davefromdanapointca,

These animals are abused their entire lives, fool. How about we have a couple of goons follow you around and physically abuse you up until the day you die - heck, you're gonna die anyway.

davefromdanapointca

I guess you think that the abuse these animals suffer doesn't make it onto your dinner table. If you took a step back from your defamatory approach to this issue, you would realize the treatment these animals endure does in fact affect the meat they bring to your table in the form of disease and pestilence brought about by inhumane treatment.

Gotta love these conspiracy theory types when they show their ignorance.

Gotta love these conspiracy theory types when they show their ignorance.

When? They do it all the time! You think they would realize how they are embarrassing themselves, but they flaunt their ignorance as if it should be something of which to be proud.

Dave -

So let's extend your logic. If it's okay to abuse and torture animals destined to die in a few months, it should also be okay to abuse terminally ill human, right? What's the difference? They're going to be dead soon anyway, right?

I am all for not treating animals poorly but if these animals are headed to slaughter how is this any big deal? They are going to end up dead in a few short moments like it or not.

The fact that you don't see anything wrong with animals being constantly beaten, stabbed at, and thrown among other abuses tells me all that I'd ever need to know about you dave. There's a significant difference between an animal being reared for food and eventually slaughtered in a humane method and the abuse that takes place on these CAFA facilities. I'm not a vegetarian, but I go out of my way to buy meat that's been reared and slaughtered humanely.

I work with a couple of them and have to endure another, the most rabid one, on FB daily.

Sorry to hear that someone having integrity affects you so much. You do know that FB has an easy way to prevent you from being exposed to this person that respects food chain animals, you could either hide them or unfriend them to save yourself from the trauma.

During the raid, veterinarians determined that many of the birds needed to be euthanized.

Here's your answer, davefromdanapointca. These birds were basically wasted. They did not make it to market. Of course, that's also why Butterball is taking action--euthanized turkeys = lost profits.

if one can take the time to put themselves into someone/something elses shoes, they would have a change of tune. However, goodluck with that. Some people are disconnected with reality to the point it "isnt anything but them that matters, and I am entitled to treat others with impunity, as long as i am treated fair." attitude is a hard barrier to break. It's hard for these people to even comprehend what pain actually is, because they never felt it, not like you or i have. sure we all feel "pain" and for the same instance one person will lay curled in a ball unable to move, while another walks it off. We dont feel pain the same. Maybe these people in the next life, can be raised by a brute like themselves, and then they will understand as they go thru life wondering "why me?" while the answer is in front of them the entire time.

So even tho i think dave was referring more to a fanatic(s), and hasnt reached the age of maturity to understand there is more to life than himself. This isnt a knock, we all go thru it, and grow out of it eventually.... i think its called getting old(er).

Lets ask this, is there any difference between letting your kid fry ants with a magnifying glass, or letting it hit an old defenceless scraggly dog with a stick? In reality there isnt. the intent is still there, however at an early age we find such things as acceptable, and pass them off. If your intent is harm, than it doesnt matter who or what you harm, its why. maybe a big difference between an ant, and dog, only in looks. each is still a living being.

I look at the big picture when it comes to treating all things as you would want to be treated if you were in its shoes.

The reason why is not only because of ethical issues.
But, I know for a FACT that there is no ACTION that is committed ONE TIME ONLY.

From eating, to sleeping, to speaking to writing words or anything you can think of.
THIS INCLUDES LIVING MORE THAN ONE LIFE.
This is a THEORY and no HYPOTHESIS.
Whether you are aware of it or not!!!!

Now, no two events are never exactly the same but, they can be similar.

I bring this fact to the light to ultimately conclude that you can come back in your next life as a chicken. If this occurs, I'm sure you would want ethical standards in place regarding how you would want to be treated.

I think the probability of this occurring is very, very low but, one thing I've learned is just about anything is possible.

