Why Milk Is Not So Nice

The media and other like-sources would have you believe that dairy farms are joyous places where happy cows can graze freely and do what they will. However, this is simply not true. My intent in writing this is to help the public understand that milk is not the miracle-fluid every child was raised to believe, that it is all in fact, propaganda. You will notice an acute paradigmatic cruel-streak that these farmers have; perhaps you will even be enlightened as to the scope of the cows' horror.

The purpose of a dairy-farm is to collect milk from cows. Cows' milk is a maternal lactate secretion from the mammary glands of a mature female cow. The purpose of which is to nourish her child until it is time for the child to start eating food appropriate to the species. Like all mammalian creatures, the animal must first become pregnant and give birth before milk may be collected.

Dairy farming is a multibillion dollar industry. To become such, the farms wanted to maximize profits by industrializing the milk business. They have applied the practice of combining mass production to animal farming. On the average, a single dairy cow produces roughly one-hundred pounds of milk a day, while in nature it would only produce ten pounds. To increase that drastically, the dairy cows are selectively bred, given high-protein diets, given too much drugs, and impregnated many times over.

It used to be that there were special breeds of cows, suited to the area and able to survive and thrive best in the local conditions. Now, however, the 'Holstein-Friesian' is the most commonly bred cow. The one always shown in commercials, cartoons, and pictures. White and black, this prevalently bred cow is a high-yielding cow, but a poorly cared for one.

To make sure that the highest possibly yield of milk is acquired, the dairy-farmers feel it is in their best interest to drug their animals up with a vast assortment of drugs, the most prominent drug being BGH, or bovine growth hormone. The use of BGH for higher milk-yield results in frequent infections of the cows, and drastically increases the cows udder size, oftentimes getting so bad that the animals udders drag against the ground while it walks. They also over-zealously throw drugs at the cows for all infections and diseases. What the animal consumes, is also what comes through in the milk. It is not sure what the BGH does to humans, but I would not suggest being the guinea pig, for this cruel experiment.

For a cow to lactate, it needs to give birth, and once it does - it will only secrete milk for a limited amount of time. After about ten months, the cow will stop lactating, so instead of waiting for these ten months to finish, the farmer will artificially inseminate the cow while it is still lactating! The cow will be lucky if she is given a week before her udders get bruised, and abused again - as taking milk from cows is fairly painful, and she is never given a break.

Since the cow is forced to give birth every ten months, this brings up the question of the baby calf. What happens? Well, the baby and mother are forcibly separated within the first 24-48 hours of birth. This is horrible, as the mother and her offspring will form deep maternal bonds in this time, they will love each other, as any human mother and child would. In extreme cases, a mother cow will escape, and travel several miles to the farm where her offspring was sold, presumably to nourish, and protect her. This is one of the most horrific things that could be done, this forcible removing of the family.

If the child is female, it will be presumably be selected as a herd replacement - another cow to be offered up for a glass of milk. It will spend the next two months in a small holding cell, where it will be unable to turn around, or even lie down comfortably. As they were ripped away from their mothers, and denied all social interaction, these cows become psychologically harmed, and this will affect them, forever. When it comes time, they will be forced to take up the same role the mother had been playing. If, however, the child is male - it has a worse future to look forward to. On a dairy form, demand for male cows is quite low, so low in fact, that many were deemed unworthy to be raised for meat. These poor animals are sent in boxes, a few inches too small for their bodies, and are shipped to be reared in small veal crates - here they will be castrated without anesthesia. Or, sometimes they get lucky, and get a bullet between their eyes, while being a little more than a few days old.

After about five years of this, the mother cow loses the ability to lactate, and therefore, becomes useless to the farmer. So, without a second thought, he ships them to the slaughterhouse, where they can be hung by one foot, electrocuted, and eventually have their throats cut. The cow could live approximately 25 years, but instead it is murdered at the age of 5. A fifth of it's life cut short. Similar to killing humans at the age of fifteen, this is quite the unsavory habit.

