many pigs die in transport. If an industry accepts that level of suffering as routine, how much do they really care about animal welfare?”

    Why? This highlights that suffering begins long before slaughter.

    Challenge the “Humane Meat” Myth

    People use humane labels to justify eating pigs. Show them that these labels are meaningless.

    • “If pigs on so-called ‘humane’ farms still endure mutilations, confinement, and slaughter at a young age, what exactly makes the meat humane?”

    Why? This forces them to question their reliance on humane-washing.

    Leave Them With a Thought-Provoking Question

    If they resist, don’t argue—leave them with something to consider.

    • “If we can live healthy and happy lives without harming pigs, what justification remains for their suffering and death?”
    • “Cultural traditions determine which animals we protect and which ones we eat. If you had been born in a different country, would you see dogs the way you now see pigs?”

    Why? A strong question stays with them long after the conversation ends.

    1. “Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017 ↩︎
    2. “Humane Slaughter Act, Pub. L. No. 85–765, 862. Accessed December 3, 2019.Is Carbon Dioxide Stunning of Pigs Humane?,” RSPCA Knowledge base, 2016. ↩︎
    3. Higher Welfare Method for Stunning Pigs Gains Ground, American Welfare Institute. 2016. ↩︎
    4. Higher Welfare Method for Stunning Pigs Gains Ground, American Welfare Institute. 2016. ↩︎
    5. “Techniques and hygiene practices in slaughtering and meat handling“, FAO ↩︎
    6. Animal Legal Defense Fund. “Stopping Cruel High-Speed Pig Slaughter,” April 5, 2018 ↩︎
    7. “Hormel: USDA-Approved High-Speed Slaughter Hell. ↩︎
    8. “Hormel: USDA-Approved High-Speed Slaughter Hell,” Animal Outlook ↩︎
    9. Animal Legal Defense Fund. “Stopping Cruel High-Speed Pig Slaughter,” April 5, 2018 ↩︎
    10. “Hormel: USDA-Approved High-Speed Slaughter Hell,” Animal Outlook ↩︎
    11. “The Stunning and Killing of Pigs“, Humane Slaughter Association, May 2007 ↩︎
    12. Matthew Zampa, “There’s Nothing “Humane” About Killing Pigs in Gas Chambers,” Sentient Media, November 12, 2019 ↩︎
    13. Matthew Zampa, “There’s Nothing “Humane” About Killing Pigs in Gas Chambers,” Sentient Media, November 12, 2019 ↩︎
    14. “Is Gas Killing the Pig Industry’s Darkest Secret?“, Phillip Lymbery, November 11, 2021 ↩︎
    15. Compassion in World Farming, “PROMISING NEWS FOR EUROPE’S PIGS, November 13, 2020″ ↩︎
    16. “EFSA (finally) affirms that CO2 stunning is incompatible with pig welfare at slaughter“, Eurogroup for Animals, June 17, 2017 ↩︎
    17. “Is Gas Killing the Pig Industry’s Darkest Secret?“, Phillip Lymbery, November 11, 2021 ↩︎
    18. Hay, M. “Long-Term Detrimental Effects of Tooth Clipping or Grinding in Piglets: A Histological Approach.” Animal Welfare 13 (2004) ↩︎
    19. “Welfare Implications of Teeth Clipping, Tail Docking and Permanent Identification of Piglets,”  American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), July 15, 2014. ↩︎
    20. “Welfare Implications of Teeth Clipping, Tail Docking and Permanent Identification of Piglets,”  American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), July 15, 2014. ↩︎
    21. Prunier, A. “A Review of the Welfare Consequences of Surgical Castration in Piglets and the Evaluation of Non-Surgical Methods.” Animal Welfare, no. 15 (2006): 277–89 ↩︎
    22. Prunier, A. “A Review of the Welfare Consequences of Surgical Castration in Piglets and the Evaluation of Non-Surgical Methods.” Animal Welfare, no. 15 (2006): 277–89 ↩︎
    23. Prunier, A. “A Review of the Welfare Consequences of Surgical Castration in Piglets and the Evaluation of Non-Surgical Methods.” Animal Welfare, no. 15 (2006): 277–89 ↩︎
    24. Prunier, A. “A Review of the Welfare Consequences of Surgical Castration in Piglets and the Evaluation of Non-Surgical Methods.” Animal Welfare, no. 15 (2006): 277–89 ↩︎
    25. Herskin, M. S., K. Thodberg, and H. E. Jensen. “Effects of Tail Docking and Docking Length on Neuroanatomical Changes in Healed Tail Tips of Pigs.” Animal 9, no. 4 (April 2015): 677–81 ↩︎
    26. Herskin, M. S., K. Thodberg, and H. E. Jensen. “Effects of Tail Docking and Docking Length on Neuroanatomical Changes in Healed Tail Tips of Pigs.” Animal 9, no. 4 (April 2015): 677–81 ↩︎
    27. Harley, S, La Boyle, Ne O’Connell, Sj More, Dl Teixeira, and A Hanlon. “Docking the Value of Pigmeat? Prevalence and Financial Implications of Welfare Lesions in Irish Slaughter Pigs.” Animal Welfare 23, no. 3 (August 1, 2014): 275–85. ↩︎
    28. S. Torrey, N. Devillers, M. Lessard, C. Farmer, T. Widowski, Effect of age on the behavioral and physiological responses of piglets to tail docking and ear notching, Journal of Animal Science, Volume 87, Issue 5, May 2009, Pages 1778–1786 ↩︎
    29. Brach, E.J., B.S. Scobie, and D.P. Raymond. “Hog Tattooing Techniques.” Journal of Agricultural Engineering Research 41, no. 4 (December 1988): 339–44. ↩︎
    30. John McGlone, “Gestation Stall Design and Space: Care of Pregnant Sows in Individual Gestation Housing,” National Pork Board ↩︎
    31. HSUS. An HSUS Report: Welfare Issues with Gestation Crates for Pregnant Sows. Humane Society of the United States, 2013. Accessed January 1, 2025. ↩︎
    32. “Welfare Implications of Gestation Sow Housing,” American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), November 19, 2015 ↩︎
    33. “Welfare Implications of Gestation Sow Housing,” American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), November 19, 2015 ↩︎
    34. Cronin, G. M., P. R. Wiepkema, and J. M. van Ree. “Andorphins Implicated in Stereotypies of Tethred Sows.” Experientia 42, no. 2 (February 1986): 198–99 ↩︎
    35. “Opinion of the Scientific Panel on Animal Health and Welfare (AHAW) on a Request from the Commission Related to Welfare of Weaners and Rearing Pigs: Effects of Different Space Allowances and Floor.” The EFSA Journal 268 (October 28, 2005): 1–19. ↩︎
    36. Humane Society International. “Canada Bans Lifelong Confinement for Pigs in Controversial Gestation Crates,” March 6, 2014. ↩︎
    37. Humane Society International. “Canada Bans Lifelong Confinement for Pigs in Controversial Gestation Crates,” March 6, 2014. ↩︎
    38. Aland, Andres, and Thomas Banhazi, eds. Livestock Housing: Modern Management to Ensure Optimal Health and Welfare of Farm Animals. The Netherlands: Wageningen Academic Publishers, 2013. ↩︎
    39. Aland, Andres, and Thomas Banhazi, eds. Livestock Housing: Modern Management to Ensure Optimal Health and Welfare of Farm Animals. The Netherlands: Wageningen Academic Publishers, 2013. ↩︎
    40. Aland, Andres, and Thomas Banhazi, eds. Livestock Housing: Modern Management to Ensure Optimal Health and Welfare of Farm Animals. The Netherlands: Wageningen Academic Publishers, 2013. ↩︎
    41. Aland, Andres, and Thomas Banhazi, eds. Livestock Housing: Modern Management to Ensure Optimal Health and Welfare of Farm Animals. The Netherlands: Wageningen Academic Publishers, 2013. ↩︎
    42. Fox, Michael. “Factory Farming.” The Humane Society Institute for Science and Policy, 1980 ↩︎
    43. Fox, Michael. “Factory Farming.” The Humane Society Institute for Science and Policy, 1980 ↩︎
    44. Fox, Michael. “Factory Farming.” The Humane Society Institute for Science and Policy, 1980 ↩︎
    45. Viva! Campaigns’ 2019 Investigation into Hogwood Pig Farm.” Viva!, August 14, 2019. ↩︎
    46. Štukelj, Marina, and Jan Plut. “A Review of African Swine Fever – Disease That Is Now a Big Concern in Europe.” Contemporary Agriculture 67, no. 2 (July 1, 2018): 110–18. ↩︎
    47. The one-forth number is as of 2019, the latest year for which we could find these numbers. Nguyen-Thi, Thinh, et al. “An Assessment of the Economic Impacts of the 2019 African Swine Fever Outbreaks in Vietnam.” Frontiers in Veterinary Science, vol. 8, 25 Oct. 2021. ↩︎
    48. Worldostats. “Pig Population by Country 2024 – Worldostats.” World of Stats, 13 July 2024, worldostats.com/pig-population-by-country-2024/. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    49. United Nations FAO. The Impact of Disasters on Agriculture and Food Security 2023. 13 Oct. 2023, www.fao.org/3/cc7900en/cc7900en.pdf. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    50. Štukelj, Marina, and Jan Plut. “A Review of African Swine Fever – Disease That Is Now a Big Concern in Europe.” Contemporary Agriculture 67, no. 2 (July 1, 2018): 110–18. ↩︎
    51. Štukelj, Marina, and Jan Plut. “A Review of African Swine Fever – Disease That Is Now a Big Concern in Europe.” Contemporary Agriculture 67, no. 2 (July 1, 2018): 110–18. ↩︎
    52. Fonseca, Carlos, António Alves da Silva, Joana Alves, José Vingada, and Amadeu M. V. M. Soares. “Reproductive Performance of Wild Boar Females in Portugal.” European Journal of Wildlife Research 57, no. 2 (April 2011): 363–71. ↩︎
    53. Fonseca, Carlos, António Alves da Silva, Joana Alves, José Vingada, and Amadeu M. V. M. Soares. “Reproductive Performance of Wild Boar Females in Portugal.” European Journal of Wildlife Research 57, no. 2 (April 2011): 363–71. ↩︎
    54. Prunier, A., M. Heinonen, and H. Quesnel. “High Physiological Demands in Intensively Raised Pigs: Impact on Health and Welfare.” Animal 4, no. 6 (June 2010): 886–98. ↩︎
    55. Prunier, A., M. Heinonen, and H. Quesnel. “High Physiological Demands in Intensively Raised Pigs: Impact on Health and Welfare.” Animal 4, no. 6 (June 2010): 886–98. ↩︎
    56. Prunier, A., M. Heinonen, and H. Quesnel. “High Physiological Demands in Intensively Raised Pigs: Impact on Health and Welfare.” Animal 4, no. 6 (June 2010): 886–98. ↩︎
    57. Prunier, A., M. Heinonen, and H. Quesnel. “High Physiological Demands in Intensively Raised Pigs: Impact on Health and Welfare.” Animal 4, no. 6 (June 2010): 886–98. ↩︎
    58. Prunier, A., M. Heinonen, and H. Quesnel. “High Physiological Demands in Intensively Raised Pigs: Impact on Health and Welfare.” Animal 4, no. 6 (June 2010): 886–98. ↩︎
    59. National Hog Farmer. “Proper AI Techniques, Semen Handling,” October 15, 2007. ↩︎
    60. Grandin, Temple. “Reduce Stress of Handling to Improve Productivity of Livestock.” Veterinary Medicine, June 198 ↩︎
    61. “WATCH: Criminal Animal Abuse Caught on Video at Walmart Pork Supplier,” Mercy for Animals, May 6, 2015 ↩︎
    62. One can find numerous pig abuse videos from multiple sources with this search ↩︎
    63. “The Horrifying Truth About Pig Farms,” NowThis February 25, 2020 ↩︎
    64. Ritter, M.J., M. Ellis, N.L. Berry, S.E. Curtis, L. Anil, E. Berg, M. Benjamin, et al. “Review : Transport Losses in Market Weight Pigs: I. A Review of Definitions, Incidence, and Economic Impact.” The Professional Animal Scientist 25, no. 4 (August 2009): 404–14 ↩︎
    65. “Hormel: USDA-Approved High-Speed Slaughter Hell,” Animal Outlook ↩︎
    66. Kevany, Sophie. “More than 20 Million Farm Animals Die on Way to Abattoir in US Every Year.” The Guardian, 15 June 2022. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    67. Grandin, T. “The Welfare of Pigs during Transport and Slaughter.” Pig News and Information 24, no. 3 (2003): 83–90 ↩︎
    68. Garcia, Arlene, Glenna Pirner, Guilherme Picinin, Matthew May, Kimberly Guay, Brittany Backus, Mhairi Sutherland, and John McGlone. “Effect of Provision of Feed and Water during Transport on the Welfare of Weaned Pigs.” Animals 5, no. 2 (June 4, 2015): 407–25. ↩︎
    69. “The Hidden Victims of Hurricane Florence, Compassion in World Farming, September 26, 2018 ↩︎
    70. “The Hidden Victims of Hurricane Florence, Compassion in World Farming, September 26, 2018 ↩︎
    71. “US Factory Farming Estimates.” Sentience Institute. Accessed 2022-06-23 ↩︎
    72. The annual number was calculated by multiplying the daily number by 365. Roser, Max. “How Many Animals Get Slaughtered Every Day?” Our World in Data, 26 Sept. 2023. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    73. Shahbandeh, M. “Number of Hogs Slaughtered in the U.S. 2019.” Statista, 17 June 2024, www.statista.com/statistics/194382/number-of-hogs-slaughtered-in-the-us-since-2000/. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    74. Age of Animals Slaughtered.” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017 ↩︎
    75. Marina Bolotnikova provided solid visual evidence for this quote in “Forget They Are an Animal”, Current Affairs, August 2022 ↩︎
    76. Mark Essig, New York Times. Opinion Guest Essay. Pig Farming Doesn’t Have to Be This Cruel. Dec 16, 2021. ↩︎
    77. Matthew Prescott, “Your pig almost certainly came from a factory farm, no matter what anyone tells you,” Washington Post op-ed, July 15, 2014 ↩︎
    78. Marina Bolotnikova provided solid visual evidence for this quote in “Forget They Are an Animal”, Current Affairs, August 2022 ↩︎
    79. Giuffra, E., J. M. Kijas, V. Amarger, O. Carlborg, J. T. Jeon, and L. Andersson. “The Origin of the Domestic Pig: Independent Domestication and Subsequent Introgression.” Genetics 154, no. 4 (April 2000): 1785–91. ↩︎
    80. Larson, G. “Worldwide Phylogeography of Wild Boar Reveals Multiple Centers of Pig Domestication.” Science 307, no. 5715 (March 11, 2005): 1618–21. ↩︎
    81. Vann, Mick. “A History of Pigs in America.” Austinchronicle.com, 2009, www.austinchronicle.com/food/2009-04-10/764573/. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
  • Chicken Injustices and Suffering

