As humans we are often concentrated and self-centered on what makes us happy. With these self conceited notions of finding what make us, as an individual happy. People often along their process of finding happiness ignore who they may be making unhappy. This planet we inhabit is not just here for us, we share the earth with an infinite amount of non-human earthlings. The Dalai Lama once said, “Life is as dear to a mute creature as it is to a man. Just as one wants happiness and fears pain, just as one wants to live and not die, so do other creatures" (Lama no pages). We live in a world that is more human centric based and selfish, why not ditch this belief that we as humans are the center of the universe and see all life as precious, human and non-human. Through my own life experiences, this is how I found myself and is my true passion. I feel as if people who can find value in a non-human life, may find value in everything including them self.
Finding importance and value in everything may take time for people to grasp. I was enlightened by this idea not too long ago. About three years ago my views were completely different from now, I had moved away from home, struggled to make relationships with other people, and felt alone in this world. One day I viewed a documentary about the food industry and it changed by perspective on everything I grew up knowing. I began researching animal agriculture and became frustrated with how it contributed a large amount environmental damage, in term causing the planet to die. Sadly many people are not aware about the destruction of animal agriculture. This is what sparked and branched out my views on living a more compassionate lifestyle. I believe everything has value including trees, fish, dogs, and cows. This is when I felt the best I have ever felt in my life knowing I was not causing unnecessary suffering to others.
Enough about me, let us talk about them, the ones we share this planet with and have no voice. We often ignore the creatures that roam this place we call home. People do not seek to understand that non-human beings have emotion, they feel pain, pleasure, fear, and joy. They make relationships with each other and want to live just as much as us. Many of these creatures suffer because of our own doing, weather people are conscious of it or not. The ways we exploit, abuse, and deny life to these animals vary from keeping them in enclosures for the means of our entertainment or taking their life for the convenience of our taste buds. Everyone should look to the one without a voice and listen because they may not speak our language, but if they could they would cry out to us of their misery and suffering.
A story of Maybelle who was a retired dairy cow saved by Gentle Barn sanctuary from being slaughtered:
"When Ellie and Jay, the owners of Gentle barn, brought her home she kept crying and pacing and looking at them like she was trying to tell them something. It looked as if she were searching for a baby. So they went back to the farm to see if she had a baby, and sure enough they had her 9 month old baby there. They asked to have him as well and they agreed. When Ellie and Jay arrived home with the baby, Maybelle starting calling to him and he cried back. Once the trailer door was open they ran to each other and were so happy to see each other. The two of them are inseparable and Maybelle has not uttered a sound since regaining her son. Maybelle and her baby. Miles will stay together for the rest of their lives at The Gentle Barn Tennessee and finally know what it is like to have a family” (The Gentle Barn Animals n.p).
The notion that dairy cows naturally continuously produce milk is false. In the dairy industry baby calves are often stolen from their mothers after birth, so the milk can go to people instead. The male babies calves are sold for veal and female grew up to follow in their mother footsteps. There is many stories of recused dairy cows who are sometimes pregnant because of being artificially inseminated constantly for milk production. Once rescued and safe at a sanctuary will still give birth to their babies and hide them in the fields in fear of the humans stealing their baby. This shows cows know and remember the many heart breaking experiences of their babies being repetitively stolen from them for the means of their milk. People often see these animals as unintelligent and that they have no soul. Animal cries often fall on deaf ears because their surrounded by humans with no empathy for them and they do not see them as living feeling emotional beings.
Science had proven non-human species do feel "most scientists agree that all vertebrate animals--- mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish--- are, to varying degrees, sentient…Their desire for rewards is part of sentience-- the capacity to feel. Sentience encompasses a universe of positive and negative physical and emotional experiences" (Balcombe n.p). Animals are cognitively complex beings that experiences emotion. For example, people can relate and understand that the dogs we share our homes with feel, such as when they get into trouble and they react with fear when they are scolded. It has been scientifically proven that pigs are more intelligent than the dogs we see as family members. How come we view pigs as food and dogs as pets? Why not treat both beings with equal amount of compassion.
In conclusion, animals enjoy the same thing we do they enjoy sunlight, fresh air, running, and playing, they enjoy being alive just like us. As humans why not erase this barrier between the beings that are worthy or not worthy of life. Once humans find this compassion within them self for other beings they will find value in everything including them self. I believe if all humans on this planet viewed life more precious than the inequality and violence will stop. That we will treat other humans and non-humans with empathy and the suffering will be over. We can thrive together as earthlings and this will be what true happiness and peace will look lived for our planet.
Work Cited:
Lama, Dalai. "Vegan Quotes – Socrates, Buddha, Einstein and Others on Going Vegan." Change
for a Year. Change for a Year, 24 Aug. 2016. Web. 13 July 2017.
Balcombe, Jonathan. "Yes, Animals Have Feelings." LiveScience. Purch, 10 Dec. 2014. Web. 13
July 2017
"The Gentle Barn Animals." The Gentle Barn - Animals. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 July 2017.