Dustpan Alley (OLD)

Standoff At The Bossy Corral

Me and bossy had ourselves a little showdown. Two bossy cows, one weighing in at a whopping 221 pounds and the other somewhere over 1200 pounds...who was likely going to come away as the champion of the barn? Bossy lowed loud and deep and I said "Oh yeah? You can't scare me you big old cow. I like your kind quite a lot. I'm not backing down, if that's what you're waiting for!" Bossy took a step closer to me and repeated her earlier comment. I think she was making sure her pals and baby knew that she was being tough on their behalf.

Generally speaking, when 1200 pounds of beast gets up close and personal I would back away and maybe run until my lungs collapsed. However, what I really wanted to do was step even closer and give Bossy a scratch on her toupee. I wasn't led to believe she would tolerate such a show of familiarity, so I held back.

We just stood there staring at each other like a couple of great big cows with nothing better to do.

I really love cows. I always have.

I think humans prefer to think of any animal they can domesticate as being stupid because it helps them feel more comfortable in their place on the food chain. I wouldn't try to argue that cows are contemplating the placement of stars in the universe while chewing their cud, but I have looked into the soul of a cow, and I can tell you that it isn't an empty cavernous place.

The thing is, it seems to me that people really shouldn't feel guilty about eating other animals. Nature created us to be omnivores and as such we are built to eat other animals along with plants and (regrettably from my point of view) insects.

The only thing humans should be deeply ashamed of is the mistreatment of animals they plan to eat. No need to give a cow a velvet cushion, because we all know she's just going to poop it out of all recognition. But how about not keeping her cooped up in muddy quarters too tight for good health? How about giving her real pasture to feed on daily? How about not forcing her to sleep in her own muck every day and breath ammoniated air? How about giving her a life worth living while we prepare to make her into filet mignon?

This is my friend Angeleen and these are her enormous girls. Angeleen breeds her cows, sells and/or butchers her boys. It's a way of life. The meat she feeds her family comes clean of additives and cruelty. It's a lot of work keeping cows. I'm not sure I'd be up for it myself. They are enormous beasts and that in itself can create some tactical challenges when you need to get them to do anything they distinctly don't want to do. This is the way it's supposed to be for animals destined for a life of serving humans. Good care. A quality life.

I'm not going to suggest that all animals destined for the plate should be loved first, but I'll bet the meat is sweeter from animals who have received respect and a good life. I realize it may seem strange for a vegetarian to talk of such things. I'll never actually be able to tell you if what I think is true (about the sweetness of meat) but my friends can. From all reports coming in, there is substance to this supposition.

Aren't all creatures raised with care and love sweeter than those who have had to scrap and fight for every bit of sustenance and who have weathered a thousand storms without the tight shelter of a warm barn? I'm not saying that the scrappers aren't wonderful people (because I think we are), but I think that my meat is probably a little on the tough and stringy side.

This is Daisy. She'll never be forced to live her short life in a stall too small for her to do anything but stand or sleep. She'll never be pumped full of hormones or given other cow's processed innards to eat (many cows are fed this nasty crap). She'll get to run, jump, hang out with her mother, and then she'll either serve her humans by making more calves, or being milked while making more calves, or possibly she'll end up as some one's dinner. But she'll be treated well every step of the way.

And please- would you stop and admire those incredibly long white lashes of hers?!

Though I don't eat the flesh of animals I do eat a lot of animal byproducts such as cheese, eggs, and honey. I raise my own hens and while I will never break their necks for the stew pot, I daily steal their potential offspring to make into omelets. So I have asked myself the same questions that all people should ask themselves who depend on domesticated animals for sustenance and comfort. I ask myself (when I have to buy eggs, which I sometimes still have to do) where did they come from? How are they being kept? What are they being fed? It is almost impossible to know the minute details and the absolute truth about a dozen store bought eggs without going to the chicken farm yourself. Who has time for that?

I would like to visit some of my local chicken farms one of these days. Perhaps I'll join my friend Riana this month in meeting my eggs. She is only eating meat this month that she has met face to face in an effort to close the gap between herself and the food she eats, to become more educated about what is going into hers and her family's mouths, to reconnect with the natural circle of life in which us humans daily take part.

We all like to think we have no time to investigate what we're eating, but I think that's just a line we tell ourselves. We could, instead of going to the zoo with our kids, make an appointment to visit our local farms and dairies. We could visit cheese factories and chicken farms. If more people did that they would know the truth for themselves and not rely on the shady claims of producers and bureaucrats trying to protect the status quo.

I think it's ultimately more honorable to be a human who eats meat and can look in the face of your dinner and be thankful to that beast for having lived to give life to others through it's own flesh. I think it's cowardly to eat hamburger but not be able to go to the slaughterhouse and face the industry that exists to fill your belly and do all the dirty work for you. I do believe that everyone who eats meat should be willing to see how it gets to their plates.

I think there would be radical changes in the meat and dairy industry if all of it's customers were to become first hand witnesses to their operations. People would not ask as often: "Why should I spend so much money for artisan meat when I can get a cut at Safeway for a dollar a pound?" The question of expense is a fair one. Any meat raised with care and with quality is going to cost the farmer a lot more and consequently: the consumer. I have two perfect solutions:

Eat less meat. Americans in particular have this idea that they need vast amounts of protein and that the most superior way to get it is with meat. This could not be less true. We eat a hell of a lot more protein than we need on a daily basis. Fantastic sources of protein can be had by including more beans in your diet. I'm not suggesting you become vegetarian. I don't care if you eat meat or not. But if you can't afford to buy same amount of meat you're used to buying that is humanely raised with care, then buy less of it. That's how humans have really been eating for thousands of years. Meat has more often been a luxury addition to the table than a daily staple.

Buy quality meat in bulk: buy half an animal at a time from a small producer and freeze it. You get a large quantity of meat at once and freeze it. I have friends who do this. They buy half a pig at one time, get a better price for it, and store it. This way they have better meat for less. If you do it this way you can sometimes be very specific with the meat processor about how you want your half a pig cut up and this way you can save the bones for stock, you can use a lot more parts of the animal which will also help you stretch those dollars a lot longer.

I think I will plan a trip to my local egg producer from whom I have been buying eggs all winter. I may find I won't buy from them anymore once I've seen how their chickens live. I am not having to buy much anymore because my own girls are kicking back into gear but come next winter I'll be short of eggs again and shouldn't I really know how those eggs are being produced? I may have to wait until April to plan such a trip because the next couple of weeks are going to be pretty packed with meeting deadlines and moving.

I would like to remind everyone that every little bit counts. Every time you give thought to these issues and make small changes- it all counts. You don't have to make radical change all at once. You can achieve radical change by taking small steps, one after the other. Don't let anyone make you feel insignificant. If you do nothing else but visit the producers of your food this year, you will be taking positive steps towards change because all change begins with self education. Knowledge gives you the power to make better decisions and the less we depend on dubious third parties to tell us how things really are the more personal power we yield. So go ahead and visit your local dairy. Ask them questions. See everything with your own eyes.

Places I should visit:

Tillamook cheese factory
Willamette Egg Farms
Norris Dairy
Yamhill County Mushroom Farm