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Friday May 17, 2013
I’m holding a 3 day old baby goat. He’s absolutely precious! His cry is adorable. Of course, I’m stating the obvious. All babies are cute.
This little guy should be running and jumping and acting hilarious, like normal kids do. But, he’s not doing that because he has 4 deformed legs that won’t even hold the weight of his tiny body. He’s going to need a LOT of help. He still might not make it.
Sadly, babies are born deformed. It happens all the time. Life isn’t fair. In his case, he had 3 other siblings. He was just so cramped in the womb that he didn’t develop normally.
Here’s the problem, though…
This kid is the product of a goat breeder. It just so happens that the breeder is a “first time” breeder, but that doesn’t really matter. A breeder is a breeder. I’m talking about the dairy industry.
As I already mentioned, the mother goat who delivered this kid had 3 other babies. The breeder didn’t think this one would live. She focused her energy on the other three.
A day or two later, the breeder realized that this kid was still alive. He wasn’t going to just die.
Now what?
The breeder doesn’t have time for bottle feeding. This kid needs bottle feeding every 2-3 hours for at least a week.
The breeder can’t be bothered with a crippled goat. This kid is completely dependent in every way.
What to do? Of course: Call a goat rescue.
Yes, that’s a very good thing to do. I give her that. It’s very good that she sought help. She did the right thing by calling someone who cares about animals, and who has the experience to help.
But here’s the thing…
This kind of passing the buck (no pun intended) is completely unfair to the goat sanctuary owner. I think it really “stinks” that breeders can basically dump their little inconveniences onto the people who run sanctuaries.
I wonder if the breeder offered to pay for any of the costs that the sanctuary owner will obviously incur, to take care of this kid.
What I just described is just one of the many problems I have with small dairy farms.
But, in general, I can’t stomach the dairy industry on any level.
I can’t stomach dairy products because I can’t accept the mentality that it’s okay to bring life into this world just to turn around and take it away.
Dairy breeders for all species (i.e. goats, sheep, cows) depend on continuous pregnancies to keep all that milk flowing.
Dairy breeders on farms of all sizes are in the business of killing unwanted baby animals. This is simply the only way a dairy can make any money. Extra bodies that aren’t producing milk are a drain on the business. There are too many mouths to feed!
- Male babies are killed because they won’t ever produce milk.
- Female babies are killed because their numbers still inevitably become too numerous on the dairy farm. Farms only need a small number of “replacements” for their “old” and “unproductive” mothers. (Retirement = Death).
It’s really quite rare for a baby animal to get the kind of chance that the kid I’m holding in the picture is getting. But, that certainly doesn’t make it okay to continue breeding animals.
Dairy really does make me sick to my stomach.
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Updates here…
- Tatonka at 2 Weeks Old (May 31, 2013)
Chinese 5 Spice Gingerbread (GF)
This gingerbread is delicious and “just sweet enough.”
For this, I started with my Sunflower Butter Energy Bar (GF) recipe. My original goal was to create a gingerbread-flavored version. However, I decreased the seed butter by quite a bit, and I added some baking soda and vinegar. This resulted in a fluffy “cake,” rather than a dense “bar.” The tofu and molasses create a moist sponginess.
I also wanted to use some Chinese 5 Spice that I’d been neglecting. It contains a blend of star anise, cinnamon, clove, fennel, and pepper. It smells heavenly!
Don’t use it for meat and poultry!
WET INGREDIENTS
1 box (12.3 oz) Firm Silken Tofu (Mori Nu)
1/4 C maple syrup
1/4 C molasses
1/4 C Once Again sunflower seed butter
1/2 C non-dairy milk
1/2 t apple cider vinegar
1 t vanilla extract
DRY INGREDIENTS
1/4 C EACH: quinoa flour, millet flour, brown rice flour, garbanzo bean flour & rolled oats (GF)
1/2 C oat flour (GF)
2 T ground flax seed
3 T fine shred unsweetened coconut
1 t baking soda
1/2 t EACH: Chinese 5 Spice, cinnamon, ground ginger & cardamom
1/4 t EACH: salt, coriander & nutmeg
ASSEMBLY
Puree the wet ingredients in a food processor. Combine with the dry ingredients. Grease a square glass pan with coconut oil. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. (You can also try baking in muffin liners for 23 minutes. I’m going to do that next time!) Cool on a wire rack before cutting.
WHAT THE F…?!?!
I recently signed up to get email updates from some Animal Exploiters’ websites. Today, I click-opened my E-copy of Dairy Today Magazine. Here is a screenshot that I took of an ad for Pfizer Animal Health’s vaccine, Bovi-Shield Gold HB.
The text reads,
“If she can’t stay pregnant, what else will she do?”
“Keep your cows pregnant and on the job. Bovi-Shield GOLD FP 5 L5 HB is the only viral combination vaccine to prevent Lepto hardjo-bovis for a full 365 days. Ask your veterinarian or Pfizer Animal Health representative how to protect her pregnancy, your reproductive program and your bottom line.”
This is ad is so offensive on a number of levels. I really don’t believe I need to add any commentary to the hunting reference. The image is simply PATHETIC.
I will say a few things about cows:
- Cows should NOT be ”kept pregnant” and “on the job.”
- Her pregnancy should belong to her.
- Her life should NOT be serving anyone’s bottom line.
- Her milk belongs to her baby.
GO AWAY, Dairy Industry.
Things That Make Me Go “Huh?”
