Unseen suffering of pigs

In industry terms, this pig is known as a ‘cull sow’ – which means she was used to breed from, and when deemed insufficiently productive, she was killed and her meat turned into low-grade food products, such as processed meats, pies and soups.

The shocking wound on her shoulder is a pressure sore, caused, in all likelihood by her incarceration in farrowing crates, where the majority of sows in the UK are forced to give birth. It is clear that this poor pig has suffered over a long period of time.

Equally shocking is that the farmer had failed to help her. When Animal Aid reported this suffering to the Food Standards Agency, which monitors welfare in slaughterhouses, it was unable to trace the farm from which this pig had come. Several months later, the vet at Cheale Meats was filmed showing a similar abscess in the carcass of another sow to an undercover Animal Aid investigator.

The lives of pigs – and other animals – in farms and slaughterhouses are filled with unseen suffering. Please help them by choosing a compassionate diet.