I hope there is a Heaven and a Hell if only to give certain people their just deserts. Have any of you morons ever heard of Christian charity? Do we say, oh, terminal patients are going to die anyway, so let them just hurry up with it and leave them to lie in their own filth, put them out in the cold to save the trouble of sharing heat and food with them. That's the same attitude that leads to abusiing these poor animals who are actually of a higher order of evolution (at least they have better morals) than most of these idiots whose loutish, brutal and disgusting faces were o n television last night as already fired, charge,d etc. with kicking, dragging and god knows what else to these poor turkeys. That friggin state "veterinarian" if she can call herself that after such cronyism to corporate masters when she is actually drawing a salary and benefits from all of us taxpayers, ought to be fired and lose her license. She might do less harm working behind a cash register at Wal-Mart, certainly less chance to harm poor innocent creatures she is supposed to be looking out for. I hope there are many more such exposes, firings, and I plan to boycott ALL Butterball products from here on out. I already only buy chickens advertised as free range, no antibiotics and humanely slaughtered.

Gotta love it.

Another government employee taking a salary from the taxpayer to help a major corporation to break the law.

All those of you who have worked in a poultry processing plant, raise your hand. I have. I cut chicken and processed turkeys my jr. year of high school. Folks they were food. They are raised in a way to maximize production, and killed in the quickest way possible to keep prices down. All those in favor of adding $1 a pound to retail chicken so you can sleep better at night cause the fryers don't get over crowded on their way to the eviseration line. You animal rights and bleeding heart @!$%#s, need to get a life. Just because you want to get your substandard protein from plants doesn't mean you have to force your emotional needs on the rest of us. Next you'll want to have the government make sure us duck and goose hunters kill our birds humanely. I dispatch wounded birds by twisting their heads around 360 degrees. Or you'll have us filing our dogs teeth to make sure that the birds aren't accidentally inflicted with superficial flesh wounds by a retrieving dog. You people need to get a life. Animals are not people. They don't feel the way we do, they are not sentient or self aware. They exist and they react. Like the dog that bit the face of the news anchor during the lamebrained interview after being saved from an icey river. Apparently the dog was not too "grateful" and was unaware how he should act on TV. What utter morons. The real world is a lot crueler to animals than man is. Cats of prey suffocate their prey...of course you wouldn't know that because you only have eyes and ears for the things that make you feel good about yourselves. Trust me, domestic chickens have a lot less stress in their lives, than a wild bird. They get three squares a day, a roof over their head and are safe from predators, all except us. And we kill them in the least expensive and quickest way possible to maximize profit and to minimize damage to the product.

mudrake, I'm sorry that you're so morally and ethically bankrupt. Hopefully one day you will see the error of your thinking.

Americans over consumption and waste are the major reasons are food is supplied and treated in such a disgusting fashion. In a factory type setting. Animals should be raised in the open at a farm, not a factory or an over-crowded dark hen house or stall.

But regardless of your backwards thinking, the fact of the matter is if the animals are treated inhumanely, there's a good chance the standards at the factory are poor quality. Which can lead to numerous bacteria and disease entering the food supply. Not to mention these animals are pumped with anti-biotics, force fed corn, and get no greens in their diet. These animals shouldn't be fed corn, and they NEED some kind of roughage in their diets. Top that off with the fact that these factory farms spray chemicals on the meat after it's processed, like ammonia and chlorine, to prevent disease and bacteria. Then we get to consume all of those chemicals and anti-biotics, yummy !

Most of the factory farmed birds are so over stuffed and pumped with drugs that they can barely walk a few feet before collapsing exhausted. Sounds pretty stressful to me !

And as far as hunting, it's ridiculous in my opinion. If you hunt as your primary food source, then I'm fine with it. But if you hunt and shop at a supermarket, you're a hypocrite. I'm guessing that you hunt on a full stomach of supermarket food, with a full cooler of supermarket food next to you. Shooting a bird, deer, or whatever from a long distance away. The difference between the animals in the wild on the hunt, and a human hunting is, they chase down and catch their prey with their mouths and/or claws. And then eat the meat raw, I don't know if you heard of it but, it's called the food chain. When you can run down and catch the bird, or whatever you're hunting with your bare hands, then I'll be impressed.

There is no excuse for mistreatment of animals .... even turkeys ...

BUT most of you ranting about the abuse have never, ever been next to a turkey ... except at the dinner table ! They aren't the sociable friendly bird you imagine ... I would like to see the expression on each of your faces when in a pen with a few big ones that sensed your fear and started working you over .... and if you had a young child that they went after .... you'd be kicking the bird too! .....

Next I'd like to see you in the pig pen .... lol ....

