Denmark has just issued a ban on the methods of kosher/halal slaughter. So, killing a perfectly healthy baby giraffe (Marius) in public is permissible but a perfectly healthy method of slaughtering animals isn't. Look at the bigotry oozing out there. I can feel it seeping out of their pores.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/denmark-bans-halal-and-kosher-slaughter-as-minister-says-animal-rights-come-before-religion-9135580.html
Despite resistance from RSPCA (a respectable animal welfare organisation) and many other groups, the ban has been called for. It really is anti-Semitic isn't it; anti-Muslim as well. Where is the freedom of speech, and religion that Europe boasts about so much?? So they only allow freedom AS LONG as it means religion is NOT involved?? There is no extremism/barbarism here, really. Only from the side of the ministers who have been involved in the banning of the production of these kinds of meat (kosher/halal).
Now, to be unbiased so as not rock the same boat as these idiots, I will show you the kosher/halal methods of slaughter and then the normal way of slaughter.
The Halal method
With the halal method of slaughter, there was not change in the EEG graph for the first three seconds after the incision was made, indicating that the animal did not feel any pain from the cut itself. This is not surprising. Often, if we cut ourselves with a sharp implement, we do not notice until some time later. The following three seconds were characterised by a condition of deep sleep-like unconciousness brought about by the draining of large quantities of blood from the body. Thereafter the EEG recorded a zero reading, indicating no pain at all, yet at that time the heart was still beating and the body convulsing vigorously as a reflex reaction of the spinal cord. It is this phase which is most unpleasant to onlookers who are falsely convinced that the animal suffers whilst its brain does actually no longer record any sensual messages.
The Western method
Using the Western method, the animals were apparently unconscious after stunning, and this method of dispatch would appear to be much more peaceful for the onlooker. However, the EEG readings indicated severe pain immediately after stunning. Whereas in the first example, the animal ceases to feel pain due to the brain starvation of blood and oxygen – a brain death, to put it in laymen’s terms – the second example first causes a stoppage of the heart whilst the animal still feels pain. However, there are no unsightly convulsions, which not only means that there is more blood retention in the meat, but also that this method lends itself much more conveniently to the efficiency demands of modern mass slaughter procedures. It is so much easier to dispatch an animal on the conveyor belt, if it does not move.
-http://www.mustaqim.co.uk/halal.htm-
And then, from The Guardian itself.
- A friend did a documentary on slaughterhouses in the early 90's. He saw cows on an electric grid recieve a jolt. Workers then went through with hammers to bash in the skulls of those not dead. He instantly became a vegetarian. Kosher methods were created with the best interests of the animals in mind. (Taking as a given that man's status at the top of the food chain does not impart the right to cause extra suffering.) The knife must be free of nicks so that the blade moves as fast and cleanly as possible. There may be more humane ways to kill a cow or chicken, but I doubt they are cost effective from a mass-production standpoint. Kosher meat is double or triple the price of non-kosher. Perhaps you could find a rancher who would be willing to let you kill a cow as gently as possible (wait til it's asleep? or give a gentle sedative?). But from a practical standpoint, an animal slaughtered kosher is likely to have suffered less than the non-kosher one.
- -Wraith, Salford, UK-
- I can't speak for Halal slaughter, but I do know about Kosher slaughter of animals. The "Shochet" - slaughterer - uses a special knife which has to be incredibly sharp and completely smooth (any nicks in the blade might tear the animal's flesh on the way down and cause pain). The knife should be able to cut smoothly and cleanly through the neck. The cut is made in a specific place in the neck, and although death isn't instantaneous (no method of slaughter is), the animal loses consciousness immediately due to the sudden drop of blood pressure in the head. Complete death results shortly after. As a comparison, let's look at some other methods of slaughter which are used. The "Captive Bolt Gun". Imagine a normal gun, but the bullet has a string attached to it so it flies out of the barrel, but can be reset and re-loaded again leaving nothing behind. Now take an animal, press this up against its skull and fire. Bolt goes into skull and pulled out again. Requires 4-5 shots normally to cause complete death, during which animal is in agony. Electrocution. Let's compare this with human executions in the electric chair. There have been cases where people being killed in the chair have caught fire and had smoke coming from their heads while still showing signs of life. Witnesses have been sick from the stench of burning flesh. Some researchers have said that being killed by electrocution would kill you by oxygen starvation (you couldn't breathe due to paralysis from the electricity), while at the same time being burnt alive. So much for a painless death! As long as people wish to eat animals (don't get me wrong, I'm a steak lover), we have to kill them first. And I truly believe that "Shechitah" - the method of slaughter for Kosher food - is the least painful for the animal concerned.
-David Dreaming Bear, Horesethief Canyon, California USA-
- Studies have been conducted in which monitors were placed on the brain of a cow being slaughtered using shechitah (kosher slaughter) and it turns out that it is actually 100% painless. another interesting note is that 2500 years ago, when the rules of kosher were made, it was said that the animal must have split hooves and chew it's cud. interestingly, now 2500 years later we know a great deal of biology and it turns out that the only species of animals that have split hooves and chew their cud, also just happen to have a certain artery that goes directly to their brain, as opposed to their heart as in all other animals (including humans). when this vein is cut it will be a painless death, because the animal will be instantly unconscious, whereas if you tried to slaughter any other animal in this method it would cause a lot of suffering. so, to answer that question "would YOU like to be shot in the head or have your throat cut?" well, i being human would prefer a shot in the head for the least painless death, but if i was a cow, or any other animal with split hooves and a cud, i'd be all for the throat slitting for the painless death. also, to clear up the misconception about the animal still being alive while bleeding to death with shechitah - this is true that the animal may still be living, but with the brain entirely unconscious it still does not experience any of the pain of death. the food industry will do whatever necessary to reduce cost, but if you truly care about the well being of living things, buy kosher.
- -Seth, Edinburgh-
- Arguing over which methods of killing are more humane seems a bit pointless since the only ones who could tell you are dead.
- -Lauri Reizes, Los Angeles USA-
I'll let these points speak for me. I'm not alone. Many other rational activists believe that kosher/halal meat is better than normally-slaughtered meat. For Denmark to have banned the more humane ways of slaughtering animals without further research shows how "shallow" the people there are (those who called for the ban). Also, Britain should really do more in-depth research regarding this topic instead of being all dumb about it and banning it because of what some irrational activist groups are saying.
I agree that there are certain kosher/halal slaughterhouses that do not use proper equipment. Shut them down instead of banning them in whole. There is no point in making a huge controversy out of this. I understand that we all want these animals to die in the least painful ways possible. Therefore, research should be done first using scientific methods (EEGs etc.) before causing ruckuses about it.
-Animal lover-
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| Popple the Wriggles and I :) |
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