Mother Pig Dies Hours After Giving Birth at Orange County Fair

Courtesy Google Images

Daisy a 3 year old sow died of a seizure Wednesday morning, one day after she gave birth to 11 pink and black piglets at the Orange County Fair. This reminds me of the gunning down of a pregnant dairy cow last year at the California State Fair who was shot and killed, as she, terrified, escaped from the nursery. These birthing exhibits are designed to allow cows, goats and pigs to entertain the fair going audience by giving birth on display. 

Despite the pleas of concerned animal welfare advocates, and a wealth of scientific/industry literature decrying the antiquated concept of birthing exhibits that involve stressful travel and confinement of these near term pregnant animals, the tradition of these exhibits continues. Modern technology notwithstanding, the need to actually watch a mother give birth seems to trump appeals to logic, science and basic notions of humanity.

Sources report that the piglets are being bottle fed by hand and their fate as to whether they will remain on a farm or be auctioned off is as yet undetermined. They further cite the authorities as saying the seizure was "unrelated". Unrelated to what? The pregnancy? The display stress? The Fair?  I would like to know what it IS related to!

I again submit to you that we are not teaching anyone anything with such displays except that it is okay to exploit other living beings. 

Where is the compassion and empathy in that?

Animals Forced to Continue to Give Birth on Display at the Fair

Each year the California State Fair boasts a Livestock Nursery exhibit, where extremely pregnant animals are transported to the fair, and are situated to give birth in front of fair goers. Last year, a frightened pregnant dairy cow escaped confinement and was gunned down at the fair. Both she and the unborn calve were killed. The result was public outcry, protests, demand for investigations and requests to examine the need to continue these birthing exhibits.

The Maginot Line was constructed by those touting the worthiness of perpetuating tradition, and the educational value of witnessing the miracle of live birth in person, against those asserting the inherent inhumanity of the exhibits and that actual births can be witnessed through innovations in web technology without disturbing the mothers and babies.

Friday, April 29th, the Cal Expo Board of Directors met again, ostensibly to discuss the issue of continuing these exhibits in the upcoming fair. The fair's staff recommended doing it again, while members of the animal welfare, veterinary, agricultural communities as well as unaffiliated fair goers pleaded for its cessation. Evidence, of the inhumanity of transporting a heavily pregnant, hormonal animal to the exhibit to be put on display in contravention of the animal's instinctual need to seek seclusion and safety from predators while birthing was submitted as well as testimony by 4Hers and others in the agricultural community who felt that alternatives were available and this sort of "entertainment" for entertainments sake was not moral. One 4Her recited the 4H pledge to use her head for clearer thinking, her heart for greater loyalty, her hands for larger service, and her health for better living for her club, community, country, and world as a mandate to question the appropriateness of the birthing display.

In response to the testimony, the Cal Expo Board of Directors stunned the crowd by saying that they were not considering whether or not to continue the live birth exhibit, but rather, whether modifications were made to it to protect the crowd from escaping animals, and that the exhibit would continue for now.

Sadly, the lessons taught will neither be those of respect, empathy, and compassion for living things, nor the requisite awe for nature,  but rather, that the human predators are the worst kind as they would torment animals for pleasure.  It is merely a matter of time that science, technology and enlightened compassionate thinkers bypass the Maginot Line of stagnation and leaves the old ideas in the dust.

 

Article first published as Animals Forced to Continue to Give Birth on Display at the Fair on Technorati.

Cows Don't Need To Give Birth At The Fair-Please Help Stop This

So many of you were horrified at the gunning down of a pregnant dairy cow last year, at the California State Fair. The cow was part of a livestock nursery exhibit in which very pregnant cows, goats and pigs are transported to the fair and are expected to give birth in front of an audience. As you will recall, she was shot several times after she escaped from the nursery. Both she and her unborn calf were killed.

Despite the public outcry, and a wealth of relevant scientific/industry literature decrying the antiquated concept of birthing exhibits that involve stressful travel and confinement of these near term pregnant animals, the Fair's staff is recommending the continuation of the exhibit.

The Cal Expo Board of Directors is meeting this Friday at 12:45 PM (PST) in the Cal Expo Administration Building. It is urgent that we send an email to the Board, calexpoboard@calexpo.com and ask them to consider alternative ways, like web cam links, videos, virtual simulations and models to demonstrate a birth rather than actually transporting, crating and stressing a frightened, hormonal pregnant animal to perform this feat for an audience. After all- we are the public that attends the fair! What if we didn't?

What are we really teaching our youth with such a display? I can tell you that it is not respect, empathy, or compassion for living things, but rather, that it is okay to bully and exploit those that can't defend themselves.

UPDATE:  In response to the testimony, the Cal Expo Board of Directors stunned the crowd by saying that they were not considering whether or not to continue the live birth exhibit, but rather, whether modifications were made to it to protect the crowd from escaping animals, and that the exhibit would continue for now.