Trip to the slaughterhouse today. I know technically it’s called a “meat processing plant,” but the term “slaughterhouse” provides a much more accurate vision. I was able to visit this particular plant last summer so I was prepared, but seeing Danielle’s reaction to her first visit reminded me of my own initial feelings for this place. The reality of it both matches and drastically diverges from my original expectations. I knew I would be horrified by this place, and I quite frankly continue to be. Animals are alive and in the space of maybe 15 feet come out a carcass waiting to be butchered. There is a machine that literally rips the skin of animals so that within maybe 15 seconds a dead cow becomes a hanging piece of meat. It’s hot, deafeningly loud, and there are knives everywhere, so slipping and falling is not an option.
The picture that I had in my head of this place being an absolute nightmare is not really accurate though. I figured that with death being the inevitable conclusion for every animal that sets foot in this place, any thought for their humane care would have long departed. I was wrong. Animals were not rushed or stressed, or abused. They are calmly walked up in small groups. If an animal is unable to walk then they are humanely put down where they lay. In addition, workers are friendly. There never appeared annoyed by our presence, even if it slowed them down a bit.
Our role there was to collect lymph nodes from the head, thorax and abdomen from 12 cattle that had been exposed to bovine tuberculosis. The language here is meant to be very specific- “exposed,” not “infected.” These 12 cattle unfortunately came into contact with an infected animal so they can either be put under quarantine and tested repeatedly or sent to slaughter. Once there, the animals are inspected for gross lesions, which were not present in any of these. We still collected lymph nodes, which will later be cultured for M. bovis. It took us only about an hour and a half to collect all the samples, but with it being 85 degrees outside, we were soaked in sweat.
