Conscious Cow Mutilated at JBS Slaughterhouse; PETA Seeks Criminal Investigation
For Immediate Release:
April 22, 2025
Contact:
Nicole Perreira 202-483-7382
A damning U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report just obtained by PETA reveals that a cow was still conscious when an employee sawed into her neck at the JBS slaughterhouse in Green Bay. In response, PETA sent a letter this morning to The Honorable David L. Lasee, Brown County District Attorney, calling on him to investigate and file appropriate criminal charges against the employees responsible.
According to the report, on October 28, 2024, a cow was conscious even after being shot twice in the head, hung upside-down, and having the ends of three legs and her udder cut off. A federal veterinarian saw the cow moving her head and what was left of her limbs as a JBS employee sawed into her neck, which a JBS supervisor said was an attempt to “decrease” her movement. Her suffering only ended when another JBS employee shot her in the head for a third time.
“This cow was conscious and apparently writhing in pain after being shot in the head multiple times, strung up, and hacked apart,” says PETA’s Vice President of Legal Advocacy Daniel Paden. “PETA is calling for a criminal investigation on behalf of this cow and urges everyone to please go vegan to help spare others from suffering in slaughterhouses.”
PETA is pursuing charges under state law because federal officials haven’t prosecuted any inspected slaughterhouses for acts of abuse since at least 2007.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—points out that Every Animal is Someone and offers free vegan starter kits to those looking to make the compassionate switch. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.
PETA’s letter to Lasee follows.
April 22, 2025
The Honorable David L. Lasee
Brown County District Attorney
Dear Mr. Lasee:
I’m writing to request that your office (and a law-enforcement agency, as necessary) investigate and file applicable criminal charges against the JBS Green Bay Inc. employees responsible for failing to effectively stun a cow and then—after her udder and parts of three of her legs had been cut off—attempting to sever her spine last October at 1330 Lime Kiln Rd. in Green Bay.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) documented the animal’s plight in reports that the agency recently made available to the public. (See attachment.) According to the report, on October 28, 2024, a senior federal veterinarian saw the cow—who had been shot twice in the head, was hanging upside down, and was already missing the ends of three legs and her udder—regaining consciousness. The veterinarian describes seeing a JBS worker “cutting into” the animal’s neck in what a JBS supervisor said was an attempt to sever her spine in order to “decrease” how much she was moving.
In apparent response to these further mutilations, the cow repeatedly “picked up [her] head, moving it to [her] left side,” and was “paddling” with what remained of her limbs. When a JBS supervisor touched the cow’s cornea, she blinked—a common indication of consciousness. Her suffering ended only when another JBS worker shot her in the head for a third time.
The acts described above appear to violate Wisc. Stat. § 951.02, which prohibits anyone from treating an animal in a cruel manner—including by slaughtering them outside the bounds of federal law. Wisconsin law affords this victim her only chance at a small measure of justice. We urge your office to seek it.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Daniel Paden
Vice President of Legal Advocacy
Cruelty Investigations Department