    Chicken Injustices and Suffering

    Chickens are sentient beings capable of suffering, yet they endure systemic injustices in farming practices despite humans having no nutritional need for meat. They face extreme overcrowding, confinement, unsanitary conditions, debeaking, rough handling, and debilitating breeding practices, which cause pain and stress, and prevent natural behaviors. Annually, billions of male chicks in hen hatcheries are exterminated shortly after hatching. Despite claims of humane treatment, their lives are marked by suffering and early, violent deaths.

    Loss of life is an injustice even if done suddenly and painlessly (which it is not).

    To take the life of any sentient being is to harm that being by depriving them of opportunities for fulfillment, even if it is done suddenly and painlessly.

    We have no nutritional need for any animal product, so denying chickens their lives is unnecessary, as are the other forms of suffering.

    Chickens, like all farmed animals, are allowed to live just a small fraction of their natural lifespans.1

    • Laying hens are slaughtered after about 18 months, living less than 20 percent of an 8-year natural lifespan.2
    • Chickens used for meat are slaughtered at about 5 to 7 weeks, after living less than 2 percent of an 8-year natural lifespan.3
    • Males from laying hens are slaughtered soon after hatching because they can’t lay eggs. Traditionally, they are ground with steel blades.4

    The methods of slaughter for chickens are violent and painful.

    Several methods of killing chickens are used, including manual throat slitting, neck-breaking, decapitation, and gassing, all of which are painful.

    In the United States, where there are no federal regulations for chicken welfare, the industry claims that 99 percent of the birds are “totally unconscious” after an electrical stun, administered in some facilities just before slaughter.5

    A study published in The Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science revealed that the chicken industry uses low-voltage stuns in order to avoid damage that might render the carcass unsellable. The low voltage stuns are not effective, which results in many (if not most) chickens being alive and fully conscious when their throat is slit, and many remain alive as they enter the scalding tank.6 7 8

    In a violent extermination procedure euphemistically called “culling,” male chicks from laying hens are killed shortly after hatching.

    Because laying hens are bred specifically to lay eggs, males hatched from laying hens are not profitable—they don’t yield sufficient meat, and they can’t lay eggs.9

    Because the males hatched from laying hens are not profitable, the males are ground alive in a macerator, gassed, or suffocated—all shortly after they hatch.10

    The chicken industry refers to the practice of killing newly hatched males as chick culling (weak and struggling females are also discarded in this manner).11

    Hatchlings are about 50 percent male and 50 percent female. So statistically speaking, every laying hen has a brother who has been violently slaughtered. This is true even for backyard chickens, as the female hatchlings are sold not only to commercial producers but also to individuals keeping backyard chickens.

    In the United States, around 260 million male chicks are slaughtered annually via culling.12 Worldwide, it’s around 7 billion.13

    Extra: Lack of progress on the elimination of culling

    In June 2016, United Egg Producers (UEP), who claim to be responsible for 95 percent of egg production in the United States, issued a vague statement about supporting research to end the practice of culling.14

    At the time this was written, we found no evidence that culling had been eliminated except for one exception in Germany, where only one grocery store chain is selling eggs from hatcheries where males have not been slaughtered.15

    Chickens are subjected to overcrowding and confinement.

    Extreme crowding is the reality for the 98 percent of chickens living in factory farming conditions, regardless of whether they are in battery cages or not.16

    Hens in battery cages spend their lives confined to a space smaller than the size of a standard sheet of paper.17

    Chickens in commercial chicken houses may not be confined to a cage, but they are still entrapped by the mass of other chickens surrounding them, which is why Consumer Reports advises you to “ignore cage-free claims.”18

    Despite failed and weak legislation at the federal and state levels,19 and despite the trend for producers and grocers to promise to go cage-free,20 in the United States up to 95% of eggs are produced by chickens housed in battery cages.21

    Chickens are denied natural behaviors such as preening, roosting, perching, and spreading their wings.

    Crowding prevents or hinders chickens’ ability to engage in their natural behaviors of preening, roosting, perching, spreading their wings, establishing social order, pecking and scratching for food, and teaching their young to peck and scratch for food.22

    The denial of natural behaviors due to living in such close quarters results not only in discomfort but also the constant psychological stress of fear and anxiety.232425

    Chickens often live in filth and stench.

    The ammonia-laden air in the chicken houses is so noxious that the birds commonly suffer respiratory disorders, severe flesh and eye burns, and even blindness.26

    Videos and investigations document the filth and stench of urine, feces, feathers, and dander in chicken facilities. They show birds covered in feces and so weak that they cannot clean themselves. Some are stuck in manure so deep it could be described as a manure pit.2728

    Chickens commonly suffer from sickness and disease.

    Numerous research papers and undercover investigation videos show that:2930313233

    • Sickness and disease are common.
    • Some chickens are so sick you can hear them struggling to breathe.
    • Some hens don’t have the strength to stand on their own two legs.
    • Some are barely able to move or respond to anything around them.
    • Birds are found dead, dying, and emaciated.

    The selective breeding of chickens is debilitating.

    Laying Hens

    • A laying hen produces more than 300 eggs a year, but the jungle fowl from which they are bred lay fewer than 10 eggs in a year. This causes both physical and psychological stress.34
    • The large increase in the number of eggs laid is from a combination of selective breeding and hens’ tendency to lay more eggs when eggs are removed so they can follow their instinct to form a proper brood.35
    • Laying hens are also bred to lay large eggs for which they have not naturally evolved, which stresses their reproductive system and causes such problems as osteoporosis, bone breakage, and uterus prolapse.36

    Broiler Chickens

    The modern broiler chicken is unnaturally large and has been bred to grow at an unnaturally fast rate and have large breasts.37

    The selective breeding of broiler chickens comes with serious welfare consequences, including:38

    • leg disorders
    • skeletal, developmental, and degenerative diseases
    • heart and lung problems
    • breathing difficulty
    • premature sudden death

    Chickens are commonly debeaked, causing pain, lasting suffering, and prevention of natural behaviors.

    The debeaking of chickens:39

    • is painful
    • causes lasting suffering
    • impairs feeding
    • eliminates exploratory pecking
    • contributes to lice from impaired preening

    Chickens are subjected to rough handling and transport.

    When chickens raised for meat reach their desired slaughter weight, they are caught, crated, transported, unloaded, and placed in holding pens until slaughter.40

    Videos of chickens being transported or being prepared for transport show squawking birds being grabbed four at a time by their feet and roughly thrown or shoved into crowded crates, birds suffering dislocations and broken bones, wings and heads crushed in crates, birds dying from suffocation, hot and cold conditions, and birds unable to stand from exhaustion.41

    A study published in Poultry Science reveals that in addition to the psychological stress of chickens being transported, it is not unusual for a chicken to experience dehydration, disease, injury, pain, and even death.42

    Injuries from rough handling and transport of chickens include wing and leg fractures, lesions, bleeding, and bruising.43

    Claim: I only eat chickens and buy eggs from humane facilities.

    Ninety-eight percent of chickens in the United States are raised on factory farms.

    Ninety-eight percent of chickens in the United States are raised in factory farming conditions.44

    • The Sentience Institute used USDA data to calculate the number of chickens raised on factory farms.45

    Globally, over 75 billion chickens are slaughtered annually for meat, and another 5 billion egg-laying hens are slaughtered.

    Globally, over 75 billion chickens are slaughtered annually for meat.46

    Globally, over 5 billion laying hens are slaughtered annually. See below for calculation.

    Calculation Details
    1. Total number of laying hens worldwide is 7.9 billion.47
    2. Hens are slaughtered at 18 months (1.5 years) due to declining productivity.48 This means that 2/3 of all hens are slaughtered annually.
    3. Calculation: hens slaughtered per year = total number of hens (7.9 billion)  *  2 / 3 =  5.27 billion. 

    In the United States, over 9.5 billion chickens are slaughtered annually for meat, and another 300 million egg-laying hens are slaughtered.

    In the United States, over 9.5 billion are slaughtered annually for meat.49

    In the United States, around 300 million laying hens are slaughtered when their female reproductive systems are used up and they are no longer profitable, or died for some other reason.50

    Over a 60-year period in the United States, the number of chickens has grown 1,400 percent while the number of producers has plummeted by 98 percent, resulting in a typical facility raising more than 600,000 chickens a year.