Well boo hoo hoo. All you wackjob animal rights activist veggies can cry me a river. I am with Mudrake on this. I hunt Quail and Pheasant with an evil firearm. If they are still alive when my lab brings them back then I too apply the final act with the ringing of the neck. I don't pull out a fricken syringe and administer an euthanizing drug. My wifes cat hunts anything it can catch. Talk about suffering. That cat tortures everything it catches till it dies. Needless to say I have no vermin around my house due to his prowling. Recently I witnessed a pack of coyotes attacking a young mule deer. They tore that thing apart while it was alive. This after it spent its life dodging a bunch of cars.

Turkeys can be very aggressive. They won't hesitate to use their spurs to attack someone. I watched a young child get ripped up by one at a camp ground at San Antonio reservoir near Paseo Robles, Ca. They run through out the campground and have no fear of humans and often chase and spur unsuspecting campers. Same thing with the black tail deer there.

Now one of you chastising me denies that peta and other animal rights groups do not have an over all agenda to remove animals from our diets. You are a liar. I have seen their sites and it is their stated goal. These are also the same people who think the death penalty is too harsh for murderers who have been found guilty beyond a reason of a doubt. They believe a person who kills an animal should get the death penalty and those who kill other people should get a short time in prison and re education. Yep, That will work. Idiots.

you have a nice say, too, Dave........should you ever want to move out of CA, Tx or Az would be great places for you to consider! You'd fit right in!

Animals are not people. They don't feel the way we do, they are not sentient or self aware. They exist and they react. Like the dog that bit the face of the news anchor during the lamebrained interview after being saved from an icey river. Apparently the dog was not too "grateful" and was unaware how he should act on TV.

Animals are not mindless automatons. Evidence demonstrates that the majority of the emotions that human beings possess are shared across a wide variety of species, especially mammals (no surprise, since we are mammals ourselves). Moreover, nearly every vertebrate species on the planet is "sentient" by the scientific definition of the word, and a number of species are indeed self-aware, including ALL of the Great Apes, cetaceans, elephants, and a number of avian species. And that was being conservative.

You can believe whatever you want, but you can't change the facts or bend reality to your preconceived, narrow minded worldview. Face the facts. If you disagree with them, then do scientific research that proves them wrong, or do what I did:

Go to veterinary school so you can speak with some authority against the individuals that you think are completely and utterly ignorant on this subject. Especially the ones that display it on the internet for all to see.

Also, the dog that bit the reporter was terrified. It's a normal reaction for a canine to bite in fear. At the risk of sounding unprofessional, that's called common f*cking sense.

Buy local and/or from organic farms. The taste is worth it!

It's a turkey for gosh sakes, you act like they were abusing children or something. I don't mind a little "tenderizing" on my turkey. I bet you are hugging a tree right now too, right!

Maybe you've forgotten that the overwhelming majority of serial killers and mass murderers begin their string of killing with animal abuse in their background. What's next in your mind, it's only a mentally ill person so why not abuse them?

Buy local and/or from organic farms. The taste is worth it!

You got that right. Once you taste organic, you wonder if the stuff you had been eating is even real food.

In case some of the brutes responding on this think it'sn o harm to them by eating meat taken from abused animals, let me enlighten them, if their brain cells are connected anywhere in their empty skulls.

Stressed, terrorized and suffering animals release certain hormones (as do we "humans," at least those of us worthy of being called that) into their bodies particularly if they undergo abuse and cruelty or crowding, stressful conditions over a lifespan, that will in fact taint or damage the quality of the meat. What are we puttingnn into our bodies that comes from animalls with immune system problems? Cancer could be the least of it. When humans' immune systems weaken for whatever reason, thru abuse, age, or poor living conditions and stress, they have a greater susceptibility to cancer and many other diseases, including tuberculosis and other things you don't want to cathc. These animals are no different. That includes cattle, pouiltry of all kinds, and other warm-blooded creatures we slaughter for meat. Fish? dunno. But they don't deserve to be casually abused, either. The show that has these ignorant hillbilllies and other degenerates "hand-fishin' in muddy streams and creeks give me chills. Who the hell gave us the right to invade their territory and grab these fish for sport? I wouldn't eat one of those "sporting" catches unless I was starving. Have some respect for fellow creatures, or get the hell off the planet. That goes for Butterball and every other piece of @!$%# food processing industry that have grown as corrupt, brutal and dishonest as other corporate masters such as banks, Wall Street and the nuclear power industry to name only a few. And I forgot the worst. Congress and the current composition of the U.S. Supreme Court with the currupted ilk of Clarence Thomas who sells his vote to Tea Party paymasters of his own wife, he and his crony Scalia who are disgraceful. I fear for America.

