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@vegq8
a vegan person, gaining literally zero benefits for advocating for veganism: go vegan
tumblr: oh wow the militant PROPAGANDA
dairy farmer, whose income depends on people buying dairy products: dairy is good actually
tumblr: THIS. this ^^ finally someone said it!!!
If for some reason I became deathly allergic to beans and nuts and soy and most vegetables so that forced me to start eating animals again, I would not be out here advocating against veganism just because I could no longer eat fully plant-based foods. I would still support veganism and encourage people to go vegan. In fact my own medication is made in part with animal proclducts; that wasn’t an excuse for me to say “well not everyone can go vegan because my meds aren’t vegan and I need them to live!” Instead of just knowing okay, this is a necessity, so instead of excuses, I want to finds ways to encourage the production of meds that don’t require animal products for the future.
The point is to minimize unnecessary harm and exploitation to sentient beings and just because in this scenario I couldn’t do more, that doesn’t mean I should be using it as an excuse to discourage others to not try.
So it’s really weird to me that there are people on here that either point out that they personally, or people they’ve heard about (indigenous hunters, people with food insecurity, etc) can’t go 100% plant-based choose instead of saying “I realize it’s not all or nothing, we should do as much as we can to lessen any negative impact on other lives and the planet as a whole,” decide to dig in their heels and decry the uselessness and stupidity of veganism as a movement.
If I had to eat meat and dairy 3 meals a day I would hope to minimize my exploitation of animals in other areas of consumerism and continue to ask people to do the same. It’s not hypocritical of you to want the world to be better if you can’t personally go entirely purist about it. We already know this is true of other forms of social justice activism; I’m not trans but I fight for trans rights, I’m not Asian but I’m against sinophobia, and I’m not Palestinian but I’m against Zionism - and nobody finds that hypocritical or wrong or useless or weird. So why can’t you recognize that we can advocate for veganism and be against animal cruelty and their unnecessary exploitation while not being able to go 100% vegan? You’re disenfranchising yourselves and limiting your own ability to grow or care about more than one thing at a time. People are complicated and our situations are too- as long as you advocate for what is morally and ethically better, you’re not doing yourself or victims any disservice.
Anti-vegan challenge to stop thinking veganism solely means “being plant based eaters”
we all agree the vegans are right though
About what? I can agree that farmers know farming, truckers know trucking and vegans know how to vegan. But a diet doesn’t give you an education on topics you don’t actively use or work in.
Vegans are 100% wrong.
Their diet is not cruelty free and is based in classism, ableism, and racism.
Their diet has been scientifically proven to CONTRIBUTE to climate change far more than an omnivore diet does. Eating a local, seasonal, omnivore diet is the best way to fight climate change.
Not to mention that real fur and real leather is better for the environment then the plastic alternatives touted as “vegan.”
Their diet isn’t even healthy. They have to take tons of supplements to make up for what they’re losing out on by not eating meat, dairy, and other animal products.
And anyway, lots of non-food items are made with animal byproducts including cellphones, computers, tvs, and tires. So you’re never really living a vegan lifestyle.
Their diet has been scientifically proven to CONTRIBUTE to climate change far more than an omnivore diet does.
that is just objectively untrue. here is an image by the IPCC about different diets and their ghg mitigation potential
Eating a local, seasonal, omnivore diet is the best way to fight climate change
actually, transportation only counts for a small part of a foods ghg emission
Not to mention that real fur and real leather is better for the environment then the plastic alternatives touted as “vegan.”
untrue. Most leather is chromium tanned. It’s horrible for the environment and often horrible for the people working in the industry and those living nearby, it is highly toxic, a suspected carginogene and it is not considered biodegradable, or recyclable.
Their diet isn’t even healthy. They have to take tons of supplements to make up for what they’re losing out on by not eating meat, dairy, and other animal products.
vegan diets can be healthy in all life stages according to, among others:
Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Dietitians of Canada, The British National Health Service, The Dietitians Association of Australia, The United States Department of Agriculture, The Mayo Clinic, The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, Harvard Medical School etc.
And anyway, lots of non-food items are made with animal byproducts including cellphones, computers, tvs, and tires. So you’re never really living a vegan lifestyle.
according to the vegan society: "Veganism is a philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude—as far as is possible and practicable—all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of animals, humans and the environment. In dietary terms it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals."
