Proposition 2 will require farmers to provide enough space for a pregnant pig, veal bovine and an egg-laying hen to lie down, stand up, turn fully around and stretch all its limbs without touching its enclosure at the risk of a fine up to $1000 and/or 180 days in jail.
My carnivorous spirit cringes at the amount of concessions we provide an animal that will be consumed in the near future. Don’t get me wrong, I do not support the actions of certain farmers that beat their livestock or carve them up for fun. But, really. The sole purpose of the livestock is to be food for us. They are not pets (which I think is cruel unto itself). There are already enough state laws covering the cruelty of animals.
Actually, there are almost no laws to protect farmed animals while they’re being raised. And while there are laws to “ensure” humane slaughter, all poultry are excluded from this federal mandate. Moreover, factory farmers can get away with treating their animals pretty much any way they wish to until the animals are crammed onto trucks to be transported to slaughter.
Prop 2 is a modest measure that will hold corporate agriculture to basic standards of humanity by allowing egg-laying hens, pregnant sows and veal calves to fully extend their limbs and turn around.
Even animals raised for food deserve a little room to move.
To learn more about this ballot initiative, please visit http://www.YesOnProp2.org.