Okay, I have to eat my words a little, thanks to misleading reporting in the article. Apparently, she didn't so much "tip off" the Butterball people, as contact them immediately upon hearing about the abuse and making sure the Butterball vet knew it was going on and to see that it was stopped. Her side of the story seems reasonable, and I wish the story had included this information. Here is the link to her statement:

http://dig.abclocal.go.com/wtvd/Sarah_Jean_Mason.pdf

If her side of the story was "reasonable," why did she lie at first and claim she didn't call Butterball?

This is the same old story: When blue-collar people break the rules, they get fired and/or jailed; when the "upper" classes break the rules -- especially women -- there are no consequences.

Wilmer Furman

If her side of the story was "reasonable," why did she lie at first and claim she didn't call Butterball?

I'm sorry, I couldn't find the part of this article where it said she had changed her story. Where did it say she had lied in the first place? Thank you.

Notice there is no mention that the good Doctor will lose a paycheck over this. It may or may not be in the NC law that an employee guilty of a misdeameanor will be fired. But she should be fired because as a senior employee her first duty is to uphold the law and defend the constitution. Her bosses ought to know she has demonstrated the inability to uphold her responsibility. Ergo, she should be fired. But gubmint people do not think like this. You are likely to see the ban together to defend her against the evil people who she betrayed. She'll probably get reassigned - they will call that punsihment so you will accept it. Allowing her to stay there drawing a taxpayer funded paycheck/retirement/medical benefits is nothing more than crony employment standards. Any gubmint employees that have a sense of fiarplay should be calling for her to be fired.

wish you had a few hours at the hands of these thugs.

Camille, his remark may be inappropriate, but lowering yourself to his level and wishing harm on him makes you no better.

Setnommarih, so wanting a better environment to live in is a terrible thing? I guess you hate your future grandchildren, too. Its people like you that are going to make others miserable for your own greed. I bet you drive a big ol' gas guzzling machine, to make up for...

How would you compensate poultry??

The employees that committed the acts should and will be punished, but I'm quite certain the company was unaware or the employees would have been fired before the video release. No company wants bad publicity as it harms the company image and sales. I am pretty confident that the management was unaware of the incidents. Place the blame where it belongs, on the individual employees, not the company. Say what you want about, "they should have known," but management can't be everywhere at all times. If they put video cameras in all areas then you would be complaining about abusing the privacy of the employees.

Freedom-

Then I will never buy a Butterball again.

You better quit eating turkey altogether. Likely Butterball processes turkeys for other brands as well.

AtlasWillShrug,

The job, the whole job, and nothing but the job is to know what is going on within the operation that you supervise. If you don't then you are not capable of doing your job and should be terminated. If your employees are committing crimes, and you do nothing to REPORT it, then you are as culpable as they are. Lots of big words there, so go get a dictionary...

No company wants bad publicity as it harms the company image and sales. I am pretty confident that the management was unaware of the incidents.

Upper management might have been unaware, but the immediate supervisors should have known what was going on. If they didn't, they're incompetent. If they did, they're culpable for allowing company policy to be violated.

All these whinners on here are going to keep on eating butterballs just like they always have.

Sure they are going to talk a big game, some even so far as to proclaim they are now vegans, like that is something to be proud of or brag about. In the mean time, they will keep shoving fatty meats down their gullets faster than ever.

By the way, gravy was never intended to be a blood type nor a beverage.

You must be the next Miss Cleo to know so much about people that you've never met YELD. Since you're such a clairvoyant, what size shoes do I wear? What was the name of my first pet cat? Obviously you know us so well since you can divine out whether we all buy food from crappy CAFA farms when you're not looking. Try again, even a broken clock is right twice a day.

One doesn't have to be clairvoyant to be able to state what the facts are anymore so than saying, Yeldy has to be a veterinarian to know when he is speaking to a horse's ass.

There's a significant difference between true facts and opinions based on the limited perspective of a narrow-minded person. Unfortunately too many times people assume they know the facts when all they know is their own opinion and then wrongly assume that to be factual.