“It takes more resources to grow lettuce than it does to make beef sooooooo…???”
What do people think animals eat & drink when being raised for slaughter or kept alive for exploitation??
Not gallons & gallons of water to sustain the billions of fuckin farm animals? Not millions of tons of soy crops that take up land & water to grow for them?? Not to mention the fuel & energy used to raise, maintain, transport, kill, process, and package them?? There’s really more effort to grow lettuce?? I can grow that on my balcony ffs.
Y’all are nuts.
Some simple tips to stay on budget with your vegan lifestyle!
Big Dairy can strongarm companies to use terms such as “almond drink” or “soy beverage” to try to mislead consumers but in the end no one cares what you call it and they will still continue to lose money as their industry dies
Big Dairy is only a thing because people don’t support small family farms anymore. Most of the ag related businesses are geared towards dairies with 250+ cows. The average ‘small dairy’ is now 160 cows. Ten years ago it was 60 or less. Big farms are pushing out small farms at an unprecedented rate. On average in Wisconsin, three small dairy farms go out of business every day. Those small farms get absorbed into bigger ‘mega dairies’. Small farms were never the problem. Please support your local small farms!
Also, almond ‘milk’ or any other kind of synthesized ‘milk’ is made with GMO plants that have literally the same proteins from animal milk. Like people took stem cells from animals and combined them with plant DNA to make this ‘milk’ product. The reason that farmers wanted the non dairy milk products to be labeled as such is because it’s literally killing the dairy industry. Labels like ‘soy milk’ confuse people into thinking that what they’re drinking is dairy when it’s not. Ergo, the dairy industry pushed for reform.
If you want more information like this read a newspaper called ‘The Milkweed’. It’s super informative about things like this and other problems within the dairy and agriculture industry.
So there are many reasons why you shouldn’t support fairy farms, regardless of size. The dairy industry is one of the cruelest in animal agriculture and I’m talking about factory farms, small farms, “free range”, “organic” “grass fed” etc. All these farms. It’s important to understand that by buying dairy products (which are both needless and harmful to human health) you are contributing to immense cruelty and slaughter, no-matter the size of the farm your buying them from. It’s important to understand that cows don’t just produce milk year round and Its only because of serious genetic manipulation via intensive breeding practices that have resulted in dairy cows now producing so much more milk than is natural (at incredible detriment to their health!) this coupled with the fact these cows are required to give birth to one calf annually so that they can produce so much milk and for 10 months of the year. When these calves are born they are then immediately slaughtered or sent to become cheap beef if they are male, or if they are female they are separated from their mother, usually within 24 hours to prevent them from suckling from their mother to become daiy cows themselves (because that milk is taken for human use). This is incredibly traumatic for both mother and calf as cows are extremely maternal animals! These cows suffer many health due to their living conditions (such as lameness due to various conditions associated with bacterial infection, caused by poor quality floors, ineffective foot trimming, poor nutrition and prolonged standing on concrete floors, mastitis and malnutrition) And of course after milk production slows they are then brutally slaughtered and their flesh is normally used for cheap beef, again, cows from all farms are slaughtered at a fraction of their lifespan, either as calves or as “spent” dairy cows.
“ Also, almond ‘milk’ or any other kind of synthesized ‘milk’ is made with GMO plants that have literally the same proteins from animal milk.” Most almond milk’s are GMO-free, some such brands include alpro, silk, Califia Farms, Pacific Organic and most supermarket own brands!
“ The reason that farmers wanted the non-dairy milk products to be labeled as such is because it’s literally killing the dairy industry” You’re correct that the dairy industry is lobbying extremely hard (and using super dodgy tactics) when it comes to labeling, as they want plant-based milks to be banned from being labeled milk, this due to their declining revenues and the threat from non dairy milk to their profits. They are absolutely scared and they should be. More and more people are connecting the milk they drink to the suffering of animals as well as the health effects and are choosing to buy milk not meant for baby cows.
