Do vegetarians think it is ok for animals to hunt and kill for food, but?!
Do vegetarians think it is ok for animals to hunt and kill for food, but?
it is not ok for people to do the same? I understand about the inhumane conditions animals suffer when they are raised commercially for food and I could not agree with you more, but what about when people raise them at home. My husband and I raise poultry and livestock on our farm for our own consumption. We also hunt and fish. The animals have huge pens and pastures to roam in, they always have food and fresh water. The chickens roam free in the daytime and roost inside a chicken house at night to be safe from predators. The animals seem very content. I do not see anything wrong with this. What do vegetarians think?
Answers:
Animals have to eat meat,humans do not.
Source(s):
Conscientious vegan
I personally have no problem with it. I don't like the mass produced, injected full of who knows what type.
My feelings may change later, but I have always thought that people that hunt and fish usually respect the animals and it's more of a sacrifice when they have to kill and are thankful for the animal.
As far as animals killing other animals... That's part of nature.
Kudoes to you for keeping your animals in humane conditions. Thats a huge issue for me, as is sanitation-factory farms are GROSS!! The animals get diseased from the horrid conditions. Personally, I am of the mindset that nothing has to die in order for me to eat. Mother nature provides a bounty of foods that contain all of the nutrition necessary to thrive on a plant and grain based diet, so its not necessary to consume animals. That being said, I have no criticism of you whatsoever-at least you are being responsible in your consumption of animals. So many people just buy it pre packaged at a store, and give no thought at all to how its raised and slaughtered-I think there would be many more vegetarians if people had to slaughter and butcher their own meat. I know for certain that I could not do it. I have a cow that I adore, and no way could I consider harming her or consuming anything but her lovely fresh milk. As for other animals hunting eachother, they go by instinct and need-humans have a choice. If this way of raising animals works for you, then keep up the good work. Its a shame more people dont do it that way.
You know, it comes to down to the simple idea that carnivores were meant to eat meat and humand are not carnivores. There have been numerous studies done to prove this and it is this fact that was my main inspiration for becoming a vegetarian. Carnivores don't get heart disease from eating meat - people do. Our intestines are not made to digest meat - they're not long enough so meat so it rots and causes all kinds of health problems. Our teeth are not made to tear flesh (have you tried eating raw meat?). Our stomachs are not ideal for digesting that kind of protein (nor other animal products like milk). We CAN in small doses when we need to to survive, but we have evolved beyond that. Do some googling and read both sides and make your own choice. I did and going vegetarian was the smartest one for me!
Animals do it because that is what they are born to do. It is the way nature made them. Humans do it just because they can and for the ones in the food industry do it because they get lots of money for it. And so to answer your question, yes I think it's alright for animals to eat their prey.
whatever you do is your business the reason i am a vegetarian is because
a) healthier
b) i dont like the taste of meat
c) i dont like the sound of murdered, de-skinned, cut up, processed, packaged, and sold animal carcass.
in the wild it is for survival. we dont NEED meat. there are TONS of vegetarians and vegans that are successful and the only reason we eat meat is cause people THINK they need it.
If people actually hunted and killed their own animals for meat, I would be fine with it, but sadly that is not the case... an irresponsible factory farm handles the dirty work for the masses and they pick up a pretty package in a grocery store. I admire the way you handle your meat eating and appreciate your efforts. I wish more people would do the same. I realize that with our fast paced society and the fact that not everybody has land to raise livestock on, this plan would be difficult, but a lot of animals would suffer less and those who consume them would probably be healthier.
As long as I have food to eat, I don't care where it comes from. If a person is starving they will eat what they have to to survive. Even a rat is a tasty meal when your near death.
Like someone said animals do because they were ment to do it humans do it because they can!!! and go you for raising your own animals!!!!!
Yes because animals (other than humans) are part of the natural food chain. humans on the other hand know better. Animals shouldn't be killed for humans at all. We don't need them to survive. You kill one chicken for one meal for one day of your life....but that chicken will never get to live again.