EXHIBIT B: DAIRY LABELS
Do you ever really notice the pictures on the milk jugs? I’m talking about those cute drawings of dairy cows on perfect green pastures, with– of course– the stereotypical red barn.
Take a quick glance at any dairy container and you’ll find idyllic pastoral pictures. I opened the fridge at work and found 3 different brands, complete with delightful farm depictions: Darigold, Hormel Health Labs, and Lucerne.
What the dairy industry would have you believe is that cow’s milk products actually come from cows living wonderful lives. But does the average dairy cow eat grass? No.
What do dairy cows eat? Let’s consult the Dairy Production page of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to find out what’s in their Total Mixed Ration (TMR):
- Corn silage
- Alfalfa/grass silage
- Alfalfa hay
- Corn
- Soybean meal
- Fuzzy whole cottonseed
- Commodity feeds (corn gluten, distillers grains, soybean hulls, citrus pulp, candy bars, etc.)
No, the cows aren’t eating grass.
Do you notice something else? The Lucerne label says “Calcium Fortified.” Why would that be? Aren’t dairy products supposed to be naturally high in calcium? Why must they fortify?
Think about it for a minute… 
Calcium is a chemical element (Ca) and an alkaline Earth metal. The calcium ion (Ca2+) is essential for human physiology, notably for nerve conduction, neurotransmitter release, and muscle contraction. Calcium is stored in the bones and teeth.
Minerals such as calcium come from the ground. Dark, leafy plants are rich in calcium.
While there is abundant calcium in milk from cows eating grass, dairy cows don’t typically eat grass. Are dairy products calcium-fortified because the cows themselves aren’t getting enough calcium?
Would the dairy industry– i.e. The National Dairy Council– make claims that “TMR-fed” cow’s milk is an “excellent” source of calcium if they didn’t fortify the milk?
Remember…
If you have more than a few cows, it’s not practical to “let” them all eat grass, over acres of pasture land. Why? Because milking occurs twice a day, without interruption. It would be costly and labor intensive to let the cows out, bring them in for milking, let them out, bring them in…
Dairying is a business, and profitability in any business depends on it running efficiently, with minimal costs. (The cows you see on pasture are likely steers being raised for beef, not dairy cows.)
Here are some realistic images of dairy farms:
I took pictures of this dairy in Idaho over 28 sec while traveling (as passenger) at 75 mph:
Idaho Dairy #1 – 2/11/12 – 11:17:20 AM
Idaho Dairy #1 – 2/11/12 – 11:17:25 AM
Idaho Dairy #1 – 2/11/12 – 11:17:28 AM
Idaho Dairy #1 – 2/11/12 – 11:17:32 AM
Idaho Dairy #1 – 2/11/12 – 11:17:41 AM
Idaho Dairy #1 – 2/11/12 – 11:17:48 AM
Only 5 minutes later I saw another dairy:
Idaho Dairy #2 – 2/11/12 – 11:22:43 AM
Idaho Dairy #2 – 2/11/12 – 11:22:46 AM
Idaho Dairy #2 – 2/11/12 – 11:22:56 AM
Idaho Dairy #2 – 2/11/12 – 11:22:59 AM
Idaho Dairy #2 – 2/11/12 – 11:23:02
Finally, dairy cows in the American Southwest:
Dairy #3 – 3/12/12
Final Thoughts…
- Let the cows eat grass.
- Let the cows nurture their babies with their own milk.
- Humans have no dietary requirement for dairy products.
- Get your calcium from plant sources.
- GO VEGAN.
Pigs Got Milk?
August 3, 2012 in MeatCast Commentaries | Tags: animals, Availability and Cost of Feed Ingredients, baby, Biology 101, breed, consume, cows, dairy products, dead, diet, economic, flesh, human, indoctrination, infant, insanity, Joel DeRouchery, Kansas State University, kill, lactation, lactose, Mackenzie Dierks, milk, milk replacer, milk sugar, nature, nursery pig, nutrient, pigs, podcast, Pork Checkoff, Porkpod, pregnancy, societal, speciesist, spray dried whey, starter pig diet, weaning, whey | 3 comments
Mackenzie Dierks, from Pork Checkoff:
“One of the things you touched on was a lactose source, such as whey, and its importance, and also the challenges it can create as a part of the nursery pig diet. Can you expand on that?”
Joel DeRouchery, from Kansas State University:
“Lactose is a very common nutrient that we look at to formulate into starter pig diets. Lactose is the milk sugar, so pigs really like the taste. It’s highly digestible in that transition period from the sow on into weaning. So it’s very typical we have some sort of lactose source from weaning, up until the pigs are about 25 pounds.”
“One thing that’s happened over this last portion of this year is that the lactose price has greatly increased. In fact, spray-dried whey is priced around 75 cents per pound. And if we go back historical, 4 years ago, it was 24 cents per pound.”
Reference: 7/23/12 PorkPod podcast “Availability and Cost of Feed Ingredients” (6:27)
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Well…
It seems that everyone’s getting dairy products except infant cows.
And, it seems that baby animals of various kinds are denied their own milk from their mothers.
Let’s back up a second and review Biology 101…
Cow + Pregnancy = Baby Cow
Cow Lactation = Food for Baby Cow
Pig + Pregnancy = Baby Pig
Pig Lactation = Food for Baby Pig
Human + Pregnancy = Baby Human
Human Lactation = Food for Baby Human
That’s what nature intended.
Now, a step-by-step sequence describing how humans have screwed with nature:
and…
It’s time to stop disrespecting nature.
Live vegan and let’s stop the insanity!
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