    “In less than 60 years, the number of broiler chickens raised yearly has skyrocketed 1,400 percent, from 580 million in the 1950s to nearly nine billion today” (Pew Research).51

    “Over the same [60 year] period, the number of producers has plummeted by 98 percent, from 1.6 million to just over 27,000 and concentrated in just 15 states” (Pew Research).52

    “The size of individual operations has grown dramatically. Today, the typical broiler chicken comes from a facility that raises more than 600,000 birds a year” (Pew Research).53

    Chickens raised for meat are typically slaughtered at 5 to 7 weeks, which is less than 2 percent of their 8-year natural lifespan.

    Chickens raised for meat54

    • Slaughter Age: 5-7 Weeks
    • Natural Lifespan: 8 Years
    • % of Life Lived: < 1.68%

    Chickens raised for eggs are typically slaughtered at 18 months, which is less than 19 percent of their 8-year natural lifespan.

    Chickens raised for eggs55

    • Slaughter Age: 18 Months
    • Natural Lifespan: 8 Years
    • % of Life Lived: < 19%

    Other Information

    Lineage

    Domesticated chickens used for meat and eggs are likely descended from the red jungle fowl of Southeast Asia.56

    More recent research paints a more complex picture—birds from India, Cambodia, Ceylon, and other areas may also be involved in the lineage.57

    Chickens were used widely in Southeast Asia, India, and Tibet and were a common fixture in ancient Greece.58

    Their exploitation in the West spread from Greece to Rome and then on to Europe and the Americas.59

    Related Briefings

    Chickens: Sentience and Cognition

    Other Resources

    Article: US Factory Farming Estimates, Sentience Institute

    Article: Big Chicken: Pollution and Industrial Poultry Production in America, PEW Research

    Article: How Egg Production Became a $200-Billion Industry, Sentient Media

    Video: Costco Chicken Providers Exposed for Animal Cruelty, Now This News

    Video: Undercover Footage Reveals Horrible Conditions of McDonald’s Chickens | NowThis

    Video: DxE Investigators Expose ‘Humane’ Fraud at Whole Foods, DxE

    Advocacy Notes
    Tips for Advocacy and Outreach

    General Tips

    Your goal is to challenge assumptions, reveal the hidden realities of chicken farming, and make people see chickens as individuals who suffer immensely in the industry.

    Have Them Acknowledge That Taking a Life Is an Injustice

    People often focus only on how chickens are treated, not the fact that their lives are stolen from them unnecessarily. Shift the focus to the injustice of denying them their full lives.

    • “If we don’t need to eat chickens to be healthy, what justifies taking their lives at all?”
    • “A hen naturally lives around eight years, yet those raised for meat are killed at just five to seven weeks. How is it humane to take nearly 99% of their natural lifespan?”

    Why? This moves the conversation away from just welfare concerns to the fundamental wrong of killing sentient beings needlessly.

    Expose the Brutality of Chicken Slaughter

    People assume chickens are killed quickly and painlessly, but common slaughter methods cause extreme suffering.

    • “Low-voltage stunning used in chicken slaughter is often ineffective, meaning many birds are fully conscious when their throats are slit. If you were in that position, how humane would it feel?”
    • “Some chickens miss the killing blade entirely and are scalded alive in boiling water. How does that fit the industry’s claim of ‘humane slaughter’?”

    Why? This forces them to question whether “humane slaughter” is anything more than a marketing claim.

    Reveal the Mass Killing of Male Chicks in the Egg Industry

    Because male chicks can’t lay eggs and don’t grow fast enough for meat, they are killed immediately after hatching—a fact many people don’t know.

    • “For every egg-laying hen, statistically speaking, there was a brother who was either ground alive or gassed as a newborn. How does that fit into the idea of ‘cruelty-free’ eggs?”
    • “In the U.S. alone, around 260 million male chicks are killed each year just because they are ‘useless’ to the industry. What does that say about how chickens are valued?”

    Why? This challenges any belief that eggs are more ethical than meat.

    Challenge the Idea That “Cage-Free” Means Humane

    Many people believe that buying cage-free eggs or “free-range” chicken means they are supporting humane treatment. Reveal why this is false.

    • “If cage-free hens still live packed so tightly that they trample each other and can barely move, what difference does the lack of a cage really make?”
    • “Even in cage-free systems, hens are still slaughtered young and male chicks are still killed. So how does this solve the problem?”

    Why? This dismantles the illusion that better-sounding labels mean better lives for chickens.

    Show How Chickens Are Denied Their Natural Behaviors

    Chickens have complex instincts, yet they are deprived of nearly everything natural to them.

    • “A chicken’s natural life includes dust bathing, perching, and raising their young. When they’re crammed into dark, filthy sheds with thousands of others, how much of that life is left?”
    • “Hens instinctively want to teach their chicks how to forage, but in the egg industry, they never even get to see their babies. What does that say about the so-called humane treatment of farmed chickens?”

    Why? This makes them see chickens as individuals with needs, rather than just food sources.

    Highlight the Filth and Disease in Chicken Farms

    People picture clean, well-managed farms, but the reality is filthy, disease-ridden environments.

    • “Ammonia-filled air burns chickens’ lungs and eyes, sometimes blinding them. If a dog were kept in those conditions, would it be called humane?”
    • “Chickens are often found covered in feces, some too weak to stand. When the reality looks like this, how can anyone call it humane farming?”

    Why? This exposes the industry’s disregard for animal welfare even before slaughter.

    Explain That Chickens Suffer from Genetic Manipulation

    Selective breeding has severely harmed chickens, forcing them into unnatural and painful bodies.

    • “Chickens raised for meat grow so unnaturally fast that their bones can’t support their weight, causing pain and even heart failure. If an animal is bred in a way that makes their own body a source of suffering, how can we justify it?”
    • “A wild chicken lays around ten eggs a year, yet modern hens are forced to lay over 300. What kind of toll do you think that takes on their bodies?”

    Why? This challenges the idea that chickens are naturally suited for industrial farming.

    Address the Suffering Caused by Debeaking

    Chickens have their beaks cut without pain relief, a fact many people don’t know.

    • “If a chicken uses their beak like we use our hands, what does it mean when we slice part of it off?”
    • “Debeaking is done to prevent hens from pecking each other, yet the reason they peck is the stress of overcrowding. Why not fix the conditions instead of mutilating the birds?”

    Why? This makes them see debeaking as a symptom of a broken system rather than a necessity.

    Reveal the Suffering of Transport and Rough Handling

    The suffering of chickens doesn’t end until the moment they are killed.

    • “Workers grab chickens by the legs, shove them into crates, and toss them onto trucks. If someone treated a dog that way, would they be charged with cruelty?”
    • “Many chickens arrive at the slaughterhouse with broken bones from rough handling. If their suffering mattered, wouldn’t the industry care about that?”

    Why? This dismantles any belief that chickens are treated with care before slaughter.

    Leave Them With a Thought-Provoking Question

    If they resist, don’t argue—leave them with something to consider.

    • “When every part of the industry—from hatcheries to slaughterhouses—causes suffering, is there really such a thing as humane chicken farming?”
    • “If chickens were treated this way but they were cats or dogs, would we still find it acceptable?”

    Why? A strong question stays with them long after the conversation ends.

    1. “Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, December 2020 ↩︎
    2. “Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017 ↩︎
    3. “Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017 ↩︎
    4. What Happens with Male Chicks in the Egg Industry? – RSPCA Knowledgebase.” ↩︎
    5. National Chicken Council Brief on Stunning of Chickens.” The National Chicken Council (February 8, 2013. ↩︎
    6. Shields, Sara J., and A. B. M. Raj. “A Critical Review of Electrical Water-Bath Stun Systems for Poultry Slaughter and Recent Developments in Alternative Technologies.” Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science13, no. 4 (September 17, 2010): 281–99. ↩︎
    7. Pitney, Nico. “Scientists Believe The Chickens We Eat Are Being Slaughtered While Conscious.” HuffPost, 24:58 400AD. ↩︎
    8. Welfare at Slaughter of Broiler Chickens: A Review.” Accessed June 12, 2019. ↩︎
    9. What Happens with Male Chicks in the Egg Industry? – RSPCA Knowledgebase.” Accessed June 10, 2019. ↩︎
    10. “Chick Culling.” Wikipedia, 19 Feb. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chick_culling. Accessed 11 Jan. 2025.ers, 2015. ↩︎
    11. What Happens with Male Chicks in the Egg Industry? – RSPCA Knowledgebase.” Accessed June 10, 2019. ↩︎
    12. Davidson, Ollie. “The Killing of Newborn Chicks Is yet Another Cruel Egg Industry Practice.” LifeGate, 5 May 2021, www.lifegate.com/male-chick-culling-egg-industry-animal-equality. Accessed 11 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    13. Communication, SCIENCE. “Researcher: Seven Billion Newly Hatched Chicks Are Killed Every Year – but a Ban Is Not the Solution.” Science.ku.dk, 21 Mar. 2024. Accessed 11 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    14. United Egg Producers Statement on Eliminating Male Chick Culling.” UEP Certified (blog), June 10, 2016 ↩︎
    15. Daley, Jason. “A German Grocery Chain Is Selling First-Of-Its-Kind ‘No-Kill’ Eggs.” Smithsonian. Accessed June 10, 2019 ↩︎
    16. Sentience Institute. “US Factory Farming Estimates.” April 11, 2019. ↩︎
    17. Friedrich, Bruce, The Good Food Institute. “The Cruelest of All Factory Farm Products: Eggs From Caged Hens.” HuffPost, December 6, 2017 ↩︎
    18. Consumer Reports Greener Choices. “Cage-free on a package of chicken: Does It Add Value?” March 5, 2018 ↩︎
    19. A Decade Later, Another ‘Cage-Free’ Measure Is on the California Ballot.” Civil Eats, October 25, 2018. ↩︎
    20. Welfare Commitments, Cage-Free Commitments ↩︎
    21. How Egg Production Became a $200-Billion Industry, Sentient Media, October 17, 2022 ↩︎
    22. McCrea, Brigid, and Bethany Baker. “Common Backyard Chicken Behaviors.” Alabama Cooperative Extension System, 2 Nov. 2022. Accessed 10 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    23. Eugen, Kaya von, Rebecca E. Nordquist, Elly Zeinstra, and Franz Josef van der Staay. “Stocking Density Affects Stress and Anxious Behavior in the Laying Hen Chick During Rearing.” Animals : An Open Access Journal from MDPI9, no. 2 (February 10, 2019). https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9020053 ↩︎
    24. Marino, Lori. “Thinking Chickens: A Review of Cognition, Emotion, and Behavior in the Domestic Chicken.” Animal Cognition20, no. 2 (2017): 127–47. ↩︎
    25. Appleby, M.C. “What Causes Crowding? Effects of Space, Facilities and Group Size on Behavior, with Particular Reference to Furnished Cages for Hens.” Animal Welfare13 (August 1, 2004): 313–20. ↩︎
    26. Ammonia Toxicity in Chickens.” PoultryDVM. Accessed October 25, 2018 ↩︎
    27. Direct Action Everywhere. “Truth Matters: DxE Investigators Expose ‘Humane’ Fraud at Whole Foods.“, January 7, 2015 ↩︎
    28. NowThis, “Undercover Footage Reveals Horrible Conditions of McDonald’s Chickens” September 9, 2019 ↩︎
    29. Direct Action Everywhere. “Truth Matters: DxE Investigators Expose ‘Humane’ Fraud at Whole Foods.“, January 7 ↩︎
    30. NowThis, “Undercover Footage Reveals Horrible Conditions of McDonald’s Chickens” September 9, 2019 ↩︎
    31. Adams, A. W., and J. V. Craig. “Effect of Crowding and Cage Shape on Productivity and Profitability of Caged Layers: A Survey.” Poultry Science 64, no. 2 (February 1, 1985): 238–42. ↩︎
    32. Lawrence, Felicity. “If Consumers Knew How Farmed Chickens Were Raised, They Might Never Eat Their Meat Again.” The Observer, April 24, 2016, sec. Environment. ↩︎
    33. Diseases of Poultry | Mississippi State University Extension Service.” Accessed June 18, 2019 ↩︎
    34. Cheng, H.-W. “Breeding of Tomorrow’s Chickens to Improve Well-Being.” Poultry Science 89, no. 4 (April 1, 2010): 805–13 ↩︎
    35. Rutherford-Fortunati, Rutherford-Fortunati on. “Do Chickens Mourn the Loss of Their Eggs?” June 29, 2012 ↩︎
    36. Jamieson, Alastair. “Large Eggs Cause Pain and Stress to Hens, Shoppers Are Told,” March 11, 2009, sec. Finance ↩︎
    37. Stevenson, Peter. “Leg and Heart Problems in Broiler Chickens.” Compassion in World Farming, January 2003. ↩︎
    38. Stevenson, Peter. “Leg and Heart Problems in Broiler Chickens.” Compassion in World Farming, January 2003. ↩︎
    39. Welfare Implications of Beak Trimming.” American Veterinary Medical Association, February 7, 2010 ↩︎
    40. Chickens Suffer during Catching, Loading, and Transport.” Accessed June 12, 2019 ↩︎
    41. Chickens Suffer during Catching, Loading, and Transport.” Accessed June 12, 2019 ↩︎
    42. Jacobs, Leonie, Evelyne Delezie, Luc Duchateau, Klara Goethals, and Frank A. M. Tuyttens. “Impact of the Separate Pre-Slaughter Stages on Broiler Chicken Welfare ↩︎
    43. Jacobs, Leonie, Evelyne Delezie, Luc Duchateau, Klara Goethals, and Frank A. M. Tuyttens. “Impact of the Separate Pre-Slaughter Stages on Broiler Chicken Welfare ↩︎
    44. Institute, Sentience. “US Factory Farming Estimates.” Sentience Institute, April 11, 2019.  ↩︎
    45. Institute, Sentience. “US Factory Farming Estimates.” Sentience Institute, April 11, 2019. ↩︎
    46. Obtained by an analysis of 2022 United Nations data by the Our World in Data group using their data explorer. To get to the 75 billion figure, clear all selections, choose “World,” “Animals Slaughtered,” and “Chickens.” ↩︎
    47. “Review of Global Egg Production 2023.” Compassioninfoodbusiness.com, 2023.. Accessed 10 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    48.  Symons, Angela. “Egg-Laying Hens Are Killed after Just 18 Months. This Charity Gives Them a Brighter Future.” Yahoo News, 2 Jan. 2024, uk.news.yahoo.com/dogs-feathers-could-next-pet-060017501.html. Accessed 10 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    49. Obtained by an analysis of 2022 United Nations data by the Our World in Data group using their data explorer. To get to the 75 billion figure, clear all selections, choose “United States,” “Animals Slaughtered,” and “Chickens.” ↩︎
    50. The 294 million figure is obtained from the USDA report “Chicken and Eggs, 2023 Summary, page 16, by summing the “Layers Sold for Slaughter” column with the “Layers rendered, died, destroyed, composted, or disappeared for any reason (other than sold)” column. ↩︎
    51. Big Chicken: Pollution and Industrial Poultry Production in America.” Accessed July 6, 2019. ↩︎
    52. Big Chicken: Pollution and Industrial Poultry Production in America.” Accessed July 6, 2019. ↩︎
    53. Big Chicken: Pollution and Industrial Poultry Production in America.” Accessed July 6, 2019. ↩︎
    54. “Age of Animals Slaughtered.” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017. ↩︎
    55. “Age of Animals Slaughtered.” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017. ↩︎
    56. Smith, Page, and Charles Daniel. The Chicken Book. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2000, 11-13. ↩︎
    57. Smith, Page, and Charles Daniel. The Chicken Book. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2000, 11-13. ↩︎
    58. Smith, Page, and Charles Daniel. The Chicken Book. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2000, 16-30. ↩︎
    59. Smith, Page, and Charles Daniel. The Chicken Book. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2000, 16-30. ↩︎
  • Cow Injustices and Suffering

