Pigs who swam through floodwaters killed on levee

[guinnesshero]

Des Moines County sheriff's officials shot the pigs Tuesday, not long after they reached the levee several miles from the nearest hog farm.

Officials said they killed the pigs over worries that they would weaken the levee. Onlookers said the animals were having a difficult time trying to maneuver their way off the sandbags, and that they scurried back into the water as people approached.

"Basically you cannot have something with a hoof walk on plastic and not poke a hole in the plastic and let water into it," said LeRoy Lippert, chairman of the county emergency management commission. "Hogs, they have a tendency to root and that would not have been good either."

He said the state veterinarian and other agencies were consulted, and that 10 to 16 animals were killed.

"It happens every day. My gosh, that's what slaughterhouses do — that's how we get bacon and pork chops," Lippert said. "It's just one of the casualties of the flooding situation."



I understand that the pigs were endangering the levees but did they even attempt to catch the pigs instead of shooting them? And The armument "It happens every day. My gosh, that's what slaughterhouses do — that's how we get bacon and pork chops" isnt a very good one to be honest just because it happens every day doesnt make it right.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080618/ap_on_re_us/midwest_floods_shot_pigs

[sallyomally]

Poor things. The picture of the lone pig struggling to stand on the sandbags is so very sad.
I just don't understand some people.
I'll bet the guy who made that ridiculous statement is a man who likes to go hunting with his buddies.

[ripvanfish]

Those were mercy killings. The fate those pigs met is so much better than what would have befallen them at the hog farms. It breaks my heart, though, that the creatures swam all that way for survival only to be murdered.

"It happens every day. My gosh, that's what slaughterhouses do — that's how we get bacon and pork chops."

I LOVE THAT STATEMENT. Someone actually realizes where their meal is coming from!

It's wrong that he's OKAY with that, of course, but maybe some of the omni's that cried out against the killing of these pigs will finally make that connection.

[ripvanfish]

Lippert noted that out of about 36,000 pigs in the Oakville area, officials estimated that only a thousand or so were left behind when the floodwaters came through.

"We trucked them as far as 200 miles away to other hog farms so that they would be taken care of," he said.

Taken care of. Ah. Right.

[jenna]

:(


Louisa County Sheriff Curt Braby said he had heard about the incident and understood why the pigs needed to be killed.


"They did not want to take a chance on losing a city due to a few hogs," he said.


of course.

[Dieselsmom]

As Ripvanfish noted, the pigs had a better death on the levee than if they had had to go through shipping and the slaughterhouse. Not that I think they should be bred and raised for eating in the first place, but if I was a pig I'd rather go that way than the other. At least it was quick. The shipping and slaughterhouse is terrifying and painful for an extended period.

[ajax13]

I long for the day when few humans will claim that rescuing a pig is silly. What if a human being risked his or her life to save some pigs, even one pig? Is that absurd? If so, it's the type of absurdity I admire.

And as we begin to turn the wheel, that large wheel of inertia and habit and custom, and begin to open our eyes and hearts to our fellows, what then? If there's an afterlife, may I meet my fellow pigs with reverence and love, not appetite and hardness of heart. This is my small prayer tonight.

[Tuffenoughtoroc]

I can't believe how some people would justify this! Even if their fate would be "less cruel" dying on a levy than being shipped to a slaughterhouse, it still is despicable. Humans brush it off as no big deal and that the pigs were in the way, thus deserving of this fate, but it is the humans who are at fault for putting them in that position in the first place. I just read an article about a man abandoning 800 of "his" hogs to save himself. He said it was unfortunate that the animals had to die (probably just thinking of all the money he's losing) but brushed it off nonetheless. It was his fault for letting the animals drown and mass-producing them to such as scale that they had no chances of survival.
Animal groups are going in to rescue lost and stranded pets, but so-called "livestock" animals are left to suffer and be murdered by the people who should be protecting them.

[guinnesshero]

I can't believe how some people would justify this! Even if their fate would be "less cruel" dying on a levy than being shipped to a slaughterhouse, it still is despicable

+1

[easyemu15]

They swam all that way, just to die. It's not fair, and it isn't right. Wish I'd been there, I would have taken a few...Maybe a hundred.

[Wolfie]

I read this in the paper this morning. Sickening. It's stuff like this that makes me want to donate everything I can to animal rescue for the flood and ignore all the Red Cross donation drives this weekend. I mean I can understand them being concerned about the levee, but at least act like you care about the poor pigs being killed after they tried so hard to survive. I will end up giving because I feel bad for the people who've lost everything, but at the same time I realize why I don't have a use for most of the human race.

We've had foxes and a wolf killed here in the recent past basically because humans are unprepared and stupid, but at least then people showed a little remorse over it.

[paulwalkersgirl]

im disgusted. they didnt have to do that, did they? :(

[Dieselsmom]

I can't believe how some people would justify this! Even if their fate would be "less cruel" dying on a levy than being shipped to a slaughterhouse, it still is despicable. Humans brush it off as no big deal and that the pigs were in the way, thus deserving of this fate, but it is the humans who are at fault for putting them in that position in the first place. I just read an article about a man abandoning 800 of "his" hogs to save himself. He said it was unfortunate that the animals had to die (probably just thinking of all the money he's losing) but brushed it off nonetheless. It was his fault for letting the animals drown and mass-producing them to such as scale that they had no chances of survival.
Animal groups are going in to rescue lost and stranded pets, but so-called "livestock" animals are left to suffer and be murdered by the people who should be protecting them.


