We met a "spent milker"
at a slaughter auction. We were able to save her before she became a
"downer". We brought her back to Pasado's, and named her Bessie. She was
one of the lucky ones to be sure. |
Your Choice to
End the Cruelty
by Pasado's founder, Susan Michaels
"I
couldn't sleep last night," she told me. My mom, a 78-year-old woman,
was at the other end of the phone line . "The images were so horrible.
But I watched them. I didn't turn off the TV," she continued. "I should
have. I couldn't sleep the rest of the night." I call my mom every
day. This time, I heard something different in her voice. She was upset,
and didn't know what to do.
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She watched, what the
nation watched - cows, too weak to walk, who were horribly coaxed, by
cattle prod or tractor, to stand, to be led to slaughter. What my mom
didn't think about, and most didn't either across the U.S., was those cows gave their
lives for the milk and cheese my mother drank and ate. What price those
animals had to pay for the human animal to enjoy a pizza, or a morning latte'. |
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She made it to the
auction, but could walk no further. She was lucky she died when she did.
No cattle prods or chains could torture her. |
School lunch programs and
senior citizen meals were the media stories that followed. The recall of
millions of pounds of flesh was the hot topic. What the media ignored
was the reason those cows arrived the way they did to begin with: They
were forced to give birth, every nine months, to assure they would
"give" the 100 lbs of milk required of the dairy industry, every day of
their lives. After five, six births, they were considered "spent" or
"spent milkers" - an abhorrent term as a woman, myself. To think if I
were only valued for the milk I gave from my breasts, I would be
considered worthless once I could no longer "milk". |
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I loved my pizzas when I
started Pasado's Safe Haven. I had no clue that cows didn't magically
give milk. I thought they were bred to be "milkers", or were given special
hormones. I always considered myself to be somewhat bright, but it
simply never occurred to me that every mammal on earth must be pregnant
to give milk. Yes, a child can nurse and nurse for years, but the mother
only provides for that one baby. Today's agri-business dairies require
enough milk for thousands, not just one calf. So over and over, the cows
are reimpregnated. Their gestation period, is just like yours or mine.
And they give them no rest. Baby after baby leaves their bones frail. |
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The first "downer" I ever met.
She died and there was nothing I could do to help her. |
Now that I know the truth
behind milk and cheese, I shutter when I see a "Got Milk" ad, professing
to make our bones stronger by drinking it. What those helpless animals
go through depletes their bodies of calcium to such a degree that they
break their legs, spines, and hips. And yet, as the video showed all too
well in the last week, they are forced to give even more once they cannot stand or walk -
the shreds of meat that are left on their bones for a child's lunch. |
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My
Mom's new choice
My mom is a senior citizen and lives in a senior housing complex where
the ladies all come together for lunch and dinner in a giant dining
room. They have one choice to eat at each meal. And animal welfare is
certainly not a topic that's on their minds much. So how would I
approach my mom? To help her sleep better at night?
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Bessie's hind quarters
when she arrived at Pasado's sanctuary. Years of milking drained her
body of muscle mass. She could barely stand when she arrived. |
First I
talked to her woman to woman. I have never given birth to a child, but
she had. She never knew what dairy cows go through. "I see them on the
commercials in the green fields," she responded, recalling the ads we
see about "Happy Dairy Cows". "It seems like such a peaceful life." She
was no different than the millions who fall victim to the high-paid
advertising campaigns that are meant to develop such illusions.
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Offering
Options
I found that gently describing what I had learned, first-hand, when I
visited the first slaughter auction for myself, opened a door with my
mom. It was difficult for her to know that her daughter had witnessed
such cruelty. I told her that I had to stand by and witness the
suffering - hear the cows scream - for one reason only - to videotape
and document the atrocities as they unfolded, right before my eyes, in
order to change the
laws and make transporting non-ambulatory cows, or "downers" illegal.
The video, acquired by Pasado's Safe Haven, was used to pass one of the
first "downer" animal laws in the U.S., requiring downers to be humanely
euthanized prior to transport. But that doesn't mean the cruelty doesn't
continue. Although I'm proud to have written and passed such a law, I'm
not so naive as to think if we're not sending undercover investigators
into slaughterhouses that it doesn't happen. It does.