“ Labels like ‘soy milk’ confuse people into thinking that what they’re drinking is dairy when it’s not” This is not why the dairy industry wants plant milks to be banned from being labled milk, it’s just not. Consumers Aren’t Confused By Dairy and Plant-Based Milk Labels, Survey Shows. People know if the milk they are drinking are stolen from a baby cow or come from plant based souces and labling is 100% clear, its bananas for the dairy industry to make such a patonsing argument and insults people basic intelect and reason. from Kory Stamper, lexicographer and author of Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries.“The FDA can decide whatever they want, but in terms of common usage, that use of [plant] milk is not going anywhere,” and “It’s 600 years old.” The definitions of milk are “fluid secreted by the mammary glands of females for the nourishment of their young,” and “a food product produced from seeds or fruit that resembles and is used similarly to cow’s milk,” as well as “a liquid resembling milk in appearance.”
~ Some links to the health effects and ever growing scientific understanding that the evidence for dairy causing cancer is as strong as processed meat causing cancer. The impact on hormones being linked to chronic disease. The effect of estrogen in dairy products on human health(including fertility and eye health). Increased risk of parkinsons.Heart disease. diabetes etc. More information here and here.
~ Some handy guides to milk meant for humans are (here) and (here) and (here) and (here) and (here) and another (here).
~ Here’s a link to with testimonials of former dairy farmers. A quote from a former dairy farmer I found incredibly powerful is “It is a deceptive place. Only the ones who are inside really know that. I am not talking about a one hour visit to the farm… Whoever is really inside, knows what kind of place it is. It’s hell. There is terrible suffering there… The screams of the mothers … I still hear the sound. It won’t go away. I keep thinking about it. Today I am a mother, and I don’t understand how people who say that they love animals don’t see it. Don’t understand it.” and “And they cried and called for their babies. They call and call.“ And a fab piece on a former dairy farmer who amazingly turned his farm into a sanctuary and is now a plant based farmer (here). Another study on forced separation (here) and one (here).
Remember how when you were a meat eater you could eat piles of processed junk and no one said a word? But as soon as you went vegan it turned out that everyone had been secretly pursuing a PHD in nutrition this whole time and suddenly started giving a massive shit about your health? Good times.
Or how about this one: Remember when you were a meat eater and no one ever thought about the impact your diet had on underpaid and abused agricultural workers and poor people who couldn’t afford to eat healthy food? But then when you became vegan it turned out everyone had secretly been starting up their own human rights campaigns to help the poor and unfortunate?
Veganism and Climate Change
Since the IPCC report recently came out, there has been a lot of discussion about veganism. The IPCC report recommended that one of the best things to individually reduce your carbon footprint is by switching to a plant-based diet. Many people of course, hate this suggestion but there are a few things I want to debunk:
‘100 companies are responsible for 71% of the global emissions so me being vegan won’t change anything.’
While yes, corporations are by far more responsible for the climate change crisis than individuals, we still have a personal responsibility. These companies are mainly fossil fuel companies, and we should be pushing our governments to hold them accountable to their actions, but if everyone who said them going vegan won’t do anything, I bet you, something will happen.
‘Veganism still has a large carbon footprint if you buy food that has to be shipped in’
Yes it does! If you live in England and are buying produce shipped from Asia, then yes, the footprint of that produce will still be large. But it won’t be as big as animal produce, especially factory farmed animal produce shipped from abroad. The best thing you can do is to buy local vegan produce.
Raising animals to eat produces more greenhouse gases (nitrous oxide, methane) than all of the CO2 produced from transportation (cars, trains, planes), combined. Nitrous oxide and methane have a far stronger climate change potential than carbon dioxide, meaning they are more potent in influencing the greenhouse effect and raising the earth’s temperature.
Not to mention the amount of water, land and pollution animal agriculture causes. In the Amazon, roughly 70% of forests have been cleared for animal agriculture, that is either producing animal feed (usually soy) and grazing land. Animal agriculture uses a LOT of water to produce, beef in particular and also contributes to environmental pollution, through eutrophication, degeneration of coral reefs and contamination.
I often hear the argument that if everyone went vegan deforestation would still be high, which is true, because the human population is growing exponentially. However, if you are vegan, the forests cut down to produce your food is less than the forests cut down to produce animal meat. This is because to feed animals you must grow their feed AND make room for them to graze. Going vegan cuts out the second part.