Thanks Lynch, but it wasn't really necessary. Do like the vet reference though! Maybe this clown will not be so quick to start in on someone next time. But then again, some folks are so limited, they never learn.

have a great day and keep those one-liners coming.

You are right but...there are a couple of people who come on every single article and assume that because they post on everything and don't have any other life, that makes them king of the posts and everyone else is wrong. My bet is he will not stop being a pom-pass ass and will continue to assume he has the only legitimate views and everyone else must accept them.

Same old idiotic comments from the dimwit gallery that assume they're all knowing, maybe you're senile enough to have already forgotten that you're not only the one that decided it was necessary to start lobbing insults towards people but also decided that everyone else was lying and you could see right through them with your "tremendous insight". You spew forth your opinion that everyone disgusted by the animal abuse will just turn around and ignore their feelings in the future and go running back to CAFA farms, as if you have even the slightest clue about anyone posting comments here. I'm sure you thought everyone protesting battery cages was kidding as well, but you'd have been wrong yet again since the United Egg Producers (covering 90% of the egg laying hens in the US) have agreed to banning their use.

Pathetic and little too late for your backhanded apology to mean anything. Put your "big-boy" pants on and move on there little fellow before you embarrass yourself even further.

She was rationlizing. She should be fired.

Two weeks off without pay, which seems fair enough to me. She didn't take part in the abuse and wasn't trying to cover it up. She thought that by doing what she did it would end the torturing of the animals more quickly. She made a bad judgement call, but it wasn't because she didn't care that the animals were being abused.

last I heard-fecal matter does not have neurons and cannot feel pain-so enjoy your painless life!

Grizkid: This certainly ranks as the dumbest comment on this post. Well done...idiot.

you won't eat meat but you'll eat food that grows out of animal crap

Well, if you eat meat, you're also eating food that grows out of animal crap, since manure is frequently used as fertilizer for grains and hay that end up in feed. It's all a circle, after all. Cows eat the grass, cows crap on the grass, the grass grows better, cows eat the grass....

I suppose a more accurate statement would be cows eat the corn grain...seeing how nearly no beef is "grass fed" these days....which is pathetic seeing how detrimental an all-corn diet is. I suppose what comes around goes around though...with the skyrocketing number of e coli outbreakes lateley and obesitey running rampant...Go Organic. Buy Local. Plain and simple. If not for moral reasons, than for your own health's sake. These actions help our economy, health, and yes, some would say Karma.

The gravy went nicely with my free-range heritage turkey that I cooked for Thanksgiving last year. I picked it up directly from the farm and it was delicious (and not abused).

Wild turkeys are good, too, and absolutely guaranteed to be organic.

Wow setnommarih - you are clueless , ignorant and classless.

In other words , irrelevant , so just hurry up and meet your maker.

Compassion for ALL creatures is something admirable. Gandhi maintained the moral fiber of a country is evident in how it treats its animals. I suppose you consider him a "wackjob" also. People with your attitude make me very sad.

Compassion for all creatures is one thing, extremism is another. I understand what no stress is talking about. Some extremists take things way too far. They become blind to everything but their ideology and are completely irrational. That's what makes all extremists dangerous, whether it's religion, politics, or animal rights.

flbikerchick, watch Food Inc. and then tell me about extremism.

I'm not sure Big Macs have real meat in them....

Anyone who stuffs a big mac in their mouth isn't thinking.

I don't think a big mac is made with real meat either...I think it is pink goo! household cleaners and formaldehyde....mmmm yummy!

The really large toms are the ones that give off the 30+ pound Thanskgiving Turkeys. Just think of all the parts of the turkey that aren't all nice and shrink wrapped in the grocers' freezer, those organs, feet, head, feathers, etc are the parts that make up the remainder of the weight. However, 90 pounds is an exaggeration in the article (an emu only weighs around 80-100 pounds).

Jeez setnommarih...always been a douche bag, or just wake and decide to be one today? If being outraged by blatant cruelty is being a do-gooder, I'll happily accept that moniker. Seriously, what the hell is wrong with you? Should we all be "do-badders?"

During my Stint as a poultry hauler , I saw on many occasions Tom turkeys in the 50 to 70 pound range. These turkeys do not go into the human food chain. They do end up in the animal food , fertilizer, and various other plants..