What makes one animal different from another? Last summer you may have heard the news about the Yulin dog festival: an event in China where dogs are “'tortured and skinned alive'” (Qin). The Western world was outraged to hear this and people everywhere signed petitions protesting this terrible massacre of what many people consider to be “man's best friends” (Qin). Many people cared about what was happening to these dogs abroad and wanted to prevent them from losing their innocent lives. These protests are just one example that shows how much people care about the inhumane treatment of animals. The terrible reality is that animals are killed for meat on a daily basis on an even more massive scale than the Yulin dog festival, yet very few people choose to do anything about it. Why is this? There is no doubt that the majority of Americans are against animal cruelty. Are dogs and other pets with protected rights very different from farm animals? Or are people simply unaware that their food choices are not in line with their morals? While it is highly unlikely that Americans will be willing to completely eliminate meat from their diet, they should consider reducing their consumption because purchasing meat supports animal cruelty, something that is likely not in line with their morals. plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Some might argue that our pets are different from the animals we eat for a couple of reasons. First of all, it can be assumed that farm animals do not have the emotional capacity of dogs. If we go along with the idea that an animal's intelligence is what determines whether it lives or dies, this argument can be countered with several studies that have established that pigs share a number of cognitive abilities with other highly intelligent species such as dogs, chimpanzees , etc. elephants and even human beings” (Viegas). Now, this superior intelligence is not seen in other animals that Americans are accustomed to eating, such as cows and chickens, but it is also not seen in other animals used as pets such as hamsters, guinea pigs, and lizards. Despite this, Americans do not consider it socially acceptable to eat them. It is wrong to assume that these animals are killed, or that it is justified to be killed, simply because of their lack of intelligence. Since the explanation why we eat the meat we do as Americans isn't that animals deserve to die because of their stupidity, it's about one factor: taste. This is also the likely explanation why Chinese people choose to eat dog meat (Qin). The difference between why it's okay to eat dog in China and not in America is probably due to cultural norms. The fact that it is normal to eat meat in American culture is a very valid reason. It's very difficult to avoid eating meat at holiday events because it's so ingrained in our culture: from hot dogs to Fourth of July barbecues to Thanksgiving turkeys. However, while it is logical to participate in traditions passed down from generation to generation, it is illogical to regularly support an industry that goes against one's morals. Americans are clearly morally against dog slaughter because of their culture, so it's not hard to believe that they wouldn't appreciate what goes on in the meat industry if they had a relationship with farm animals like they do with dogs. This is an unlikely situation for the average American. However, they are theresituations where average farm animals, such as pigs, are kept as pets and appreciated and treated incredibly well (Greenwood). Pigs are capable of loving pets, and it is unfair that they are raised and slaughtered as if their lives have no value. Farms that raise animals prioritize efficiency and put the humane treatment of animals last. “Laying hens are kept in small cages, chickens and pigs are kept in overflowing barns, and cows are kept in crowded, dirty farms” (“Factory Farming”). These animals do not live in comfortable conditions and cannot have a happy life. One could argue that we protect these herbivores from predators that could end their lives at any time, but the likelihood of them dying from a predator (people) is much higher when they are in human care. These animals have no small chance at happiness and freedom, but they are bred so specifically for their meat that they are incapable of living happy lives outside of human confinement. “Some chickens' [breasts] become so unnaturally large that their legs cannot support their oversized bodies, and they suffer from starvation or dehydration when they cannot walk to reach food or water” (“Factory Farming”). Animals suffer throughout their lives due to the backward priorities of the meat industry and the American people. The way farm animals are slaughtered is not much more humane than the way animals are forced to live their lives. If Americans actually took part in the process of slaughtering the animal, it is likely that they would be morally disturbed. Michael Pollan describes how this systematic process occurs in an article titled “Power Steer.” Pollan describes what happens on the extermination floor, "something [even] journalists can't see": I reconstructed what happens on the other side of the blue door. What happens is that the animals go in single file. At a certain point they pass over a bar, with their legs on both sides, and the floor slowly drops, and at that point they are transported as if on that bar, which is a conveyor belt, and then they pass through a station where there is a man on the catwalk above. He's holding an object that looks like a nail gun or something. It's a pneumatic device called a stun gun. This essentially injects a metal bolt. It has about the size and length of a thick pencil in its brain, right between the eyes, and this should make the animal's brain dead. At that point, the chains will be attached to its hind legs. He will be lifted from the chains. The chains will be attached to a suspended cart, and then he will be bled dry. Another person at another station will stick a long knife, cut the aorta and bleed the animal. And then he will be completely dead. And from there it goes through a series of stations to clean it and remove its skin. The fact that neither journalists nor the general public are allowed to see what goes on behind “the blue door” makes it incredibly difficult for the average American to understand the terror that goes through a cow to enter a door and exit like carefully cut meat . The way these animals die is “a system dedicated to economy and efficiency,” not humane practices (Macy). If we go back to the dog versus farm animal comparison, it is more than likely that one would be outraged to learn that this was happening to a large group of dogs. The way companion dogs are euthanized is drastically different. It's a two-step process: The dog is put to sleep with a sedative and then a saline solution is put into his veins. It is unlikely that anyone will say.