Here are a couple of interesting things relevant to this thread. The first is that while discussing this with a Christian friend the other day, I came to wonder whether veganism and Christian ideals are really quite similar when it comes to how animals should be treated. Not exactly the same but so close that in many ways, it seems Christians should really be much more sympathetic to veganism.
The main barrier is that Christians seem to think that veganism argues in favour of animals being equal to humans, whereas for Christians people were created separately and in the image of God. This "image of God" notion is actually a cornerstone of their faith. Also, God gave people dominion over the animals, so many Christians think that means we are free to use animals however we like. I'd suggest this is not consistent either with scripture or God's nature.
I spent a little time researching the use of the Hebrew word "radah" which appears in Genesis as the term for "dominion". Long story short, there is a very good case for believing that radah in this context means responsible management of nature consistently with God's nature. Given God's essential nature is to be just and fair, we seem to be responsible for being fair to other animals in whom there exists an inherent value and dignity, given they are the results of God's good works and are pleasing to Him. Now, veganism is a secular notion about encouraging justice in the ways people deal with other animals. At its simplest, veganism guides us to be fair to other animals because as sentient beings they have inherent value and dignity.
Overall, I want to suggest that Christians who honour their faith and their commitment to Jesus should want to treat animals very similarly to how vegans might, with the one exception that God permits us to use animals for food. In other words, both veganism and Christianity should bring one close to the same practices. I am writing a short blog post about this that I will share when published.
Now, quite oddly and coincidentally, something turned up on my FB feed today that I have never before heard of. This is odd because it has apparently been in the works for several years. The makers of Cowspiracy and Seaspiracy have produced Christspiracy. It will be released next month. Intriguing!