May sound counter intuitive coming from a strict, “no, not even honey” vegan but I’m completely serious. Granted, I’d rather lick the soles of Britney Spear’s feet after she’s come traipsing out of a gas station bathroom than gnosh a slab of steak but if I had the choice between meat and dairy, I’d take the meat, all the way. And here’s why.

Male cattle raised for their flesh live a horrific existence, no doubt. Ripped from their mothers at birth with no chance to bond and know love, having their testicles and horns cut off with no pain killers (a method approved by the American Veterinary Medical Association yet, if you did the same thing to a dog, you’d be arrested on animal cruelty charges); living in feces filled feed lots, often times being denied veterinary care for fatal infections that the massive amounts of hormones they are fed can’t ward off. There’s no denying, cattle raised for their flesh live a life I would describe as hell on earth. Think it can’t get worse?

In order for cow mothers to make milk for their babies, they are repeatedly raped again and again by farm hands with a shoulder high latex glove and a vile of bull cum. A little after 9 months of gestation (hmmm, just like humans… but no! We have nothing in common!) and feeling their sweet little babies kick in their bellies, cow mothers push through the natural pains of child birth only to have their babies ripped from them the second they hit the ground. Cow mothers cry and bleat and beg and kick at their confine bars – they love their calves and like any mother, it kills them to have their precious little one stolen away.

How Dare We consume DAIRY

Then cow mothers, whilst recovering from the physical and emotional trauma of having their babies stolen, don’t even get to feel the lips of their little babe suckle their udder. Nope. Shortly after giving birth, there are hooked up to a steal machine that rips and tears their teat – and they get this fabulous little spa treatment six times a day, every day, after they have their first baby. A mama cow’s milk that her body has made for her baby is sucked out of her breast by the same people who raped her, who kidnapped her freshly newborn baby before she even had a chance to turn around to smell them, all so they can sell it for profit.

What does mama cow get as compensation? While we humans are paid for the time we spend making money for the man and we get to go home at the end of each work day, cow mothers are forced to devote their whole lives, their whole existence, to making profit for their rapists, without a day, an hour, a moments rest. They don’t even receive a soft bed of hay, a nice pet behind the ears, a healthy meal free of by-products and hormones. No. These mothers are treated like trash, production units, baby-making machines.

They are forced to live in mud and shit filled lots, sometimes sheds void of any natural lighting. They suffer case after case of mastitis, a breast infection (which results in puss in your milk) – coming from a mother whose has mastitis, it’s like someone punched you square in the tit. It hurts to high hell and along with the breast pain, you’re whole body aches like you have the flu. I only had it one day – dairy cows live with it every day of their lives. And when their tits don’t make enough milk, they don’t even get the luxury of retirement to a happy little field with rolling green hills. When Farmer John is all done raping her, stealing her babies, stealing her milk, he shows his gratitude by shipping her off in a feces encrusted, over-packed trailer to be chopped up into ground chuck.

The life of a dairy cow sounds like a hell on earth that no sick mind could even make up. As a mother, the thought of living a life like that physically makes me ill. But it doesn’t stop there. Next post, let’s take a peak as to where that stolen baby ends up.

In the year 2000, Jackie Chan, Hong Kong’s ambassador for tourism was dismayed and saddened by the well documented torture of millions of Indian cattle, who were killed for meat and leather export. In deep anguish he shot off a letter to the Indian Prime-minister urging him to fight the widespread corruption and illegal practices that permeate the cruel transport and slaughter. The Indian prime minister promised remedial action. But nothing has changed since.

The cows, bullocks and calves are transported from remote places in India in the dead of the night. The animals are racked with pain and filled with fear and often have to endure a long journey without food and water. The collapsing animals are savagely beaten, have chilly and pepper rubbed into the their eyes, their tails are broken and some have their horns broken without the use of anesthesia.

Enshrined in the Indian constitution are the rights for cattle. It prohibits cruelty to cattle but the government simple looks the other way.

The problem of illegal abattoirs:

According to some estimates there are more than 800 illegal slaughter shops in Mumbai, where illegal slaughter goes unchallenged. These shops are concealed in marketplaces and there is no animal welfare regulation, no adequate water supply and poor drainage.

There is no proper animal waste disposal. The waste is simply dumped into the sewer system and putrefaction results and poisonous gases are released. The whole sewer system is a ticking time bomb just waiting to explode one day. In addition the organic waste can breed bacterial and viruses and it can spread infectious diseases. In fact there is no proper waste removal system at the Deonar Abattoir, which is Mumbai’s biggest facility.

At a recent press meeting the members of PETA – People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, accused the municipality for turning a blind eye to the burning problem. In the past year, PETA representatives have made several unannounced visits to Deonar, but the shocking inhumane conditions still persist and nothing seems to have changed. The PETA officials repeatedly caught officials lying about animal welfare measures. The slaughtering facilities are in violation of both Indian and Muslim law.

How can we make a change?

The Leather industry In India employs 2.5 million persons. A large part (nearly 60-65%) of the production is in the small/cottage sector. The annual export value poised to touch about 2 billion US dollars. India is endowed with 10% of the world raw material in terms of leather hide and export constitutes about 2% of the world trade. This sector has enormous potential for future growth.

Hidden within the statistics lie the solution to the problem of cruelty to animals. The Indian government must step in and must monitor animal transportation and implement international slaughter norms. The leather industry on its part must wake up because it can be shut down if the major importers clam down on Indian leather products on the grounds of cruelty to animals.

Finally, we can make the biggest difference. We have to be actively compassionate to animals

References and links:

petaindia.com
mcgm.gov.in