PETA Takes on Dairy-Proposes "Standards"

News EditorAnimal Activists, Animal Health, Animal Welfare

Another reason for our dairy farmers to take 10 minutes each day to tell your story – there are many ways to accomplish this, whether it be social media, farm tours, talking to neighbors or giving presentations. Protect your right to farm!

Last month PETA took aim at the dairy industry. On the heels of Mercy for Animals’ footage of animal abuse on a Texas calf ranch, the activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) released its own set of standards of care for animals raised on dairy farms.

In an interview with Progressive Dairyman, PETA’s Corporate Liaison Amber Driscoll said the standards are aimed at the dairy industry from farms to processors to end users.

The organization has already developed similar standards for poultry and pork; and it has been successful in finding well-known companies and restaurants to adopt the standards and call for their suppliers to adhere to them.

PETA’s new standards of care for dairy animals include:
• Keeping facilities clean and providing adequate flooring, hoof care, and bedding.
• Immediately euthanizing “downed” cows.
• Ending the practice of de-horning and tail-docking.
• Banning the use of bovine growth hormone, which contributes to lameness and a painful inflammation.
• Providing group housing for female calves, without tethering.

According to Driscoll, these standards were developed with input from animal welfare experts and the dairy industry itself, namely the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP). PD

Look for the “3 open minutes” interview with Driscoll in the May 21 issue of Progressive Dairyman.

Source: Progressive Dairyman

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