GoSeva.org :: Cow Welfare

Why are Cows special, why do people worship them?

Cows are special because the provide so much for the welfare of mankind. They are liked by the God because of their simple and kind nature; pure and beautiful. They are the ideals for those who have vowed to follow God's instructions. To be a successful follower of God (in any faith) on has to be simple and follow the instructions faithfully. This is exemplified in the behavior of cows. They were made first by God. Even their urine and dung is useful. God cares for the welfare and cows provide so many things (Milk, Ghee, Curd, Urine, and Dung) for the welfare of mankind. Thus, they are liked by God.

Some common FAQ's around vegetarianism:

‘I know a vegetarian who is unhealthy—what about that?'

There are healthy and unhealthy vegetarians. But doctors agree that vegetarians who eat a varied, low-fat diet stand a much better chance of living longer, healthier lives than their meat-eating counterparts.

What will we do with all those chickens, cows and pigs if everyone becomes a vegetarian? '

It's unrealistic to expect that everyone will stop eating animals overnight. As the demand for meat decreases, the number of animals bred will decrease. Farmers will stop breeding so many animals and will turn to other types of agriculture. When there are fewer of these animals, they will be able to live more natural lives.

‘ If everyone turned vegetarian, it would be worse for the animals because so many of them would not even be born, wouldn't it? '

Life on factory farms is so miserable that it is hard to see how we are doing animals a favour by bringing them into that type of existence, confining them, tormenting them and then slaughtering them.

‘ If everyone switches to vegetables and grains, will there be enough to eat? '

Yes. We feed so much grain to animals in order to fatten them up for consumption that if we all became vegetarians, we could produce enough food to feed the entire world. In the US, for example, animals are fed more than 80 percent of the corn the US grows and more than 95 percent of the oats. The world's cattle alone consume a quantity of food equal to the caloric needs of 8.7 billion people—more than the entire human population on Earth.

‘ Don't vegetarians have difficulty getting enough protein? '

The problem is the possibility of getting too much protein, not too little. Most meat-eaters get about seven times as much protein as they need! Vegetarians can get enough protein from whole wheat bread, potatoes, beans, corn, peas, mushrooms or broccoli—almost every food contains protein. Unless you eat a great deal of junk food, it's almost impossible to eat as many calories as we need for good health without getting enough protein.

By contrast, too much protein is the major cause of osteoporosis and contributes to kidney failure and other diseases of affluence.

‘ Don't humans have to eat meat to stay healthy? '

Both the US Department of Agriculture and the American Dietetic Association have endorsed vegetarian diets. Studies have also shown that vegetarians have stronger immune systems than meat-eaters and that meat-eaters are almost twice as likely to die of heart disease, 60 percent more likely to die of cancer and 30 percent more likely to die of other diseases. The consumption of meat and dairy products has been conclusively linked with diabetes, arthritis, osteoporosis, clogged arteries, obesity, asthma and impotence.

‘ Isn't eating meat natural? Hasn't it been going on for thousands of years? Aren't our bodies designed to eat meat? '

Actually, human bodies are better suited to a vegetarian diet. Carnivorous animals have long, curved fangs, claws and a short digestive tract. Humans have flat, flexible nails and our so-called ‘canine' teeth are minuscule compared to those of carnivores and even compared to vegetarian primates like gorillas and orangutans. Our tiny canine teeth are better suited to biting into fruits than tearing through tough hides. We have flat molars and a long digestive tract suited to a diet of vegetables, fruits and grains. Eating meat is hazardous to our health; it contributes to heart disease, cancer and many other health problems.

‘ Why blame me? I didn't kill the animal. '

No, but you hired the killer. Whenever you purchase meat, that means that the killing was done for you and you paid for it.

‘ If you were starving on a boat at sea, and there were an animal on the boat, would you eat the animal? '

I don't know. Humans will go to extremes to save their own lives, even if it means hurting someone innocent. (People have even killed and eaten other people in such situations.) This example, however, isn't relevant to our daily choices. For most of us, there is no emergency and no excuse to kill animals for food.

‘ It's OK to eat eggs because chickens lay them naturally, right? The eggs we buy in the supermarket are sterile and not unborn foetus, aren't they? '

This is true, but the real cruelty of egg production lies in the treatment of the ‘laying hens' themselves, who are perhaps the most abused of all factory-farmed animals. The number of factory farms in India is growing. Each egg from today's factory farms represents 22 hours of misery for a hen packed in a cage the size of a filing cabinet drawer with up to five other chickens. Cages are stacked many tiers high, and faeces from cages above fall onto the chickens below. Hens become lame and develop osteoporosis from forced immobility and calcium lost to produce eggshells. Some birds' feet grow around the wire cage floors; they starve to death because they are unable to reach the food trough. At just 2 years old, most hens are ‘spent', and they are sent to the slaughterhouse. Egg-laying hatcheries don't have any use for male chicks; they are killed by suffocation, decapitation or crushing or are ground up alive.