#1 ·
Maybe this is an OT topic—usually, I’d head to a psychologist or a philosophy professor for this kind of thing—but I actually need a professional opinion. If there are any medical doctors or even veterinarians on this forum, I could use your expertise.
I’ve been chewing on this question for a while now:
It’s inevitable that we’ll be buying pork—specifically pork halves—this year just like we always do, but two specific things have me digging into this research:
1. I can't stand watching anything suffer. Even though I’ve witnessed it many times and have even been involved, I don't think I'll ever get used to the slaughtering process. Using a firearm might be more humane, but for several practical reasons, that isn't an option here. So, we're left with the knife: the squealing, the blood, the choking, and finally, death.
That is the primary reason.
2. Money is a secondary factor; buying a whole live pig is cheaper than buying pre-cut halves.
A few years back, I saw a "device" in a documentary that really got me thinking about whether I could change my approach, and now I want to hear your thoughts.
In some experiment featured in a documentary about the human body, they put a pig in a chamber and, if I recall correctly, they extracted the oxygen (or maybe they pressurized it, I can't quite remember—please correct me if I'm wrong, those of you who know). They wanted to see if the pig would still eat food placed inside that chamber, knowing something was wrong with the environment. Even when the pig realized the conditions were off, it kept eating, almost as if it were experiencing a sense of euphoria.
The same thing happens on planes when there's a loss of cabin pressure at high altitudes; apparently, that lack of oxygen triggers certain mental states—first a decline in cognitive function, then a sort of euphoria, and eventually death.
So, what if we brought a live pig home, put it into a makeshift chamber (something built with a steel frame, wooden sides, and edges sealed with silicone), and simply turned on a pump to vacuum the air out?
Would that be the most humane way to kill it? Would it induce that "euphoria" or at least a sense of indifference toward its surroundings? Would it die "happy"? Would it even realize it was dying?
1. Slaughtering with a knife is, in my opinion, the worst way to handle food production.
2. A bullet is okay, but it presents its own set of problems.
3. Gases are impractical—think about the poisons used to sedate livestock or various injections.
4. Ideally, the animal would pass away happy and unaware of what is happening. What method would achieve that, and how would it even work?
I realize this sounds bizarre, but the problem is very real and happens on a massive scale every single year. That's just talking about individual households; imagine the industrial operations, especially the ones where oversight is lacking.
I’ve been chewing on this question for a while now:
It’s inevitable that we’ll be buying pork—specifically pork halves—this year just like we always do, but two specific things have me digging into this research:
1. I can't stand watching anything suffer. Even though I’ve witnessed it many times and have even been involved, I don't think I'll ever get used to the slaughtering process. Using a firearm might be more humane, but for several practical reasons, that isn't an option here. So, we're left with the knife: the squealing, the blood, the choking, and finally, death.
That is the primary reason.
2. Money is a secondary factor; buying a whole live pig is cheaper than buying pre-cut halves.
A few years back, I saw a "device" in a documentary that really got me thinking about whether I could change my approach, and now I want to hear your thoughts.
In some experiment featured in a documentary about the human body, they put a pig in a chamber and, if I recall correctly, they extracted the oxygen (or maybe they pressurized it, I can't quite remember—please correct me if I'm wrong, those of you who know). They wanted to see if the pig would still eat food placed inside that chamber, knowing something was wrong with the environment. Even when the pig realized the conditions were off, it kept eating, almost as if it were experiencing a sense of euphoria.
The same thing happens on planes when there's a loss of cabin pressure at high altitudes; apparently, that lack of oxygen triggers certain mental states—first a decline in cognitive function, then a sort of euphoria, and eventually death.
So, what if we brought a live pig home, put it into a makeshift chamber (something built with a steel frame, wooden sides, and edges sealed with silicone), and simply turned on a pump to vacuum the air out?
Would that be the most humane way to kill it? Would it induce that "euphoria" or at least a sense of indifference toward its surroundings? Would it die "happy"? Would it even realize it was dying?
1. Slaughtering with a knife is, in my opinion, the worst way to handle food production.
2. A bullet is okay, but it presents its own set of problems.
3. Gases are impractical—think about the poisons used to sedate livestock or various injections.
4. Ideally, the animal would pass away happy and unaware of what is happening. What method would achieve that, and how would it even work?
I realize this sounds bizarre, but the problem is very real and happens on a massive scale every single year. That's just talking about individual households; imagine the industrial operations, especially the ones where oversight is lacking.