    Cow Injustices and Suffering

    Cows are sentient beings capable of suffering, yet they endure systemic injustices in the meat and dairy industries, despite humans having no nutritional need for animal products. Millions are slaughtered young each year after enduring painful procedures like dehorning and castration without anesthetics. Dairy cows face relentless cycles of forced impregnation, separation from calves, and mechanical milking, often leading to severe health issues like mastitis and lameness, while male calves are often killed at birth or raised for veal. Despite claims of humane treatment, harsh living conditions, brutal transport, and inhumane slaughter practices define their lives, marked by suffering, exploitation, and early deaths.

    Note: We use the word “cow” to mean both male and female of the species, unless used with a gender-revealing adjective.

    Loss of life is an injustice even if done suddenly and painlessly (which it is not).

    To take the life of any sentient being is to harm that being by depriving them of opportunities for fulfillment, even if it is done suddenly and painlessly.

    We have no nutritional need for meat or dairy (or any animal product) so denying cows their lives is unnecessary, as are the other forms of suffering inflicted on farmed cows.

    Cows, like all farmed animals,1 are allowed to live just a small fraction of their natural lifespan.

    Dairy cows are slaughtered at around 4 years old, after living less than 30 percent of a 15 to 20-year natural lifespan.2

    Cows used for beef are slaughtered at around 18 months old, after living less than 10 percent of a 15-20-year natural lifespan.3

    Despite the Humane Slaughter Act, cows are often conscious when butchering begins.

    According to the Humane Slaughter Act in the U.S., cows are required to be rendered insensible before slaughter.4

    Fast line speeds and poorly trained workers mean that animals are often improperly stunned and still conscious when their throats are slit. (Investigative report, Washington Post)5

    Workers have reported cows blinking and looking around when they are supposed to be dead. (Investigative report, Washington Post)6

    Some cows have their limbs cut off and even their hides removed while fully conscious. (Investigative report, Washington Post)7

    The butchering of conscious cows happens daily all over the U.S. according to a former chief government inspector at a Pennsylvania hamburger plant (Investigative report, Washington Post).8

    When slaughter plants in the United States are caught violating laws, action is rarely taken. (Investigative report, Washington Post)9

    U.S. workers have been fired for reporting violations (Investigative report, Washington Post).10

    USDA inspectors, who are responsible for enforcing humane slaughter standards, complain that they have little access to the kill floor and do not receive support from plant supervisors (Investigative report, Washington Post).11

    Cows are routinely subjected to mutilations, including dehorning, disbudding, castration, and branding.

    Dehorning.

    Ninety-four percent of dairy calves are dehorned as of 2007, according to the USDA.12

    Dehorning is not regulated in the United States.13

    Cows and calves (including females) have their horns removed to prevent them from injuring people or other animals.14

    This process involves cutting through bone and horn tissue with either a wire, a saw, or a mechanical gouger.15

    According to Temple Grandin, who is recognized as an expert in livestock handling, it is very stressful and “the single most painful thing we do.” She stresses that an anesthetic should always be used,16 although in practice it is usually not used.17

    Calves may be in pain for several hours — if not longer — following the procedure.18

    When done on adult cows, it increases their risk of infection, sinusitis, and prolonged wound healing.19

    Disbudding

    In calves under two months of age, the horns have not yet attached to the skull. When the procedure is carried out at this stage, it is called “disbudding.”20

    Disbudding is not regulated in the United States.21

    Disbudding is usually done with either a hot iron or caustic paste.22

    In one survey, almost half of farmers said that calves appeared to be in pain for more than a few minutes after disbudding.23

    Wounds from hot iron disbudding may still be sensitive 75 hours later.24

    Some farmers selectively breed for “polled” cows, meaning those without horns. However, this is far from widespread, and dehorning and disbudding procedures are still common.25

    Castration


    As an indication of the prevalence of castration, one analysis found that 95 percent of feedlots contained castrated males.26

    Castration is performed to reduce aggression and prevent reproduction.27

    Castration may be carried out physically, chemically, or hormonally, though physical methods are most typical.28

    A survey of bovine veterinarians revealed that while some practitioners do employ pain relief strategies during castration, the overall prevalence remains low, with only about 20% reporting the use of analgesic or anesthetic agents.29

    Studies show that the most common methods of physical castration (rubber ring, Burdizzo, and surgery) cause acute pain.30

    Evidence of castration causing pain include behaviors such as struggling, kicking, foot stamping, restlessness, reduced food intake, and lying down more than usual.31

    Branding

    Over 20 percent of cows in the US were branded in 2007-8, the latest years for which data is available at the time of writing.32

    Cows are often branded with hot irons as a method of identification.33

    During the branding process, cows show symptoms such as kicking, tail flicking, vocalizations, and falling down, indicating that it is painful.34

    The resulting wound from branding likely remains painful for at least eight weeks.35

    Cows are often forced into horrid living conditions, including standing in their own waste.

    Feedlots

    Beef cows are usually born in the winter or spring and raised on pasture for the first seven months of their lives.36

    In the fall, cows may be sent to feedlots.37 This can involve cows being transported for hundreds of miles.38

    On feedlots, thousands of cows are crammed into and made to stand in small pens that quickly fill up with waste.39 The aim is to fatten them up quickly, so they are fed an unnatural grain-based diet that makes them extremely bloated.

    The bloating of cows on feedlots can be so extreme that it compresses the lungs, impairing breathing and sometimes even causing death. It can also cause liver abscesses.40

    The huge amounts of manure on feedlots emit gases like methane and ammonia, which may give cows chronic respiratory problems.41

    Cows are also given antibiotics to make them grow faster and stave off disease in their filthy conditions.42

    Industrial Farms

    The life of a dairy cow is particularly egregious because the cycle of artificial insemination, separation from offspring, and mechanical milking repeat for 4 or 5 years until she is slaughtered, often for cheap meat.434445

    An undercover investigation has shown dairy cows forced to stand knee-deep in waste on concrete floors.46

    An undercover investigation video has shown cows with swollen or ulcerated leg joints and huge swellings oozing pus and blood.47

    An undercover investigation determined that cows were not given veterinary care and some were found lying dead in manure.48

    Despite being herbivores, many cows are fed unnatural diets that include fish and chicken feathers. This is because high-protein diets increase their milk production.49

    By the time cows are 4 years old, they are no longer productive and are sent to slaughter. Their natural lifespan is about 15-20 years.50

    Dairy cows are milked by machines, contributing to discomfort and mastitis.

    Cows on factory farms are milked by machines rather than by hand. Machine milking usually takes place two to three times a day and lasts 5-7 minutes each time.51

    Machine milking of cows is harmful and uncomfortable. Teats often become swollen after milking and may become callused when it is done regularly.52

    Changes in the skin of the cow’s teats from mechanical milking make it easier for bacteria to penetrate, increasing the cow’s risk of mastitis (discussed later on).

    Automated milking machines allow cows to be milked more frequently, meaning there is less recovery time.53

    Selective breeding in dairy cows strains their bodies, resulting in metabolic diseases.

    Modern dairy cows have been selectively bred to produce much more milk than their ancestors, which is difficult for their bodies to sustain. As a result, they may become deficient in nutrients such as calcium, causing milk fever.54

    Because of the huge demands placed on dairy cows’ bodies by increased milk production, they often cannot eat enough food to sustain themselves. As a result, many develop metabolic diseases such as milk fever (discussed above), ketosis, and fatty liver syndrome.55

    Cows are denied nurturing, sex, and other social behaviors.

