#but have to use artificial insemination with humans because of their size

[minorcoded-yoda]

.

[pokemonshelterstories]

How often do different species of pokemon crossbreed?

I know they CAN, and I know egg groups are a thing, but without human intervention how common is it? Are there Pokemon that would never crossbreed without human intervention?

in the wild, it's pretty rare. wild pokemon tend to stick to their own species unless thoroughly desperate. this is largely because of differences in social behavior more than anything else; courtship and mating behaviors are going to look radically difficult in a vulpix and a ponyta, so even though they're the same egg group and even the same type, you're not likely to see that pairing in the wild. there's also the matter of size and morphology differences making the physical act of mating more difficult. using the same pokemon as an example, it'd be really hard logistically for a vulpix and a ponyta to breed- but you might sometimes see a wild growlithe and vulpix together, because they're of a similar size and morphology and have some behavioral overlaps.

honestly, the vast majority of potential combinations would likely never occur without a human orchestrating the match- and even then, in the competitive world, a lot of those strange breeding match-ups only happen as the result of artificial insemination. champion pokemon can fetch quite the stud fee, and some trainers will pay a lot of money to have their pokemon bred to a proven high-ranking battler through AI.

just for a little fun, i do know of one particularly odd wild match-up...my friend out in orre has been collecting data on a reintroduced flock of mareep for several years, and the current flock leader has found an unusual partner in a lycanroc that was ejected from his territory by other lycanroc. ampharos and lycanroc is a bizarre matchup in the wild, especially given that lycanroc sometimes hunt mareep, but desperation is one hell of a matchmaker!

[iaskmushroom]

Why is the tip shaped like a mushroom-Unveiling the Mystery

Why is the tip shaped like a mushroom

Penises come in all sorts of sizes and shapes. One thing they all share in common, however, is their signature toadstool-shaped head known as the Glans. Penises tend to resemble all sorts of common mushrooms when seen from any angle.  What gives this effect, and why does its shape remind us of mushrooms?  Gordon Gallup Ph.D., an evolutionary psychologist from University at Albany in New York suggests that the resemblance of a mushroom on top of the penis evolved as an ideal form for scooping out male semen. A new man stands a greater chance at getting pregnant if his sexual relations with multiple people occurred quickly within her lifetime. "Human penises evolved with mushroom-shaped penises as an adaptation to female infidelity, Gallup states in his semen displacement hypothesis study released in 2003. Other scientists such as Todd Shackelford, Ph.D. chair of psychology at Oakland University Michigan also support this theory." "Gallup proposes that if a female was sexually inseminated by several different males within minutes and each successive male could harvest or remove semen from her reproductive tract in order to replace his own with that from other males in his line, this process of semen displacement theory might apply," according to Gallup. " Gallup's lab conducted careful observations in order to test this theory, carefully watching three latex penises entering an artificial vagina containing water and starch that represented semen. Study findings demonstrated that penises with strong "mushroom forms," featuring an obvious coronal ridge at the point where head joins shaft, were most successful at eliminating prior sperm from fertilization tests. Penis with the most mushroom-like form eliminated over 87% while those featuring three mushroom forms eliminated 40% of prior fertilized sperm. Gallup notes that after insemination, thrusting post-insemination becomes noticeably weaker and shallower; and that penis begins to shrink and remain limp when leaving vagina making scooping difficult as well as self-sabotage more likely. Gallup believes it may seem unlikely for women to experience multiple sex relationships within a 24-hour timeframe, giving them an advantage over other species, but Gallup finds otherwise. "One in four women report engaging in multiple male relationships within 24 hours in one or more instances", according to data gleaned from 2004 study conducted to validate his theory of semen displacement - something which was far more widespread during evolutionary periods when humans first evolved as species than any time since.

Mushrooms Are Just Part Of the Picture The mushroom shape's ability to capture semen depends on a host of variables that affect sex, such as thrusting power and depth and the length of penis; according to Gallup "deeper thrusting disburses more semen than shallowly thrusting", while men with longer penis can place semen deeper within female vagina making displacement by later males less likely. Circumcision has its place in modern life. Circumcised penises experience only minimal increases in their mushroom shape; however, due to having been circumcised and shaped, Gallup states. When circumcised guys engage in sexual encounters that involve more intense thrusting they are more likely to remove semen from a former partner than non-circumcised guys who engage in similar sexual encounters, according to Gallup. Urology generally agrees with Gallup's theory; however, some experts who oppose his ideas raise arguments such as additional factors at play that could impact penis shape; just because mushroom-shaped penises can scoop up semen doesn't mean its formation caused its displacement; perhaps evolution was responsible instead and semen displacement just an added benefit; many experts consider Gallup's theories "far-fetched." Gallup's hypothesis has not been disproven yet. According to Shackelford who has conducted studies on this subject matter. scientific and theoretical evidence supports his claim. "Both scientific and theoretic evidence support his belief that human head penis has an "S-shaped mushroom structure in order to assist the displacement of an ejaculate from competing males", Shackelford conducted a 2016 study which concluded that husbands of wives who could potentially be seen as potential sexual enemies by their wives engaged more frequently in behaviors associated with semen-displacing behavior when having sexual relations with wives, such as pushing harder. Justin Houman, M.D. of Bastion Health and working urologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles who did not participate in the study notes that animals resemble us by having penile barbs, hooks, combs or textures to help push out other's sperm from vaginas,  According to Houman's observations, animals possess similar features.

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[jenniferrpovey]

So, here we go,

If you live in Colorado and care about animals you need to be aware of Proposition 16, which is being misnamed the Protect Animals from Unnecessary Suffering and Exploitation act. It's not an act, and it...well, let's take a look at it.

First of all, it would remove the "typical animal husbandry" exception from "sexual acts with an animal" and replace it with "For the welfare of the animal." The definition is any penetration of the vagina or anus with a body part or object.

This outlaws:

1. Artificial insemination. This would make it nearly impossible for small ranchers to breed, as many can't afford what it takes to keep a bull or boar. Rams and billies are a BIT easier.

2. Pregnancy tests on livestock. Large animals have to be pregnancy tested by using a transrectal ultrasound. You can't just put one on the belly because they're too big. This would make it impossible to give pregnant animals the care they need and impossible to detect twins in horses (of which the best outcome is at least one very stunted foal). The "welfare of the animal" exemption COULD keep you safe. Or it could not.

3. Taking an animal's temperature. No kidding. This would classify the use of a rectal thermometer as bestiality. Because whoever put this together doesn't have a clue about animals. Even by animal rights activist levels, this is ridiculous. You could get away with it if the animal was sick. But there would go the safest way to determine of a mare or cow was ovulating before you introduce them to the male. Btw, a non-receptive mare will do her best to kill a stallion and with hand or corral breeding, it's common for stallions to get hurt. We used to use cheap disposable stallions for this. We don't want to go back to that process.

4. Surgical castration. Yes, this animal rights sponsored initiative would ban the most humane form of castration of large animals. Do you want your next gelding to have been castrated using the much more traumatic banding method? That's the one where they tie a band around the testicles and wait for them to drop off. Smaller animals are castrated using a different method, but the method for surgical castration in livestock, because of their size, involves a small amount of penetration of the anus.

5. One method of spaying mares. When a mare is spayed, which is not a routine operation and is generally done either for medical or behavioral reason, an ovariectomy is done through either an incision or through the vagina. The last is the most common and safest way. It would be legal to spay a mare if she had a tumor or the like. It would not be legal to spay her if she was unridable when in heat.

So, that's all pretty...bad. And given a vet could be convicted of a sex offense, many vets will leave Colorado. Large animal vets would become almost impossible to find and small animal vets might also flee the state. There's also no exemption to any of these for teaching people how to do the procedure. Under this, I'd be some kind of horrible sex offender for having taught a prepubescent child how to take a horse's temperature. (The look on their faces when they find out where it goes...)

Then there's the second part. Clearly, what they intended to do with this was outlaw veal. Which I have mixed feelings about.

But what they actually have in there is a definition of the "natural lifespan" of livestock and a rule that they have to reach a quarter of that.

For cows, they have the natural lifespan defined at 20 years. I'm not a stockman, so I don't know if that's accurate, but it feels right.

Which means that ranchers in Colorado would have to raise cows until 5 years old.

The typical market age of a steer is 24 months.

Economically, unless they can drive cattle out of the state to be slaughtered (and btw, I am opposed to transporting live animals for slaughter any further than necessary), that puts ranchers out of business. They would no longer be able to export to Japan, which is a big market, because the Japanese won't take meat from cattle older than 30 months.

And believe me? You don't want a steak from a 5 year old cow. You even more don't want to pay more for a steak from a 5 year old cow. So, this thing is this entire mess of even more clueless than animal rights fanatics already are.

If you live in Colorado and somebody asks you to sign this thing, don't. If it ends up on the ballot next year, don't vote yes on it.

It would not protect animals.

It would destroy livelihoods and result in more cruelty. It would destroy not just the ranching industry in Colorado but the horse breeding industry as well. Even if you're a vegetarian, supporting something which would actually increase animal cruelty...

And people are dumb. They may fall for it.

But most people aren't as dumb as the animal rights activists who don't know where the thermometer goes.

[devoted1989]

the humane myth

By Animal Place.

"The end of an animal’s life on a “humane” farm is no different than on an industrial farm. Many of the same practices on factory farms are performed – without pain relief – on small and “humane” farms.

The following are standard practices that occur on small, medium, and large farms, with few exceptions."

EGG FARMS

- Male chicks are killed the day they are hatched by being ground up alive, gassed, or suffocated.

- The beaks of day-old hen chicks are cut off without pain relief on caged, “cage-free,” and large free-range farms.

- The commonly used breeds of hens used produce 3-5 times more eggs than normal.

- Hens are slaughtered at 1-2 years of age on factory farms and small farms, while they could naturally live another 4-6.