These are the 2 most common arguments I have heard in defence of eating meat in regards to the IPCC report. I’m sure there more and I’d love to hear them. Going vegan is so so important for the environmental health of our planet. Yes it’s not the be all and end all, we need a economic focus, we need a shift in the way we live in all aspects of our life. But going vegan is an easy way to reduce your carbon footprint and if you can, then why won’t you? It’s no longer just a ‘personal choice’ when the future of our planet is at stake.
IPCC Report: The worst vegetable protein is better than the best animal protein.
my boy, gary francione💚
Follow this guy on Twitter if you want some more truth in your life. You won’t regret it.
Veganism and Climate Change
Since the IPCC report recently came out, there has been a lot of discussion about veganism. The IPCC report recommended that one of the best things to individually reduce your carbon footprint is by switching to a plant-based diet. Many people of course, hate this suggestion but there are a few things I want to debunk:
‘100 companies are responsible for 71% of the global emissions so me being vegan won’t change anything.’
While yes, corporations are by far more responsible for the climate change crisis than individuals, we still have a personal responsibility. These companies are mainly fossil fuel companies, and we should be pushing our governments to hold them accountable to their actions, but if everyone who said them going vegan won’t do anything, I bet you, something will happen.
‘Veganism still has a large carbon footprint if you buy food that has to be shipped in’
Yes it does! If you live in England and are buying produce shipped from Asia, then yes, the footprint of that produce will still be large. But it won’t be as big as animal produce, especially factory farmed animal produce shipped from abroad. The best thing you can do is to buy local vegan produce.
Raising animals to eat produces more greenhouse gases (nitrous oxide, methane) than all of the CO2 produced from transportation (cars, trains, planes), combined. Nitrous oxide and methane have a far stronger climate change potential than carbon dioxide, meaning they are more potent in influencing the greenhouse effect and raising the earth’s temperature.
Not to mention the amount of water, land and pollution animal agriculture causes. In the Amazon, roughly 70% of forests have been cleared for animal agriculture, that is either producing animal feed (usually soy) and grazing land. Animal agriculture uses a LOT of water to produce, beef in particular and also contributes to environmental pollution, through eutrophication, degeneration of coral reefs and contamination.
I often hear the argument that if everyone went vegan deforestation would still be high, which is true, because the human population is growing exponentially. However, if you are vegan, the forests cut down to produce your food is less than the forests cut down to produce animal meat. This is because to feed animals you must grow their feed AND make room for them to graze. Going vegan cuts out the second part.
These are the 2 most common arguments I have heard in defence of eating meat in regards to the IPCC report. I’m sure there more and I’d love to hear them. Going vegan is so so important for the environmental health of our planet. Yes it’s not the be all and end all, we need a economic focus, we need a shift in the way we live in all aspects of our life. But going vegan is an easy way to reduce your carbon footprint and if you can, then why won’t you? It’s no longer just a ‘personal choice’ when the future of our planet is at stake.
… Reposted! (spelling error in a meme about words…cause I’m that awesome) :D … Are your words working against you? Are you advocating cruelty in an effort to be approachable? The number one question I receive from new vegans and existing activist is how to reach non-vegans with the truth ∙ In my recent speech, I walk you through the pitfalls and traps we activist often fall into, and lay out a guide for more effectively communicating your message without sacrificing your integrity. Find the speech & written guide linked in my 👆🏽bio today. Or go to http://www.BiteSizeVegan.org/UseYourWords ∙ One major approach for reaching non-vegans is to make a vegan lifestyle accessible, easy—even mainstream. The accessibility of veganism is something about which I am intensely passionate—it’s one of the foundational aspects of Bite Size Vegan. ∙ However, in attempting to “bridge the gap” and meet the general public where they’re at, there exists the risk of reducing the ethical imperative of veganism to a socially acceptable lifestyle choice—even offering gradations of change that amount to acceptable and endorsed levels of cruelty ∙ ∙ Get more info in the video & guide linked in my 👆🏽bio today. Or go to http://www.BiteSizeVegan.org/UseYourWords ∙ ∙ #activism #vegan #veganactivist #animalrights #animalactivist #animalactivism #vegansofig #bitesizevegan #animallovers #how #howto #animalliberation #animaljustice #friendsnotfood #vegan #govegan #crueltyfree #veganism #animalrescue #animals #speech #veganspeech #inspiring #inspiringquotes #quote #quoteoftheday #quotestoliveby https://www.instagram.com/bitesizevegan/p/BqDgQvEhNrR/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1h3tlun86ov2p
Okay, but, reducing our meat intake by 30% really would help. While that’s not a lot, it would make a huge impact, and unlike a lot of other advice that CNN gave, it’s something each of us can do and should do.
