What the News on the End of Male Chick Culling Reveals About Consumers

June 12, 2016 by The Ant's Meow in Vegan, Compassion for Animals

It’s eye-opening how the news of male chick culling coming to an end in 2020 (at least among 95% of egg producers in the U.S.) has horrified people. Just read people’s reactions and comments to this news on social media. For most people, the practice of male chick culling is breaking news alone. It just goes to show how many people are still in the dark about the horrors of the meat, dairy and egg industry.

Grinding, gassing and suffocating male chicks to death is disgustingly cruel, but it’s also just a fraction of the violent and sadistic abuse, mistreatment and deaths that billions of farmed animals endure every day—from the moment their born, to the moment their slaughtered.

Full, Half or No Churro? Blurred Lines in Veganism

June 05, 2016 by The Ant's Meow in Vegan, Compassion for Animals

My mom is my biggest supporter. Although she’s not vegan, and doesn’t always share my view on animals, she has always shown her support.

However, we were at Disneyland recently and when I refused to eat half a churro, she said something that struck me, “Not eating half a churro isn’t going to save an animal’s life.”

So if I ate only half a churro, does that make me less guilty than if I were to eat a whole churro? Does that make me less guilty that maybe only one egg was used, versus two?

Donate to Support “The End of Suffering” – a Film to Save the World

March 28, 2016 by The Ant's Meow in Animal Rights Activism, Compassion for Animals

One of the articles that really struck a chord with me and inspired me to move toward veganism was by Tracey Glover, a lawyer-turned-animal-rights-activist. It was about why she chooses to help animals when there is so much suffering in the world. In fact, it was her article, which I shared with my boyfriend nearly a year ago that compelled him to become vegetarian overnight.

When Tracey was in law school, she worked with refugees, domestic violence victims, and as a humane rescue and cruelty officer with the Humane Society of Huron Valley. Even with all the human suffering in the world, she recognizes that animal suffering is unparalleled in terms of their numbers and the degree of torture they endure … but more importantly, because there are so few people working to help them.

“The End of Suffering” is a documentary that Tracey is trying to put together using funds she hopes to raise through Indiegogo. This film delivers the “message of universal compassion and the truth of our interconnection with all other beings with whom we share this planet.”

“This is a film about suffering and the end of suffering.”

When it Comes to Eating Farm Animals, We All Compartmentalize

February 11, 2016 by The Ant's Meow in Compassion for Animals

Women have long criticized men for compartmentalizing their problems or emotions. It's an enduring stereotype that many men seem to fulfill. But when it comes to eating the animals that are on our plates, fact is both men and women know how to compartmentalize. Many of us are masters of it.

The ability to compartmentalize when it comes to eating farm animals is twofold:

We draw a distinct line between animals we live with and animals we eat. We allow ourselves to believe that only our pets like cats and dogs have feelings, and that their lives are more important than other animals like cows, pigs and chickens.
We don’t like seeing pictures and videos of animal abuse and slaughter, so we avoid them or shut them out of our minds as we eat the animals who were tortured and killed to become our food.

The Difference in Our Relationship with Animals as Kids Versus Adults

January 03, 2016 by The Ant's Meow in Compassion for Animals

As children, we don't have an inherent craving for meat--or a natural instinct to tear apart an animal with our teeth. We're not born carnivores or omnivores. We're only taught to crave and eat meat.

How we see animals as kids is simple: we would rather play with them than eat them. When it comes to the treatment of animals, as kids, we generally know right from wrong. We may sometimes be rough when playing with them, but if we saw a pig or a cow, we wouldn't think to kill and eat them. (And if a child abuses, tortures or kills animals, as adults we're horrified because that sends up a red flag that the child may have serious issues--maybe even grow up to be a psychopath).