so i sent an email off to "pasture to plate" asking about how they slaughter their animals and this is the response that i got:
Thank you for reaching out and asking. I also wanted to know how animals are slaughtered here. A special part of my job here at the ranch is I get to spend time with the animals. I raise many young animals that have been abandoned by their mothers, or have been hurt. I love all these animals, they become very dear to me, they follow me around and snuggle with me, they become my friends. I have 23 lambs that I have raised from a bottle, and I have raised over 20 piglets that were either two small or got hurt when they were just wee babies. I become very attached. It is very important to me that each animal is treated with respect from the moment the arrive until the moment their soul departs.
We have a small abattoir, classical music is played and the animals are kept in pens with deep litter, they are never crowded, the pens are open to the outside, they spend minimal time here. We have a priest cow named Theresa whose presence has a calming effect on the animals. She is extremely gentle and her gentle energy is such a presence. Each animal is taken separately to the chute away from the other animals and a stun gun (bolt) is administered. It is very quick, quiet and accurate. They are then taken into a room where they are laid on their side and bled.
I take comfort in the fact that they have had a happy life. They run and play and have an abundance of pasture to explore, babies are kept with their moms. My hope is that when people eat meat that the meat they eat has been respected from birth to plate and I do feel that happens here.
Kelly
At the ranch
We don't know what our limits are, so to start something with the idea of being limited actually ends up limiting us.
Ellen Langer