    Nurturing and Being Nurtured

    In the dairy industry, calves are usually taken from their mothers almost immediately after birth. This is very upsetting for both mother and calf. Mother cows have strong maternal instincts and often call for their calves for hours or even days after separation.56

    Footage shows baby cows separated from their mothers.57

    Calves are often kept in isolation for at least a few weeks after birth, and will never be nurtured by their mothers.58

    Calf isolation has long-term effects. Calves separated from their mothers cope worse with stress than those allowed to remain with them.59

    Sex

    Cows are typically not permitted to reproduce naturally. Instead, females are artificially impregnated without their consent60 (described below), while most males are castrated (discussed above).61

    Social Behaviours

    Cows on dairy farms are sometimes kept in isolation. This is a stressful experience as they are not able to carry out natural behaviors like grooming.62

    Attempts to reduce cows’ stress with automated grooming brushes have proved unsuccessful.63

    Cows have “best friends” and become stressed when separated from them.64

    Artificial insemination via forced penetration, along with invasive semen collection, are common industry practices for cows.

    Artificial Insemination

    Approximately 78 percent of dairy cows in the United States are impregnated by artificial insemination,65 and less than 10 percent of meat cows are impregnated by artificial insemination.66

    Worldwide, approximately 20 percent of cows are impregnated by artificial insemination.67

    The artificial insemination procedure calls for an entire human arm to be inserted into the cow’s anus to guide the semen injection gun which is inserted through the cow’s vulva,68 described below, while most males are castrated.69

    Semen Collection

    To artificially inseminate a cow, semen must be collected. The two main ways to collect semen are by using a teaser bull and by electroejaculation.

    Teaser Bull Method of Semen Collection

    During the teaser bull method of semen collection, a “donor” bull is manipulated into becoming aroused and mounting the teaser bull, who is usually a male.70 also known as a “loving cup” by the industry.71

    During the teaser bull method of semen collection, semen is collected in an artificial vagina,72 also known as a “loving cup” by the industry.73

    Electroejaculation Semen Collection

    The electroejaculation method is normally used with bulls who can’t be easily handled or aren’t capable of mounting.74

    The electroejaculation method involves placing an electric probe into a bull’s rectum and slowly increasing the setting until the bull ejaculates. The process is painful and distressing, and no pain relief is given.75

    During the electroejaculation procedure, bulls sometimes collapse before they ejaculate.76

    Male calves born to dairy cows are either cruelly raised for veal or shot at birth.

    Male calves born to dairy cows are useless to the industry as they cannot produce milk, and they have not been bred for meat. So they are either:

    • Raised for veal77 or…
    • Shot after birth.78

    Veal

    Veal calves are often fed milk substitutes that are deficient in iron because pale veal is considered more desirable.79

    Veal calves are kept in confined spaces where movement is severely limited, and this restriction becomes more pronounced as they grow larger.80

    Shot at Birth

    The popularity of veal has declined in recent years,81 partially due to animal welfare concerns.82

    Because of the declining popularity of veal, many male dairy calves are now shot shortly after birth. In 2018, an investigation carried out by the Guardian (“Dairy’s ‘dirty secret’: it’s still cheaper to kill male calves than to rear them)” revealed that 95,000 male calves per year are slaughtered at birth in the UK alone.83

    In the process of shipping, cows may be beaten, kicked, shocked, subjected to hot or freezing temperatures, required to stand or sit in their own waste, and may travel for up to 28 hours without water or food.

    When cows arrive at slaughterhouses, cows who are too sick or frightened to get off the truck may be beaten, kicked, shot, or shocked with electric prods.84

    An investigation has shown cows on factory farms being beaten, including in sensitive areas like their udders.85

    Cows are often transported for hours or even days to reach slaughterhouses. They usually have no access to food or water and are subject to extreme weather conditions. Legally, they can be transported in this way for up to 28 hours at a time.86

    Cows are transported as far as 1,500 miles with up to 45 cows crammed into each trailer. Trailers are open and in winter cows’ hooves may freeze to the urine and manure. Those who are unable to stand have no choice but to lie in the waste.87

    Cows commonly suffer from mastitis, lameness, downer cow syndrome, enlarged udders, and bacterial infections.

    Mastitis

    Mastitis is an infectious disease involving the persistent inflammation of a cow’s udder tissue.

    Mastitis is common on modern factory farms — a USDA report found that 24.8 percent of dairy cows in the USA had the disease at some point in 2013. In a small number of cases, it was fatal.88

    Mastitis causes pain and discomfort, especially as it makes it uncomfortable for cows to lie down.89

    Downers

    A downer cow is one who is unable to rise.

    The euphemism for downer cow syndrome is “Bovine Secondary Recumbency.”90

    There are a number of potential causes of downer cows, but one of the most common is “milk fever,” which occurs shortly after a cow gives birth.91

    An analysis by a doctor of veterinary medicine revealed that nearly two-thirds of downed cows either die or are killed rather than recovering.92

    Undercover investigations have documented cruel treatment of downer cows at slaughterhouses, including being dragged with chains, shocked with electric prods, rammed with forklift trucks, and sprayed with a hose to simulate drowning.93

    An Animal Welfare Institute undercover investigator recorded workers moving downed cows with forklifts, sticking them repeatedly with electric prods, and spraying water down their noses to make them stand, allegedly to get them to slaughter.94

    Lameness

    Lameness is common in high-yielding dairy cows.95

    The more milk a cow produces, the more prone she is to lameness.96

    Claim: I only eat beef and buy dairy products from humane facilities.

    Seventy percent of cows in the United States are factory farmed.

    Using data from the USDA Census of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency’s definition of concentrated animal feeding operations, the Sentience Institute determined that 70 percent of cows in the USA are factory-farmed97

    Slaughter Counts

    Globally, around 328 million cattle are slaughtered a year (based on 2021 United Nations data).98

    In the United States, 32.8 million cattle are slaughtered annually, with about 3.1 million of those being dairy cows (USDA data from 2023).99

    Cows raised for meat are typically slaughtered at 18 months, which is less than 8 percent of their 15 to 20-year natural lifespan.

    Slaughter age of cows raised for meat.100

    • Slaughter Age: 18 Months
    • Natural Lifespan: 15-20 Years
    • % of Life Lived: < 7.5%

    Cows raised for dairy are typically slaughtered at 4 years, representing less than 20 percent of their 15 to 20-year lifespan.

    Slaughter age of cows raised for dairy101

    • Slaughter Age: 4 Years
    • Natural Lifespan: 15-20 Years
    • % of Life Lived: < 20%

    Other Information

    Terminology

    Cow is often used generically to refer to male and female cattle, as it is at this website, but technically is “the mature female of cattle (genus Bos).102 The word can also used for females of other species, such as elephants and whales.

    Cattle are “domesticated quadrupeds held as property or raised for use,” or more specifically “bovine animals on a farm or ranch.”103 We would use this word reluctantly because of its etymology from ”property.”104

    Bovine is sometimes used as a synonym for cows, but zoologically means “any of a subfamily (Bovinae) of bovids including oxen, bison, buffalo, and their close relatives.”105

    Calf refers to “the young of the domestic cow.” It is also used for the young of related species such as bison, as well as certain other mammals like whales and elephants.106

    Livestock denotes “animals kept or raised for use or pleasure.” It is usually used for farm animals.107

    Heifer refers to “a young cow / especially: one that has not had a calf.108

    Steer usually means “a male bovine animal and especially a domestic ox (Bos taurus) castrated before sexual maturity.” It can also refer to “an ox less than four years old.”109

    Bull means “a male bovine,” particularly an uncastrated adult. It is also used to refer to adult males of various other species, such as whales and elephants.110

    Ox refers to “a domestic bovine mammal (Bos taurus),” or more broadly simply a bovine mammal. It is sometimes used to mean “an adult castrated male domestic ox.”111

    Lineage

    Cows were domesticated from the now-extinct aurochs (wild ox) at least twice, and possibly three times.112

    In the near east, cows were domesticated about 10,500 years ago.113

    Modern domestic cows are significantly smaller than their wild ancestors.114

    Historically, cows have been used for meat, milk, leather, and transport.115

    Related Briefings

    Cow Sentience and Cognition

    Pig Injustices and Suffering

    Chicken Injustices and Suffering

    Fish Injustices and Suffering

    Other Resources

    None yet.

    Advocacy Notes
    Tips for Advocacy and Outreach

    General Tips

    People often view cows as passive, unfeeling animals or assume that dairy and beef products are ethically produced. Your goal is to challenge these assumptions, highlight the hidden suffering of cows in the industry, and prompt critical reflection.

    Expose industry deception. Humane labels and marketing do not change the suffering cows endure.

    Make it personal. Ask how they would feel if they were in the cows’ position.

    Reframe the conversation. Shift their focus from how cows are treated to whether we have the right to exploit and kill them at all.

    Have Them Acknowledge That Taking a Life Is an Injustice

    The conversation around animal welfare often focuses on treatment, but the core injustice is that their lives are taken when we have no need to kill them.

    • “Cows can naturally live 15 to 20 years, yet those raised for beef are killed at just 18 months, and dairy cows at 4 years. How is it ethical to take nearly their entire lives away for something we don’t need?”
    • “If we can thrive without consuming meat or dairy, what justifies taking a sentient being’s life for it?”

    Why? This moves the conversation beyond welfare concerns to the fundamental wrong of unnecessary killing.

    Reveal That Cows Are Often Conscious When Slaughtered

    Many assume that slaughter is humane and painless, but reality paints a different picture.

    • “Despite laws requiring stunning before slaughter, cows are frequently still conscious when their throats are slit. If you saw that happening, would you still believe in humane slaughter?”
    • “Workers have reported seeing cows blinking and looking around while being butchered. Does that sound like a painless death?”

    Why? This forces them to question the industry’s claim that slaughter is humane.

    Expose the Routine Mutilations Cows Endure Without Pain Relief

    Most people don’t realize that cows undergo painful procedures like dehorning, branding, and castration—often without anesthesia.

    • “What does it say about the industry when calves have their horns cut off, testicles removed, or skin burned with branding irons—all without pain relief?”
    • “If someone did these procedures to a dog without anesthesia, how would society react?”

    Why? This makes them see cows as individuals who suffer just like other animals.

    Challenge the Myth That Cows Are Treated Well in Farms

    Many believe cows only live on open pastures, but the reality is far from that.

    • “Dairy cows can spend much of their lives confined and standing in their own waste, often suffering from infections. Is this the humane image people have of dairy farms?”
    • “If a cow’s udder is swollen, infected, and covered in sores due to excessive milking, how can we claim she is treated with care?”

    Why? This dismantles the romanticized image of dairy and beef farming.

    Show That Dairy Cows Are Exploited Until Their Bodies Give Out

    Dairy cows are subjected to relentless cycles of pregnancy and milking until their bodies are depleted.

    • “Would you call it humane to force a cow to endure repeated pregnancies, take away her babies, and milk her until her body is so exhausted that she collapses?”
    • “If a dairy cow’s natural lifespan is 20 years, but she is sent to slaughter at 4 because her body is spent, does that sound like kindness?”

    Why? This highlights how dairy cows are used and discarded.

    Challenge the Notion That Dairy is More Ethical Than Meat

    Some vegetarians believe that consuming milk and cheese is more ethical than eating meat.

    • “Many dairy cows end up as meat. If you oppose killing animals for food, why support an industry that sends them to the same slaughterhouses?”
    • “Since male calves born to dairy cows are either shot at birth or raised for veal, can dairy ever be truly cruelty-free?”

    Why? This connects dairy consumption to the meat industry’s violence.

    Address the Suffering of Transport and Slaughter

    Most people don’t think about what happens during transport before cows reach slaughterhouses.

    • “How humane is it to force cows onto trucks for up to 28 hours without food or water, standing in their own waste, exposed to extreme heat or cold?”

    Why? This exposes the suffering cows endure even before they are killed.

    Challenge the Notion That Humane Labels Matter

    People use labels like “grass-fed” or “organic” to justify eating meat or dairy.