PIG FARMS

- Sickly or small piglets are killed with the same industry-approved method on certified “humane” small, and large farms – by slamming the piglet against concrete until they die.

- Male piglets are castrated without pain relief.

- Pigs are only 6-8 months old when they are killed. They can can live 10-15 years.

“BROILER" CHICKEN FARMS

- Chickens are killed when they are just 6 weeks old.

- Chickens used in the broiler industry have been artificially selected for abnormally fast growth which increases their risk of heart-attack and bone breaks.

- Baby birds are slaughtered while fully conscious. Some farms slaughter onsite by cramming them into individual cones and slitting their throats.

- Small farms ship birds to the same slaughterhouses as large farms. There, the birds are shackled upside down, run through an electric water bath that renders them immobile but fully conscious, and have their throats cut with a mechanical blade.

DAIRY FARMS

- Calves are removed from their Mothers soon after birth. Even on small, locally owned dairy farms, calves are often removed at less than 24 hours after birth.

- Male calves are deemed worthless and killed early. Male calves on small and large farms are sent to become veal, sold cheaply at auction for backyard slaughter, or raised for “cheap dairy beef.”

- Cows are sent to slaughter at a fraction of their lifespan. Smaller farms may keep cows longer, but they still send them to an untimely and brutal death.

- Cows on small and larger farms have been bred for high-milk production and suffer from udder infections, reproductive disorders and lameness. Pasture - based dairies have a lower risk of lameness.

- Cows are artificially selected to produce 8 times more milk than nature intended, regardless of size of farm.

- Juvenile cows are artificially inseminated at a young age, far sooner than their bodies can handle. Breeding for high milk output increases the birth weights of calves forcing dangerous pregnancies on new mothers.

TURKEY FARMS

  -  Chicks are born at hatcheries and shipped through the postal service. Some very small farms may hatch and raise chicks onsite, but this is unusual.

- Turkeys are still de-beaked and de-toed on many small and large farms. Even the Global Animal Partnership – standards used by Whole Foods – permits “toenail conditioning” in which microwave radiation is used to damage the toes so that nails cannot grow.

 - Turkeys are slaughtered fully conscious. Some farms slaughter birds by hanging them upside down and slitting their throats. Other farms ship birds to the same slaughterhouses accepting birds from large farms. There, the birds are shackled upside down, run through an electric water bath that renders them immobile but fully conscious, and have their throats cut with a mechanical blade.

 -  Birds are only a few months old when killed. “Heritage” breeds of turkeys may be slaughtered at 8-mos-old, while their large-breasted counterparts are killed at 4 months old. Both are still babies and could live several more years.

ON WELFARE CHANGE

"Improving the lives of farmed animals is important, but it will not end farmed animal suffering. Giving more space or stopping mutilations does not make the slaughter of an animal more palatable.

"Although Animal Place supports animal welfare improvements because the degree of cruelty on most farms is egregious and the problem enormous, it does not believe that this is the answer to the problems.

"Improving conditions under which nonhumans are raised is not reason enough to justify their slaughter or exploitation. It cannot be justified with labels meant to create a false sense of kindness."

HAROLD BROWN is a former beef farmer and the founder of FarmKind. http://www.farmkind.org/

Image with kind permission from Roger Olmos. https://rogerolmos.carbonmade.com/

[bluesakura007]

Undeniable - Chapter 4: Khan’s Past - Khan Noonien Singh x OC

Summary: After storming off following the start of her feud with Bones and Spock, Zinalya seeks comfort with the man who said feud revolves around in the first place, during which he divulges the story of his origins and how he ended up being awoken in the 23rd century.

Warnings: Roughly about half of this chapter is angst, and it includes mentions of the deaths of a parent and a friend.

Zinalya was almost flying down the corridors and then onto the ground floor via a turbolift, filled with her now released anger at Dr. McCoy. He had no right to be telling her how she was allowed to feel about someone, and her blood additionally boiled at the recollection of what she’d walked in to hear Spock saying earlier on before that, about how her plan to get Khan sent away with an exile sentence and go with him - and she guessed that the former also meant this about her feelings for the latter in the first place - would bring disrepute to Starfleet. 

According to Bones, he and the others were trying to help her, but she felt in the back of her mind that this was a lie, as he and Spock clearly didn’t actually care about what she wanted or how she felt because she was obviously the only one out of the three of them who could be bothered to look past Khan’s exterior for what lay underneath. This reminded her of a phrase she’d heard of once: “If you look for the good in people, you’ll find it.”

She was thankful for the fact that Scotty and Chekov were supportive of her wanting to leave with him - further proof to her that, as always, they were good friends - and she knew that while Kirk, Carol, Sulu and Uhura were remaining neutral and hadn’t picked either side of the argument, this could have been worse, due to the fact that one of these two sides they could have picked was to shut down and oppose her plan entirely, like Spock and McCoy. 

In spite of her annoyance at this latter pair, though, she felt the same kind of twinge as she had during her sarcastic remark to Spock when she’d walked in and heard him, which was guilt for the hostile moments of her behaviour just now. Especially for the particular moment when she slapped Bones. But this was only a temporary twinge as, with another surge of her blood boiling, she remembered that, effectively, they’d disregarded her viewpoints in the conversation and insisted on wanting to keep her away from the man she liked.

Within another few seconds, she’d arrived at the place where she’d been heading as soon as she stormed out. The room where Khan was being held in another cell.

The retinal and fingerprint scanners outside this room both recognised that she was indeed lieutenant-commander Zinalya Hamilton and allowed her to enter as a result. 

What she immediately noticed upon doing so was that apart from a few guards near to the door on the outer side, there were none inside the room itself, which she initially found to be a relief because of her wanting to speak alone with him until she found out why: to her right, in the corner of the ceiling above her, was a tiny, spherical-shaped black glass object which could only be noticed if you put in effort thanks to this size. It hardly took a detective to deduce that it was meant to be some kind of security camera.

"Did you mean it?"

She was suddenly snapped out of looking up at the camera by a certain deep and English-accented voice from in front of where she was standing. There he was, in a cell with a large floor-length glass window not unlike that of his previous cell onboard the Enterprise. Even the colouring of the room as a whole was very similar, except this one was slightly more like grey with a blue tint as opposed to pure white. "Sorry, what?" She turned her head back to facing where he was sitting at the back of his cell, looking at her with an owllike unwavering gaze, during which she found her anger from a minute ago fading.

"Did you mean what you said earlier in the courtroom, Miss Hamilton?" The sound of Khan’s voice still gave her shivers despite the amount of times she’d already heard it. "When you declared that you have romantic feelings for me?"

"I did, yeah." She nodded her head and simultaneously walked closer towards the cell. It took that little fraction of less time compared to on the Enterprise due to the room being marginally smaller than this ship’s brig. He now once again had the same look on his face that he’d had before, when she’d made this announcement he was referring to: a little dash of curiosity and slight skepticism but predominantly feeling touched by what she said. "Why do you have those feelings?"

Zinalya chuckled to herself. "I’m obviously not going to catch a break from that question anytime soon." When she saw his aforementioned expression change into one of mild confusion, she elaborated, "Commander Spock asked me the same thing just now."

"And what did you say to him?" Another one of those subtle outward expression shifts happened, this time her sensing slight dislike from Khan towards this half Vulcan first officer.

"I told him that I’m not entirely sure why, but it was partially because I felt like you’d been through an emotional rollercoaster, with all the admiral Marcus business." Zinalya replied, hesitant to bring up this subject. She and Khan were now standing right in front of each other, only about a foot apart on either side of the cell’s glass.

He momentarily laughed to himself through closed lips and craned his head to the side, looking down at the floor. "I take it I’d be right in presuming he and your other colleagues tried to convince you that the way you see me is a mistake?"

"Spock and Dr. McCoy did." Responded the half human-half Trill. "But not all of them were like that; the others haven’t taken a side but ensign Chekov and Mr. Scott are being supportive of it."

"You seem to trust those two a great deal."

"They’re my closest friends." Her inner sensation of gratitude and relief at their support swung into action again, because she remembered that this meant she was at least not fully alone in her plan and in that day’s developments.

Khan looked back up towards her, seeming as if he himself had just experienced a memory recollection of his own. He paused for a beat, and then spoke again, "I’d like you to know I feel the same way, Miss Hamilton; I find you endearing in return."

It was a surprise to her ears, because, after all, she was hoping that her emotions would indeed be reciprocated by him but the prospect of it actually, really happening was unexpected, so now it was her turn to pose the question, "Why?"

"Because from the people who I met and interacted with on your Enterprise, you appeared to be the only one who didn’t dismiss me as a mere criminal." Answered Khan, whose eyes she thought were like that of a snake due to the brightness of his light turquoise eyes, which made his pupils, at some moments, look as if they were slitted. 

She’d additionally used this time where they were in front of each other to mentally take in and properly admire every edge of his tall body and his immaculate black hair. "You only came to speak to me a few times, but during those instances I noticed that you behaved kindly towards me. Apart from this reason however I’m not certain myself: I like you in return for a reason that I can’t put my finger on either."

Zinalya thought to herself deeply about this weirdly complex concept of attraction. "Maybe we’re not supposed to understand why we’ve got feelings for each other. Do you believe in destiny?"

"It depends on the specific context." Said Khan.

"Well I think the bigger reason could be because it’s pre-destined and it literally is what’s meant to happen."

Khan nodded his head, slowly and gracefully, in understanding of this theory. "If we are pre-destined to be together as you say, then I think I should be fully honest with you - I should tell you about how it all began. The events that ultimately led to my revival last year and everything that followed."

"Okay." There came her own nod again. "I do know that at one point back in the 20th century you were a world leader, the head of a large empire, but that's all I know about you, so I would like to learn more." She sat down on the floor in front of the glass, anticipating that what was about to follow might take some time.

