Sympathy towards animals is admirable. But, there is a certain naïveté that surrounds this issue with those unfamiliar with livestock.
You mention pigs. We raised pigs. Not cages... just typical barnyard animals with acres to wander around. When a sow gave birth, it was routine for her to step on or roll over onto a few piglets and kill them. And, of course the runt(s) would die within days; we'd hold them by the rear legs and slam them into the side of the barn. Killed fast. Never considered using nitrogen to suffocate then. Never worried much about how many milliseconds it took for pain to travel to their brain in the moment before they were knocked out. Seems sort of silly.
And don't get me started on chickens. Domesticated chickens are hideous... roosters more so. Try raising a group of roosters and chickens and see what happens. They aren't the most civilized creatures. In any case, I keep ssying 'domesticated' chickens... I'm sure Whatever wild poultry these thing came from are probably normal. But, damn... I'm telling you... We have bred the IQ out of chickens... they are the closest thing to automatons you will find in a barnyard. I have more sympathy and respect for cockroaches than chickens.
You mention pigs. We raised pigs. Not cages... just typical barnyard animals with acres to wander around. When a sow gave birth, it was routine for her to step on or roll over onto a few piglets and kill them. And, of course the runt(s) would die within days; we'd hold them by the rear legs and slam them into the side of the barn. Killed fast. Never considered using nitrogen to suffocate then. Never worried much about how many milliseconds it took for pain to travel to their brain in the moment before they were knocked out. Seems sort of silly.
And don't get me started on chickens. Domesticated chickens are hideous... roosters more so. Try raising a group of roosters and chickens and see what happens. They aren't the most civilized creatures. In any case, I keep ssying 'domesticated' chickens... I'm sure Whatever wild poultry these thing came from are probably normal. But, damn... I'm telling you... We have bred the IQ out of chickens... they are the closest thing to automatons you will find in a barnyard. I have more sympathy and respect for cockroaches than chickens.