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Edited title
Added/edited analysis on sources
Edited introduction of sources
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Important revised sentences
Added statistics/evidence from text
Katherine Koligian
Professor Haas
Writing 37
15 March 2015
The Cattle Industry Exposed
The average American consumes 265 pounds of beef per year.
Beef is usually viewed as a steak, hamburger, or what you put in a
burrito at Chipotle; however, it was once a cow that went through an
excruciating process to become the meal one consumes. When
examining specific sources such as the Rolling Stones article by Paul
Solotaroff, In the Belly of the Beast, a Farm Sanctuary report, the
Earthlings documentary, and a page from PETA on the cattle industry,
one can get a glimpse into what cows go through. Throughout these
sources, the inhumane treatment cows face in preparation for and
during the slaughter process is analyzed and disputed.
Farm Sanctuary and PETA, animal rights organizations, argue that
cows endure a painful process preparing for the slaughterhouse. Farm

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Sanctuary is an organization whose goal is, To protect farm animals
from cruelty, [and] inspire change in the way society views and treats
farm animals. In one of their articles the organization mentions that,
Calves are soon separated from their nurturing mothers and endure a
series of painful mutilations (1). These mutilations include dehorning,
branding, and castration. The article brings attention to what many
cows face, but in a less disturbing, more logical fashion. This is seen
when the article specifically talks about branding. Branding is most
common in western states, where 98.7% of beef cows are identified in
some manner, usually by hot iron brands, which is a requirement for
public grazing on some federal lands (8). They use statistics along
with a simple explanation to create awareness of what cows face,
rather than unsettling descriptions. Concurrently, an article from PETA,
which is an organization that, Focuses its attention on the four areas
in which the largest numbers of animals suffer the most intensely for
the longest periods of time, gives a more severe version of what the
cow endures. The article states that, Ranchers restrain the animals
and press hot fire irons into their flesh, causing third-degree burns, as
the cows bellow in pain and attempt to escape. Male calves testicles
are ripped from their scrotums, often without pain relievers, and the
horns of cows raised for beef are cut or burned off (1). The two
articles are in agreement of what the cows face; however, the Farm
Sanctuary article takes a much more conservative approach. The PETA

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article describes the mutilations in a very alarming fashion, which
creates much more of an appeal to pathos. They are not trying to
primarily inform the audience like Farm Sanctuary. PETA wants to
describe these processes in the most severe way possible in order to
elicit an intense emotional response out of the audience. Overall, the
Farm Sanctuary article favors the use of logos, whereas the PETA
article targets the readers through pathos.
Furthermore, two well-known sources analyze the next phase in
the cows life-- the slaughterhouse. Nation Earth produced the
Earthlings documentary, which includes a segment on the
slaughterhouse process. Nation Earth is a documentary maker that
focuses on pressing social issues. In this documentary the narrator
goes into both the stunning and bleeding process, which is especially
graphic and disheartening, because of both his explanation and the
footage that goes along with it. Like Nation Earth, a Rolling Stones
magazine article also describes the unethical treatment cows
encounter. Rolling Stones is a very popular magazine that society
mostly reads for entertainment. In the article author Paul Solotaroff
tries to emphasize how many cows are facing slaughter by providing
statistics like, At one Nebraska slaughterhouse, one cow killed
every 12 SECONDS . . . cows killed per hour 300 . . . cows killed
daily 2500 (1). The narrator of the Earthlings documentary and the
author of the Rolling Stones article would agree that this process is

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profoundly inhumane, but they use different methods to prove that
point. Both sources are attempting to show us the truth about what
takes place; however, the Earthlings documentary strikes the audience
emotionally through the use of graphic images. Viewers are made
aware of the slaughterhouse process in a very eye-opening disturbing
fashion. Concurrently, Solotaroff takes a more logical approach by
using statistics. The statistics are also very alarming because the
numbers are so large; however, it does not trigger as much of an
emotional response, but gives reason as to why this is such a pressing
issue. Nonetheless, both these methods are very effective, but
because they are different, they appeal to different audiences. Paul
Solotaroffs article, targets the general public whom are much less
likely to have background knowledge on the issue; therefore, his use of
statistics is the most effective way to establish his point. In contrast,
viewers of the Earthlings documentary probably have some knowledge
on cow slaughter and want to seek the truth about it. In this case,
using vivid clips and narration is a very efficient way to reveal this.
Overall, the raising and slaughtering of cows is an issue that
multiple organizations are trying to bring to societys attention. These
sources, although they have their differences, agree that the treatment
cows face before and throughout the slaughter process is very
inhumane. In conclusion, they are trying to raise awareness and show
us meat is not just meat. It was once a living creature that went

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through an extremely painful process to become what society
consumes daily.

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Works Cited
"Earthlings - Full Documentary." YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 8 Feb.
2015.
"The Beef Industry." PETA. Web. 8 Feb. 2015.
"Farm Farming: Cows." Farm Sanctuary. Web. 8 Feb. 2015. .
Solotaroff, Paul. "Animal Cruelty Is the Price We Pay for Cheap Meat |
Rolling Stone.
2015.

Rolling Stones Magazine. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Feb.