The way animals are treated in modern day society is appalling. It seems that America doesn’t care how it gets its resources. No one appreciates how useful these animals are and we treat them horribly. Using animals for human gain is one issue that a lot of animal rights activists have been fighting, but what other people don’t realize is that if the animals were treated nicer and appreciated more activists wouldn’t be so upset. One cow dies for each pair of leather motorcycle chaps and another one for a matching leather motorcycle vest. In reality, those cows could have been used for leather, food, and much more but instead ¾ of their bodies have gone to waste.

The biggest problem with the animal industry is the way animals in America are treated. They are seen as product, an income, not as a living creature. Most Americans wouldn’t stand for a dog or cat to be treated the way cows, pigs, chickens and sheep are. Almost all of the meat that is consumed in America comes from two or three major meat manufacturers. This monopoly is what causes the problem. Giant meat companies are usually the ones to blame e for animal cruel, because they want to run their slaughter business quickly and cheaply. Animals are given hormones so that they can be as big as possible, but are kept in cages almost their entire lives. This causes their bones to be extremely weak, and often since they are so fat there bones legs will break from the strain. These animals are beaten severely by the workers in the warehouses where they are kept. We can sympathize that it is too costly to drug each animal, but the methods used are far from considerate. Pigs and Chickens get it the worst. They are hooked up to conveyor belts by their feet. Hanging from their feet upside-down causes ankles and knees to break and become dislocated. begin their trip on death row by going through a machine that slits their throats, which is meant to kill them but rarely does. They are then sent through a fire pit to burn of the excess hair. Of course remember most of the pigs are still alive, so they are being burned alive. It isn’t likely that this kills all the pigs either. The process gets more gruesome from here, so I won’t continue, but as you can see, this process is more complicated and inhumane than necessary.

This is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to animal cruelty, but it is a subject that needs to be discussed. Meat-lovers and vegetarians can pair up together to help improve the conditions for animals used for food and clothing. It may seem like an odd pair, but truly it isn’t. The issue isn’t whether you believe in eating meat or not, but if you believe in treating animals like living, breathing creatures.