But you know what the public response was, just as it always is when folks are told eating less meat would help the environment? They balk and hem and haw. “Pass up that steak to reduce pollution? How dare you tell me what to do! It’s my personal choice!”
Hate to tell ya, buddy, but choosing meat over plant-based foods isn’t a personal choice - it’s an ethical choice. A personal choice is choosing what shirt you want to wear today. It isn’t the choice between paying a company to slit a chicken’s throat or paying a company to grow soybeans and lentils. The two choices are not of equal moral value. Unless you believe animals don’t feel pain or emotions, in which case, just stop reading now because you probably don’t give a shit about climate change to begin with.
But I digress.
People are so attached to eating meat, dairy, and eggs that even if told it would help save our planet to go vegan (or at least eat more veggies and less meat), they will absolutely refuse. And they hide it behind the framing of “corporations are the polluters, individuals shouldn’t be held responsible for climate change, so why should I eat less meat, etc. etc.” I don’t find that reasoning compelling in the least. And to be told that eating less meat to help stop climate change is “journalistic malpractice”?
Here’s the problem with that statement. It doesn’t absolve us of moral responsibility for our choices. We are at least partially responsible for our purchases on an individual basis as well. Because our collective individual impacts add up, especially when it comes to animal products.
Plus, we wouldn’t apply this same nihilistic “there is no ethical consumption under capitalism” rhetoric to other areas of individual purchasing. Here’s an example:
If I said I no longer wanted to purchase child slavery-sourced chocolate, you wouldn’t say “Corporations are responsible for child slavery, not you, so why are you bothering.” Of course we’re responsible for what we purchase, especially if there is another option that is less harmful. Slavery-sourced chocolate vs. ethically-sourced chocolate. There is a difference, and no one would dispute that there isn’t. So why when presented a choice between animal- and plant-based foods, we suddenly act as if there’s no ethical or moralistic difference? Or if there is a difference, it doesn’t matter because the world is shit and we’re all fucked anyway so why bother caring?
We make the choice 3+ times a day on what we are going to eat. We are making that decision, not a corporation. The corporations are simply filling the demand of meat/dairy/eggs that we are providing. If we take away that demand for animal products, and everyone goes as vegan as they can, guess what? Animal agriculture goes out of business. Which is exactly what we need to happen if we have a hope of stopping climate change.
We could all go paperless/carless/phoneless/plastic-free tomorrow, and it wouldn’t eliminate climate change. Because animal agriculture is the #1 driver of climate change. We have to dismantle these industries if we want to get serious about having a livable future on this planet.
Animal agriculture is antithetical to human and animal survival. It’s responsible for oceanic dead zones, antibiotic resistance in the human population, zoonotic diseases, methane pollution, pollution of our waterways, chronic illnesses in communities near farms and slaughterhouses, etc. The human population’s total combined impact when it comes to eating meat and other animal products is *so* devastating that it blows all other polluting industries out of the water.
Animal agriculture accounts for 51% of global greenhouse gas emissions. That’s more than the transportation sector. So yes, our consumption of animal products is driving climate change. There is no ethical or sustainable way to raise and slaughter trillions of animals a year. There is no socially or environmentally responsible way to breed and kill animals for meat.
If we want a world that’s equitable, fair, clean, and peaceful, we have to end animal agriculture. And that does fall on all of us as individuals, because our US government sure as hell won’t put a stop to it. The USDA is responsible for both giving us our dietary recommendations and ensuring that agriculture is a thriving economy. It’s a blatant conflict of interest and has been since at least the 50’s. So there’s no help there. What meager reforms are made for animal welfare does nothing to comfort the animals crammed in cages and warehouses, and trucked for hundreds of miles in heat and snow just to end up in a slaughterhouse.