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The above photo is
one frame taken from undercover video Pasado's Safe Haven shot. You can
imagine the agony watching this cow, watch this man, thinking perhaps
that he would help her. Instead he electrocuted her over and over, to no
avail. She could not stand no matter how much torture they put her
through. |
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Yesteryear's farmers
"Your grandfather had cows," my mother told me. "He never treated them
badly. He had names for every one." Although I never got to meet my
grandfather, I'm sure he was a good man who took great care of his
animals. But the farmer of yesteryear is not who farms today. Now it is
large, international conglomerates, that value keeping the highest
possible production, at the lowest possible cost. And guess who suffers?
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Bessie now at Pasado's
Safe Haven. She's so beautiful. And you can sponsor her, and give a
beautiful gift to someone you love, or to yourself to celebrate this
mom! See how, below. |
I returned
to visit my mom a few days later, with an Amy's Roasted Vegetable Cheeseless pizza in tow. I popped one in her oven as I sat and chatted
with her. In twenty minutes, her small apartment filled with a delicious
scent. I presented my 78-year-old mother with her first vegan pizza, and
she loved it. After we finished, I asked if it didn't taste all the
better because a mother, somewhere, didn't have to suffer to make my
mother satiated, and happy. She smiled, and readily agreed. |
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I will
never forget the eyes of the downer cows I've met. The fear, when the
slaughter workers come at them to electrocute them over and over. They
were so sick, nothing could make them stand. I watched as a man wrapped
a giant chain around the neck of a girl he shocked repeatedly, to no
avail. Then he wrapped the other end of the chain around a tractor and
dragged her, jerking her. Her body hit a 90 degree corner and couldn't
turn, even though the tractor just kept going. I heard as her hip
snapped. She moaned in agony and then passed out. The tractor dragging
her off to her death.
Is cheese, milk, or ice cream worth this? It is not, to me.
Please try some of the options we all love here at Pasado's Safe Haven.
They're so good. You won't miss dairy in the least, and you will never look back, I promise you!
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Susan's
favorite morning coffee: Latte's made with a little bit of
Silk (plain) creamer and a dash of Silk French Vanilla creamer. It's
delicious!
Want a
mocha? Hershey's syrup is vegan. Use non-dairy whipped topping and
really make it naughty! |
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Favorite
pizza:
Amy's Roasted Vegetable Cheeseless - found in most frozen food cases
(Trader Joe's has one, too!) |
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Favorite
dinner: "Chicken" pot pie (my best "comfort" food dinner!)
Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry sheets: Line a big baking dish to make a
pie lining. |
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Use
MorningStar Farms Meal Starters Chik'n Strips - 3 bags, cut into
pieces. Stir fry in light oil until brown. Add to pie crust. |
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Steam
potatoes and carrots slightly. Add to pie dish with thawed frozen peas
and kernel corn. Top with another puff pastry sheet (I like to cut
pretty leaves and make it beautiful). Bake for 45 minutes at 350
degrees.
Side dish: Potato soup to serve over the pot pie.
To make: One bag Yukon gold or "new" potatoes, cut and steamed. Add to
large sauce pan. Add two sticks of margarine and one container of Silk
(plain) creamer. It's SO yummy! |
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Favorite
desserts:
Soy Dream Ice Cream - any flavor! |
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Tofutti-Cuties Ice Cream bars (they're so good, you'll want to eat
the whole box!) |
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Apple
Strudel: Pepperidge Farm puff pastry sheets filled with apple pie
filling.
Serve with Soy Dream vanilla ice cream!
Brownies - Many brownie mixes are vegan. And most of the yummy canned
frostings by Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker don't have dairy in them. Go
crazy!
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How to Turn
Something Horrible, into something beautiful!
Sponsor Bessie!
Receive a beautiful
full-color, glossy card with Bessie's photo
Her story of rescue
Your personalized
message to your gift recipient!
Visiting Privileges - to bring Bessie carrots, her favorite treat!
Or, if it's for
yourself, we'll have Bessie write to you about the latest "Moos" on
the farm!
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