Khan quietly took a breath and he, too, sat down, the right side of his body leaning lightly against the glass. "The first four years of my life were rather peaceful - most of the memories I had from back that far became vague over time so I had to find out later on by doing my own research, but I lived during those first years in India, with my mother." He began. "Her name was Dr. Sarina Kaur, a biochemist who had, around that time, been carrying out experiments and investigations into asexual reproduction."

"Asexual reproduction? Like how plants and some insects have children without having to...?" She trailed off at the end, realising how awkward the rest of her sentence was going to be.

"Yes." Khan, luckily, answered what she was trying to query without her having to put in this ending. "I found out when I did my own exploration into the four early years that I was apparently conceived by her via artificial insemination. And it was entirely artificial - she'd managed to perfect her theory of creating a human child from a single parent without the need for a donor of any kind, dubbed the Chrysalis Project. I was born in the year 1970, so this was quite a notable scientific achievement for the time." Zinalya was still listening intently, while he continued, now with a feeling of poignancy shown upon his face, "I was initially conceived as another one of her experiments, which is why she gave me minor changes and enhancements in my DNA that created my different eye colour and accent and my light skin tone, allegedly whilst I was still in utero, as well as a small mental enhancement allowing me to recall early memories more easily. But I still remember clearly that once I’d been born, she was the kindest and most loving person I had ever known."

"She sounds like she was a really sweet woman. I think I would've liked to meet her if she was still around today." The lieutenant-commander opined with a gentle smile, knowing in her mind that based on how long ago the 1970s were, Sarina would have been long gone by that time.

"She was. When I was still very young, she had a pet dog named Cinder, a border collie I believe; he had already reached old age when I was born and he died when I was two years old, but before then it was just me, Cinder and my mother together in New Delhi as a family. And then one day, another two years later, I found out that she died, as well."

"What happened to her?"

"Something went wrong at her laboratory. It caused a fire which she was killed by as she tried to escape." He said. "I'd been out that day, playing in the streets with some of the other children who lived nearby. Her parents lived in Kolkata, meaning there was no one close enough to take care of me, so I spent the next year living on those streets. The first few days I spent moving from place to place with my blanket in my hands and I spent most of those nights crying until I cried myself to sleep." Zinalya felt her chest tighten at the sight of the wistful look in his eyes. "Until I met another boy, Tanvir Acharya. He was three years older than me and was also an orphan on the streets, and was the leader of a small group of others which he allowed me to join. Me and him became friends to the point where we both considered each other as a brother figure, but a year on, we and the rest of the group were taken, among numerous other orphans, for experimentation."

"Is that what made you into an Augment? What gave you all your abilities?"

"It was - there was a total of twenty-four boys including myself and fifteen girls who were subjected to genetic engineering over the course of several years, for the purpose of eventually becoming living weapons. Seven years after our capture, in 1982, Tanvir and I devised a plan to escape and then later come back in the hopes of liberating the others in addition, and we both ran off in different directions. I made it to the Gobi Desert before I was found by Dr. Heisen, the director of the eugenics project responsible for our augmentations, and was recaptured and returned to the research facility by the use of a neural inhibitor in my body, which doubled as a tracking beacon. All thirty-nine of us had each been implanted with one for controlling us with pain if need be." The wistful expression began to gradually amplify itself. "After I was returned, I discovered that Tanvir had also been recaptured, but the use of his own inhibitor had killed him: he was born with a heart defect which was never treated, so the electric shocks from his inhibitor had stopped his heart from beating." 

He remembered how truly awful he’d felt at this moment way back when - a twelve year old boy holding the corpse of his best friend, his older brother figure, in his arms and entering back into what he did during those first few lonely nights on the New Delhi streets, which was crying his eyes out.

"Oh god..." Said Zinalya.

"Three more years on from then, I successfully removed my own inhibitor and those of the others and killed Heisen myself." He moved on from this particular part of the story before he lost himself in the memory, hissing the sentence with a small edge of aggression in his tone. "From there, we escaped and gradually released other eugenics subjects in various countries across the world, and I imagine the rest is familiar to you."

"You set up your empire in the early 1990s and ruled over half of Earth." She confirmed. "Before you escaped the planet with seventy-two other Augments later."

"It was our belief that the rest of the human race couldn’t properly look after itself. Myself and a few others infiltrated world governments in 1990 and established our own, leading to the beginning of the Eugenics Wars in 1992. It was during this time when I did my research into the finer details of my origins, and one of the other things I eventually uncovered was my mother's naming process for me: I was named Khan after one of her grandfathers, she gave me my surname after the 15th century poet Singh el Bashir, and my middle name was after Noonien Prasad, her boyfriend who died from lung cancer while she was pregnant with me. We were attacked during my reign that followed by the non-Augment governments and threatened with nuclear weaponry, but I refused to retaliate with my own."

"I remember; you told me once on the Enterprise that yours was one of the few Augment governments where there wasn’t anything like genocide or the other worst parts of a dictatorship." Zinalya, who was currently leaning the back of her own body against the glass, stretched her legs out so that she was sitting with them in front of her and craned her head around to look at him. "You had the threat of total destruction over you and you still stood your ground without using the same weapons..."

"At one point, me and my own followers were also attacked by another Augment leader, although as you can see I was the one who won the battle." She could see his eyes becoming misty at this point. "But my leadership still almost cost me everyone I knew throughout this last year. In 1996, we were forced to flee to Australia and board a sleeper ship which we christened the SS Botany Bay, and then came Marcus' discovery of us." A tear slid ever so slowly down out of his left eye while the other one was still welling up. "If it is destiny which has brought me here to you in this time, then it must have a perverse way of thinking. I'm not certain whether or not I should be thankful for those circumstances."

"I'm so sorry." The security chief was finding his tears to be contagious. "I wish me and the others knew what was going on - he was manipulating you and threatening to take away every person you had left who mattered to you, and we did nothing..."

"You mustn't blame yourself, Zinalya." Khan turned to face her slightly more, and then came the tear from his right eye to match the one on his left cheek. "I'm sorry that I've gotten us into this current situation." He placed his index and middle fingertips from his left hand onto the surface of his side of the glass to indicate what he meant: they were separated from each other by nothing more than a thin material, and faced with the uncertainty of whether they'd be allowed to go into exile together or be well and truly separated indefinitely.

She gently shook her head and did the same with that of her right hand, turning her position herself to make it so that it was the left side of her body up against the glass instead of her back, as it had been previously. "It's okay. I know half your life's been hard - you didn't deserve those deaths of Tanvir or your mum, Khan. You didn't deserve any of the bad things that happened to you at all."

Hers were somewhat more free-flowing compared to his, but Khan and Zin just let their tears stream out in each other's company. The former shifted his position again in terms of how his head was inclined, which now made it look to anyone seeing it from in front of or behind them like they were leaning into each other with her head on his shoulder and his own head on the top of hers. They sat there for a while, in a silence laced with unspoken tenderness between them.

[mojoflower]

Teen Wolf mpreg fic recs (99% Sterek, 1% Steter)

I know that you love me, even when I lose my head by LunaCanisLupus 22 E, 136k, Complete.  “We’re not mates, Cora,” he insists. “I mean look at him-“  //  “Ouch,” the kid says, no longer pushing that shit eating grin.  //  “He’s- he’s,” Derek tries, at a loss of how to explain why this can’t be possible. Why it shouldn’t be possible.  //  Or the one where Derek gets attacked by hunters, ends up with amnesia and forgets Stiles is his mate.

Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Omega Stiles, Alpha Derek, but Stiles is a BAMF, BAMF Stiles, presumably Actual Derek is also a bamf, but College Derek is pretty useless, Heh heh

Wow, this story just grabbed me and didn't let me go and now it's the end of a full day and I have no excuse for abandoning everything except that I was really involved and enjoying the plot.  //  Stiles is such a fucking badass, I love this, he's super-smart and strategizes and handles everything that comes up like a pro and it's totally easy to see why they have such a large and powerful pack. 'College Derek', meanwhile, is a complete sexist asshole (with the whole Alpha/omega thing) who says some super hurtful things in the first half out of sheer ignorance mostly -- although occasionally it's spite. Stiles handles it as well as he can, trying to hide that it hurts and striking back because he has backbone for god's sake... but his bondmark is slowly fading and that's terrifying and tragic.  //  Meanwhile, the Silva pack is due to arrive with some manifest bad intentions, and Peter is lurking around stirring up trouble, and it's a really fucking bad time for Derek to not remember who he is, because it makes their pack vulnerable.  //  Great story.

The Lighthouse Keeper by tugela54 E, 75k, Complete.  On a rural island just off Alaska’s northern Inside Passage, stands a centuries old lighthouse - the perfect sanctuary for its keeper to hide when the moon is full, to burn and rage through its cycle with the townsfolk being none the wiser.  //  But then a new resident comes to Beacon Harbour – a bright-eyed young student chasing an elusive whale species – and all of a sudden those thick stone walls seem paper thin…

Bottom Stiles, Like Whoa,  

 Whoa, that was an intense climax, I'm kinda breathless. Great story. Stiles is earnest and funny (and sooo hot for the giant, hairy, handsome man -- when author says size difference they are not messing around and it's mentioned frequently) and Derek is monosyllabic and awkward. They figure it out eventually, and there is hot sex (did I say size difference and hirsuteness?). Laura's a great werewolf-sister (Derek is the only werewolf) and her son Seth is a cutie. The cast of characters (Chris, Jordon, Finstock, Angus, Gladys and the two First People Miriam and Jonah) are interesting and fleshed-out. Love the plot, and the take on Derek's werewolf (not Teen Wolf style), love the First People lore and rituals, love the setting waaay up in Alaska on this tiny island.  //  (Don't let Major Character Death tag scare you, you're gonna be just fine.)

