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Tell the USDA: No More Downed Animal Abuse!

The recent exposure of the horrific abuses of cattle at the Hallmark Meat Packing Company and the subsequent monumental recall of 143 million pounds of beef, likely to lead to the closure of the slaughterhouse, has made clear to the public what Farm Sanctuary and other animal protection groups have been trying to convey for decades: that modern slaughterhouses are repositories of animal cruelty and human health hazards.

Unfortunately, the torture of downed animals at Hallmark is far from anomalous. Everyday across the country, crippled or sick livestock-from spent dairy cattle, to pigs, sheep and goats-are beaten, shocked, rammed with forklifts, or otherwise abused to force their move to the killing floor, just so slaughterhouses can turn a buck.

Aside from being unspeakably cruel, this abuse of ailing animals has terrible implications for human health. Downed animals are inherently far more likely to harbor diseases, including the dreaded mad cow disease, which can harm those who ingest their flesh.

Please contact Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer to let him know that the situation with the nation's slaughterhouses is intolerable! Ask him to make sure the USDA implements more stringent oversight of all slaughterhouses to ensure that downed animals are humanely euthanized, not tortured en route to slaughter.

Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Ave. SW
Washington, DC 20250
Phone: 202-720-2791
Fax: 202-720-5043

Edward.W.Schafer@usda.gov

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