My boyfriend's family does the same thing. We love going out and feeding the pigs (unfortunately I have the tendency to name them!), mooing at the cows ... and they all have plenty of room, shade, food, and water. They asked me when I became vegan if I thought what they were doing is okay, and honestly, I do. I don't have anything against meat eaters, especially when they raise their own. I understand that most people don't have this luxury, however, but there is always organic and free range meat available.
I am an animal welfare activist, not an animal rights activist, per se. Yet I do not feel the need to kill anything for me to eat it. It's a non-violent lifestyle.
Animals hunt and kill for survival. Humans don't need meat to be healthy. I think it's unethical to kill animals for food if it's not necessary and for most of us, it is unnecessary.
I don't have a problem with this at all. I'm mostly against factory farming and the awful conditions that surround it. I would have no problems with meat eating if the animals had some quality of life. Do you slaughter your animals as well? Is it don't to reduce the stress for those animals? I'm sure you're also not forcing your cows to remain continually pregnant or injecting your chickens with gallons of hormones either. So, this is one vegitarian who will not be protesting your farm.
On a related note, now that I've become vegitarian, I have to wonder if I would go back to eating meat even if all factory farming and inhumane conditions stopped. I'm not sure. But again, I don't hate those who eat meat, I just chose a different lifestyle.
thank you for not abusing these innocent creatures, yet i still beleive that humans can survive without meat early on in life. but still, what you do at least shows that you have some compassion for animals and realize the horrors of commercial animal slaughtering
The thing is that our digestive tracts aren't made for meat consumption. A meat-eater's intestines are much shorter than the vegetarians. Our's are very similar to herbivorous animals. Plus why kill your animals when you can grow veggies and eat those. Some kinds of greens grow through the winter and you can live very healthily on greens, nuts, and dried fruits/veggies all winter!
As a vegetarian... I personally do not eat meat because I don't see any legitimate reason why it is okay to eat certain animals and not others. Once you allow yourself to realize that a cow or pig isn't that different from a dog (or horse), it's harder to justify eating them.
That said... I have MUCH more respect for meat-eaters who humanely raise and kill their own food animals than for those who blindly contribute to mass factory farming and cruelty. I have always had a problem with "trophy" hunters, but not with food hunters. I've always had a problem with factory farming, but not family farming. While I personally choose to not eat any animals... I wish all meat eaters would insist on only eating animals they either killed themselves or verified were at least raised humanely. The world will never be fully vegetarian, but if vegetarians and conscientious meat-eaters can all get along and stand up against the cruelty of factory farming, we might actually make a difference.
As far as animals hunting and killing... they do this based on instinct and natural need... without the use of tools. I wouldn't have any problem with people eating only what they could catch and kill without the use of man-made tools.
In nature, big fish eats a little fish because its mind is not developed as much as of human who can discriminate and restraint to a great deal. Humans can also rationalize what is right and wrong and so why should they support abuse or killing of innocent animals? Plus, there is a big difference between natural birth and human breeding; and even bigger difference between animals killing each other and mass killing by humans.
The process of raising animals for food involves bringing them in this world by artificial insemination; separating mothers from their young ones; raising them in cages and confined spaces; feeding them unnatural food contaminated with chemicals, hormones, and antibiotics; and finally killing them at a young age. All these actions result in a desensitized attitude and the suppression of compassion at the conscience.
As Jains, we do have to protect all kinds of living beings. There are different laws in the jungle than in human society. In the law of jungle, the strong ones eat the weak ones, but in the law of society, the strong one protects the weak one.
I don't have a big problem with this either. I wouldn't do it and I don't think I have it in me to slaughter my own meat (that's why I don't eat it), but I figure if you're going to eat meat, a) you better be ok with doing the deed and b)at least make sure the animal was treated humanely before being killed (like by running wild, doing their animal thing in pens or streams).
Sounds like you and your husband are doing a very nice thing for your animals, though personally I can't imagine raising something and getting attached to it, and then killing it and feasting on it's insides. But that's my personal issue and not an ethical one related to this discussion.
For the record, I don't think it's wrong to eat meat, I think it's wrong the way we get our meat. But at the same time, you can't hold a being without a conscience-an animal-to the same standards you hold humans to. No one asks the irs why they don't expect cows to pay taxes. They're not the same.
They are nuts.......who cares what they think?