Do Dodge City meat packing plants kill the animals right there in town ??? (Plains: apartments, transporting)

[laidoffreporter]

I just got a job in Dodge City, and I'm due to start work in a couple of weeks. I checked a few threads, and most mention a horrible smell from the meat packing plants. Now, I'm kind of freaking out, because it's dawned on me that they are talking about live animals (okay, I'm a little slow), which must mean that the cows are killed right there in the town.
I don't preach to anyone about my views on animals, and I don't seek to impose my opinions on others. In fact, I usually keep my views to myself, so please don't answer if you just want to call me a tree-hugging radical who should stay out of southwestern Kansas. I do respect rural culture (although huge meat packing plants owned by big corporations are hardly rural) and I think the Great Plains are beautiful. But I just personally couldn't stand it if vast holding pens filled with cows awaiting slaughter are right there in town - and if you can actually hear the animals being killed, well, that will freak me right out.
I know people in beef-producing regions think people like me are just nutty, but actually, I'm a reasonable professional with a master's degree and a responsible job. I just can't stand to be in proximity to that kind of suffering. I really have to take this job, and I was very happy to be moving to southwestern Kansas until I read those threads. I'm hoping someone will tell me something that will ease my mind - like, the cows are butchered elsewhere and then processed in town, or some new painless method is used to kill them (but please don't post any details)
Thanks very much. I'm sure there's so much I'll like about Dodge City, as I understand there are many Mexican-American and Mexican people there, and I appreciate Mexican culture. Also, I think the landscape is beautiful.

[psulions2007]

1. If you can't stand it, you have the option of moving to another town and commuting.

2. Unless you choose a place ADJACENT to a meat packing facility or slaughterhouse, I seriously doubt you will be hearing the last screaming moos of a few cows. Read about apartments, homes before you commit to one and get one the furthest from a meat packing/slaughter house as possible.

[Samantha S]

You may want to consider one of the surrounding towns or at least living as far from the packing plants as you can.

But you certainly won't be able to escape the reality of the beef packing industry in Kansas no matter where you live.

When you see trucks with animals in them, that's where they will be headed. Heck, when you see animals grazing peacefully in the fields, you have to know that that's where most of them will eventually be heading.

You will hear mooing. But there is no reason to think it's the cows last moo each time you hear one.

The industry is not a cruel one (IMO, although some will argue.) Human beings are omnivores by nature (although some choose not to be) and meat is simply a commodity. The vast majority of the time, the animals are killed quickly and efficiently. Of course they are, because long drawn out painful deaths would simply not be cost effective to the end goal.

The idea is to get the meat packaged, not to torture animals.

[briansgi]

Originally Posted by laidoffreporter

I just got a job in Dodge City, and I'm due to start work in a couple of weeks. I checked a few threads, and most mention a horrible smell from the meat packing plants. Now, I'm kind of freaking out, because it's dawned on me that they are talking about live animals (okay, I'm a little slow), which must mean that the cows are killed right there in the town.
I don't preach to anyone about my views on animals, and I don't seek to impose my opinions on others. In fact, I usually keep my views to myself, so please don't answer if you just want to call me a tree-hugging radical who should stay out of southwestern Kansas. I do respect rural culture (although huge meat packing plants owned by big corporations are hardly rural) and I think the Great Plains are beautiful. But I just personally couldn't stand it if vast holding pens filled with cows awaiting slaughter are right there in town - and if you can actually hear the animals being killed, well, that will freak me right out.
I know people in beef-producing regions think people like me are just nutty, but actually, I'm a reasonable professional with a master's degree and a responsible job. I just can't stand to be in proximity to that kind of suffering. I really have to take this job, and I was very happy to be moving to southwestern Kansas until I read those threads. I'm hoping someone will tell me something that will ease my mind - like, the cows are butchered elsewhere and then processed in town, or some new painless method is used to kill them (but please don't post any details)
Thanks very much. I'm sure there's so much I'll like about Dodge City, as I understand there are many Mexican-American and Mexican people there, and I appreciate Mexican culture. Also, I think the landscape is beautiful.

OMG, are you serious???? Get a life! What do you expect to happen, kill the cattle at the feed lots and then drag their dead carcasses to the processing facility? Of course they are killed at the meat processing plant, just like chickens are "processed" at their processing facilities. Perhaps a move to an area, say, San Francisco may be a better choice for you! Sorry to be so forthcoming but for someone who is supposedly degree'd with a Masters your intellect or "naiveness" is startling!

[thriftylefty]

Originally Posted by briansgi

OMG, are you serious???? Get a life! What do you expect to happen, kill the cattle at the feed lots and then drag their dead carcasses to the processing facility? Of course they are killed at the meat processing plant, just like chickens are "processed" at their processing facilities. Perhaps a move to an area, say, San Francisco may be a better choice for you! Sorry to be so forthcoming but for someone who is supposedly degree'd with a Masters your intellect or "naiveness" is startling!

He's right, I know Vegans that get grossed out just driving by the feed lots, and oh yeah if you take the job don't complain about the smell , that's the smell of money.