Hey Lover, I Got a Sugarcane by pibroch (littleblackdog) Steter, E, 17k, Complete.  [References to Mpreg rather than straight-up #mpreg]  “Put Peter on the phone,” Stiles says, too sharp to be polite.  //  “What?” Derek sounds completely thrown. “Stiles, I don’t think— Okay, you’re obviously not understanding what’s happening here. Peter isn’t talking. He’s basically just growling at this point, and he’s rounding on anyone that gets too close. He actually bit me when I tried to take back my pillow. I nearly lost a thumb.”  //  “Derek.” The reality of this shitshow of a situation is finally kicking in, undeniably, and Stiles needs to hear Peter’s voice. “Just trust the omega, okay? Tell him it’s me, and give him the damn phone.”  //  ---"Wrangling Rut-Drunk Alpha Boyfriends 101" by Stiles Stilinski, omega and responsible adult person.

I've loved other things I've read by this author

Delicious. And also funny.

I've Got A Sure Thing by skoosiepants  T, 11k, Complete.  Stiles's water breaks ten miles outside of Beacon Hills.

Fox Stiles, Werefox Stiles, Daddy Stiles

Precious: I love the style, it tumbles and tumbles over itself. Stiles is himself. Derek keeps hanging around, and he loves little Princess Leia. Cora keeps laughing at them. Stiles might be a little confused.

******

He calls Derek and says, “I think your entire family is here, dude,” and Derek roars, “What?” and, “Don't call me dude, “ and, “Fuck, I'll be right over.”

Derek shows up in his EMT uniform and with his partner Boyd, stoic and amused, and the wild look in Derek's eyes is probably as close to a panic as Stiles will ever see him in.

Derek says, “Oh my god, Laura,” and grabs for Prin just as Prin launches herself out of Laura's arms toward him. He swings her up in a practiced movement and settles her on his hip and Laura grins so wide her fangs are showing.

“The pack wanted to meet her, even Mom's here,” she says, gesturing toward a big black wolf that looks almost exactly like Derek in wolf form – the wolf lifts her head and sneezes at them, then goes back to nosing through Stiles's DVD collection.

“Mom,” Derek says, and holds Prin up so she hides his face. Prin tugs at his hair and knees him in the eye and giggles when he shoves her up so her tummy is balanced on the top of his head, it's so cute Stiles can hardly stand it, his life is insane.

“Okay,” Stiles says, clapping his hands together, “I'll make tea.”

I don't think that means what you think it means by ThroughTheTulips  M, 21k, 7 works, Complete.  Ever notice how aliens have mostly similar customs to humans in Stargate? There never seem to be words or concepts that just don't translate. For the most part that makes sense given how they were spread deliberately across the universe, but there should be more weird stuff.  //  So I made some. This is very fluffy and ridiculous. Enjoy.

I simply can't with this. What an unanticipated, hysterical delight.

 I Know Where Babies Come From, Derek by DiscontentedWinter  E, 52k, Complete (series is 132k of deliciousness)  [Implied Mpreg, rather than actual #mpreg].  Stiles finds a baby on the porch.  //  It looks exactly like him.  //  Well, this is awkward.

Favorite, read again, still a favorite

Funny and unique and gripping (and there's one part that's simply fucking heartbreaking, god every.time. I bawl like a baby). I love this so much. It's totally one of my return-again-and-again-comfort-fics (even though there's very little that's slow-paced and domestic about it).

 monday i can fall apart but by friday i'm in love by tryslora  M, 6k, Complete.  It's just past five in the morning and Stiles is barely awake, wearing only sleep pants that hang low below his pregnant belly, and he can't get the damned brand new jar of decaf coffee open. But he has a neighbor, and he's too tired to think that waking someone else up at this hour might not be the best (or politest) of ideas.

Alpha Derek, Omega Stiles, Caretaking,  

lol.  short and funny and sweet and Alpha!Derek is a caretaker (and pregnant omega!Stiles is a sass-spewing dork)

 finger on the trigger and all fired up by tryslora  E, 6k, Complete  [Implied Potential Mpreg rather than #mpreg].  Derek goes undercover to expose a drug trafficking ring running inside of a porn studio. What he finds is Stiles.

Hot and funny.

 I'm Not Immune by moodwriter  E, 24k, Complete.  “Did they inject anything into you? You can hold me back. You can stop me. I can’t stop you.” Stiles is in full blown panic mode now.  //  The one where Stiles and Derek get kidnapped, and sex needs to happen for reasons.

Great story, grows as it's written. Follows a lot of emotional development, tangled in the godawfulfucking situation they're trapped in.

Fire, Fury, and Flame by IAmAVeronica  E, 125k, Complete.  Stiles Stilinski was never going to be the omega who got knocked up right after high school, and then he's accidentally artificially inseminated with a stranger's sperm.  //  Awesome.  //  And the father of Stiles's baby just so happens to be Derek Hale. Half-feral, quite possibly a murderer, and pursued by a gleefully sadistic band of hunters who are only too eager to use Stiles and his baby to hit Derek right where it hurts.  //  Joy.

Omega Stiles, Alpha Derek, Mpreg, Kidnapping, Stalking, cultural ramifications of a/b/o

So, Stiles, the omega-rights activist who never wants anything to do with an Alpha and wants to avoid any of that biological imperative bullshit, winds up pregnant a la Jane the Virgin. BUT. Derek is unwilling to commit, or even to have Stiles tell anyone who the baby-Daddy is. This could be because a complete psychopath has him in her targets.

Kate is one fuck-scary villain, just, crazy as a bag of cats and vicious with it, and the filth that comes out of her mouth is truly chilling.

Stiles gets kidnapped pretty early on, which is frightening enough, and then she's back for another try. At that point, he's kidnapped again, this time by Derek, who whisks him across the country to the Preserve, a werewolf compound in Maine. Here, Stiles is the only human, pregnant and vulnerable and trying to make a temporary life until the baby is born. But will it only be temporary?

There's love, sociopolitical musings, lots of angst, lots of danger. The baby is born about 3/4 of the way through the story, and then Kate comes around to terrorize everyone again. Even though Derek and Stiles are living in a house that's reinforced with bars and a panic room, she still manages to nearly burn Stiles and the baby…

 Rescue Me (& Take Me In Your Arms) by tumtatumtum  E, 34k, Complete (series is 37k so far).  Just when Stiles is starting to reach panic-attack levels of stress, a leather jacket and firm thigh are pressed right up next to him, and an arm is casually thrown over his shoulder. Stiles looks up to thank this kind person who is saving his life, and suddenly forgets what air is.  //  Because HOT. DAMN. Call the police and the fire-man, this guy is smoking.  //  Or the AU where Derek helps save Stiles from an ex, and a steamy BDSM relationship ensues- with feelings all over the place.

Fake/Pretend Relationship, Sub Stiles, Dom Derek

Whoooaa, Nellie. Strap in for a ride, folks. Hot and also hilarious, which is a difficult combo to achieve. Loads of D/s sexy times. Stiles is precious. Derek is possessive and a wee bit insecure. They're awful fun to watch together.  ***The one where Stiles is Alpha Mate which magically means he starts leaking slick outta his ass, even tho he's human.

*******

[Kept trying to find this fic using key words bar and boyfriend and ex-boyfriend... which finally got me there. It's SO worth a re-read or ten.] I also tagged it with fake/pretend relationships, since it's fake for about the first 5 minutes, until Derek puts his hand on the back of Stiles' neck and Stiles moans and MELTS and lo, romantic and sexual interest is born.)

 It's a mad, mad world by ElisAttack  E, 74k, Complete [No #mpreg]  "They call him the Feral Wolf." The man laughs hysterically as Stiles backs away from him, fear coursing through his veins. "Feral Hale. Do you know why? Huh?" The man creeps closer, testing the restraint of his chains, white talcum falling from his skin, swirling in the air like the dust devils plaguing the wasteland. "Because he's fucking mad."  //  Or the one where Stiles is a prisoner looking to return home, but to do so, he may have to rely on a questionable drifter.

Really enjoyed this. Very interesting take on alpha/omega, haven't seen it before. And yay for apocalyptic mad max-type world. Scary as fuck.

a little advice for aspiring fires by The Byger (Byacolate)  E, 42k, Complete.  Regardless of his sadly lacking social circle, Stiles was going to have to get some physical contact or he was going to explode. Seriously. It’d be messy and Derek would probably become even more emotionally constipated having to clean up little bits of Stiles from his pristine walls and furniture.

Touch-Starved, Skin Hunger, Omega Stiles, Sassy Stiles, stiles talks CONSTANTLY, Mpreg, Kidfic

But We're Still Sleeping Like We're Lovers by CharWright5  E, 110k, Complete  [No #mpreg].  There are several things Stiles Stilinski knows to be facts: he's a werecoyote like his parents; his twin sister Malia could use a filter more than him; he's an Omega and terrified of his upcoming heat; and Derek Hale-McCall will never see him as anything more than his kid brother's best friend. Doesn't stop Stiles from asking the Alpha to help him during his heat. Or from developing some serious feelings that go beyond the bedroom. Basically, he's totally screwed, in more ways than one.

Fox Stiles, Creature Stiles, he's not a fox, but when I'm cruising that tag, I'll like to read this story

Idiot boys. Hot sex. More idiot boys. Angst. Fluff.

Jurisdiction by elisera  M, 7k, Complete (series complete at 20k).  John is a pretty level-headed guy. He wasn’t always, back during his own Sturm und Drang period, but he married a firecracker of a woman and got a kid with an affinity for trouble like he got payed for ending up in it, so someone had to level out or they would’ve ended up living in a treehouse or Lapland doing god knows what. Anyway, getting a hold of his temper is one of John’s better life achievements. It makes him a good sheriff and it kept him from blowing his lid too badly those last two years when Stiles started acting out in a way that John had never seen before.  //  But the temper is still there.  //  He’s reminded of it when he comes home on a random Saturday in March after spilling his milkshake all over his uniform shirt only to notice he didn’t have a spare in the station and finds Stiles bend over the kitchen sink with hunched shoulders.

