HSUS Slaughterhouse Investigation & Beef Recall - I'm getting irked

First off, big kudos to The Humane Society of the United States for undertaking an undercover investigation that has caught the attention of the general public. That it takes such an action to expose an activity that routinely goes on every second in this country is ridiculous - which shows the difficulty we face overcoming the animal exploitation industries, when they have our government's assistance in keeping the horrific realities hidden from view. (Um, if they really wanted to monitor animal "welfare", how about remote video monitoring in slaughterhouses?) It's big money, for the industries and the politicians in bed with them. They have a lot to lose. Videos of what goes on in slaughterhouses and factory farms aren't good for business.

But I've been noticing some things surrounding the reporting of this story - from all different fronts - that are starting to annoy me.

Other animal advocacy groups aren't crediting HSUS

I think it's great to use this recall as a way to hit home whatever point your organization wants to make. Use it, use it, use it. But I think it's really hypocritical and disengenuous for some groups who openly criticize HSUS for being "welfarist" or "too powerful" or "not vegan enough" to take advantage of HSUS's hard work and funding in their own campaigns, yet never even mention HSUS. As if the USDA just magically recalled the beef all on its own. Yeah right.

If you are going to refer to the recall, you should be crediting HSUS. I can't believe so many self-proclaimed "animal rights" groups would rather leave the impression that the USDA is on the ball, doing their jobs, because they have some personal issues with another animal advocacy group. Is that really the impression we should be giving? I am really disgusted by this, and it needs to stop.

These were SPENT "dairy cows", not "beef cattle"

The ASPCA just put out an email about this recall. (Not mentioning HSUS, of course.) They described downed animals as "cattle", which really leaves a different impression of what animals we are talking about here. I'm pretty sure that most of the cow-milk drinking, cheese-eating public never thinks about what happens to "dairy cows" once they can no longer be raped, impregnated and exploitated for their lactation. What an opportunity to focus on the end result of "dairy" that isn't usually highlighted. Everyone needs to be talking about this.

Even "dairy cows" from organic and small farms end up at these slaughterhouses

No one seems to be talking about this much either. What an opportunity to tell the public that no matter what "treatment" the animals receive on the "farm", they all end up on the same trucks, for the same torturous journey on the road, to the same slaughterhouses, to the same horrific end. People who call themselves vegetarians, but eat dairy products, especially seem to be missing this point. Ugh.

Why are these cows REALLY "down"?

These cows aren't "down" because they are in the end stages of Mad Cow Disease. They are down because they've been abused for years at ye' olde factory or "family" farm - from having their bones depleted of calcium from extended, forced milk production; from being given antibiotics to ward off chronic mastitis (udder infection); from hormone injections they get to increase "production"; from being fed crap grain and who knows what instead of grazing on grass; from being kept standing in their own waste every second of their lives; from being hooked up to metal milking machines twice a day, every day. And then, being forced onto a truck, where they are driven hundreds of miles, exposed to the elements, without food or water, packed in without consideration for injuries obtained along the "trip" to the slaughterhouse.

So then they can't stand, can't walk to their own horrific deaths. Because they are dehydrated, exhausted, have broken bones, udder infections - not because their flesh is some risk to human consumption. It's because of what humans have put them through.