[Samantha S]

Originally Posted by briansgi

kill the cattle at the feed lots and then drag their dead carcasses to the processing facility?

No need to be unkind. If someone is not from this area of the country and doesn't eat animals for moral reasons, I can see where this would be disconcerting.

And I don't want to sugarcoat it, because the meat in the grocery store certainly doesn't appear there magically. If you are moving to Dodge, you should know what you're getting into on several levels.

But the point you make above is a good one. The animals have to be killed at the processing plants because transporting them from anywhere else would be unsanitary, take too much time and introduce bacteria to the meat.

If I were the OP, I would try to gather as much information as I could about the industry and the processes. Don't just ask PETA and watch their videos where they had to film thousands of animals being processed to get the few who struggled and make it look cruel. Get the other side of the story as well.

Best of luck, and welcome to Kansas!

[laidoffreporter]

I think it's interesting that people ignored the substance of my post, which made it clear that I wasn't seeking to provide a platform for a discussion about the ethics of the beef industry, and, in fact, wanted to avoid one. I wrote that I keep my views to myself, don't seek to impose them on others, but will be genuinely freaked out by seeing slaughter operations right in the city itself - and I asked for any info that might help me, which only one person responded to in a genuine way. (Thank-you, Psulions, I'll explore commuting options).
I didn't judge anyone, I'm not a vegan, and I asked people not to post if they just wanted to make fun of me. Telling me to move to San Francisco, get a life, impugning my intellect, and pointing out my "naiveness" (I think you mean naivete) are all mean-spirited responses to an earnest and heart-felt request. Briansgi, your response was not "forthcoming" - nor was it forthright, which is how I assume you meant to describe it. Rather, it was mocking, and for no good reason. I hope that you will consider saving those kinds of posts for people who deserve them.
And those who really read my post would know that it's not a question of IF I take the job - I wrote that I start work in a couple of weeks because I had to take the job. I invested years of work in a competitive profession, only to be laid off two months ago. I think your region is experiencing the same economic crisis ours is, so why direct sarcasm at yet another laid off worker? I was very happy to be hired in my field and to be moving to SW Kansas. If someone takes the time to ask for sincere advice, and it's clear that they have a real concern, why go to the trouble of mocking them?

That said, can anyone tell me which neighboring towns, if any, have no holding pens/packing plants and/or which Dodge City neighborhoods are the farthest from the plants? And is it possible to drive downtown from such a neighborhood (or nearby community) without passing near the cows? My job will require me to be on call some nights/weekends, so I can't live too far from downtown Dodge. I'll probably have to rent for a least a year, but saw only one house and one apartment listed in the Daily Globe.
Again, please don't respond just to make fun of me, or to strike a blow for the rights of the beef industry. I'm not anti-beef! It's a personal thing - I've actually had nightmares after seeing aspects of the meat industry on TV, so I'm very serious about my question. And BTW, this is my only concern about moving to Dodge City - I have found interesting people and beautiful things everywhere I've lived, and I've lived all over the country, so know I can be happy anywhere. I just need to figure out how to handle this one (for me) major obstacle, and seeking thoughtful input from Dodge City residents is how I'm beginning that process. Thanks in advance to anyone who will take my concerns seriously - I'll really appreciate your input.

[laidoffreporter]

Oh, I hadn't yet read your post, Samantha. Thanks very much. I appreciate your feedback. And thanks for the welcome!

[Gunluvver2]

laidoffreporter,
It has been several years since I have visited Dodge City so I can't help you with information about Dodge specifically.

I assume your line of work is with a local newspaper or broadcast station?

Dodge City is smack dab in the middle of farm and ranch country. There are certain smells that accompany living in rural environments. Cattle feedlots, feed mills, hog confinement operations, poultry operations and the associated packinghouses all give off various AROMAS. Even if you live close to one of these operations after a few weeks you probably won't notice the smell. Actually most of the people that complain about odors are the ones that live several miles away. When the prevailing winds are blowing in one direction you probably won't smell anything. However let the wind change to where you are downwind and WOW.

Strange smells are hard to get away from no matter where you live. I remember when I left the farm and lived in a city for the first time in my life while attending college. There was a metal foundry in town. Some days the stench from that foundry would overwhelm you. I never will forget the first whiff I had of a Municipal sewage treatment plant! A trip on a packed subway car in New York City, during Friday evening rush hour, exposed me to the smell of a large group of humanity.

I guess there are city smells and country smells. You cannot get away from smelling something bad no matter where you are. Just ignore the bad things and learn to smell the "roses" wherever you are.
I am sure you will enjoy living in Dodge City if you look for the positive things and ignore the things that are not what you like.

Good luck,
GL2

[Irishtom29]

Originally Posted by laidoffreporter

I know people in beef-producing regions think people like me are just nutty, but actually, I'm a reasonable professional with a master's degree and a responsible job.

Just because you're educated and have a white collar job doesn't mean you can't be nuts. Not that you are but I can't swallow the argument that social standing confers sanity.