The group Animal Equality released video of the facility late last week, saying Summit Calf Ranch near Rising City exposed calves to prolonged freezing temperatures, resulting in frozen limbs and death.
The group said they had an undercover investigator pose as a worker in the facility to gather evidence. They said the investigator documented the following:
Workers shoving, jabbing and hitting calves with sorting sticks and hut rods as the manager’s dog lunged and bit the backs of their legs
Painful disbudding of calves using hot irons
Calves dying of scours and pneumonia after being left outdoors in freezing temperatures
Sick cows, left with dead cows, receiving no veterinary care
Hernia repair, banding (castration) and other painful procedures without pain medication
Summit Calf Ranch responded to the accusations, and released the following statement:
Animal welfare is our highest priority. We at Summit Calf Ranch have a strong commitment to animal care and have established trainings and procedures fully aligned to industry best practices to care for our calves and all of our cattle in a humane and ethical manner.
This past winter presented farmers with some of the most challenging weather conditions faced in decades. The prolonged, extreme cold temperatures presented unprecedented demands on normal operations. In spite of these difficult circumstances, this video shows our workers handling animals in a way that indicates they were attentive to their needs and following proper guidelines.
Nonetheless, we will use this as an opportunity to look for ways to further improve what we believe is already a strong and comprehensive system of treating our calves and all of our cattle in an ethical and humane manner. We are currently undertaking a full review of this facility by outside experts and are committed to providing additional training and improving any protocols as needed to ensure that our staff continues to provide the highest animal care standards in the industry.
We are convinced that our farm staff shares this same commitment to following strong animal care practices, and will continue to take necessary steps to further enhance our already strong dedication to continuing to treat our calves and all of our cattle in an ethical manner.