School Pig Castration Sparks Protests: "A teacher who castrated a live pig in front of her high school class is the target of protests by animal rights activists throughout the country.
The protests began after People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals posted information about the incident at Rosamond High School on its Web site last month. The posting does not say when the castration occurred.
'We're concerned not only because animals suffer during these routine castrations but also because of the message it sends to students who are still forming opinions about treatment of animals in our society,' said Stephanie Bell, a PETA cruelty case worker.
Rod Van Norman, superintendent of the Southern Kern Unified School District school in the Mojave Desert about 70 miles north of Los Angeles, said animal castrations often occur in agriculture classes and are an important skill for students to learn.
'I don't know why they're picking on a little school district,' he said.
Charles Parker, assistant state Future Farmers of America adviser at the California Department of Education, said anesthesia is not normally used during pig castrations, which are done to calm male animals, prevent them from breeding and improve meat quality.
Bell said she hopes the nationwide attention will prompt the school district to reconsider teaching castration.
Van Norman said that's not likely. None of the complaints have come from parents of district students, he said.
A posting on PETA's Web site, however, says the organization learned of the castration from Rosamond parents, who reported that one student vomited after observing the procedure and others were extremely upset. "
