Peter Singer-Animal Liberation

(BlackTrush) #1

longer and more harrowing than the journey to the
slaughterhouse.


Thefederallawof 1906 providedthatanimalstransportedby
railhadtoberested,fed,andgivenwateratleasteverythirty-
sixhours.Itsaidnothingaboutanimalsbeingtransportedby
truck.Truckswerenotusedfortransportinganimalsinthose
days.Overeightyyearslater,thetransportationofanimalsby
truck is still not regulated at the federal level. Repeated
attemptshavebeenmadetobringthelawabouttrucksinto
line with that about rail transport, but so far none has
succeeded.Accordingly,cattleoftenspenduptoforty-eight
or even seventy-two hours inside a truck without being
unloaded.Notalltruckerswouldleavecattlethislongwithout
rest,food,orwater,butsomearemoreconcernedwithgetting
the job finished than with delivering their load in good
condition.


Animalsplacedinatruckforthefirsttimeintheirlivesare
likelytobefrightened,especiallyiftheyhavebeenhandled
hastilyandroughlybythemenloadingthetruck.Themotion
ofthetruckisalso a newexperience,and onewhich may
makethemill.Afteroneortwodaysinthetruckwithoutfood
orwatertheyaredesperatelythirstyandhungry. Normally
cattleeatfrequentlythoughouttheday;theirspecialstomachs
requireaconstantintakeoffoodiftherumenistofunction
properly.Ifthejourneyisinwinter,subzerowindscanresult
inseverechill;insummertheheatandsunmayaddtothe
dehydrationcausedbythelackofwater.Itisdifficultforus
to imagine what this combination of fear, travel sickness,
thirst,near-starvation,exhaustion, and possiblyseverechill
feelsliketotheanimals.Inthecaseofyoungcalveswhomay
havegonethroughthestressofweaningandcastrationonlya

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