What's wrong with eating milk and eggs? - Animal Aid

A cow’s intelligence and determination to protect heryoung is illustrated by distinguished veterinarian anduniversity lecturer, Dr. Holly Cheever:Many people understand why it’s wrong to eat fishand animal flesh, but what about milk and eggs?All farmed animals,including thoseused for theirmilk and eggs,have the abilityto experienceemotions,including pain, fearand stress. Andthey all want to befree of sufferingand exploitation.That includes cowsand hens...............................................................................Is it natural?Female mammals (includinghumans) produce milk fortheir young until they are oldenough to eat solids. It is notnatural for adults to drinkmilk. Odder still, the milk wedrink is not from our ownmother or even the samespecies!It is no more natural to consume eggs, which are birds’unfertilised reproductive material.Don’t cows need to be milked?In their natural state, when cows reproduce, they provideenough milk just for their calves. The dairy industry keeps cowsconstantly pregnant – invariably through artificial insemination– in order to ensure a flow of milk, but this goes to peopleinstead of their calves. Regarded as low-value by-products,many of the male calves will be shot in the head shortly afterbirth, while others will be reared for veal. The separation ofmother from calf is very distressing for both – cows have beenknown to bellow for days.Because cows are selectively bred to givevastly more milk than is natural, their uddersfrequently become diseased and swollen to the pointwhere they cannot walk or even stand properly.‘A farmer called me one day with a puzzlingmystery. Despite recently giving birth, a dairycow’s udder was empty at milking time. Icouldn’t find a solution, so one day the baffledfarmer followed her through the pasture andinto the woods. To his shock, he discovered thatthe cow had delivered twins, led only one back to the barn and kept one hidden inthe woods where she had been nursing her infant. Though I pleaded for the farmerShot soon after birthto keep her and her bull calf together, she lost this baby, too.’Don’t hens lay lots of eggs naturally?Hens are exploited for their ability to produce eggs.Their wild ancestors laid 10-20 eggs in their lifetime, butthe modern egg-laying hen has been selectively bredto produce 300 eggs a year. This unnaturally high levelof production drains calcium from her body, leading toosteoporosis and brittle bones. At just 72 weeks old, hensare no longer able to produce the amount of eggs requiredby the industry. Worn out, they will be sent to slaughter sothat they can be made into cheap meat products.Millions of male chicks are also killed every year. Unable to lay eggs and too scrawny a type ofchicken for meat, they are gassed or shredded alive in giant mincing machines shortly afterhatching.Higher welfare?Hens in an ‘enriched’ cage system‘Higher welfare’ schemes, including so-called enrichedcages, seek to reassure consumers that the animals liveddecent lives. But the truth – as exposed by numerousinvestigations – is often very different. Under theFreedom Food scheme, tens of thousands of birds maybe crammed into huge, windowless sheds for their wholelives. And, irrespective of the conditions in which theyare forced to live, dairy cows and egg-laying hens end upin the slaughterhouse – terrified and with their lifeblooddraining from them. As long as we view animals as foodsources, we cannot avoid causing suffering and pain.

Essential for health?It is not necessary to consume animal products, as we can obtain all of our nutritionalrequirements from plant-based foods. Cows’ milk contains a powerful growth hormone, calledIFG-1, that is reported to accelerate the growth of malignant cells in people and is linked to thedevelopment of prostate, breast and ovarian cancers.Choose VeganBy not consuming animal flesh, milk and eggs, youcan prevent animals from being harmed and killedon your behalf. You will also be joining a globalcommunity of people who live compassionatelyand ethically by choosing a vegan lifestyle. Youcan do this by purchasing food that does notcontain any animal products. And with highstreet shops and supermarkets now stocking ahuge range of vegan items, it couldn’t be easier!