Peta Gives Farmers a False Reputation

If you are active on social media, there is a chance that you have come across the organization PETA ( People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). More than 6.5 million people believe and rely on information Peta provides. In most of their articles, instead of stating factual information, Peta uses gruesome photos and unfactual information to tug at their reader’s heartstrings. Although to general society, Peta’s articles are upsetting, much of the information that Peta gives is not accurate or factual. The lack of accurate information about what happens on dairy farms gives farmers a false reputation.

For example, in their article titled “The Beef Industry,” Peta writes about cattle who are raised on ranches. In this article Peta fails to state any factual evidence to support their argument. Instead, they state that “In the winter, cattle freeze to death in states such as Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wyoming. And during the summer, they die from the heat in states such as Kansas and Texas.” Peta fails to inform the public that cattle have thick skin and thick hair which serve as natural insulation, or that cattle actually prefer temperatures between 40 and 65 degrees.

Similarly, PETA also released an article to the public in which they state that, “Youth that participate in 4-H are ‘forced’ to harden a piece of their hearts.” They argue that 4-H kids are unaware that they have to sell their market animals after the fair, thus, they develop a heartfelt relationship with them. Being a ‘4-H kid’ myself, I can argue this statement to be false. When I first began exhibiting my animals in 4-H, I was well aware that my market steers were to be sold and slaughtered after the fair. Moreover, I was also aware that these animals were not pets, but an asset in the business that my family has been a part of for three generations, myself being the fourth. Therefore, I am not “forced to harden my heart,” but instead I am better able to prepare myself for the separation from my animal.

Additionally, in their article about factory farming, Peta states that “Most animals that are raised on factory farms won’t even feel the warmth of the sun on their backs or breathe fresh air until the day they’re loaded onto trucks headed for slaughterhouses.” In almost all factory farming cases, this is false. The truth is on many factory farms across the U.S, farmers provide their animals with plenty of room to roam as well as plenty of fresh air. Nicole Wren, a dairy farmer from Prescott, Michigan, stated, “Our calves and cows all have the freedom to move around inside or outside of the barns. They choose when to eat, sleep, socialize and on a lot of robotic farms they even choose when they want to be milked.”

In contrast, while the majority of American farmers treat their livestock with the utmost respect, just as in other communities, there are a few degenerates who, as Peta states in their articles, treat their livestock poorly. For instance, in 2009, there was an investigation on a dairy farmer where employees were caught whipping “downed” cows, who were physically unable to stand due to common medical conditions. The actions taken by these employees were against common ethics and practices in which are taken by dairy farmers in order to protect the well being of their animals.

In conclusion, due to the inaccurate information that Peta releases to the public, American farmers are given a false reputation, which is unfair. In most cases, Peta’s accusations are purely emotionally charged representations on the practices carried out in the livestock industry. Instead of using factual information to educate their readers, in their articles, they most commonly use tactics such as over exaggerated terminology and gruesome photos in which stimulate their readers emotions. Therefore, Peta’s accusations should not be accepted by the general public.

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