Between April and July, 2006, PETA undercover investigators worked as "live hangers"—the people who receive live birds and shackle them for slaughter—at a Butterball turkey plant in Ozark, Arkansas. This one plant processes approximately 50,000 birds each day.

PETA's investigators witnessed despicable acts of cruelty to animals that would horrify any kind person. Live birds were slammed against transport trucks and walls, punched and kicked, hung by broken legs, and used as punching bags—all either for "fun" or out of frustration. One worker ripped a turkey's leg off her body when trying to pull her out of her coop, and another crushed a bird's skull with his shoe until her head exploded. Another worker swung a bird against a handrail so hard that her spine popped out. One turkey was even sexually assaulted by a worker for "fun."

Even though birds constitute more than 98 percent of the land animals eaten in the United States, the U.S. Department of Agriculture refuses to protect birds in its enforcement of the only federal law designed to protect animals at slaughter, the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act (HMSA).

To view video footage of the investigation or to learn more about it, please visit GoVeg.com.

You can help protect birds by visiting the site below and filling out this form, which will automatically send a letter to your member of Congress asking him or her to ensure that birds are covered under the Humane Slaughter Act (HMSA).

http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/Butterball

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You can mock me all you want for finding this repulsive and unbelievably sad, but remember, every time you buy one of these birds, you are supporting the suffering they go through.

I doubt the Butterball company wants this kind of stuff going on. Every company, including my own, has horrific management and employees that do whatever they want.

:buys organic turkey:

I'm all for the boycott, cruelty such as this should make even the most devout carnivore shudder a bit. I just wish it wasn't being called for by PETA. It's hard to take them seriously when you take into account all over the top antics they pull. (Which have been well documented on this board)

i'm creeping closer to a tofurky thanksgiving with each and every day.

thanks for this info. it makes me glad i am eating a PBJ right now.

*refuses to mock PJDoll*

*pledges to never purchase another turkey*

*eats chicken sandwich*

PETA is asking people to write to their congressman.

I called for the boycott

that's gross....and i was disturbed by some of those details



on the other hand, humans eat animals and that's the way it will always be

Billions of years of evolution have designed me to eat meat, just look at my teeth. I'd be an idiot to think that all that evolution is wrong. I'm enjoying my turkey dinner on the Canadian Thanksgiving in October and then making the truck south for an American thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings in November.

I don't think i've ever bought a butterball turkey. We usually get ours from a local farm every year.

video: http://goveg.com/feat/butterball/butterball.asp

I stopped buying butterball turkey when I realized how stupid it is to buy something that's been injected with god-knows-what. all you have to do is baste properly, people, and they won't dry out.

big fan of free-range turkeys.

and I'm not going to watch any videos of inhumane treatment of animals. my imagination runs the film for me, thx. don't need to cry at work.

I completely agree.

*Brine

Nobody said "Don't eat turkies". She's just asking us not to support a company that has inhumane practices against animals.

i've never deep-fried a turkey, either. on my list!

Deep fried turkey is sinfully delicious

I had it at a party once and I'd never have the means to do it myself. But yum.

Goddamn I can't wait for Thanksgiving.

i was actually thinking of skipping my family function and volunteering at a soup kitchen somewhere in nyc this thanksgiving, but that's for another thread i guess.

Me too. Isn't three NFL games on instead of just the ones in Detroit and Dallas?

Miami at Detroit 12:30 p.m.
Tampa Bay at Dallas 4:15 p.m.
Denver at Kansas City 8:00 p.m.