Behind Closed Doors: Shocking Secrets of the Spanish Pig Industry
Animal Equality recently investigated five pig farms in Spain, exposing the pain and suffering endured by millions of pigs every year.
New footage from this investigation exposes the confinement for pregnant and mother pigs and the painful mutilation of their piglets without anesthesia. This comes just a few short weeks after Animal Equality documented instances of cruelty during the pre-slaughter fattening stage.
Spain, ranking third in global pig meat production, slaughters over 56 million pigs annually. Evidence from the investigation reveals how many of these animals suffer and die from the harsh conditions before ever making it to slaughter.
➡ Discover more about the investigation findings: animalequality.org/news/spanish-pig-farms-additional-cruelty-exposed/
There is growing awareness of animal cruelty in the food industry, and many people are choosing to make more humane choices in their diets by switching to plant-based alternatives. Join the millions making this shift for a better world. Visit loveveg.com!
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Transcript (English — en)
Locked inside
of a tiny cage
for most of her life.
She can't turn around
or lie down comfortably.
She will never
have the chance
to nurture her babies
or feel the sunshine
on her face.
Animal Equality
investigators in Spain
are exposing
how mother pigs
and their babies
suffer inside factory farms.
The images captured show
the reality for 2 million
mother pigs in Spain.
A similar fate endured
by more
than 6 million
pigs in the United States.
It all starts
in gestation crates.
In Spain
and most of the
European Union,
the law allows the use
of these cages
during the first
four weeks of pregnancy.
In the U.S.,
ten states have deemed
these crates so cruel
that they have
outlawed or restricted
their use.
However, many states
still allow pregnant pigs
to be kept in cages
for their entire
16-week pregnancy.
In the small cages,
pregnant pigs are unable
to turn around or perform
natural behaviors.
In nature,
these animals
would enjoy exploring,
taking mud baths,
and building nests
to prepare
for the birth
of their babies.
Inside these walls,
the only consistent
behavior many pigs will show
is biting the bars of
the cages from the stress.
In Spain,
after four weeks inside
the gestation crate,
the pregnant pigs are moved
into groups
with other animals.
Then,
seven days
before they are due
to give birth,
they are transferred
into farrowing crates
in the
majority of farms
across the United States,
female pigs will
spend their entire
16-week pregnancy
in the gestation crate
before being moved to
the farrowing crate.
This will be
the only time
they are able to walk.
A mother pig
will be confined
inside the farrowing crate
for five weeks until
her piglets are weaned.
She will
then be returned to
the gestation crate
to repeat this
cycle twice a year.
By the third year,
she will be
sent to the slaughterhouse
and killed for her meat.
This is motherhood in
the meat industry.
Female pigs
are seen and treated
as production machines.
Meanwhile,
their babies are taken
from them
and raised for their meat.
Many piglets will die
from the harsh conditions.
On this farm,
wheelbarrows of dead
piglets are found
while other small animals
are left dying
on the floor without help.
Piglets that survive
are subjected
to routine mutilations,
such as tail docking
without anesthesia.
The European Union
has prohibited tail docking,
but 95% of pigs
raised in the EU
are forced to undergo
the painful procedure.
On this farm, investigators
found tail remains
thrown in containers
and scattered on the floor.
This is the reality that mother pigs
and their piglets endure...
...A reality that
you can change.
When you choose
plant-based proteins
instead of meat,
you are helping to end
animal abuse
and you are showing
the meat industry
that you will
not stand for cruelty.
Together, we can build
a kinder world
where mother pigs
and their babies
can be together as a family...
...Where all animals
are respected and protected.
Make the compassionate
choice today
to reduce or
eliminate your consumption
of animal food products.
And visit loveveg.com
for tips
and recipes to start
your plant-based journey.