If you find the treatment of the cows disturbing, then - go soy! Soy products are healthy, cruelty-free alternatives, made from plants - not made from artificially inseminated, drugged-up cows. A cow is a sentient being, capable of feeling pain, and complex emotions (such as vanity, love, holding grudges, hate, sorrow, despair, etc). I ask, how does one decide what life deserves moral consideration, and what life does not? Intelligence? Surely not, as child infants, mentally retarded people, and autistic people are lacking in this attribute. The ability to speak? No, cannot be this either - as we have mutes. It must be physical characteristics, then, because I see no difference between the life of an animal and the life of a mentally retarded mute. All sentient beings are deserving of the basic intrinsic rights to life, and cows are no different.

"At the moment our human world is based on the suffering and destruction of millions of non-humans. To perceive this and to do something to change it in personal and public ways is to undergo a change of perception akin to a religious conversion. Nothing can ever be seen in quite the same way again because once you have admitted the terror and pain of other species you will, unless you resist conversion, be always aware of the endless permutations of suffering that support our society." - Arthur Conan Doyle

Avoiding dairy products is not only compassionate, but healthier too! "Milk is healthy!" This is the supposition that we have heard all our lives, seen in advertising campaigns (Got Milk?, or "Milk does a body good"), but - looking past all the propaganda, is milk truly healthy? Instead of arbitrarily listing the pattern-like examples of milk-related diseases, I will point out the fallacies in a couple common beliefs.

Supposition one: If you don't drink milk, you will get osteoporosis. (Also, milk is a great source of calcium)

First off, non-humans stop suckling their mother for milk, and yet - they haven't osteoporosis. How is that we, an "educated" people, keep drinking milk throughout our lives, and still get numerous cases of osteoporosis? I'd also like to point out, that America is the number one consumer of milk - and American people also have 50, 000 reports of osteoporosis-related deaths each year.*

Bone loss, and deterioration is accelerated when there's too much protein included in the diet, but yet - cow milk has a lot of protein. So much, in fact, it has been labeled, "Liquid meat". How is it that the so-called 'miracle cure' for osteoporosis is in fact, a high protein fluid? Simple answer? It's not a miracle cure.

Also, in order for the body to absorb the calcium to fight off osteoporosis - it needs magnesium. Milk... has next to no magnesium. If you want to argue, look at a milk jug. A majority of the calcium, isn't even getting absorbed, so it can't do a thing for our porous bones.

"Countries with the highest rates of osteoporosis, such as the United States, England, and Sweden, consume the most milk. China and Japan, where people eat much less protein and dairy food, have low rates of osteoporosis."**

Supposition two: Drink milk to grow up big and strong. (Milk is a source of protein.)

Just to get this out there - we all get more protein than our bodies know what to do with. And, as I've previously stated, high protein diets are linked to osteoporosis, and loss of calcium. but more than osteoporosis, too much protein is associated with kidney disease. Not just kidney disease, but also - animal protein consumption is a leading factor in kidney stones being formed, which as you can imagine, is excruciatingly painful.

The other problem with our over-abundant protein diet, is cancer. Several forms of cancer. Lymphomas, kidney cancer, and colon cancer. Excessive amounts of protein promote cancerous growths of all kinds. It is clear that too much protein is hardly beneficial for health.

"The average man in the US eats 175% more protein than the recommended daily allowance and the average woman eats 144% more"

Sure, I guess you could say milk is healthy. If by healthy you mean that it causes different forms of cancer, deteriorates bones by reducing calcium absorption, and generally destroys you - then I will agree with you, that it is, in fact, healthy. But if you consider that to be unhealthy, then it is my sincere hope that heavy milk-drinkers reconsider, before it is too late.

Dairy-farming for milk is the very epitome of human brutality, and the desired product (milk) is not desirable, as it is physically detrimental. By buying milk, you are not only supporting the cruelty, but financing it as well. Do yourself and the cows a flavor - don't drink milk!