Papa Stilinski is a total badass and mmm mmmm mmmm, so is Derek. Stiles has got some awesome muscle looking out for his best interests.

Into Something New by marguerite_26  E, 9k, Complete.  [Implied Mpreg rather than #mpreg].  Something is happening to Stiles. He’s losing time. Something is messing with his head, with his body. Maybe if he felt better he’d think to be worried.

 Nowhere Man by 1lostone  E, 76k, Complete.  [Mpreg (off screen)]  When Stiles leaves Beacon Hills, he does it without a backwards glance. For two years he is happy on the other side of the country- until someone targets not only him, but his daughter.  //  Unfortunately, the asshole bodyguard his dad hired to make sure he gets back home is none other than Derek Hale. And that's really not very good for either of them.

1lostone is, as always, the goddess of the lengthy, painful, disturbing, angsty, violent, sexy story. God, I love it.

The Second Coming (of Werewolf Jesus) by lupinus, uraneia  E, 40k, Complete.  Stiles was enjoying his senior year until his crazy English teacher decided he made the best candidate to gestate Derek's kid. Now Stiles is a seventeen-year-old pregnant dude and he and Derek have to figure their shit out, because in nine months they are going to be tied together for the rest of their lives.

Sweet: very fluffy and domestic.

Pride and Place by DarkAthena (seraphim_grace)  E, 63k, Complete.  (Part of series A/B/O bodice rippers) [Mpreg, Discussion of mpreg, no men were pregnant in the making of this fic].  Derek Hale, Earl of Osterbrook, has inherited, following the death of Lord Montfort, a run down house in Yorkshire he neither needs nor wants, convinced his staff are robbing him, and with the mystery of a missing ward, he manages to get himself talked into a ridiculous bet, that he cannot pass as a steward until Midwinter, nearly two months away. So can he maintain the charade? Find the missing child? and manage to turn the shambles of a house around, or will he give up and let Peter take the thousand pounds he bet.  //  now with explicit epilogue - the rest of the story is teen rated though, so if you don't like the idea of explicit sex in your bodice rippers - just don't read that bit.

Great story.

The Well of Living Waters by kalpurna  E, 30k, Complete.  King Derek takes a consort.

 Within His Power by NoBezel  E, 69k, Complete.  [Discussion of mpreg]  Derek is a wolfish cyborg, brother of the Governor of California, heir to the Hale fortune. Stiles is a un-sequenced human in a world of designer DNA. When Derek is forced to choose a mate, no one expects him to choose Stiles. To be fair, Derek doesn't expect him to say no.

Pretty fucking phenomenal. Lots of world-building and political intrigue. If you're in it for the tropes, you'll be disappointed, but otherwise it's intense and dense and lovely.

The Threat of Human Sacrifice by vampireisthenewblack  E, 45k, Complete.  The sheriff bought a crib and made Derek help him put it together. Stiles thought of Hemingway and the shortest, most heartbreaking story ever told, and dismantled it on his own while Derek was out.  //  [The one where Stiles getting knocked up is the least of his worries.]

So excellent and intense.

The Honey and the Sting by the_ragnarok  M, 19k, Complete (series still wip)  Derek didn't remember what happened when he went into heat. He could only assume the worst. The truth may be stranger than that.

Beautiful.

Tiny Houses by ohmyjetsabel  E, 77k, Complete.  "So this is what Stiles does. He lies in Scott’s bed and waits for Melissa to say she’s found someone to get it out of him, to cure him of the wrongness and the bad, and he dreams.  //  God, he dreams.  //  He dreams of fire and swollen bellies and that scene in Alien, of giving birth to jackals through his urethra, the whole horrific nine yards. His head is a terrible place to be, he can’t imagine his stomach is much better, why anyone would want to put a thing inside of it."

Fuck.

 Shifts by gryvon  E, 15k, Complete.  Stiles has what he's always secretly wanted - he's in a relationship with Derek and he's one of Derek's betas - but all that gets turned upside down when Gerard kidnaps him and his unexpected baby.

Who doesn't want Stiles having emotionally confusing sex with Derek, getting knocked up unbeknownst to either of them, and then kidnapped for the future baby? I mean, really. It's classic.

A Mating Moon by unpossible  E, 37k, Complete.  (Series 55k so far.) [this is not mpreg, just to be clear]  “Hey, Scott, so, I uh, there’s this amazingly hot guy and I’m uh, gonna spend the weekend with him but, you know, just to be careful, I’m sending you his picture, so if by some terrible chance my bloated corpse shows up sometime Monday, just, y’know pass this along to the authorities.” He pauses. “Uh. Kidding?” and then hangs up with a rush of air.  //  “That is the worst voicemail in the history of voicemails,” Derek says.

fucking fantastic

 (Once in a) Blue Moon by clarkoholic, skywardsmiles  E, 60k, Complete.  (Series 63k so far.)  Stiles and Derek are getting along, but they’re not a family, and they’re sure as hell not mates. Christ, they’re basically just two stupid guys who happened to get pregnant because of a full moon and sheer dumb luck.

Oh, the angst, the pining, the guilt, the blame, the anger. Total pain-fest while we watch Stiles nearly die from the burden of the pregnancy. Lovely sweet ending, of course.

Tried and Tested Series by dancinbutterfly  E, 53k, 12 works, Complete.  In which Derek has a sex emergency with unplanned results, Stiles could be the baby daddy on one of those horrible MTV pregnancy shows, Sheriff Stilinski takes in strays and life in Beacon Hills never has a dull moment, not even when things are calm.

Really wonderful series. Stopped at Part 11, so am waiting for updates. A good investment of time, even incomplete. ;D  //  [Huh, evidently I missed an update somewhere along the line!]

In the Solstice of our Hearts by ravingrevolution  E, 73k, Complete.  "You're not putting that up your butt," Scott told him flatly and Stiles couldn't stop the pissed off whine he made, but his friend continued. "Stiles, you can't put that up your butt, you know that. Your butt won't be ready for anything to go in it until-"  //  "Okay, okay!" he said, flailing his hands to stop his friend's lecture. "Message received, no butt stuff until I'm pounced on by some freaking animal in the forest and ravished to within an inch of my life. Got it. Thanks, Scotty, I mean heaven forbid I actually try to take control of my life and give myself a fighting chance or anything."  //  "Not all alphas are animals," Scott said quietly.  //  Maybe he was right, but Stiles wasn't holding his breath.

Omega Stiles, Berserk Stiles, omega beast, everyone's a virgin, Hurt/Comfort, care taking

The one where there's a Mate Run in the woods, and Derek with his pack manage to frighten Stiles up a tree from whence he falls and is impaled on a branch (ouch!) and then they spend a week in a cave while Stiles heals. Meanwhile, Kate and her cronies are sneaking into the month-long Mate Run with the intent to a)finally kill Derek and b) sneakily bond with some omegas. So Stiles goes berserk, which is the omega form of a hulking violence monster, to protect Derek. (Story could have stopped there, but carries on for another 1/3.)

[severelynerdysheep]

So for some reason, @whitecopal blocked me from responding to them... I wonder why... but since its really important not to let misinformation get spread I thought id post my reply to them anyway!

Actually, some of the most horrific footage from farm investigations are from small farms that use labels such as “organic” and “free range”.  And of course as I've repeated this multiple times, but you seem to be skipping over it, but some of the cruelest practices are industry standard across all farms, these are practices inflicted onto these animals regardless of the farm size/location, and its many of these industry standard practices that are shown in investigative footage. And, of course, they end up at the same slaughterhouses, where their lives are brutally taken from them for the personal pleasure of people such as yourself. Since you seemingly can't address the actual practices I've mentioned or the uncomfortable truth that breeding animals to exploit, abuse and slaughter needlessly is unethical, no matter how you try to twist yourself into knots to defend it. Such as using a random article from a pro-animal testing website about PETA and its campaign against cruelty at the University of Wisconsin (which has zero relation to animal agriculture investigations). If you took a minute instead of immediately seeing a post that confirmed your own biases then you would maybe have learned that this specific university even admitted that "Many of the individual facts are true," following the PETA campaign to expose and end sound-localization experiments on cats at the University. I would recommend checking out the facts before you use brutal experiments on cats to somehow defend animal exploitation and slaughter, an attempt that is indeed an act on mental gymnastics. Luckily the university has stopped these cruel experiments after mounting pressure and even a large fine for violating the Animal Welfare Act. try harder sweetie..and maybe don't be so quick to play gotcha.

The term carnist simply refers to carnism, the invisible belief system, or ideology, that conditions people to eat certain animals. really I don't know why you all get worked up over a descriptive term, you get more worked up over a term than of actual animals being brutally exploited and slaughtered for your own personal pleasure.

I've spoken about honey and the wool industry loads of times but yes both are cruel.

In regards to honey, standard practices in commercial beekeeping for honey, regardless of locality of the honey farm, include killing off entire hives before winter to reduce costs, artificial insemination, a process where which male bees are crushed and drained of their semen, which is then forcefully inserted into a queen bee, ripping the wings of queen bees to prevent them from flying away and taking all or most of the honey bees produce, and replacing it with a sugar syrup substitute which is thought to contribute to the development of disease in honeybees because it does not provide the proper nutrition and may produce a toxin under heat that kills the honeybees. both wild and domestic honey bees are harmed by this industry. A fab article by @acti-veg​ here.

