Massive Manitoba pig slaughter raises questions about euthanasia tactics

Animal lovers may not want to read any further.

Because the tale of 1,300 piglets euthanized at a Manitoba hog farm after allegedly suffering "severe distress" is enough to turn the most ironclad of stomachs.

As CBC News reports, the province's chief veterinary officer, Dr. Wayne Lees, confirmed the animals had been shot in August as a measure of mercy to end their great suffering.

Though it's considered an acceptable form of euthanasia to shoot an animal once in the head at close range, Lees revealed that some of the piglets had to be shot more than once to ensure they had been killed.

He argued that gunfire was the most efficient way to dispose of such a high volume.

"There are no practical ways of giving injections to that many animals. I don't know how you would give intravenous injections to 1,300 animals," he told the news network.

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"It's not pleasant. Nobody likes to do this. But we have to use the methods that are available and the facilities that are available," Lees added.

Last month, officials were called to the Austin area farm after a former employee complained about animal cruelty violations happening under the barn roof.

The farm, like many livestock farms in the country, was reportedly in financial trouble. An equipment distributor has even accused farm managers Bernie and Menno Bergen of failing to pay their bills for several years.

A combination of low pork prices and high feed prices thanks to this summer's U.S. droughts certainly hasn't helped matters.

According to the Canadian Press, many farmers are in the process of depopulating their barns because they can no longer afford to keep their animals.

While no definitive reasons for the Austin case have been released, Lees told CBC that many of the piglets were starving, having been torn from their mother before they could wean.

Tony Heppner, the farm's former barn manager, has come out swinging against the doctor's version of events. Heppner told CBC the piglets were properly cared for and may have appeared underweight because of a flu virus.

He blasted the way the province handled the case, claiming the mass killing has given him ongoing nightmares.

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"Some weanlings I watched get shot three, four times, five times … screaming," he said. "I didn't eat for a day and a half, two days … I couldn't sleep."

While wholly disturbing, this case is far from the only incident of mass animal slaughter making recent headlines.

A B.C. man has been charged with causing unnecessary pain and suffering to animals after he allegedly killed 56 sled dogs by his own hands.

Robert Fawcett claims his tour company ordered him to cull the herd once tour demand plummeted after the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. He is undergoing psychological assessment and awaits sentencing in November.

The dogs were either shot or had their throats slit before they were unceremoniously dumped into a mass grave.

And Canada's horse population is also under threat as cutbacks to the racing industry leave their lives in the balance.

There have to be better options than the ones already in play.