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crammed into massive mud lots.
Cows have a natural lifespan of about 20-25 years and can produce milk for 8 or 9 years. But the stress caused by factory farm conditions leads to disease, lameness, and reproductive problems that render cows worthless to the dairy industry by the time they are 4 or 5 years old, at which time they are sent to the slaughterhouse.
A cow restrained for slaughter. Some ethicists consider the slaughter of animals to be an infringement upon their rights.