Over 25,000 Join PETA in Opposing Derbyshire Rabbit-Butchering Facility
Over 25,000 Join PETA in Opposing Derbyshire Rabbit-Butchering Facility
Derbyshire – After hearing that a gruesome rabbit-“processing” facility, which would butcher thousands of rabbits for their flesh and fur each year – likely before they reach 3 months of age – could be built in Derbyshire, over 25,000 concerned residents and PETA supporters have signed the group’s petition urging Derbyshire Dales District Council to reject the application.
The applicants, owners of T&S Nurseries, already exploit thousands of rabbits on four rabbit farms across the country and recently tried to expand their franchise by building additional facilities in Cornwall and Buckinghamshire. Thankfully, those proposals were rejected by local councils after widespread criticism.
“Thousands of compassionate people have spoken, and Derbyshire District Council should heed their concerns for animal welfare, environmental impact, and the health of the local community,” says PETA Director Elisa Allen. “PETA is calling for this plan to be scrapped, sparing scores of gentle rabbits an agonising death.”
PETA – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat or wear” – notes that rabbits are playful, active animals who, in nature, spend their time digging, racing, jumping, and hopping. But on commercial farms, they’re often prevented from engaging in these natural forms of behaviour and denied psychological stimulation and adequate food and space. When slaughtered, terrified rabbits are hung upside down to be stunned before their throats are cut. As stunning is often carried out incorrectly, many terrified rabbits experience excruciating pain as they die.
The group further notes that cramming stressed rabbits together on faeces-ridden farms, transporting them in filthy lorries, and slaughtering them on killing floors soaked with blood, urine, and other bodily fluids means deadly pathogens emerge that can spread from animals to humans. Currently, rabbit viral haemorrhagic disease 2 is spreading rapidly on rabbit farms across the UK – and the devastating COVID-19 pandemic arose from confining and killing animals for food.
PETA opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETA.org.uk or follow the group on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.
Contact:
Jennifer White +44 (0) 20 7837 6327; [email protected]
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