I've never seen or participated in something like this, but it looks kinda funny. Some people believe this is cruel to the pigs. I could see the piggy participants sustaining some minor injuries, but probably not much worse than the human participants. To me, it looks a little unfair for the pig, considering it's 4v1, but I doubt it understands the "game" aspect of it.
I can see why some people might be upset about this - pigs are supposedly smarter than dogs, after all, and being manhandled by a bunch of naked apes is probably not their idea of fun. On the other hand, I think that by trying to make an issue of this, animal rights groups are just diluting their message. Yes, the pig might sustain some minor injuries, and be emotionally hurt because he thinks he's going to get butchered, but how do you expect people to care about that if the majority of them don't even see a problem with eating pork?
I have pretty similar feelings, I mean, it may not be the nicest thing to do to a pig, but it's hardly the worst thing done to them by a long shot. I had been reading a bunch of roysexton's posts about pig wrestling and was just trying to understand what the actual event in question looked like.
Sorry, maybe I shouldn't have called you out, and I certainly don't mean to put you on the spot. Factory farming of pigs seems much more morally repugnant than wallowing around in a mud pit with a fat hog, although I can understand and respect people not wanting to participate in either of those activities.
no, I didn't feel that you called me out - and I agree with you about factory farming 110%. this activity bothers me because it is a public, celebrated activity (akin to propaganda) that further distances people from thinking about these animals as living creatures, thereby making factory farming even easier to get away with.
Screw them. Try it one on one and humans do not stand a chance. It is pig abuse to gang up on them. But one on one, you get dirty and the pig likes it. So self-abuse is my vote in that case.
Yeah, you really get the sense that if it was a fair footing for both species, humans would enjoy it much less. We're all animals in the fundamental sense of the word, what "rights" we deem fit to give to members of our own species, versus other species, are arbitrary. I have to admit, rodeos (and now pigwrestling, thanks roysexton) has been in the back of my mind for a while now, and I suppose they're all in a similar vein to circuses; the idea that animals deserve to be exploited for entertainment certainly seems distasteful, but I'm still not sure if I would go as far to say that all species deserve a inalienable right to be free from exploitation by humans. Animals being kept and used in captivity is a difficult issue to parse from the broad continuum of situations: my pet dog, which lives better than some humans do; a dolphin or elephant kept in captivity by the professional staff of a multi-million dollar amusement park or nature reserve, an animal that is kept safe and healthy, perhaps mentally stimulated, but still prevented from having free agency; a pig used in pigwrestling spectacles, bruised and stressed, but unslaughtered and hopefully returned to a family farm that raises them humanely; or a factory-farm chicken, or a primate used in some cruel laboratory tests, held and used with minimal concern for the animal's well-being.
I appreciate this thoughtful and gracious response. I've gotten a lot of grief from people who think "bacon!" is a reasonable response to this issue. I find the glib, classless, and reckless approach some people take to how animals are treated so troubling, and it makes me feel good that there are folks like you who share the same concerns.
Thank you. I'm conflicted because, on one hand, I really enjoy cooking and eating meat, but on the other, the moral and environmental effects of meat production do give me pause. For the moral concerns, I like to pretend that I could hunt, kill and prepare a wild animal as prehistoric humans once did, but I know that is nowhere close to reality; our current relationship with "meat" is so far removed from nature it would be laughable if it weren't so sad. For the time being, I simply have to accept my cognitive dissonance on this issue and slowly work at it from the edges.
I completely agree with you and have struggled with this issue for a long time. I grew up hunting and fishing. Then I was opposed to hunting as I thought it was cruel. But the more I learned about industrialized food production the more I thought that hunting is the more humane way to go. I eat meat and I have to get it somehow. I know a lot of hunters and fishers and they all absolutely have conservationist tendencies and hate it whenever they make a mistake and an animal suffers. I would recommend reading Michael Pollan's book The Omnivore's Dilemma if you are interested in thinking more about such choices.
That looks like a very interesting book. I've seen the PBS adaptation of his previous book The Botany of Desire which was an absolutely fascinating documentary, so I'll definitely check that out. I really would like to go hunting at some point, although not ever having operated more than a BB rifle and not knowing the first thing about hunting, I'm not sure where to start. I do have respect for people who hunt for food responsibly. I sort of feel like using a gun is cheating in a way, but then again, we did evolve big brains and complex tools for a reason. I might have a fighting chance to feed myself with a gun, but if I had to rely on persistence hunting like a true prehistoric human, I would certainly starve to death, or at least be a vegetarian if I was lucky!
In a perfect world I would personally grow and kill everything I eat. Probably more growing then hunting though. Fun Fact: Michael Pollan is the brother of actress Tracy Pollan, who is married to Michael J. Fox. edit: I just downloaded that book. Thanks for the recommendation.
For me, personally, I think I could adjust to a vegetarian diet, I do enjoy a wide variety of fruits, vegetables and grains, but my partner, he has a much more, lets say, limited palate when it comes to fruits and vegetables. Do you eat a lot of beans and nuts or like, what are your main food staples?
I think I've eaten tofu before, but I can't really remember, I don't think it left a strong impression on me. I can tell you right now though, my partner would not touch tofu with a ten foot pole, and to be perfectly honest, I don't really know why. I think he is a super-taster or something, but he is extremely picky, anything which is bitter or sour, or has a strange, unusual, or even slightly different texture elicits a, "hmm... yech.. nibble nibble what is this!?" and that's if I can even get him to try it in the first place. We mostly cook at home, but have a pretty limited diet of pasta, rice, potatoes, eggs, lots of dairy and cheese, broccoli, tomatoes, onions, corn occasionally, and chicken or pork, with some limited red meat, and fruits being mostly apples, strawberries, watermelons, plums or oranges depending on the season. I'll eat a much wider variety of veggies, but he won't touch any kind of beans or nuts.