A May 28 letter described a horrendous situation in which a group of cats were found locked in a small cage. This is a terribly sad situation and will no doubt receive much public outcry. We read about situations like this several times a year, and they never fail to shock and sadden the public.

However, there is a very similar situation that is rarely mentioned in the news. The fact is, many farm animals live in these conditions every day of their lives. Breeding pigs are kept in gestation crates, veal calves are kept in veal crates, and egg-laying hens are kept in battery cages. All of these types of cages are just as inhumane and uncomfortable as the cage that the cats were found in. None of these cages allow the animals sufficient room to turn around or to comfortably lie down.

It is unfortunate that in our society we are able to see the injustice of one type of imprisonment but not others. If the public reacted the same way to gestation crates, veal crates, and battery cages as they do to pets found in cages, these abuses would end sooner. It takes a public outcry to make change happen. I want to invite all readers to join together and denounce these unfair farming practices. After all, if it is wrong to keep cats in cages, isn’t it wrong to do the same to cows, pigs, and hens?

Leah Kodner

Minneapolis