Our animal sanctuary is 35 miles from Los Angeles, in Acton near the Angeles Forest. We’re surrounded by ranchers, cacti, and pastel sunsets. Jaws and Paws initially formed our sanctuary to rescue wolves and wolf dogs from backyard breeders or shelters, but we’ve ended up taking in animals of all shapes and sizes. Our little Noah’s arc that’s nestled between desert mountains consists of hybrid macaws, shelter rabbits, abandoned dogs, orphaned kittens, African tortoises, hornbills, an Argentine Tegu and a gelding horse. The abundance in diversity of our rescues is mainly due to the plethora of neglected, abandoned, and abused animals in Los Angeles County. LA is infamous for homeless dogs/cats and exotic pets being illegally owned or sold in the illegal wildlife trade. We’ve saved monkeys from traphouses, wolves from hoarders, and baby squirrels who fell from their nests among other critters. The majority of the time we get phone calls and emails about dogs who either have been mistreated by their owners or have a few days left to live at the pound. On January 3rd however, I visited my first underground slaughterhouse, where we would conduct our first pig rescue.
I found out about the piglets we were to rescue from a flyer at the local Acton market. Every week, I go to a small country market near our property to stock up on food for the animals. At the Acton market, you often see more horses parked outside than vehicles. There is a dusty old billboard in front of the market with hundreds of notices and usually ads about livestock and animals for sale. There was a particular flyer that caught my eye. A black and white printout of several pigs with the title ‘feeder’ and ‘butcher’ pigs for sale to slaughter. Next to this flyer there was another ad that read ‘puppies for sale’. I wondered in that moment, why do we love one and kill the other? What makes one worthy of love, and the other only worthy enough to satisfy our greedy appetites? I picked a number off the ad for the pigs, and dialed…
A woman picked up, and hurriedly asked me what I want in the most impatient tone. I told her I wished to buy some of her pigs to keep as pets, and realized instantly I said too much. She quickly said that her pigs weren’t meant to be owned as pets, and informed me that they were supposed to be fattened and eventually slaughtered for food (that is the definition of a ‘feeder’ pig). She said she usually sold them for $140 each. I told her if she promised not to sell them to a butcher, I would give her $150 each and bring cash. Fortunately, she agreed, and told me I could pick them up the following day.
I haven’t eaten red meat since I was a little girl, and have been on and off vegan or vegetarian for some years now. I’ve seen all the pro-vegan documentaries like ‘What the Health’, but that was after I chose to stop eating meat. The main reason I stopped eating meat was because of the slaughter house I passed by every time my family and I would drive back and forth from Los Angeles to San Francisco growing up. Many people who are familiar with this drive know how horrific the stench is as you approach the slaughter house. Despair and death hang in the air as you drive past. No matter how much you try to plug your nose, turn off the AC, or turn the other way, you can’t help but see hundreds of bodies stacked like sardines in a can and smell the stench of feces. I simply couldn’t bear it. Hundreds of living sentient beings standing without shelter or water in 100 degree temperatures, waiting to be slaughtered. I promised myself from that day onward I wouldn’t eat another animal. Why do innocent creatures have to suffer just to fill our bellies for one meal? And one unhealthy meal at that? Why do we waste so much food and water that we could be giving to starving people, on cattle who will soon have their throats slit?
The following day, we prepared to rescue the pigs. The woman I spoke to wouldn’t give me the slaughter house’s exact location, so she instead told me to meet her at an intersection nearby. I put the intersection in my navigation, and saw that the destination was 50 miles North of our sanctuary. My team and I loaded two extra large carriers into our pickup truck, and set off North. As our drive edged on, we saw less and less houses, and more lonely trees and broken down trailers. Eventually we only passed a shack or trailer every few miles. The sunset dripped too speedily behind the unforgiving desert mountains as we approached the intersection. I phoned the woman, but a man answered. He told us to drive a mile down a dirt road to the right of us, till we see a man waving a flag. Hesitantly, we followed his instructions and slowly trekked down the dirt road. There were stray dogs, cats, goats, and other animals with bones jutting out of their torso because of how emaciated they were. We saw decaying wooden shacks and ruin, with people and animals alike huddled around fires without shelter. Soon enough, in the distance we saw a Texas flag waving in the distance, being held by a burly dark haired man.