    • “If all cows—regardless of labels—are slaughtered young and subjected to painful procedures, how meaningful are these labels?”
    • “What difference does it make if a cow had ‘access’ to a pasture for a few hours a day when she still ended up in a slaughterhouse?”

    Why? This forces them to question their reliance on humane-washing.

    Leave Them With a Thought-Provoking Question

    If they resist, don’t argue—leave them with something to consider.

    • “If an alien lifeform from another planet treated humans the way we treat cows—exploiting their bodies, taking their children, and killing them young—how would we justify it?”
    • “When every part of the dairy and beef industry causes suffering, is there any truly ethical way to consume these products?”

    Why? A strong question stays with them long after the conversation ends.

    Final Thoughts: Keep It Direct and Thoughtful

    Expose industry deception. Humane labels and marketing do not change the suffering cows endure.

    Make it personal. Ask how they would feel if they were in the cows’ position.

    Reframe the conversation. Shift their focus from how cows are treated to whether we have the right to exploit and kill them at all.

    1. “Age of Animals Slaughtered.” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017. ↩︎
    2. “Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017 ↩︎
    3. “Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017 ↩︎
    4. Humane Slaughter Act, Pub. L. No. 85–765, 862. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    5. Warrick, Jo. “‘They Die Piece by Piece.’” Washington Post, April 10, 2001. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    6. Warrick, Jo. “‘They Die Piece by Piece.’” Washington Post, April 10, 2001. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    7. Warrick, Jo. “‘They Die Piece by Piece.’” Washington Post, April 10, 2001. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    8. Warrick, Jo. “‘They Die Piece by Piece.’” Washington Post, April 10, 2001. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    9. Warrick, Jo. “‘They Die Piece by Piece.’” Washington Post, April 10, 2001. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    10. Warrick, Jo. “‘They Die Piece by Piece.’” Washington Post, April 10, 2001. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    11. Warrick, Jo. “‘They Die Piece by Piece.’” Washington Post, April 10, 2001. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    12. “Changes in Dairy Cattle Health and Management Practices in the United States,1996-2007.” Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, July 2009. Accessed 3 December 2019 ↩︎
    13. “Changes in Dairy Cattle Health and Management Practices in the United States,1996-2007.” Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, July 2009. Accessed 3 December 2019 ↩︎
    14. “Changes in Dairy Cattle Health and Management Practices in the United States,1996-2007.” Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, July 2009. Accessed 3 December 2019 ↩︎
    15. Robbins, Ja, Dm Weary, Ca Schuppli, and Mag von Keyserlingk. “Stakeholder Views on Treating Pain Due to Dehorning Dairy Calves.” Animal Welfare 24, no. 4 (November 14, 2015): 399–406. Accessed December 3, 2019 ↩︎
    16. News, A. B. C. “Dehorning: ‘Standard Practice’ on Dairy Farms.” ABC News. Accessed December 3, 2019 ↩︎
    17. Robbins, Ja, Dm Weary, Ca Schuppli, and Mag von Keyserlingk. “Stakeholder Views on Treating Pain Due to Dehorning Dairy Calves.” Animal Welfare 24, no. 4 (November 14, 2015): 399–406. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    18. Faulkner, P.M., and D.M. Weary. “Reducing Pain After Dehorning in Dairy Calves.” Journal of Dairy Science 83, no. 9 (September 2000): 2037–41. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    19. “Literature Review on the Welfare Implications of the Dehorning and Disbudding of Cattle.” American Veterinary Medical Association, July 15, 2014. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    20. Robbins, Ja, Dm Weary, Ca Schuppli, and Mag von Keyserlingk. “Stakeholder Views on Treating Pain Due to Dehorning Dairy Calves.” Animal Welfare 24, no. 4 (November 14, 2015): 399–406. Accessed December 3, 2019 ↩︎
    21. Robbins, Ja, Dm Weary, Ca Schuppli, and Mag von Keyserlingk. “Stakeholder Views on Treating Pain Due to Dehorning Dairy Calves.” Animal Welfare 24, no. 4 (November 14, 2015): 399–406. Accessed December 3, 2019 ↩︎
    22. Robbins, Ja, Dm Weary, Ca Schuppli, and Mag von Keyserlingk. “Stakeholder Views on Treating Pain Due to Dehorning Dairy Calves.” Animal Welfare 24, no. 4 (November 14, 2015): 399–406. Accessed December 3, 2019 ↩︎
    23. “Literature Review on the Welfare Implications of the Dehorning and Disbudding of Cattle.” American Veterinary Medical Association, July 15, 2014. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    24. Mintline, Erin M., Mairi Stewart, Andrea R. Rogers, Neil R. Cox, Gwyneth A. Verkerk, Joseph M. Stookey, James R. Webster, and Cassandra B. Tucker. “Play Behavior as an Indicator of Animal Welfare: Disbudding in Dairy Calves.” ”Applied Animal Behaviour Science” 144, no. 1–2 (February 2013): 22–30. Accessed December 3 2019. ↩︎
    25. Spurlock, D.M., M.L. Stock, and J.F. Coetzee. “The Impact of 3 Strategies for Incorporating Polled Genetics into a Dairy Cattle Breeding Program on the Overall Herd Genetic Merit.” Journal of Dairy Science 97, no. 8 (August 2014): 5265–74. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    26. This is based on 2022 data showing that only 5% of sales lots contained uncastrated males. Raper, Kellie. “No Bull! The Value of Castration for Calves.” Farmprogress.com, 2023. Accessed 7 Jan. 2025 ↩︎
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    28. “Castration of Calves.” Accessed November 19, 2019.
      ↩︎
    29. Webster, H.B., et al. “Effects of Local Anesthesia and Flunixin Meglumine on the Acute Cortisol Response, Behavior, and Performance of Young Dairy Calves Undergoing Surgical Castration.” Journal of Dairy Science, vol. 96, no. 10, Oct. 2013, pp. 6285–6300. Accessed Jan 7, 2025. ↩︎
    30. Robertson, I.S., J.E. Kent, and V. Molony. “Effect of Different Methods of Castration on Behaviour and Plasma Cortisol in Calves of Three Ages.” Research in Veterinary Science 56, no. 1 (January 1994): 8–17. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
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    41. Haarlem, R. P. van, R. L. Desjardins, Z. Gao, T. K. Flesch, and X. Li. “Methane and Ammonia Emissions from a Beef Feedlot in Western Canada for a Twelve-Day Period in the Fall.” Canadian Journal of Animal Science 88, no. 4 (December 2008): 641–49. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    42. McEachran, Andrew D., Brett R. Blackwell, J. Delton Hanson, Kimberly J. Wooten, Gregory D. Mayer, Stephen B. Cox, and Philip N. Smith. “Antibiotics, Bacteria, and Antibiotic Resistance Genes: Aerial Transport from Cattle Feed Yards via Particulate Matter.” Environmental Health Perspectives 123, no. 4 (April 2015): 337–43. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    43. Troutt, H.F., and B.I. Osburn. “Meat from Dairy Cows: Possible Microbiological Hazards and Risks.” ”Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE” 16, no. 2 (August 1, 1997): 405–14. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    44. “Managing Cow Lactation Cycles.” Www.thecattlesite.com, 18 May 2015, www.thecattlesite.com/articles/4248/managing-cow-lactation-cycles. Accessed 7 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    45. “Life of a Dairy Cow | Animal Place.” Animal Place, 9 May 2019, animalplace.org/life-dairy-cow/. Accessed 7 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    46. PETA Investigations. “Cows Forced to Live in Their Own Waste at Dairy Farm.” Accessed November 29, 2019. ↩︎
    47. Neglected, Lame Cows Suffer in Pain and Filth—Just for Cheese. YouTube Video. PETA, June 28, 2019 ↩︎
    48. PETA Investigations. “Video Reveals That Neglected, Lame Cows Suffer in Pain and Filth at Pennsylvania Dairy—Just for Cheese.” Accessed November 29, 2019. ↩︎
    49. Blezinger, Stephen. “The Use and Future of Animal Proteins in Dairy Cow Diets.” Progressive Dairy. Accessed November 29, 2019. ↩︎
    50. Slaughter Age vs Natural Lifespan, December 21, 2020 ↩︎
    51. “How Do You Milk a Cow?” Dairy Good: National Dairy Council Content Partner, September 14, 2016, Accessed November 29, 2019. ↩︎
    52. Neijenhuis, F. “The Effects of Machine Milking on Teat Condition.” ICAR Technical Series. Research Institute for Animal Husbandry. November 29, 2019. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    53. Neijenhuis, F. “The Effects of Machine Milking on Teat Condition.” ICAR Technical Series. Research Institute for Animal Husbandry. November 29, 2019. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    54. Webster, John. Animal Welfare. Chichester, England: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, 2000. 88, 139-140. ↩︎
    55. Webster, John. Animal Welfare. Chichester, England: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, 2000. 88, 139-140. ↩︎
    56. Marchant-Forde, Jeremy N., Ruth M. Marchant-Forde, and Daniel M. Weary. “Responses of Dairy Cows and Calves to Each Other’s Vocalisations after Early Separation.” Applied Animal Behaviour Science 78, no. 1 (August 2002): 19–28. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    57. Heartbreaking Footage Shows Baby Cows Stolen from Their Mothers. Mercy for Animals, 2019. Accessed 3 December 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZQ3sl0xNC4&feature=youtu.be. ↩︎
    58. Wagner, Kathrin, Daniel Seitner, Kerstin Barth, Rupert Palme, Andreas Futschik, and Susanne Waiblinger. “Effects of Mother versus Artificial Rearing during the First 12 Weeks of Life on Challenge Responses of Dairy Cows.” Applied Animal Behaviour Science 164 (March 2015): 1–11. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    59. Wagner, Kathrin, Daniel Seitner, Kerstin Barth, Rupert Palme, Andreas Futschik, and Susanne Waiblinger. “Effects of Mother versus Artificial Rearing during the First 12 Weeks of Life on Challenge Responses of Dairy Cows.” Applied Animal Behaviour Science 164 (March 2015): 1–11. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    60. The Beef Site. “Artificial Insemination for Beef Cattle.” Accessed November 29, 2019. ↩︎
    61. “Castration of Calves.” Accessed November 19, 2019. ↩︎
    62. Mandel, Roi, Margret L. Wenker, Kees van Reenen, Nina M. Keil, and Edna Hillmann. “Can Access to an Automated Grooming Brush and/or a Mirror Reduce Stress of Dairy Cows Kept in Social Isolation?” Applied Animal Behaviour Science 211 (February 2019): 1–8. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    63. Mandel, Roi, Margret L. Wenker, Kees van Reenen, Nina M. Keil, and Edna Hillmann. “Can Access to an Automated Grooming Brush and/or a Mirror Reduce Stress of Dairy Cows Kept in Social Isolation?” Applied Animal Behaviour Science 211 (February 2019): 1–8. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    64. “Heifer so Lonely: How Cows Have Best Friends and Get Stressed When They Are Separated.” Mail Online, July 4, 2011. Accessed December 3, 2019 ↩︎
    65. Rajala-Schultz, Gustavo M. Schuenemann, Santiago Bas, Armando Hoet, Eric Gordon, Donald Sanders, Klibs N. Galvão and Päivi. “A.I. Cover Sheaths Improved Fertility in Lactating Dairy Cows.” Progressive Dairy. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    66. Beef Magazine. “Artificial Insemination Can Get You There,” February 1, 2000. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    67. Thibier, M, and H.-G Wagner. “World Statistics for Artificial Insemination in Cattle.” ”Livestock Production Science” 74, no. 2 (March 2002): 203–12 ↩︎
    68. The Beef Site. “Artificial Insemination for Beef Cattle.” Accessed November 29, 2019. ↩︎
    69. “Castration of Calves.” Accessed November 19, 2019. ↩︎
    70. Colorado State Animal Science, “Semen Collection from Bulls.” September 2, 2002. ↩︎
    71. Society for Theriogenology, Bull Breeding Soundness Examination, September 25, 2012 ↩︎
    72. Colorado State Animal Science, “Semen Collection from Bulls.” September 2, 2002. ↩︎
    73. Society for Theriogenology, Bull Breeding Soundness Examination, September 25, 2012 ↩︎
    74. Colorado State Animal Science, “Semen Collection from Bulls.” September 2, 2002. ↩︎
    75. Colorado State Animal Science, “Semen Collection from Bulls.” September 2, 2002. ↩︎
    76. Chenoweth, P. J., and H. G. Osborne. “BREED DIFFERENCES IN THE RESPONSE OF YOUNG BEEF BULLS TO ELECTRO-EJACULATION.” Australian Veterinary Journal 54, no. 7 (July 1978): 333–37. Accessed December 3 2019. ↩︎
    77. “Veal from Farm to Table.” Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    78. Levitt, Tom. “Dairy’s ‘Dirty Secret’: It’s Still Cheaper to Kill Male Calves than to Rear Them.” The Guardian, March 26, 2018, sec. Environment. Accessed December 3, 2019. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/mar/26/dairy-dirty-secret-its-still-cheaper-to-kill-male-calves-than-to-rear-them. ↩︎
    79. Kiley-Worthington, M. “The Behavior of Confined Calves Raised for Veal: Are These Animals Distressed?” International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems 4, no. 3 (1983): 198–213. ↩︎
    80. Webster, AJF. “Control of Infectious Disease in Housed Veal Calves.” Proceedings of the International Symposium on Veal Calf Production, no. 52 (March 1990): 103–12. ↩︎
    81. Statista. “U.S. Veal Consumption per Capita, 2028.” Accessed December 3, 2019. https://www.statista.com/statistics/183541/per-capita-consumption-of-veal-in-the-us/. ↩︎
    82. Philip Gruber. “Veal Still Holds Possibilities Despite Challenges.” Lancaster Farming. Accessed November 22, 2019. ↩︎
    83. Levitt, Tom. “Dairy’s ‘Dirty Secret’: It’s Still Cheaper to Kill Male Calves than to Rear Them.” The Guardian, March 26, 2018, sec. Environment. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    84. Manufacturing.net. “USDA, McDonald’s Suspend Slaughterhouse Buys,” August 23, 2012. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    85. PETA Investigations. “Video Reveals That Neglected, Lame Cows Suffer in Pain and Filth at Pennsylvania Dairy—Just for Cheese.” Accessed November 29, 2019. ↩︎
    86. LII / Legal Information Institute. “49 U.S. Code § 80502 – Transportation of Animals.” Accessed November 29, 2019. ↩︎
    87. PETA. “Cow Transport and Slaughter,” June 22, 2010. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    88. “Milk Quality, Milking Procedures, and Mastitis on U.S. Dairies, 2014.” Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, September 2016. Accessed December 3, 2019. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/nahms/dairy/downloads/dairy14/Dairy14_dr_Mastitis.pdf. ↩︎
    89. Siivonen, Jutta, Suvi Taponen, Mari Hovinen, Matti Pastell, B. Joop Lensink, Satu Pyörälä, and Laura Hänninen. “Impact of Acute Clinical Mastitis on Cow Behaviour.” Applied Animal Behaviour Science 132, no. 3–4 (July 2011): 101–6. Accessed December 3, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2011.04.005. ↩︎
    90. Constable, Peter D. “Overview of Bovine Secondary Recumbency – Musculoskeletal System.” Veterinary Manual. Accessed November 22, 2019. ↩︎
    91. Constable, Peter D. “Overview of Bovine Secondary Recumbency – Musculoskeletal System.” Veterinary Manual. Accessed November 22, 2019. ↩︎
    92. Gorden, Patrick J. “Diagnosing and Treating Downer Cattle (Proceedings).” DVM 360, Oct. 2011. Accessed 7 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    93. Slaughterhouse Investigation: Cruel and Unhealthy Practices. Humane Society of the United States, Youtube, 2008. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    94. “Cattle abuse wasn’t rare occurrence“, ABC News ↩︎
    95. Pryce, J. E., R. F. Veerkamp, R. Thompson, W. G. Hill, and G. Simm. “Genetic Aspects of Common Health Disorders and Measures of Fertility in Holstein Friesian Dairy Cattle.” Animal Science 65, no. 3 (December 1997): 353–60. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    96. Pryce, J. E., R. F. Veerkamp, R. Thompson, W. G. Hill, and G. Simm. “Genetic Aspects of Common Health Disorders and Measures of Fertility in Holstein Friesian Dairy Cattle.” Animal Science 65, no. 3 (December 1997): 353–60. Accessed December 3, 2019. ↩︎
    97. “US Factory Farming Estimates.” Sentience Institute. Accessed 2022-06-23 ↩︎
    98. The annual number was calculated by multiplying the daily number by 365. Roser, Max. “How Many Animals Get Slaughtered Every Day?” Our World in Data, 26 Sept. 2023. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025. ↩︎
    99. USDA. Livestock Slaughter 2023 Summary. United States Department of Agriculture. April 2024. Accessed January 7, 2025. ↩︎
    100. “Age of Animals Slaughtered.” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017. ↩︎
    101. “Age of Animals Slaughtered.” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017. ↩︎
    102. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary—Cow, Accessed 2022-06-23. ↩︎
    103. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary—Cattle, Accessed 2022-02-28. ↩︎
    104. “Cattle | Origin and Meaning of Cattle by Online Etymology Dictionary.” Accessed 2022-02-28. ↩︎
    105. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary—Bovine, Accessed 2022-02-28 ↩︎
    106. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary—Calf, Accessed 2022-06-23. ↩︎
    107. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary—Livestock, Accessed 2022-02-28 ↩︎
    108. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary—Heifer, Accessed 2022-02-28 ↩︎
    109. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary—Steer, Accessed 2022-06-23 ↩︎
    110. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary—Bull, Accessed 2022-06-23. ↩︎
    111. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary—Ox, Accessed 2022-06-23. ↩︎
    112. Loftus, R. T., D. E. MacHugh, D. G. Bradley, P. M. Sharp, and P. Cunningham. “Evidence for Two Independent Domestications of Cattle.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 91, no. 7 (March 29, 1994): 2757–61. Accessed 2019-12-03. ↩︎
    113. Orlando, Ludovic. “The First Aurochs Genome Reveals the Breeding History of British and European Cattle.” Genome Biology 16, no. 1 (December 2015): 225. Accessed 2019-12-03. ↩︎
    114. Zeder, Melinda A., ed. Documenting Domestication: New Genetic and Archaeological Paradigms. Berkeley, Calif: University of California Press, 2006, 317-318. ↩︎
    115. Orlando, Ludovic. “The First Aurochs Genome Reveals the Breeding History of British and European Cattle.” Genome Biology 16, no. 1 (December 2015): 225. Accessed 2019-12-03. ↩︎
  • Fish Injustices and Suffering

