Turkey Abusers Convicted: One Jailed!

http://blog.peta.org/archives/2009/06/turkey_abusers.php

In a huge victory for animals, two former Aviagen Turkeys, Inc.,
employees have been convicted of cruelty to animals following a PETA
undercover investigation. This is the first time in U.S. history that
factory-farm employees have been convicted of abusing factory-farmed
turkeys.

The convictions came following our undercover investigation at
Aviagen's factory farms in West Virginia, where workers were
documented breaking turkeys' necks, stomping on their heads, and
shoving feces and feed into turkeys' mouths.

One of the convicted former workers, Edward Eric Gwinn, admitted
guilt to stomping on a turkey's head and lifting a turkey above his
head before maliciously throwing the bird to the ground. This
morning, he was sentenced to serve 6 months' home confinement on each
count, concurrently, and is not allowed to own, live with, or work
with any animals for five years.

Another man, Scott Alvin White, admitted to shoving feed down a
turkey's throat and maliciously breaking a turkey's neck. White was
sentenced to serve the maximum 6 months' jail time on each of two
counts, consecutive, for a total of up to 1 year. Read more about the
convictions on our blog, The PETA Files.

This is a historic victory for farmed animals, but please know that
there is still more that you can do to help. Please write to Aviagen
Turkeys, Inc., and demand that it implement PETA's seven-point animal
welfare plan. Also, please remember that the best way for any
individual to help turkeys who are abused on factory farms is not to
eat them. Order a copy of our free "Vegetarian Starter Kit" now, and
we'll send you everything you need to get started, including recipes,
meal ideas, and more!

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Investigation Reveals Horrific Cruelty to Turkeys
https://secure.peta.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=1692

The dark side of the turkey industry

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Update: Following our investigation inside Aviagen Turkeys, Inc., 19
indictments for cruelty to animals were filed against former
employees. Now, for the first time in U.S. history, two ex-employees
have been convicted of abusing factory-farmed turkeys, and one has
been jailed. Learn more on our blog.

More than 72 million of the nearly 270 million turkeys killed for
food every year in the U.S. are slaughtered for holiday meals. In
2008, just prior to the flesh-focused Thanksgiving holiday, PETA
conducted an undercover investigation lasting more than two months at
the factory farms of Aviagen Turkeys, Inc., the self-proclaimed
"world's leading poultry breeding company."

While working at a series of Aviagen factory farms in West Virginia,
PETA's investigator documented that workers tortured, mutilated, and
maliciously killed turkeys. The following are just a few of the
documented offenses:

* Employees stomped on turkeys' heads, punched turkeys, hit them
on the head with a can of spray paint and pliers, and struck turkeys'
heads against metal scaffolding.
* Men shoved feces and feed into turkeys' mouths and held
turkeys' heads under water. Another bragged about jamming a broom
stick 2 feet down a turkey's throat.
* A supervisor said he saw workers kill 450 turkeys with 2-by-4s.
* One man said he saw a coworker fatally inject turkey semen and
sulfuric acid into turkeys' heads.

To learn more, please read the investigator's log notes, view our
photo gallery, and visit our blog.

PETA's investigator repeatedly brought abuses to a supervisor's
attention. The supervisor responded, "Every once in a while,
everybody gets agitated and has to kill a bird." PETA also brought
the abuse to the attention of Aviagen, and although the company made
assurances and instituted some new rules, the cruelty did not stop.

The suffering typically found on factory farms was also routine in
Aviagen's sheds: Hens' beaks were cut with pliers, massive birds
collapsed and died of exhaustion or heart attacks, and turkeys were
thrown into transport cages.

Please write to Aviagen Turkeys, Inc., and demand that it implement
PETA's seven-point animal welfare plan. Also demand that the company
pledge to immediately terminate employees caught abusing or
neglecting animals in the future (the company claims to have
terminated some such workers), and ask the company to cooperate with
state and local law enforcement to criminally prosecute all such
employees.