In regards to wool, the wool of domesticated sheep (such as the merino) only needs sheering due to intensive genetic engineering through selective breeding practices in order to maximize wool production for the sake of profit. This genetic engineering means that domestic sheep suffer from all kinds of health problems. As a result, simply continuing to breed them to exploit and slaughter is inhumane and an act of cruelty in itself since these animals suffer immensely in these bodies. When it comes to the shearing process itself, sheep so very often suffer injury and distress due to the incredibly rough treatment by shearers, as they are pinned down and aggressively sheared, often being cut, sliced, and torn during the process (research also shows that even without the common brutal treatment, sheering causes distress to sheep and raises stress levels. This is an issue on a mass scale. The wool is also often harvested far too early in the season for profit reasons, which leaves the sheep bared and exposed to the elements (and many sheep die every year after being sheered too early into spring for profit reasons) and these shearers are usually paid by volume of wool sheered instead of by the hour which only encourages such awful treatment of these animals. We have so many investigations and testimonials from workers and eyewitnesses to this cruelty that is inflicted upon sheep during sheering. These sheep are also almost always slaughtered at a fraction of their lifespan when they are no longer profitable enough to farmers. They are loaded into extremely cramped lorry’s, traveling long journeys (often overseas where many perish on route to) to slaughterhouses (in countries with even worse “welfare” regulations) to be brutally slaughtered for their flesh.  I would absolutely recommend checking out this article, also by the great @acti-veg and Bitesizevgegan and also a great short video on the topic here.

For anyone reading who wants to learn more about the standard practices within the animal agriculture industry across farms ALL sizes, I would absolutely recommend checking out the links below.

~ Land of hope and glory documentary (set in the UK and using footage from rspca assured and small farms including many industry standard practices)

~ Dominion documentary (set in AUZ and also uses footage of industry standard practices)

~ Viva, a fab UK charity which has loads of info!

~ More info on all the areas of animal exploitation

~ Testimonies from former “humane” small farmers

[drferox]

Artificial Insemination Addendum

Something people don’t realize with Artificial Insemination is that choice bulls, stallions, tom cats, dogs, turkey toms, billy goats, boars, and many other male animals is their value. These animals can be worth thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even MILLIONS of dollars. They’re rigorously tested for sexually transmitted diseases, semen quality, sperm health, etc. Then they’re genetically tested on top of it to make sure the babies it passes on are sound in health, physical build, and many other things normal people wouldn’t care about but a producer does. 

Stallions, as an example, in racing and show breeding can be worth a ton of money, the heirs being worth sometimes 2-3 times more if they preform well. 

Of course, keeping your male animals from getting injured by a breeding mishap is in your best interest as a producer and as a human being who wants animals to not be hurt in the process of rearing young. This is why artificial insemination exists, at least in part. You reduce the risk of transmitted disease, injury, and death by sticking a little tube into the cervix of an animal (size permitting) and injecting a small plug of semen into it. You also have proven healthy genetics so that leaves no guessing on if your animals will grow up and thrive in almost all cases. - Sometimes there are flukes, freak accidents, acts of god, mishaps, and generally bad years in production. This can mean even the choicest of sperm and your choicest of dames fails to produce offspring. That’s how the world is sometimes. 

AI even can go as far as separating sperm by the sex it will create when it pairs to an egg. Want all female cattle to be born to reduce the loss of money that year or feel bad about sending bull calves to be veal? It can be done (though I don’t know its viability). 

As for if AI is “rape”? It’s not even comparable. It’s used as a scare word to make people think animals have the capacity to feel that kind of thing. Most animals aren’t even picky about the males they pair up with. We as humans have just learned that in small stalls and pens the animals can get hurt or contract a transmissible disease. That costs money to fix and might end up not working, ending with a dead animal. Not only do we hate dead animals because of moral implications, but from a production standpoint it can make or break a farm/ranch/dairy/other trying to make a claim in the production race that is making billions every year all over the globe.

The monetary value of the male animal, or indeed the female, I didn’t feel was relevant to the discussion as to whether Artificial Insemination equals Rape (link), though it’s undoubtedly a factor for why it is done. Some breeds, like Thoroughbreds, have banned AI though.

AI using sex-sorted semen (possible because the  chromosome is heavier than the Y chromosome) is actually a promising method to reduce the welfare concerns of bobby calves (male dairy calves). Using sex-sorted semen, it’s possible to get a calf population which is 80% female and 20% male instead of 50:50, which means less bobby calves and all the welfare implications involved with them.

AI may also be less of a welfare issue than transporting two animals long distances to mate, as with various endangered species programs.

AI is generally not aversive to the animal receiving it. They show no inclination to avoid the area or the handlers involved in the procedure. A rape survivor will often tell you they have no inclination to go anywhere near that situation again, to the point of developing PTSD. A human undergoing AI will tell you it’s mildly uncomfortable, but not traumatizing to that extent.

There is nothing violent about AI in our domestic animals. Whether or not it’s necessary or desirable is another matter, but labeling it as rape helps nobody, deflects the discussion and does nothing other than get tempers flaring.

[bridgeburningbucky]

Baby Daddy Barnes

Summary: Your plan of having a baby on your own sort of back fires when you meet Bucky.

A/N: I have no business trying to start another series but it’s one in the morning again and this came out.

This is it.

It’s finally happening, you’re going to have a baby. You giggle and the movement makes the paper crinkle under you. That’s when the doctor comes in, “Ready Miss. Y/N?”

You nod your head excitedly, “I’ve been waiting my whole life for this.”

The doctor just chuckles, “Is there someone coming in? Do you want me to to wait?”

Your smile tightens, “No, no it’s just me.”

The doctor’s smile softens and she says, “Well then, let’s have a baby.”

This isn’t how you had seen yourself having a baby. No. You had it all planned out, marry your college love at 26, and then have a beautiful baby by 28.

That dream went to crap when you found your boyfriend of 6 years cheating on you with his receptionist.

When your world shattered the only thing you could do was run. You moved across the country, from New York to LA because at least then the heat could keep your heart from completely freezing over. Dramatic? Yes, but in the moment it’s what you thought would be best for you.

Then your life turned into some cliche movie where you dedicate your life to your work for a few years. You never really dated, just a few hookups here and there and by the time you knew it, you’re 28 going on 29 and life just seems like it’s rushing by.

The one thing you knew for sure even before you graduated from school was that you wanted to be a mom. The thought of growing a small human was magical. Though finding out the man you loved didn’t really love you the same the idea of a happy family left your mind.

After reading an article on single women using artificial insemination you thought, well I could do that too. What’s better than finding a man who loves you? A child who has unconditional love for you. Your plan was to have a baby at 28 and through this procedure that could still be possible.

You had the money to maintain yourself and a child, and the thought of having a child when youre older isn’t an idea your keen on. Your parents had you when they were on the older side and if you waited any longer who knows if they’ll even get to see their grandchildren. It makes sense.

You try not to focus on what your doctor is doing between you legs but you make sure to listen when the she says, “The chances of you getting pregnant the first try are 10 to 20 percent, so it would be best that you don’t stress out and let it happen.”

You nod your head in understanding. At least you were trying and that’s all that matters to you. Once your doctor was done she asked you to come back in two weeks.

You walk out of the clinic with a spring to your step. You really hoped that you would get pregnant on the first try. You weren’t going to tell anyone until you knew for sure that you were having a baby.

A baby! You can’t believe you did this, never in a million years did you think it would happen this way but how it’s done doesn’t matter anymore. You put a hand on your stomach and smile because this is something you’ve always wanted.

Your phone rings, it’s your future sister in law calling, “Hey Nat what’s up?”

“Y/N where are you?”

“I just got out of work,” you lie.

“Are you headed to the dress shop then?”

“Yes, I’m on my way. What kind of a maid of honor would I be if I was late to my best friend’s dress fitting?”

“The kind that would seriously get her ass kicked, hurry up I’m getting anxious!”

You laugh and hang up before heading over to the dress shop. You still have no idea how your best friend and your older brother, Bruce got together but it somehow seemed to work. Two of your favorite people together and in love. You wouldn’t say you were jealous but it somehow seemed so easy for them.

You sigh, if only it had been that easy for you. You thank the stars that Bruce and Nat were already in LA when your life had seem to be falling apart. Although you needed to be away from everything, knowing that you at least had them close by you knew things would be okay. Nat kicked your ass until you finally decided to dive back into your work and Bruce was there for emotional support.

Arriving at the shop you see Nat already talking to the woman who was going to run the fitting.

“Finally your here! Come on I haven’t eaten yet and I want to get this over with so that I can finally stuff my face.”

You roll you eyes, “Nat, how many times do I have to tell you that you’ve been the same size since like senior year.”

It was her turn to roll her eyes, “Leave me be and let me starve so I can fit into this dress.”

The woman takes Nat into the dressing room and you sit on one of the chairs positioned in front of the mirrors. As Nat comes out in one of the most stunning weddings gowns you’ve ever seen, you start crying, “Nat you look beautiful, oh my goodness.”

Nat turns around and looks at herself for the first time in her dress. She doesn’t say anything, just holds a hand to her mouth and tears start to pool in her eyes.

You know that she’s thinking about how her mom isn’t here to see her and it breaks your heart. You stand up and wrap you arms around her, “I know your mom would be crying just as bad as I am. She probably wouldn’t stop saying how gorgeous you look.”

Nat just nods her head, “I just wish that they were here you know? Thank you so much for being here with me.”

You rub her shoulder, “Always.”

You had known Nat since you were seven, and when you were both 17 her parents were in a car accident. Your parents took her in after that and she’s always been so grateful of your family. Well, officially her family in a few months time.

“Bruce is going to cry like a baby when he sees you,” you laugh wiping the tears from your face.

This gets her to smile, “Yeah, he’s such a baby sometimes.”

Once you both got yourselves back in check you head out to your cars.

“You’re coming over to the get together we’re having right?” Nat asks putting her dress in the back seat of her car.

You nod, “What else would I be doing?”