    Fish Injustices and Suffering

    Fish are sentient beings capable of suffering, yet they endure systemic injustices in both commercial and farmed fishing industries. Commercially caught fish suffer through suffocation, crushing, decompression injuries, and slow freezing, while farmed fish face stress from overcrowding, poor water quality, disease, and painful slaughter methods that often fail to ensure unconsciousness. Globally, over a trillion fish are caught annually, and billions more are farmed under conditions that cause physical injuries, genetic issues, and prolonged suffering. Despite their vast numbers and capacity for pain, fish are commodified and exploited without regard for their inherent worth as individuals.

    Methods of Slaughter: Commercially Caught Fish

    Suffocation

    Rather than being slaughtered, wild-caught fish are often left to suffocate to death after being hauled onto the fishing boat.1 A 2025 study published in Scientific Reports found that fish left to suffocate may endure 10 minutes or more of moderate to severe pain before death.2

    Crushing and Circulatory Failure

    When huge numbers of fish are caught in trawl nets, those at the bottom are inevitably crushed to death.3

    Decompression

    Fish who are caught at depths of 20 meters or more may suffer decompression injuries when rapidly pulled to the surface causing…

    • their internal organs to be forced out of their mouths or anuses (prolapse)
    • their eyes to be pushed out of their sockets
    • their swim bladders to burst4

    Freezing

    Any fish who survive being caught and pulled to the surface may still be alive when they are put into freezers on the fishing boat, leaving them to freeze to death slowly.5

    Methods of Slaughter: Farmed Fish

    Asphyxiation

    The most common method of killing farmed fish is asphyxiation, either in air or ice slurry.

    Fish placed in ice slurry usually only struggle briefly before becoming immobile, but they can respire for up to 50 minutes.

    Fishes can show signs of life for several hours when left to asphyxiate in air.6

    Bleeding, beheading, or gutting alive

    Some species of fish are bled out to improve the flavor of their flesh.

    Bleeding out is often done while the fish is still alive.

    Fish may have their heads cut off or be eviscerated without first being stunned.

    Fishes’ brains can continue to function for some time even after decapitation.7

    Percussive stunning

    Percussive stunning (a blow to the head) does not always lead to immediate unconsciousness.8

    Fish can continue to be conscious after percussive stunning because of improper technique:

    • holding the fish in the wrong position
    • stunning them in the wrong location
    • not using enough force9

    Percussive stunning is not suitable for many types of fish because of.

    • their size
    • the shape of their skulls10

    Electrical stunning

    Electrical stunning may be carried out either in or out of the water (known as wet or dry stunning).

    Electrical stunning does not always lead to immediate unconsciousness. Complications involve:

    • the wrong voltage11
    • inadequate contact with stunning paddles (dry stunning on conveyor belts)12
    • the conductivity of the water13

    Carbon dioxide

    Salmon are often killed by being placed in water infused with carbon dioxide.

    Carbon dioxide poisoning is slow and has been banned in Norway because it is inhumane.14

    Spiking

    Some fish are killed by driving a tool into the brain to destroy it.

    One study that analyzed the accuracy in spiking found that the tool misses the brain up to 50% of the time, causing a slow, painful death.15

    Other Methods of Fish Slaughter.

    Since they are difficult to kill, eels are often killed with cruel methods such as immersion in an ammonia solution, a salt bath, or gutting them alive.

    Tuna may be shot in the head while still in the water.

    Carp are often sold alive and killed by buyers at home. They are likely to be kept out of water for long periods and are likely to be killed poorly without proper equipment.16

    Living Conditions: Farmed Fish

    Farmed fish experience several stresses because of their living conditions. Examples:1718

    Overcrowding may cause:

    • stress
    • loss of scales
    • lack of oxygen
    • possible gill damage
    • heart problems (possibly due to insufficient exercise)

    Poor water quality can occur because of the amount of feces produced in crowded conditions.

    Disease and parasites:

    • are rife because of overcrowding, causing irritation and discomfort.
    • include sea lice, which can eat the flesh of farmed fish, causing lesions and even exposure of the skull in severe cases.

    Health issues are common, including:

    • skeletal problems
    • cataracts
    • soft tissue malformations

    Abrasion may occur when fish come into contact with the cage walls.

    Transportation can cause stress and increased mortality.

    Cannibalism is an unnatural behavior that may occur if large and small fish are kept together.

    Rough Handling:

    • may cause injury to fish, potentially leading to infection.
    • when removed from the water, may result in suffering due to a lack of oxygen and even death because of stress.

    Artificial light:

    • is used to manipulate fish’s growth and reproduction.
    • may cause stress.

    Predation:

    • occurs when fish are kept in pens or cages in natural bodies of water.
    • occurs when animals like seabirds, seals, and otters injure or prey on the fish, who cannot easily escape because they are confined.