As we approached, a rancid odor seeped through our ventilation. My colleague killed the engine, and we stepped out of the car reluctantly, not knowing what to expect. A man greeted us, and asked how many pigs we wanted. I almost choked because of the horrific smell. I tried to recall which of Dante’s circles this butcher’s property resembled the most. The air was heavy with the stench of urine, blood, and despair. I heard screams of pigs in the distance. Squeals of pure agony. I couldn’t begin to fathom what these animals were going through. The sun had gone down, and any hope of golden light or warmth went with it. The outside temperature was quickly approaching freezing. The man led us to a wooden rotten pen, where there were 15 or so ‘feeder’ large piglets. The piglets’ noses lifted hopefully in the air, as they scrambled to where we were, desperate for even the smallest morsel of food. Some of them were licking their food tubs frantic for the smallest piece of food, only to find that it was slick with pee and defecation. They were living in dampened feces, without food or water. Poop was literally caked onto their fur, and they were sodden with dirt and bodily fluids. I could see the desolation in their eyes. I walked from enclosure to enclosure, and saw a mother nursing piglets in feces and mud. All the animals were shivering, dampened, hopeless and cold. It was as if I had walked right into Hades, but I wasn’t experiencing my hell, I was witnessing theirs. I was witnessing a living nightmare. I’ll never forget the anguish sound of squeals in the air. How were we supposed to choose which ones to take? How would we choose which ones would live or die?
We chose four who seemed the oldest, and most likely to get sold to butchers or slaughter houses before the others. The younger ones still had time. The man told my colleague that he had been a butcher most of his life, and had three kids who he had to put food on the table for. I simply cannot sit here behind my keyboard and tell you that the butcher was an evil sadistic guy who slaughtered innocent animals and enjoyed it. There are two sides to every story. This was his way of life. This was how he made a living to feed his family. It wasn’t his fault that the demand of pork is so high in this country. That is why it is so important to stop the demand of pork, or at least encourage sustainable farming and outlaw conventional farming. As a vegan, animal lover with an animal sanctuary, I try not to point the finger at butchers, fishermen, etc. Although I don’t agree with killing animals, especially ones as intelligent as pigs, most of these people are just doing their jobs and feeding their families. It all starts with reducing the demand of pork, and introducing healthier, plant-based, sustainable options. The more sustainable plant based foods we eat, the more jobs will be provided for families and farmers in need. Not to mention working in a slaughterhouse is extremely dangerous, as workers are at risk of disease, bacteria, injury, and PTSD.
The butcher grabbed two of the piglets by the leg, slammed them against the wall as if they were already dead, and threw them into one of our crates. We were in complete shock. My colleague and I grabbed the other two as gently as we could, even though they were fear ridden, and put them in the second crate. I handed the man the cash I promised him, and he walked away, counting his money with a smile. He lived in a tiny shack near the pig enclosures. When we turned to look at our new pig rescues, we noticed all their noses were facing each other, and they were huddled together. I could see the fear in their eyes. I’m sure they had seen siblings, mothers, grandmothers, etc, get slaughtered right in front of them and carried away in the same manner. I wished we could make them understand that they were safe now. They continued to cuddle with each other for comfort. I could have sworn I saw tears in their eyes. They didn’t want to die.
Our drive back to the sanctuary was bumpy, as we drove through mountainous terrain with rock scattered off-roads resembling a Mad Max scene. The poor piglets vomited bile several times during the ride out of nausea and utter fear. When we arrived to the sanctuary, we placed all four piglets into a large enclosure where some of our wolf-dogs used to be, and set up dog houses with fresh beds and blankets for them. We tossed a gigantic salad with collard greens, grapes, organic yogurt, blackberries, cheese, and apples that the piglets approached cautiously. After they couldn’t resist the smell, they gingerly chowed down on their Whole Foods fresh dish. With their tummies full, the piglets all snuggled into one dog house, peaceful and at ease. We noticed long stringy worms on the ground embedded in their poop. I contacted our in house vet, Shiloh Veterinary Hospital, who agreed to deworm them and do a standard check-up the following morning. After each piglet got a physical, it was brought to our attention that they were all females, underweight, and worm-ridden. With proper treatment they will hopefully grow healthy and strong. I named the smallest one after one of my favorite rappers of all time; Piggy Smalls.
It will probably take many months to gain these piglets’ trust. They have seen humans traumatize and murder their kin. They’ve seen us kill them, torture, bully, and neglect them. Many people don’t realize pigs are even smarter than dogs. Dogs are incredibly forgiving animals, but it can take a while to gain a pig’s trust because they are so intelligent. Our goal is to get these piglets as healthy and stress-free as possible. They will live out their days at our sanctuary, eating, playing, and being free. We hope that people who come visit them will see pigs in a different light, and we want people to understand the relationship between their forks and their food. Many don’t know where their meat originates from. Were the facilities clean where these animals were kept? Were they treated in a humane way? Were the animals there parasite ridden? It is not my intention to be preachy and condemn all meat eaters or pork eaters. I just really hope that reading this will help people be more conscious of what they’re putting into their bodies. These pigs were living in their own feces, and eating out of poop filled bowls. Most of them would enter the food plant, and end up on people’s plates. Pork with a side of worms, pathogens, and bacteria. If you set aside the moral factor, it just simply is not healthy. It has been proven that red meat can cause heart disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity, etc. Is the burning of the Amazon worth a pork chop? Is the air quality of the air that your kids and grandkids’ breath worth your hamburger? If we all reduced our meat intake, we could reduce climate change, improve our health, and make four or more piglets’ days a little better.
-Anjali Ranadive