No one here is justifying this. It is tragic and a painful remark on the "humanity of mankind"(words that just don't fit in any sense in this instance). And you are right, the whole thing is despicable. Please don't confuse the efforts of some of us to see the lesser evil of the whole situation for the inherent wrong that is the production of "food". Consider that the animals had some moments of relief and "freedom" rather than being thrown into a stock trailer, hauled off how many miles, than pushed down a slaughterhouse ramp, probably beaten during the process, than bashed in the head with a bolt gun that may or may not stun them, then have their throats slashed at which time....I guess I don't need to go on. I would still rather, if I had been one of them, gotten the bullet, than the alternative.

[MrsKey]

I understand that the pigs were endangering the levees but did they even attempt to catch the pigs instead of shooting them? And The armument "It happens every day. My gosh, that's what slaughterhouses do — that's how we get bacon and pork chops" isnt a very good one to be honest just because it happens every day doesnt make it right.

I was thinking about that quote, too. And while it is a lousy excuse for what they did ... you know it's a great quote. Think about all of the people who are upset that these pigs were shot, but continue to eat meat. This quote does rather make the point that your porkchops and bacon don't get on your plate by a magic process. They are the result of animals dying. If you're okay with the animal dying to get on your plate why should you be upset about the animals dying on the levees. It might just make someone think.

[sallyomally]

Word. It was a very profound statement indeed... pretty much sums up the whole thing, doesn't it?

[mrosev14]

They swam all that way, just to die. It's not fair, and it isn't right. Wish I'd been there, I would have taken a few...Maybe a hundred.

I know it makes me so sad. They tried so hard. :cry:

[kazyeeqen]

"You don't get them out of the mud and over the dike when you're worried about people and people's property," he said.

[bolding mine]

I hate that people's property takes precedence over the lives of others. I'm not surprised or anything, but we care more about property than we should. Really, it's just stuff, and we'd probably be happier with less of it.

[Marie]

They could have flooded the city. Just think of how many animals would have drowned if that happened. :p

[guinnesshero]

They could have flooded the city. Just think of how many animals would have drowned if that happened. :p


or they could have attempted to catch the pigs before resorting to shooting them

[paulwalkersgirl]

or they could have attempted to catch the pigs before resorting to shooting them

exactly. :( :wall:

[Marie]

or they could have attempted to catch the pigs before resorting to shooting them

Scared pigs scrambling around. Sounds like a good idea.

[Marie]

I hate that people's property takes precedence over the lives of others. I'm not surprised or anything, but we care more about property than we should. Really, it's just stuff, and we'd probably be happier with less of it.

Why did you highlight one word of the quote? I could do the same thing.


"You don't get them out of the mud and over the dike when you're worried about people and people's property," he said.

[kazyeeqen]

Why did you highlight one word of the quote? I could do the same thing.

Well, because it was the property part that bothers me so much, less the people part. I thought that was clear from my post, sorry if it was confusing to you. I did forget to say the bolding was mine, sorry about that too.

[Mycoolcats]

Taken care of. Ah. Right.

probably just shipped em to slaughter early right :/

These cops remind me of the texas chainsaw masacre movie cop that is nuts and not relaly a police officer... Do they require any educational standards to be a state official in iowa? May as well have the hunters come out to shoot some cattle while theyre at it.

Look at the billions of sandbags, those pigs are sure going to puncture more holes in the bags than the billions of dead limbs/branches floating down the river right?:wall:

Why not just run them over with police boats before they get to the levees? Once they got to the levee, they were seconds from land right? Why shoot them then?

[Mycoolcats]

I read this in the paper this morning. Sickening. It's stuff like this that makes me want to donate everything I can to animal rescue for the flood and ignore all the Red Cross donation drives this weekend. I mean I can understand them being concerned about the levee, but at least act like you care about the poor pigs being killed after they tried so hard to survive. I will end up giving because I feel bad for the people who've lost everything, but at the same time I realize why I don't have a use for most of the human race.

We've had foxes and a wolf killed here in the recent past basically because humans are unprepared and stupid, but at least then people showed a little remorse over it.


Yeah, thats why i purposely have never donated to any human related cause, theres already a billion people who donate to them because they feel bad for our own race. When katrina hit, my work, state office in NJ, was allowing volunteers to take "paid time" if they were donating to specific organizations. I was all gung ho to see what i could do, only to find out the Red cross was one on the list, and they did nothing for animals, F that. i was gonna go down for the dogs and animal rescue i was seeing all over TV, not to help the people who cant freking swim, common, how old are you and you dont KNOW how to swim yet? Needless to say, i never went, still sorta feel bad to this day because if it happened in the year 2008+, i could take unpaid time for at least a month and drive down with one of our bigger trucks and trailers to help out aspca or HSUS or whatnot free of charge. In 2005~ i didnt make as much money, depended on the imcome from my state job and couldnt take unpaid vacation if i wanted to.