Nat holds a finger to her lips, “Probably working or working, or I don’t know…working?”

Nat’s always giving you shit for working too much and she’s probably right but it doesn’t matter because it’s gonna help you and your baby in the long run.

“You’re such a bully. I’ll see you later,” you say sticking your tongue out at her childishly and heading to your house to change for tonight’s party.

The small gathering is in full swing once you get to Nat and Bruce’s. You walk over to Bruce who is at the grill and you give him a kiss on the cheek as greeting.

“Hey little sis, what’s new?”

Bruce has always been able to read you so you have to play it cool so that you don’t spill the whole baby thing, “Nothing much, you know me work, work, work.”

He eyes you suspiciously, “Uh huh, same old same old?”

You nod your head, and look around until you see Nat setting up the table, “Hey I’m going to help out Nat, I’ll see you in a bit.”

You escape his curious eyes and help Nat set the table.

“Y/N can you grab the paper plates from the cabinet?”

You nod and head inside, the plates seem to be on the top shelf of the cabinet and you’re having a hard time reaching them. One hand extended up, you’re about to place you right knee on the counter to boost you up when someone comes up behind you and reaches the plates for you. You freeze, the body feels like a damn wall and the heat that’s radiating off their chest could compete with a small heater.

“I got them,” the wall says. You lose your balance a bit as you bring down your leg and he also manages to steady you, “And I got you.”

“T-thanks,” you stutter out. He gives you a smile and nods his head. You both walk back out to the back yard and you continue to help Nat and the wall of a man goes to the group of men hanging with Bruce by the grill. You can’t help but notice the way he wraps his lips around the beer bottle every time he takes a swig.

Nat catches you staring at him and smirks, “I see Bucky caught your eye.”

You quickly take your eyes off of him and turn to her, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Cut the bull shit, he’s a nice guy, from what Bruce told me, ex-military and definitely someone you should talk to.”

“I don’t have time to talk to anybody right now. You know I’m focusing on my career.”

Nat rolls her eyes, “Whatever you say.”

Once the food is ready everyone sits down, and Bucky seems to find his seat in front of you. You can’t help but feel like you’ve seen him before. His eyes catch yours and you quickly look away.

Why are you acting like such a school girl? You literally might have a baby soon and you can’t even talk to a man like a grown adult.

Bucky notices that you don’t have a drink, “Hey doll, do you want a beer?”

He’s about to get up and get you one but you stop him, “No no, a water please.” He nods and goes to get it.

Nat looks at you weirdly, you never turn down a drink. You look away from her and mess around with your food to avoid eye contact. Bucky returns with a bottled water and you say a quiet thank you.

Chatter can be heard from the rest of the table and Bucky clears his throat before saying, “Bruce tells me you’re an accountant?”

You nod your head, “Yeah, I am. It’s weird, I’ve always hated numbers but yet here I am.” He chuckles. You don’t know how to continue the conversation so you ask, “Ex-military huh?”

He takes another swig from his beer and shit do his lips look like sin. Then his tongue licks off a drop of beer from his bottom lip and you’re feeling a little hot.

He nods his head and answers, “I did three tours in Afghanistan.”

“Wow that’s amazing and what are you doing now?”

“I’m a personal trainer.”

“I can see why,” you say under your breath but you know he heard it cause he chuckles. Your face goes red and then it clicks, “I think we go to the same gym!”

He raises an eyebrow, “I don’t think I’ve seen you around? I would have remembered your face doll.”

You blush, “I haven’t been in a couple of weeks but I’m pretty sure I’ve seen you before.”

“Maybe in your dreams,” he says with a smirk taking another swig of that fucking beer bottle.

part 2 :)

[jamespaul321]

Automation in Dairy Industry & Role of Dairy Supply Chain Services

Automation in Dairy Industry

Many dairy farmers, processors, and distributors employ technology to automate tasks previously done manually. Automation not only streamlines the work, but it often allows farmers to produce more and better products and continually monitor their herds’ health. It also helps those products move from farms to consumers’ tables more quickly and with greater visibility.

Dairy Farming

Dairy farming has a significant environmental impact on land, water usage, greenhouse gas emissions, other natural resources, and human health risks due to using antibiotics in cows for production purposes.

Cattle could be kept in a barn or free-stall housing instead of tied outside 24/7 year-round except during bad weather. In all dairies today, calves are separated from their mothers within a day to two weeks after birth, depending on the size and type of dairy, and fed formula rather than milk. Dairy cows typically die before 15 because of production-related health problems such as mastitis or lameness.

Cattles

The breeds that yield lots of milk are also more likely to produce twins; those calves may be raised for beef or veal. The cattle must give birth to lactate (make milk), but having a single calf every year is insufficient. Today, most dairy herds consist of more than one breed, e.g., Holsteins and Jerseys, Guernseys and Ayrshires, Brown Swiss and Milking Shorthorns. Despite artificially inseminating cows, dairy cows are still likely to have calves only once every one or two years.

Dairy farms can be small operations with just a few milking cows requiring the farmer’s daily labour, or extensive factory-like operations with 1000+ cows being milked three times a day by hired labour and producing hundreds of thousands of litres per year. Dairy farms generally sell their male calves for veal meat production, while others may keep the heifers (female) for replacements when needed. A farm that holds its replacement heifers is known as a cow-calf operation. Dairy farms that produce more milk than they need may choose to sell part or all of their production to receive some income rather than having it go to waste. Dairy farmers receive payment based on the quality and quantity of milk produced by their herd. The cows are milked twice a day, but during peak production months, the farmer may spend additional time milking them three times a day or more to help them produce even more milk.

Size of the Dairy Farming Industry

Dairy farming has become an increasingly large industry over the last century. As the demand for dairy products grows worldwide, so does the number of dairy farms in operation around the world. Dairy processing is often carried out on much larger scales than dairy farming. Dairy factories were initially established to recover cream from whole milk; recovery of skimmed milk was an afterthought and became feasible only when technological developments allowed it. Separated cream was (and is) a significant product in milk processing, as it is used to produce butter, cream and many soft-drink flavours. The skim milk was generally dried to form a powder, which can be sold as a health food for children or as an ingredient in the manufacture of animal feeds. The dairy industry has been subject to severe fluctuations in pricing together with changing public opinion, restrictive marketing practices from retailers and pressure from other countries that have enabled them to sell directly into your country. Dairy farmers have been rapidly disappearing over the past decades, and the number of cows has dropped by 40% since 1990 alone. Dairy farms are shifting towards more giant factories called Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), where animals are inside most or all of their lives. Dairy products are made with milk from cows raised in Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs). An example is the concentrated milk operation of Chino Dairy, which was fined $100,000 for animal cruelty violations.

International Market

Dairy farmers will tell you that producing the highest quality possible under humane conditions is how they can compete successfully on an international market. Many dairy farmers complain about their treatment by the corporations who buy their milk and pay them price per litre instead of price per tonne of feed consumed. Dairy farmers also struggle to get access to veterinary drugs explicitly developed for animals under natural conditions. Most intensive dairy farming would be impossible without these drugs, yet drug companies charge very high prices, often prohibiting their use across borders. Dairy farmers are also having difficulties continuing their business with the high costs of inputs, which they cannot pass on to consumers anymore due to the increased competition in the market.

Dairy Supply Chain

Have you ever wondered how milk gets from the cow to your home? Dairy products make up a significant part of many diets around the world. Dairy farms are responsible for milk production, processing it into different dairy products such as cheese or yogurt, and distributing those products to grocery stores and restaurants where consumers can purchase them. Dairy farms significantly impact the world economy, providing jobs and revenue for farmers and other business people.

Mana Agro DMCC is one of the most prominent dairy supply chain experts that supply products in the MENA region.

Source: https://goodpostin.medium.com/automation-in-dairy-industry-role-of-dairy-supply-chain-services-9f00d1238643

[tatooedlaura-blog]

Something from nothing

This third series reads as follows:

Shattered … Desolation … Determination … Us and Ours … Ratty Towels … The Sleepover … Skinner and the Punch … Oregon ... Impossibilities

@today-in-fic ... and thanks to @13starbuck42 for reading it, fixing it, encouraging it :)

&&&&&&&&&&

The Nyquil held him until around 4am, when he began looking for her in his half-dazed stupor of sleep, arms roaming, running into cold sheets and empty pillow. Stumbling from the bed, eyes stuck together, he wandered, shivering, out to the living room, following phantom Scully trail. Finding her in the dark, sitting in the overstuffed chair by the window, he wondered for half a second if she was asleep but her head turn towards the sound of him kicking the couch leg told him otherwise, “hi.”

“Hi. What are you doing awake?”

“I got lonely. Why are you out here?” Turning the chair with her in it so she faced him as he sat down on the coffee table, he finally noticed the exhausted, dull blue eyes, the puffy, red-rimmed lids, and reaching over to grip her knee, “you haven’t slept yet, have you?”

Head still resting on the wing of the chair, she shook a ‘no’ at him, “I’ve had a little on my mind.”

“I haven’t. You should really try that liquid green nightmare. I don’t remember dreaming a damn thing but it leaves a wicked whiskey and roadkill aftertaste.” Wiggling forward as much as he could, he rubbed her shoulders, “is it the baby or the chip in my neck that’s bothering you most?”

The look she shot at him should have knocked him off the table and onto his ass but he held steady, didn’t blink, “you know about the chip?”

Nodding, “I set off the metal detectors at the airport. I told them I had been shot on duty years ago and Skinner had already gone through the line so he didn’t hear.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Why didn’t you tell me when you found it, ‘cause I was a little busy having a meltdown that you were pregnant and I’d almost left you behind to frolic the universe on the mother ship.”

“I was busy panicking that you nearly left me, elated you came home, scared sick I was pregnant, freaking out about your ‘meltdown’ and I was not about to add another layer of ‘you’re not going to believe this shit’ on top of everything else.”

