first see the humane act which governs how an animal should be slaughtered so as to inflict minimum pain…
For animals other than poultry and ritually-slaughtered animals, it is a requirement of The Humane Slaughter Act that livestock must be stunned into unconsciousness before they are killed. The stunning of livestock is normally accomplished by an electrical device or a gun.
There are several types of guns employed:
FREE FIRE CARTRIDGE: A bullet is shot into the head of the animal. Use of this technique is rare, and only occurs in facilities where the head meat is condemned as unfit for consumption.
PENETRATING BOLT STUNNER: Either an exploding cartridge, in a pneumatic stun gun, a blast of air from an air line, drives forward a piston and an attached penetrating rod that enters the skull and brain of the
animal and then retracts into the gun.
CONCUSSION STUNNER: This device operates like a penetrating bolt stunner, but a short, mushroom shaped knob strikes the skull producing unconsciousness without entering the brain.
Penetrating the bolt or concussion stunners are normally used, at both small and large slaughterhouses, to stun cattle. These stunner, also, are usually used when goats and sheep are slaughtered at small slaughterhouses, while the larger plants more often use electric devices on these smaller species.
One type of electrical stunner takes the form of large tongs with round disks on the ends, which carry an electrical charge through the brain when placed on either side of the head.
HOW HUMANE IS THE HUMANE SLAUGHTER ACT?
Two scientists, Professor Schultz and Dr. Hazim both of University of Hanover,Germany, conducted an experiment to compare the Islamic slaughtering with the stunning required in the so called humane slaughter.
Several electrodes were surgically implanted at various points of the skull of all animals, touching the surface of the brain. The animals were allowed to recover for several weeks. Some animals were then slaughtered by making a swift, deep incision
with a sharp knife on the neck cutting the jugular veins and the carotid arteries of both sides as well as the trachea and esophagus (Islamic Method). Other animals were stunned using a Captive Bolt Pistol(CBP). During the experiment, electroencephalograph (EEG) and electrocardiograms (EKG) recorded the condition of the brain and the heart of all animals. The results were as follows:
ISLAMIC METHOD
- During the first three seconds after slaughtering the EEG did not record any change, thus indicating that the animal did not feel any pain during or immediately after the incision.
- For the following three seconds, the EEG recorded a condition of deep sleep unconsciousness. This is due to the large quantity of blood gushing out of the body.
- After this total of six seconds, the EEG recorded zero level, showing no feeling of pain at all.
- As the brain message (EEG) dropped to zero level, the heart was still pounding and the body convulsing vigorously (a reflex action of the spinal cord) driving maximum blood out of the body.
STUNNING - The animals were apparently unconscious soon after stunning but the EEG showed severe pain immediately after stunning.
- The heart of the stunned animal stopped beating earlier than the one slaughtered the Islamic way thus resulting in the retention of more blood in the meat.
If confirmed, this experiment would have shown that the stunning required in the “Humane Slaughter Act” is not humane. It should be noted that this so called Humane Act may be based more on economics than on Humanness. The main purpose of stunning has less to do with causing a painless death to the animal than with rendering the animal motionless, thus allowing the production line to go at a faster pace and achieving higher efficiency and profits for the meat packing company.