Criminal charges sought by Animal Equality for lamb cruelty

Animal Equality–in collaboration with Animal Partisan and a local Colorado attorney–has requested criminal charges against Colorado Lamb Processors and one of its supervisors.

On March 28, 2023, a USDA Public Health Veterinarian inspected a Colorado Lamb Processors facility in Brush, Colorado. The USDA representative found a fully conscious lamb loaded onto a conveyor belt, ineffectively stunned before slaughter. 

The USDA representative urged employees to contact a supervisor, who attempted to stun the lamb with a back-up device known as a hand-held captive bolt gun. Still, the lamb remained conscious, moving their head around quickly and bleeding out of their nose. 

The supervisor attempted to stun the lamb a third time, still failing to render the lamb unconscious. Finally, the Slaughter Floor manager successfully stunned the lamb on the fourth attempt. 

Despite the USDA’s acknowledgment that there were several violations of the Humane Methods of Slaughter Regulations, critics note that very little disciplinary action was taken for the animal cruelty that occurred. Now, a coalition of animal advocates and legal counsel are asking the District Attorney to hold Colorado Lamb Processors responsible.

USDA fails to hold corporations accountable

Following the report, the USDA noted that Colorado Lamb Processors had violated federal regulatory requirements by failing to stun the lamb. The facility was issued a Notice of Intended Enforcement. 

Nine days later, the USDA sent a letter to Colorado Lamb Processors, announcing its decision not to take enforcement action. 

Colorado Lamb Processors submitted a “plan of action” to ensure the proper stunning of animals moving forward. However, nine months later, another USDA representative found a similar case at its facility when a lamb regained consciousness after being improperly stunned. Submitting another “plan of action” to the USDA, the facility reopened just eleven days after the second recorded incident. 

Animal advocates and legal counsel point out that Colorado Lamb Processors and its supervisor violated Colorado’s animal cruelty statute. This amounts to a Class 1 misdemeanor, which could lead to a jail sentence, fines, or both. 

Animal cruelty: An industry-wide issue

Throughout its global investigations into the factory farming industry, Animal Equality has consistently found ineffective stunning before slaughter. Investigators have discovered a lamb’s head being torn from their body, chickens’ throats being slit, pigs being hoisted into scalding water, and cows being skinned–all while fully conscious. 

Even more dire, USDA regulation of United States slaughterhouses has faced scrutiny for its inconsistency. When violations of state animal cruelty laws are found to have occurred at these facilities, corporations and employees are rarely held accountable. 

For that reason, Animal Equality has launched a petition against factory farming in the United States. Hundreds of thousands have taken action for lambs, pigs, cows, chickens, and other animals by lending their voices. 

Others have taken action at their own dinner tables, taking animals off their plates and, by extension, off the conveyor belt. By choosing plant-based proteins, you can prevent animals from an industry that profits from speed and profit over compassion and values. 

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