The bottom line is: corporations will not stop breeding, torturing, capturing, and killing animals until we stop paying them to. Climate change will continue to get worse until we stop supporting these industries. We need to let animal agriculture die so that we can live.
And yet we still have meat eaters making excuses in the notes.
We are so fucked
vegans aren’t ethical they just like animals more than brown people
vegans aren’t ethical, they just talk about how black communities are effected by run off from animal farming and factories and acquire multiple health problems from said factories and about how the POC working in these factories are treated less than human, all the while just fucking eating vegetables but vegans for sure hate brown people ig
Don’t say vegans don’t care about brown people, it erases the existence of us brown vegans. Don’t use brown people as an argument against veganism when those people face much harsher conditions in animal agriculture. In addition it’s hypocritical to make such a statement when you most likely eat produce. Don’t pretend to care, act like you care by invoking the change you know you can do
please stop justifying one injustice with the existence of another. it’s like saying “climate change activists don’t care about brown people. if they did, they would stop worrying about climate change, and start worrying about police brutality.”
don’t sweat it, I have enough anxiety to be concerned about everyone
Why isn’t horse riding vegan?!
Animals are not ours to use or exploit, including using their bodies for our personal pleasure. Horses cannot consent to being ridden, and they require extensive training (often referred to as ‘breaking’) to make them submissive to human will. It is, metaphorically, a breaking of the natural spirit of the animal into submission, all for the desire of human pleasure. This makes the very act of horseback riding unethical and exploitative.
Outside of this, riding horses results in injuries for a majority of horses that are regularly ridden. Running too fast (such as in racehorses) can cause horses to bleed in their lungs, and much of the gear regularly used in horseback riding can cause permanent damage (such as bits permanently damaging the sensitive nerves in a horse’s mouth). Most common chronic injuries occur in the spine, some studies showing that over 90% of assumed healthy horses have suffered damage to the vertebrae in their spine when examined with medical imaging.
While I don’t doubt that people with horses have a strong bond with their horse (I definitely felt I had a bond with the horses I used to ride), it’s a relationship built off of exploitation. The argument that horses ‘must’ be ridden for exercise is also a silly one; a horse needs to be ridden just as much as any dog needs to be ridden for exercise. Horses do just fine without human intervention, and there are many ways to exercise horses (such as with toys or ground exercises) to help give a horse the exercise they need.
-Admin Samantha
Stop putting your shit in the riding tag
Stay in your lane.
And don’t start about “breaking their spirit” or some shit; that is literally the opposite of what any correct training does. If you’ve “broken” them then you’ve done a horrifying job and will be witch hunted by the entire equestrian community don’t fuckin’ lie you greenie. Don’t fuckin’ lie. It’s like Melisandre got all up in here burning people alive.
The whole point of proper horsemanship is to educate them in how to use their bodies biomechanically correct to AVOID injury and joint deterioration, while keeping ther spirit intact and allowing it thrive. Horses do not do the greatest when left on their own. Feral horses are an excellent example. You’ve got asymmetry, shortened lifespans, malnourishment/stunted growth, predation, skin diseases (and many other illnesses), untreated injuries, inbreeding, yadda yadda x y z.
If I leave mine alone to do whatever for even a few days he gets miserable and filthy and sulks around everywhere. He is a canter boi. A gallop boi. He go fast. He get baths. He is a big dog. Riding puts a spring in his step where groundwork is the most boring fucking thing on the face of the planet get those goddamn toys out of my face and stop the incessent clicking it’s annoying af. I’m of the same mind as him, honestly. Clickers annoy the hell out of me as well.
As for dogs, there’s this thing called weighted harnesses and collars to build up their strength training. They’re also proportionately way too fucking small, so, y'know. Non-comparable.
No sensible vegan has ever said leave domesticated horses completely alone, even above Samantha stated that there are many other ways to give a horse the exercise they need. We advocate for appropriate care including enrichment, exercise, feed, water, shelter, veterinary care, and of course, TLC. It’s possible to exercise a horse without using them in the process, and most horses could take to it wonderfully if their owners actually put the effort in to catering ground-work to be enriching and engaging for their individual horse.
