Friday, October 27, 2006
7:59 AM
I want to first start off by saying that I have nothing against Vegitarians or Vegans, in fact, I admire the fact that they have something that they believe in and support. But sometimes, I just don't think they are looking at the big picture. Some just don't want to eat meat-they don't like it or whatever, that's fine. But this is what one had to say about cows on a feedlot.
"
Many cows on feedlots become sick and die because of their unnatural diet and the filthy and unnatural conditions. The feedlot air is saturated with ammonia, methane, and other noxious gasses built up from huge amounts of manure, and cows are forced to inhale these fumes constantly. This can give cows chronic respiratory problems so that even breathing is painful. The feedlot diet causes chronic digestive pain, and cows' digestive tracts may become ulcerated and eventually rupture (a condition the industry calls "bloat"). According to a study published in the Journal of Animal Science, this unnatural diet also causes potentially fatal liver abscesses in up to 32 percent of cattle raised for beef."
I grew up on a farm. Yes, we raised cattle that eventually would die. I can't say that I was thrilled about the idea that those poor cows that always had such beautiful eyes, would eventually become a hamburger, but it was life, that's just how it works. I can only remember maybe 3-4 cows actually dying in my entire life. Most of the time it was something completely natural, for instance, one cow had cancer, and he didn't get it from our farm. I'm not saying that all feedlots are good, I understand that there are bigger places that probably do not treat the animals fairly, but not all are like that.
I don't want to get into the whole 'why you should eat meat' thing because I think it's pretty tired, and I couldn't give a shit whether or not you want to eat meat, it's up to you. But keep an open mind and realize that not EVERY place is bad.