slaughterhouse - a disassembly line

"ideally, the animal will be moved calmly and without stress into the handling facility, which funnels the animals down to single file, where they are restrained in a stanchion. the employee called a knocker renders the animal unconscious. the catcher attaches a shackle to one of the animal's rear legs, and the animal is hoisted up and begins moving along a conveyor line. the sticker slices through the carotid artery, and the animal bleeds out and dies. skinners remove the hide, the head, and the intestines. the animal is cut in two lengthwise (here's where the term 'side of beef' came from), then cut up and packaged for shipment.

what goes wrong? not every animal is successfully stunned, which means an animal may end up hanging by its back leg, terrified and kicking. the sticker's job suddenly becomes very dangerous, and he may not do it successfully, so the animal continues, dazed but alive, farther down the line. you get the picture."

*excerpted from "the compassionate carnivore" by catherine friend, pg.150-151