    Denial of natural behaviors is inevitable on fish farms. Fish who would swim several kilometers a day in the wild are kept confined in small cages where they cannot exercise natural behaviors such as feeding and migration.

    Selective Breeding and Reproduction

    Genetic Engineering

    Genetic engineering of salmon to grow faster has caused:

    • enlargement of the head.
    • an impaired immune system.
    • breathing difficulties.19

    Triploidy

    Triploidy is a genetic manipulation that renders salmon sterile, prevents farmed fish from breeding with wild ones, improves meat quality, and makes fish grow larger.

    Triploidy causes:

    • cataracts.
    • spinal deformities.20

    Hormone Injection

    Hormone injection is necessary for some species to allow them to spawn when kept in artificial conditions.

    Injected hormones are often obtained by slaughtering other carp to remove their pituitary glands.21

    Slaughter for Breeding

    Some species are slaughtered so that they can be cut open and their eggs or sperm removed to be used for breeding.22

    Treatment and Handling

    Hooking

    Fish have a similar pain system to mammals and birds, and their mouths contain many sensory receptor cells.

    Hooking is painful and stressful and can also lead to entrapped fish being attacked by predators if not reeled in immediately.

    In longline fishing, fish may be hooked for hours or even days until the lines are retrieved.23

    Forced Fasting

    Farmed fish may be deprived of food for several days before slaughter, potentially depressing the immune system and causing hunger.24

    Transport and Packing

    Crowding

    Crowding is the use of a net to encircle all fish in the enclosure prior to transport. The lack of oxygen caused by crowding can cause injury, stress, and even death in some cases.

    Pumping

    Pumping sucks the fish and water through the tube for a distance ranging from a few meters to over a kilometer, sometimes causing injury by projections or sharp edges in the pipe, or by colliding with one another.25

    Brailing

    Brailing involves transporting fish in a net called a brail, some of which can hold several hundred kilograms.26

    Dry Brailing

    With dry brailing the fish come into contact with the net, each other, and other surfaces, causing crushing, bruising, abrasion, and puncture injuries.27

    Wet Brailing

    Wet brailing, in which fish are submerged, reduces the risk of harm, but fish sometimes fall onto each other or onto a hard surface, causing injury.28

    Live Bait

    Live fish are often used as bait to catch larger fish, resulting in confinement for days or weeks.

    Baitfish are often impaled live on hooks and eaten alive by predators, unable to escape.

    Catch and Release

    Some recreational anglers prefer to throw fish back into the water alive after catching them.

    Hooking is painful—the mouths of fish contain pain receptors.29

    Hooks of catch and release fish sometimes puncture the throat or internal organs, causing death in anywhere from 3 percent to 86 percent depending on the species and the type of hook and bait used.30

    No counterclaims are addressed in this briefing.

    Globally, over one trillion fish are caught each year, and over 50 billion are farmed.

    Global fish counts31

    • Caught Fish: .79-2.3 trillion
    • Farmed Fish: 51-167 billion

    Note: It is difficult to say how many fish are pulled from the oceans each year, as the catch is measured by weight rather than the number of individuals.

    In the United States, over 6 billion fish are caught each year, and over 200 million are farmed.

    United States fish counts32

    • Caught Fish: 6.29-13.51 billion
    • Farmed Fish: 244-583 million

    Of the over 34,000 species of fish, only a few are used for food.

    • Over 34,000 fish species have been documented.33
    • Only a relatively small number of species are used for food. Of these, most are bony fish, belonging to the class Osteichthyes.34
    • Osteichthyes is one of the classes within the subphylum Vertebrata within the animal kingdom.35
    Related Briefings

    Fish Sentience and Cognition

    Chicken Injustices and Suffering

    Cow Injustices and Suffering

    Pig Injustices and Suffering

    Other Resources

    Estimated Numbers of Individuals in Annual Global Capture Tonnage (FAO) of Fish Species

    Advocacy Notes
    Tips for Advocacy and Outreach

    General Tips

    Many people do not consider fish in their ethical thinking. Your goal is to challenge assumptions, expose the brutality of the fishing industry, and make people rethink their perception of fish as mere commodities.

    Reframe the conversation. The issue isn’t just how fish are killed—it’s whether we have the right to kill them at all.

    Have Them Acknowledge That Fish Suffer

    People often assume fish do not feel pain or experience suffering. Shift the focus to their ability to experience harm.

    • “Did you know that studies show that fish can experience severe pain during suffocation?“
    • “If fish do not feel pain, why do they struggle desperately to escape hooks, nets, and handling?”
    • “Why do fish show stress responses when injured, just like land animals do?”

    Why? This forces them to recognize fish as sentient beings rather than objects.

    Expose the Reality of Commercial Fishing Slaughter

    Wild-caught fish experience prolonged and agonizing deaths, yet most people never think about how they are killed.

    • “What does it say about an industry when suffocation, crushing, and bleeding out while fully conscious are the standard methods of slaughter?”
    • “If fish are pulled from deep water so fast that their internal organs rupture due to pressure changes, can we really say they are killed humanely?”

    Why? This reveals how violent and painful commercial fishing is for fish.

    Show That Farmed Fish Suffer in Overcrowded, Polluted Conditions

    Many assume that farmed fish have better lives than wild-caught fish, but they endure horrific conditions.

    • “How do fish benefit from farming when they are packed so tightly that they suffer from deformities, infections, and oxygen deprivation?”
    • “If disease and parasites are rampant in fish farms, often eating fish alive, how can the industry claim this is humane?”

    Why? This exposes the myth that fish farming is a humane alternative to commercial fishing.

    Challenge the Notion That Fish Slaughter Is Humane

    Fish are killed in some of the most brutal ways imaginable, often remaining conscious for long periods.

    • “Would we accept any other animal being clubbed repeatedly or left to asphyxiate as a humane method of killing?”

    Why? This makes them question whether fish slaughter is ever ethical.

    Expose the Brutality of Recreational Fishing

    Many people see catch-and-release fishing as harmless, but it inflicts serious pain and injury on fish.

    • “How can fishing be just a ‘harmless sport’ when the hook pierces a fish’s face, rips their tissue, and leaves them vulnerable to infection?”
    • “What happens to fish thrown back into the water with torn mouths and internal injuries—how many of them actually survive?”

    Why? This forces them to reconsider the ethics of sport fishing.

    Reveal the Suffering Behind Live Bait and Other Cruel Practices

    Live bait and other ignored aspects of the fishing industry cause immense suffering.

    • “How can impaling live fish on hooks or cutting them into pieces while they are still conscious be considered humane?”
    • “If baitfish are kept in confinement and then discarded like trash, do their lives matter any less?”

    Why? This highlights an overlooked aspect of fish cruelty.

    Expose How Fish Are Treated as Disposable Commodities

    Because fish are killed in such high numbers, their suffering is dismissed.

    • “When billions of fish are discarded as ‘bycatch’—thrown back into the ocean to die—what does that say about how little their lives are valued?”
    • “If fish were counted as individuals rather than by weight, would people think differently about how many are killed?”

    Why? This makes them see fish slaughter as a mass atrocity.

    Challenge the Notion That Fish Matter Less Than Land Animals

    Some people dismiss fish suffering because they are different from mammals. Help them rethink this bias.

    • “Why should the ability to blink or vocalize determine whether an animal’s suffering matters?”
    • “If fish could make sounds like cows or pigs when they were killed, do you think more people would care?”

    Why? This challenges the idea that fish are less worthy of moral concern.

    Leave Them With a Thought-Provoking Question

    If they resist, don’t argue—leave them with something to consider.

    • “If an industry kills billions of animals every year using methods that cause extreme suffering, is there any way to justify supporting it?”
    • “When so much of the fishing and aquaculture industry involves suffering, is there any ethical way to consume fish?”

    Why? A strong question stays with them long after the conversation ends.

    1. Mood, Alison. “Worse Things Happen at Sea: The Welfare of Wild-Caught Fish.” fishcount.org.uk, 2010. ↩︎
    2. Schuck-Paim, Cynthia, et al. “Quantifying the Welfare Impact of Air Asphyxia in Rainbow Trout Slaughter for Policy and Practice.” Scientific Reports, vol. 15, no. 1, 5 June 2025, www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-04272-1, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-04272-1. Accessed 22 June 2025. ↩︎
    3. Mood, Alison. “Worse Things Happen at Sea: The Welfare of Wild-Caught Fish.” fishcount.org.uk, 2010. ↩︎
    4. Mood, Alison. “Worse Things Happen at Sea: The Welfare of Wild-Caught Fish.” fishcount.org.uk, 2010. ↩︎
    5. Mood, Alison. “Worse Things Happen at Sea: The Welfare of Wild-Caught Fish.” fishcount.org.uk, 2010. ↩︎
    6. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    7. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    8. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    9. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    10. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    11. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64.  ↩︎
    12. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    13. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    14. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    15. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    16. .Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    17. Gregory, Neville G., and Temple Grandin. Animal Welfare and Meat Science. Oxon, UK ; New York, NY, USA: CABI Pub, 1998. 209-10. ↩︎
    18. Stevenson, Peter, Compassion in World Farming (Organization), and World Society for the Protection of Animals. Closed Waters: The Welfare of Farmed Atlantic Salmon, Rainbow Trout, Atlantic Cod and Atlantic Halibut. Godalming, Surrey: Compassion in World Farming, 2007. ↩︎
    19. Mood, A, and P Brooke. “Estimating the Number of Farmed Fish Killed in Global Aquaculture Each Year,” July 2012. ↩︎
    20. Stevenson, Peter, Compassion in World Farming (Organization), and World Society for the Protection of Animals. Closed Waters: The Welfare of Farmed Atlantic Salmon, Rainbow Trout, Atlantic Cod and Atlantic Halibut. Godalming, Surrey: Compassion in World Farming, 2007. ↩︎
    21. “FAO Fisheries & Aquaculture Hypophthalmichthys Molitrix.” ↩︎
    22. Rottman, RW, JV Shireman, and FA Chapman. “Techniques for Taking and Fertilizing the Spawn of Fish.” Southern Regional Aquaculture Center, November 1991. ↩︎
    23. Mood, Alison. “Worse Things Happen at Sea: The Welfare of Wild-Caught Fish.” fishcount.org.uk, 2010. ↩︎
    24. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    25. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    26. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    27. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    28. Lines, J.A., and J. Spence. “Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish: -EN- Humane Harvesting and Slaughter of Farmed Fish -FR- Le Respect Du Bien-Être Des Poissons Lors Des Prises et Des Opérations d’abattage -ES- Recolección y Sacrificio Incruentos de Peces de Cultivo.” Revue Scientifique et Technique de l’OIE 33, no. 1 (April 1, 2014): 255–64. ↩︎
    29. Mood, Alison. “Worse Things Happen at Sea: The Welfare of Wild-Caught Fish.” fishcount.org.uk, 2010. ↩︎
    30. Mood, Alison. “Worse Things Happen at Sea: The Welfare of Wild-Caught Fish.” fishcount.org.uk, 2010. ↩︎
    31. Estimates are from United Nations FAO data compiled by Fishcount UK. Fish Count UK: “Estimated Numbers of Individuals in Annual Global Capture Tonnage (FAO) of Fish Species (2007 – 2016)“. ↩︎
    32. Estimates are from United Nations FAO data compiled by Fishcount UK. “Estimated numbers of individuals in aquaculture production (FAO) of fish species (2017).” ↩︎
    33. Fish Base version 02 2022 ↩︎
    34. Kapoor, B. G., and Bhavna Khanna, eds. Ichthyology Handbook. Berlin: Springer, 2004. 1. ↩︎
    35. Kapoor, B. G., and Bhavna Khanna, eds. Ichthyology Handbook. Berlin: Springer, 2004. 1. ↩︎