iglets have their teeth cut and tails cut off without anaesthetic—an excruciating procedure which can provoke vomiting, trembling and leg shaking.
Male piglets are routinely castrated without pain relief.
Laws permit pregnant pigs to be confined for their entire 16 week pregnancy in a metal cage called a ‘sow stall’ which is so small that they are unable to turn around.
‘Sow stalls’ have been banned on welfare grounds in Britain, Sweden and Switzerland, and are being phased out elsewhere—yet Australian politicians voted to continue their use.
Pigs are social and affectionate animals. They experience fear, pain and many emotions, not unlike the family pet. Yet most pigs raised in Australia are confined in factory farms, where they are denied any quality of life. What they are forced to endure in the name of profit would be illegal if they were instead a dog or cat.
Despite advances overseas, Australian laws still allow a pregnant pig to be confined in a ‘sow stall’—a barren metal cage barely bigger than her own body, in which she is unable even to turn around (Tasmania is the only state which has committed to ban these stalls, but not until 2017). Trapped in a cycle of suffering, she is forced to give birth on a hard concrete floor; denied the ability to properly nurture her young; and will be continually impregnated until her body can no longer physically cope. Her piglets are subjected to painful surgical procedures—without anaesthetic
Ban the factory farming of pigs
Pigs are beautiful, gentle, compassionate and extremely inteligent beings who are treated like disposable rubbish for human consumption.
Pigs are denied the legal protection afforded to cats and dogs. Practices commonly inflicted on pigs would be cruelty offences if the victims were family pets.