Why is it not possible for you to educate them without getting on them and making it several times harder for them to use their bodies appropriately? Putting additional weight on them changes how they use their body significantly in order to compensate for the bulk of the tack and the weight itself. I’ve seen it myself with horses just starting to be trained to be ridden, they look like a mess trying to compensate for the new way of moving. Would it not be better for them to learn how to hold themselves and use their muscles with their weight alone?
I can’t speak for horses who are already habitually used to being ridden as a sole form of exercise, but cancelling out a large risk factor for the development of musculoskeletal and other disorders seems like the best way to ensure a healthy and thriving younger horse. Because even though you say that it prevents joint deterioration, and I understand the reasoning behind that statement as OCD can be worsened in young horses through over-feeding and under-exercising, but riding has also been shown to precipitate joint deterioration in several instances. I feel it would be best for them to find a middle ground where both risks are avoided.
And this isn’t just your lane. The well-being of horses is a topic that is open to anyone who cares enough. Horses aren’t some special club reserved only to be talked about by the people who exploit them.
“Let me put 200+ pounds on a horse’s back that hugely increases the potential for the most common injury in domesticated horses but also tell people how it’s necessary to do so because apparently horses are the only animals on the planet that, if left alone, will literally not know how to move.”
Fuck you.
Running in a controlled manner is good for them. Running wildly is usually not great (again biomechanics). So humans are there to help them run in good ways and use their muscles better much like people who work at gyms.
Now, you say this can be done without riding them but that would require working them in a smaller space so that the human can keep them moving but moving in small circles is harder on the joints than moving in straight lines. Humans are not fast enough to get a horse doing cardio in a straight line for a long enough period of time.
Also, because my animals are ridden, if I were to die tomorrow, they both are easily rehomed and are less likely to end up on a slaughter truck. Guess where horses that aren’t ridden end up????
And anyway, my horses do enjoy the work I do with them 🤷♀️. They like scratches and attention and food and exercise.
But also I don’t care to change your mind, just keep your discourse out of the horse riding tag. Make a tag for vegan horse riding, idc but it’s annoying that your bullshit shows up on my dash or in my tags.
The injuries that almost all riding horses sustain are a consequence of people like you riding them and straining their bodies beyond what’s best for their health. And how you dare claim that humans ‘run them in good ways’ when thousands upon thousands of racehorses die every decade? They die not just from musculoskeletal injuries, but from heart conditions, stress, or even bleeding into their lungs. The push for humans to exercise horses in ways that we find pleasurable and entertaining makes horse racing (and other competitive horse showmanship) one of the most horrific and barbaric ‘sports’ that still exists.
Many of the ground-based exercises that are used do take place in a small roundpen, but the strain on a horse’s joints from controlled workouts in an enclosure (does not have to be limited to a roundpen) isn’t comparable to putting the weight of a large, full grown human on the still developing vertabrae of a prey animal. If you truly do know your horse, you would know what exercises (including those that can be done in a larger enclosure than a roundpen) would best engage their minds and their bodies.
As for the fate of non-riding horses, society and the riding industry are to blame for the fate of companion horses. The standards that you, yes, you and all other riders have put on a beautiful, graceful animal to perform for human pleasure, have sentenced them and their kin to death. Horses are loving, beautiful, compassionate creatures that are so capable of a strong emotional bond without anyone ever placing themselves on their back.
I will use this tag for anything related to horseback riding, because this conversation is important for everyone to see. Ignoring the fact that the tagging system literally exists to sort posts by their topic, I think that anyone who rides horses, is curious about riding horses, or would like to know more about all sides of riding, should read these discussions. If even just one person can look at what I’ve written and begin to question what they’ve always accepted as truth, then that’s enough for me.
Riders: I love horses for what they do for me but I'll magically twist my argument to make it sound like I'm doing it for them.
Vegans: I love horses for what they naturally are and would like them to thrive on their own.
Riders: get your shit out of my tag.
Vegan Problems
having to talk like
“after I showered with vegan shampoo and vegan soap, I ate my vegan cereal with vegan milk, put on my vegan makeup, grabbed my vegan shoes and got into my boyfriend’s car (with vegan seat covers) and went shopping for vegan things, and then that night we went out to eat and I had a delicious vegan burger"
just so people won’t go ”_____ isn’t vegan! CAUGHT you!“ every three seconds
