What is a vegan?
A vegan is a person who does not consume any animal products, including meat, fish, eggs or dairy. Vegans also do not wear any animal-derived materials, including leather, wool, or silk, nor do they use products that contain animal ingredients or are tested on animals; they use only makeups, soaps, shampoos, etc. that are not made in such a way as to exploit animals. However, veganism is more about the "do's" than the "do not's." Vegans work to alleviate the suffering of animals by engaging in "cruelty-free" living; they choose the path of compassion for all.
Why, ethically, should I support veganism?
First, you should ask yourself what your beliefs are about animal suffering, and whether we should bring that suffering into our sphere of moral concern. Consider the following quote from the philosopher Jeremy Bentham: "It may one day come to be recognized that the number of the legs, the villosity of the skin, or the termination of the os sacrum are reasons equally insufficient for abandoning a sensitive being to the same fate. The question is not, Can they reason? nor Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?" The argument here is that all suffering should be given the same consideration, regardless of the species experiencing it. As long as animals are our equals in terms of ability to suffer and experience pleasure, they should also be our equals in terms of moral consideration. When an animal is kicked or beaten, is that suffering any less real or any less intense than the suffering that a human endures when treated the same way? Does stabbing a cow hurt that cow any less than stabbing a human hurts a human? And if not, what justification is there for saying that the suffering of a human is worse or more important than the suffering of a cow? None.
Anyone who has followed me up to this point and believes in the importance of animals' interests should not feel justified in eating animal products. Modern farm animals endure some of the worst living conditions imaginable. If there is any doubt that supporting the meat, egg, dairy, or wool industries add to the amount of animal suffering in the world, read on:
Dairy Cows
Modern dairy farms treat cows as milk machines, not as sentient creatures. Dairy cows must be impregnated nearly constantly in order to ensure that they continue producing milk. Shortly after being born, calves are dragged away from their mothers, putting bother mother and calf in distress. Because each dairy cow gives birth to at least two female calves, and perhaps as many bulls in her lifetime, many unwanted, "extra" calves are left over. To maximize their profits, dairy farmers sell these calves to veal farmers, who confine them to crates that are barely larger than the animals who have to spend their lives inside them. Dairy cows themselves, who can live up to 20 years, are usually killed around five years of age, because their milk production rates decline as they age.
Eggs
Egg-laying hens are perhaps the most mistreated animals in the world. Five hens are crammed into one "battery cage" with a floor that is smaller than two pieces of typing paper. In these conditions, they cannot flap their wings, dustbathe, or nest. Not being able to engage in these normal activities causes the birds great stress. These hens are also "debeaked" in order to keep the chickens from fighting and killing one another. Normally, attacked chickens would simply run away from their aggressors, but when trapped inside a battery cage, these chickens have nowhere to go. Instead, their beaks are cut off with a heated blade. This results in burns that can cause acute pain for several weeks. Like cows, chickens' egg-laying rates decline as they age, thus prompting egg farmers to kill older birds and replace them with younger ones. Roosters have no place in the egg-laying business, and are also usually killed shortly after birth, either by being tossed into a grinder-alive, or by being thrown-literally-into a trash can. The roosters at the bottom of the bag are usually crushed under the weight of the roosters at the top.
Pigs
In modern mega-farms, 100,000 pigs may be looked after by as few as one or two people. Rarely do individual pigs receive veterinary care-it just isn't economical. Hogs are forced to spend their lives inside crates that allow for minimal movement, and cause great discomfort. In place of the more natural straw bedding, pigs are forced to stand, lay, and sleep on hard concrete slabs, which can wear away the pig's skin. After a brief life of confinement and boredom, these animals are brutally and callously slaughtered.
Chicken and Beef
Broiler hens are forced to endure much of the same treatment of their egg-laying sisters. The methods of killing are also disturbing: as many as one out of every five chickens is boiled alive at the slaughterhouse. Beef steers, aside from living wretched lives prior to their killing, often have to endure "dying piece by piece." At the slaughterhouse, the cows are chopped up in assembly line fashion. At each station, a different part of their body is hacked off. Usually, they are rendered unconscious before the procedure begins, though the "stunning" procedure does not always work. Thus, many cows are ripped apart limb by limb while still fully conscious.
Fish
A recent study conclusively found that fish do feel pain. When removed from the water, fish die of suffocation, doubtless an extremely painful way to die. Moreover, deep sea fishing often involved quickly pulling fish from great depths up to the surface of the water, which can cause a painful death due to decompression. Also, it is extremely painful for fish to have hooks driven through their mouths.
Wool
It is usually difficult for people to believe it, but supporting the wool industry is supporting a cruel and hurtful industry. Merinos are the most commonly-raised breed of sheep and are marked by their wrinkly skin. Though this skin allows the animal to produce more wool, their skin also becomes a hotbed of fly nesting. The maggots who emerge on their skin can eat these sheep alive. Male sheep are castrated without anesthetic, among other painful procedures.
Thus, it should be easy to see that eating and wearing animals contributes greatly to their suffering. Testing soaps, shampoos, house cleaning products, etc. are also unnecessarily cruel, as there are many vegan, cruelty-free soaps, shampoos, etc. available today that are safe and effective; we do not need to pour oven cleaner into rabbit's eyes to determine that oven cleaner is something that doesn't belong in our eyes! We also will have a hard time hiding behind the banner of "free-range" eggs, as these eggs are notorious for being raised under deplorable conditions. For more on this, visit www.eggscam.com or this good site exposing the problems with "free range" chickens.
Nutritional Concerns
If nutrition is your concern, many reputable sources can alleviate your fears. First, read the ADA's Position Paper on Vegetarian Diets. Also good resources are www.veganhealth.org and VegRD. Most experts agree that we can be properly nourished on a vegan diet.
Other Vegan Information Sites
Vegan FAQ by vegan.com-Highly Reccomended!
Why Vegan? by Vegan Outreach-Also a Must
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