How would you feel about drinking milk from a sanctuary where the animals are well-cared for?

[Rory17]

If there was an animal sanctuary near you that only took in rescued animals, and they had some high-yielding dairy cows who had more milk than their calves needed and would suffer if not milked, would you buy their milk? Take into consideration that the animals would be well-cared for and happy, and would never see the inside of a slaughterhouse, and that the money you use to pay for said milk would go towards the care and rescue of the animals?
How would you feel about allowing your child to drink and eat dairy from such a place? Would you allow them to eat and drink dairy and eggs from the sanctuary?
How would you feel about eating the eggs from an animal sanctuary like that? Would the chickens suffer if their eggs were taken from them? What would happen if the eggs weren't taken from the chickens?

 

[mtotheb]

Hey man. Cow's milk is for cows, not humans. Eggs are a chicken period. So hope that answers your question!

 

[Emma JC]

As mtotheb says, cow's milk is for baby cows, intended to take a new born to full size very quickly.

Let me ask your question a different way. What if there was a bear sanctuary and in order to raise money for the sanctuary they sold bear milk for you to give to your children. Would you buy and feed it to them? What if it was a dog sanctuary? a gorilla sanctuary? Just because drinking a cow's milk has been normalized for so many years, does not make it healthy or the morally correct thing to do.

Regarding eggs - here is an interesting article that gives the answer to your question of "what happens if..."
http://gentleworld.org/a-chickens-relationship-with-her-eggs/

all the best, Emma JC

 

[Harmony]

I agree with the others that the milk from the animal is meant to blow up a baby into a giant full grown animal, not a human. It isn't always about animal cruelty or the like but rather common sense. Does it make sense to drink another animals breast milk? or eat an unfertilized baby (egg)? In my opinion it makes no sense to do so in any circumstance.

 

[Mark Mywordz]

I only buy soya "milk" and for me that is how milk tastes. I would not like the taste of cows' milk. Of course I would not be happy to support the mistreatment of cows and these so-called "happy cows" are a figment of your imagination, Rory, and have nothing in common with real cows.
How can anyone judge if a cow is happy? It's difficult enough for me to decide if I am happy or not sometimes.

 

[Jamie in Chile]

I would not drink the milk although I would let my kids do it since I cannot get their mother to agree to stop buying regular animal milk for now.

Asking the questions you've asked on a vegan forum is like asking on a hindu/muslim forum if they would eat cow/pork. By definition, vegans will not.

 

[amberfunk]

I wouldn't. I've always hated cow's milk and refused to give it to my child. We've alway drank almond, coconut or soy. As for eggs we don't eat those either. My son likes eggs every once in awhile but only eats them at my parents house. I don't buy them since he can't eat them that fast and the smell makes me sick.

 

[VChy]

As I haven't been vegeteraian for long, I can understand if you have some cravings for milk. If you are not drinking milk for animal suffering reasons I think you can drink the milk from these cows. You know why? I had just much more mother's milk than my baby needed so I had to be pumping for like 9 months each day, otherwise it would hurt me and I would get infection. So for those cows it is probably a relief

 

[Mark Mywordz]

As I haven't been vegeteraian for long, I can understand if you have some cravings for milk. If you are not drinking milk for animal suffering reasons I think you can drink the milk from these cows. You know why? I had just much more mother's milk than my baby needed so I had to be pumping for like 9 months each day, otherwise it would hurt me and I would get infection. So for those cows it is probably a relief

Hi Vchy
This is a vegan forum not a vegetarian forum. Vegans don't drink milk. Vegetarians can drink milk. Maybe you are on the wrong forum.

 

[rogerjolly]

Over the years I have heard many, many queries along the lines of, “Is it alright to eat meat if it is roadkill? Is it alright to eat eggs if ……..? Is it alright to drink milk if ……? Is it alright to ……?”

They all erroneously assume that an established vegan would ever actually want to do any of these things. They give the entirely wrong impression that vegans must be a very sad lot because they are frequently on the lookout for excuses to eat/drink/do things that that must be missing from their unhappy lives.

Forgive me for quoting Gary Francione again: “Veganism is not a sacrifice. It is a joy.”

As an aside: Most people will readily accept that goat’s milk tastes of goat. If you were to suggest to them that cow’s milk tastes of cow they would look at you askance. But believe me it does!

 

[Mark Mywordz]

Forgive me for quoting Gary Francione again: “Veganism is not a sacrifice. It is a joy.”

Hi Roger
Sometimes I wonder whether people just start threads like this one to take the micky or to waste our time. I find it difficult to believe that someone could write this stuff innocently. Maybe we need a way to delete threads like this one.

 

[rogerjolly]

Hi Mark,

A few trolls do manage to dig their way under the protective fence and into the forum but Damo usually manages to deal with the pesky beasts fairly promptly!

I believe that the many threads akin to this one are perfectly genuine. Relative newbies are poking and prodding their new beliefs to test that they stand up to scrutiny. In reality they are self-questioning which has to be a good thing.

I suppose we are all different distances down the same road.

Roger

 

[Mark Mywordz]

Hi Mark,

I believe that the many threads akin to this one are perfectly genuine.

Really? The decision to drink milk is a simple Yes/No decision.
If you can't or won't give milk up, you are not vegan.
The scenarios dreamt up about happy cows etc. beggar belief, don't they??
Thanks anyway.

 

[rogerjolly]

If you can't or won't give milk up, you are not vegan.

Nobody can argue with that! Jamie made a similar comment.

Asking the questions you've asked on a vegan forum is like asking on a hindu/muslim forum if they would eat cow/pork. By definition, vegans will not.

The type of questions we are talking about always seem to contain the word “if”. They are hypotheticals. I am suggesting that people relatively new to veganism have to ask such questions of themselves to probe for inner fundamentals. It is not helpful for someone to think, "I can’t drink milk because if I did I wouldn’t be vegan.” They need to fully, really fully, understand why. Hence the questioning. Otherwise we are in the realms of obeying rules simply because they are written in tablets of stone.

Another hypothetical: Where would we all be if the sun doesn’t rise tomorrow?

Answer: In the dark.

Sorry. I know it’s terrible but I thought it might be appropriate and just couldn’t resist.

Roger.

 

[Donald]

I have read that you dont actually get that much calcium from drinking milk. And in order to get a cow to produce milk, she has to be kept pregnant in order to lactate which is probably stressful on the cow. Better to eat a variety of green leafies to get your calcium instead.