I have not blogged in a while, but since it is my first day of Spring Break and I have no more school work for a while, I decided staying up a little bit later than usual to share my thoughts would be worth it! Earlier today I came across a blog, thanks to my good friend Ms. Celeste Settrini. This article was, of course, aimed at putting down animal agriculture. With the title "Some Animals are More Equal Than Others", I figured it might be a good read. Sure enough I was immediately reminded of one of the goals of the brand new National Beef Speakers Bureau that I am a part of. The message is: A companion animal does not equal a food animal. Often, this idea is thrown askew by anti-animal agriculture activists, however, it is our duty to inform then that that is, in fact, true. While Paris Hilton may enjoy walking around with her Princess Chihuahua in her purse, I wish her luck finding a purse large enough to fit a cow.
It's as simple as this: a dog does not equal a cow. We all learned this in science class in elementary school. Good luck finding a biologist who can prove this statement wrong, too. Sure the picture above depicts a cow dog facing his opponent: the cow. Now you probably know just as much as I do that we love our ranch dogs, and we love our cattle. However, the kind of love we have for these animals is different and distinct. The love we have for our cow dogs is that of a trust bond, a companionship, and happiness. Yet our love for cattle is one in the same, but we also love these cattle, and give them our best care, because they help provide for our livlihood, as ranchers, in this world. Yet, cattle provide for more than just us, which is why others "love" cattle too: for their beef. We realize that cattle were placed on the earth to transform nutrients that we, as humans, cannot digest, like grass, and turn it into the most powerful protein in the world: beef.
So to the author of "Some Animals are More Equal Than Others", to respond to your statement, yes they are. Food animals help provide protein for humans that we otherwise could not receive. American farmers and ranchers care for their livestock 365 days a year, and everyday is Earth Day!
Thank you for reading! Don't forget to leave a comment on the article sharing your story in agriculture. Don't let others tell YOUR story for you!
~Malorie
