Vegans of BYC!!

[Callender Girl]

One of the things I've enjoyed about this thread is that there is room for EVERYBODY'S beliefs and opinions. So, welcome aboard, @Sussex19!

This thread should be a safe place to express what you think without being judged or attacked. It's also been a place to share recipes and which vegan substitutes are worth the money (frozen desserts, yes!) and which are not remotely tasty (some greasy cheeses).

Since @BelovedBirds started it last year, it's been great to learn what motivates others to be vegan and how they approach veganism. I, for example, eat eggs from my own chickens, ducks and geese, who are lovingly cared for and would lay regardless of whether I ate the eggs or tossed them in the trash -- which would be a waste of protein, to me.

For a long time, I thought it was crazy that vegans didn't eat dairy products, because, after all, no animals were killed. Then, I learned more about dairy animals' lives and cut out dairy products. I don't buy leather goods anymore, I won't buy feather pillows and I try to only use vegan lines of soaps and hair care products.

No one will ever be convinced to become a vegan -- or anything else -- by being belittled or condemned. I think very few of us started out vegan, and many of us still aren't "pure" vegans. Perfection is anything is pretty darned near impossible. Some people will go on a journey that leads them to veganism; some people never will.

In the meantime, I really enjoy this thread and hope it continues to welcome all to the table.

 

[BelovedBirds]

I definitely admire people who can and want to be vegan, but its just not for me.
However, I don't use anything tested on animals, don't wear fur, and only eat organic free range meat.
We have been vegetarian in the past, but not in the moment. Do you mind me joining in? I find it all quite interesting.

of course not! You're welcome to the thread!

 

[WIchickMama]

Definitely not a pure vegan here either, eat my chicken's eggs and local honey

Welcome at @Sussex19!

Want to try and make my own nut milk, anyone have any experience with this? Which nuts work best? Best way for processing?! Thanks

 

[BelovedBirds]

One of the things I've enjoyed about this thread is that there is room for EVERYBODY'S beliefs and opinions. So, welcome aboard, @Sussex19!

This thread should be a safe place to express what you think without being judged or attacked. It's also been a place to share recipes and which vegan substitutes are worth the money (frozen desserts, yes!) and which are not remotely tasty (some greasy cheeses).

Since @BelovedBirds started it last year, it's been great to learn what motivates others to be vegan and how they approach veganism. I, for example, eat eggs from my own chickens, ducks and geese, who are lovingly cared for and would lay regardless of whether I ate the eggs or tossed them in the trash -- which would be a waste of protein, to me.

For a long time, I thought it was crazy that vegans didn't eat dairy products, because, after all, no animals were killed. Then, I learned more about dairy animals' lives and cut out dairy products. I don't buy leather goods anymore, I won't buy feather pillows and I try to only use vegan lines of soaps and hair care products.

No one will ever be convinced to become a vegan -- or anything else -- by being belittled or condemned. I think very few of us started out vegan, and many of us still aren't "pure" vegans. Perfection is anything is pretty darned near impossible. Some people will go on a journey that leads them to veganism; some people never will.

In the meantime, I really enjoy this thread and hope it continues to welcome all to the table.

So very true! Perfection is impossible. Something I heard recently is that living vegan does not mean living cruelty free-

if we are to exist on this earth, we are going to impact nature, and thus, lives. If you drive a car, you're more than likely contributing to pollution, you may even run an animal over. If you walk outside, you might step on a snail, if you eat crops, there were probably accidental deaths during the harvesting of said crops. If you own a smart phone, there were probably animal products used in its production--
Perfection is not something we can attain... so I'll never understand vegans who sit up on a high horse and act like they are perfect.
The reason I love being vegan is because we can change as must as reasonably possible, to have a less damaging impact on the planet.

Also true about dairy! I thought for years that dairy was humane, as a child I didn't even realise how the cattle were bred for excessive milk production, or how they had to give birth to a calf to produce that milk, over and over again. That they're dehorned using inhumane methods, I never knew how the calves ended up being processed as veal (sometimes they even make the calves deficient in iron so that the meat is more pale), I never knew how dairy cows end up, young and broken before slaughter. They can get all kinds of issues, its very sad.
Now I just can't imagine supporting the dairy industry- in my opinion its worse than farming for meat.

Of course every farm is different and I'm sure plenty of homesteads are significantly better, but I still find it unfair to the cattle to produce milk for us, since it simply is not something we need, or something that is particularly good for most people.

I think I'm going to make some pancakes for breakfast! Hmm.

 

[BelovedBirds]

Definitely not a pure vegan here either, eat my chicken's eggs and local honey

Welcome at @Sussex19!

Want to try and make my own nut milk, anyone have any experience with this? Which nuts work best? Best way for processing?! Thanks

I haven't tried this, but I did make a nut cheese! I used cashews and it turned out perfectly creamy.
I feel cashews have too strong a taste for milk though, perhaps almonds?

 

[Shadrach]

I've been a Vegan in the past and a vegetarian.
These days I'm just happy to eat much like most of the worlds population.
Given the choice I would rather only eat meat I've raised and killed myself.
I can't help thinking the Vegan movement is something for the privilidged middle classes. All those supplements cost money and of course one needs to have the means and time to do the cooking. Even as a vegetarian I found I was forever cooking to ensure I got a properly balanced diet and I detest cooking.
If we all just ate less meat and dairy produce much of the disgusting factory farming practices could be reduced.
I'm not worried about my health because of my eating habits whatever they may be at the time. It's the health amd keeping conditionsof the creatures I eat that I'm concerned about.

 

[Iluveggers]

For a long time, I thought it was crazy that vegans didn't eat dairy products, because, after all, no animals were killed. Then, I learned more about dairy animals' lives and cut out dairy products.

Yes I dont drink milk for this reason. The only dairy I will eat is local cheese, from a farm we know where goats and cows are free to mingle on grass with their young, and are not strapped to a milker in a barn all day & night.

It's the health amd keeping conditionsof the creatures I eat that I'm concerned about.

This exactly. My DH hunts, and takes one deer a year. We have an overpopulation in our area, and in the winter many starve with no food source. To us, it is much more humane for a doe to die quickly than starve to death in the woods. We also use all parts including bones for our dogs, so as to not waste. DH has seen many does with babies and he will come home empty handed rather than hunt a momma. That one deer will last us all winter and helps so we don’t have to buy any meat from Nov-Mar.

One thing that frustrates me is the lack of empathy toward animals and livestock. If every meat eater looked for meat/eggs raised humanely, they would eat much less of it and affect the market in a positive way, forcing farms away from horrible factory conditions.

 

[ButtonHoarder]

Hello! Im a vegetarian, and will probably end up vegan one day, but I might still eat eggs from my own chickens

 

[Sussex19]

The main thing for me, as other people have said, is the lives of the animals.
I would like to keep my own goats for milk someday, so I can keep them all happy, and still get a bit of milk.
If cows are kept in big grassy paddocks, as on the dairy farms around here do, do you still think thats cruel?

 

[ButtonHoarder]

Hello! Im a vegetarian, and will probably end up vegan one day, but I might still eat eggs from my own chickens

My reason for being a vegetarian is because I love animals and don’t want to eat them