“Then what are we arguing about?” Leaning forward to catch her lips in a kiss, “and I will never forget you actually said ‘freaking out’.”

Nowhere near ready to joke about anything, “I saw it in the tub last night. Why would they do that to you?”

“They prefer us a matching set, I guess.” Reaching over to pull an afghan across his shoulders, teeth chattering in the chill, “will you come back to bed with me so we can talk and you can keep my feet warm at the same time?”

Instead of answering, she held his gaze for an infinite amount of time, pupils wide in the dark. Finally, he moved his hand to hers, waiting until she took it, pulling her up next to him, holding her fingers while they walked the green glow of the hallway back to bed.

Settled, cocooned in comforter, blankets, knit and wool, “I’m going to put the chip discussion on hold until sometime tomorrow, maybe, or never, but since I woke up, I’ve come up with a theory about our tiny Earthling. Would you like to hear it?”

“How did you form an idea in two minutes when I can’t even slow my brain enough to remember how to make toast?”

“I’ve had a little sleep which trumps your ‘I’ve been up for three days’ and besides, my mind apparently processes a lot of shit coming down from a Nyquil high. Who knew.” Finding her hand under the covers, twining fingers and brushing knuckles, “my theory is now fully formed, I just have a few timeline questions first.”

Scully, her head half buried in pillow, nose nearly touching his, “I can’t promise anything. Remember, I can’t make toast.”

“You found out you were infertile about two years ago and you had the tests after that, right?” Seeing her nod, he continued, “then you went to Africa and touched the ship, which you stated brings things back to life, heals things … do you see where I’m going with this?”

She had a vague idea but her brain was mostly still crying for sleep. She shrugged her confusion and he moved on.

“You weren’t tested again before we started our IVF, correct? You just went on what you were told two years ago, which should have been correct.”

Now she stopped him, tired mind still managing to remember basic anatomy and biological science, “regardless, the human body cannot just make more eggs. What we are born with is what we have. They were all taken out and I was left with nothing. None, Mulder … a big fat zero.”

Her eyes slipped shut, desperate to sleep, desperate not to talk about this anymore for the moment. Mulder, however, being Mulder, rubbed his nose over hers, lips barely brushing as he continued, “we both know there is a very good chance those assholes who took you left one or two eggs behind or maybe that ship kicked your body into high gear and did some weird alien fuckery to you and managed to get your body to make more eggs. I’m not going to question that. I just know that by how far long you are, we made this small human being on your mother’s back porch, hammock-style, on that last really warm Thursday we had. There was Cool Whip on chocolate pie and you ate the Cool Whip and left me the pie and what was possibly the best meatloaf I’ve ever eaten and collared greens that you ate for me because I will never eat anything named collard green. We were very much alone and very much aware and very much not artificially inseminated.”

Hoping she was still listening, “this is our baby, Scully, and I’d change my mind about the existence of your God before I change my mind about that.

Her head had dried out two hours ago but her heart ached like she could cry for another three days, “tell me more.”

“You were only in Oregon a few days ago and this kid wouldn’t be the size you’re telling me if it had just happened. I went into that ship voluntarily and you got kicked back out; Skinner couldn’t get in at all. They only allowed previous abductees through and it didn’t want you. You were already pregnant and from my guess, not useful to them anymore. We made this kid the old-fashioned way and I’m going to scream it from the rooftops just as soon as I take a nap and you get some sleep.”

And he let this idea stew there, in the deep recesses of gray matter, while he waited, memorizing fathomless blue, bloodshot red and flecks of gold.

It was a tiny inhale, expansion and contraction of chest that made him hold his own breath before the softest whisper reached his ear, her lips barely moving, “you think this baby is truly ours?”

“I think this baby is truly ours.”

She kissed him hard, running into his mouth in desperate belief, putting all her faith in a theory that shouldn’t and couldn’t exist in her universe as she’d known it ten minutes earlier, “I don’t know what to do.”

“Trust me.” As he haphazardly and messily rolled her over, he snuggled up close behind, hand on her belly, lips on her neck, “and go to sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up.”

&&&&&&&&&

It was a restless morning for her, legs moving, turning, rolling, occasional twitching spasms giving Mulder inevitable future bruises. At times, however, the rains grew heavy against the window and over the roof, lulling her to stillness with the comfort of white noise. Mulder watched her lying on her back, eyes fluttering, long eyelashes brushing against alabaster cheeks, wondering if staying was worth it … they could go, run far, live quietly on the ocean, live secretly in the mountains, live safely on their own island.

He could protect his family better there than he could in a two-bedroom walkup in Georgetown.

As he began drifting towards a 10-hour nap, he wondered how in the world he could take the entire family with them.

Hunger drove him from bed eventually, the light through the blinds a diffused dark grey color, time determination only possibly by first, then second glance at the clock on the microwave. It said 2:11 but he had to stop and wonder if that was am or pm, then, realizing it didn’t really matter to his stomach or hers, he began defrosting containers of vegetable soup courtesy of Maggie and her need to send food home with them because, as she aptly put it, she sometimes forgets that she doesn’t have to cook for 15 people every damn day.

He then heated the oven, made biscuits and just before the oven timer went off, heard the slide of stocking feet across tile floor. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw her, eyes still at half-mast, hair puffed from pillow and bath the night before. Quilt trailing behind, she stood there, wrapped awkwardly, blinking, “was it a dream? I can’t tell.”

Deciding to remove the biscuits before forgetting about them, he then turned, wrapping arms around her, bulky quilt and all, “not a dream.”

Mulder gave it a second, then pulled back slightly, saw her eyes harden a little, glitter with an idea she thought he might like and he waited, remembering once again that that look was one of several million things he loved about her, “then I am having a thought.”

“Share over soup? I’m starving and you are probably two minutes from falling down from lack of food.”

“Soup, please.”

&&&&&&&&&&&

By four that afternoon, she had ordered a portable ultrasound machine, convinced the Gunmen to help her with bloodwork, made a shopping list the breadth and width of Montana and finally took a deep breath, “we can’t trust the hospital, Mulder, I won’t. I’ll do ultrasounds here and keep tracks of the baby’s growth. I will go to a new OB every few months, whose name we will never mention, by the way, and I’ll keep my own records to make sure they match up with the doc’s so I can refer to them later and trust them.”

Mulder, unsettled at her settled-in paranoia stated as fact, shifted her slightly so her elbows weren’t digging into his thighs at such a terribly painful angle and he could lean more comfortably back on the arm of the couch, “I think you have officially become more paranoid than me and that’s saying something.”

Jaw set in determination, she tucked the blankets around them tighter, the draft moving through the apartment making her colder by the minute, his warm chest against her back the only think keeping her from piling on another layer, “I’ll take it as a compliment.” Hands cupping his knees, head twisting to look up at him, “we are this kid’s best hope and I’m not going to let this one down.”

Finally more relaxed than he’d been in a week, not wanting to start another deep discussion about unnecessary guilt, he kept his rebuke light, “you didn’t let the last ones down either but we’ve probably let Skinner down seeing as we never called off work today.”

“Ask me if I care.”

“Do you care?”

“Not in the slightest.” Handing him the remote control as a particularly strong burst of wind rattled the windows, “I only plan on moving from this couch to get the industrial size bag of Peanut M&Ms from the cupboard in about an hour.”

“I like a woman with a plan.”

[acti-veg]

“Why go vegan instead of vegetarian?”

Despite the growing popularity of veganism, there remains significantly higher numbers of vegetarians in comparison. The primary reason cited for going vegetarian instead of vegan is not wanting to give up a particular animal product, usually cheese. If someone is a vegetarian on ethical grounds however, there is no morally justifiable reason to be opposed to the consumption of flesh but not other animal products, such as dairy, eggs and honey. I will discuss some of the main issues with these products individually.

Like all female mammals, cows only produce milk when pregnant and after childbirth. Cows therefore, are restrained and forcibly impregnated so that they will produce milk. Naturally, this milk is intended to feed their calves, however, in order to take her milk, farmers separate calves from their mothers shortly after birth, causing extreme distress and sometimes resulting in prolonged depressive states. While female calves will usually join their mother on the milk production line, male calves do not produce milk and are not considered profitable for meat production, so are often killed or sent for veal production. Due to the close bond formed between cows and their offspring, it is common for the mothers of dairy calves to quite literally scream for their lost calves, sometimes for days at a time. Cows are put through this agonising process three or four times, before they too are killed.

The life of an egg-laying chicken normally lasts 12 to 18 months. During this time, in most commercial egg operations they will be kept in constant bright light to manipulate their natural cycles and keep them laying all year round. These facilities are often extremely cramped, so it is standard industry practice to sear or cut off portions of the beaks of laying hens to prevent them pecking or cannibalising each other due to stress and boredom. This prevents chickens from engaging in most of their natural behaviours, including foraging and grooming. In order to maximise profitability, most hens are raised with the minimum required space of 600cm squared useable space per bird, which is less than the size of an A4 piece of paper. These laying hens are sourced from vast hatcheries, where male chicks are commonly ground up alive as they do not lay eggs and are not considered profitable for meat production.

Bees are often cruelly treated and exploited for profit by the honey industry. Queen bees are often artificially inseminated and many beekeepers cut off their wings to prevent them  leaving the hive. It is standard practice for commercial operations to take all or most of the honey bees produce, and replace it with a sugar syrup substitute. When harvesting, beekeepers often use smoke to purposely disorient and panic bees, and some will even burn entire hives during winter to reduce costs. Many people are willing to overlook welfare concerns because it is popularly thought that consuming honey helps bees and the environment. Contrary to popular belief, Apis mellifera (the species of bee we use for honey production) are not even close to being endangered; but thousands of lesser known species are. The honey industry only boosts numbers of these captive bees, when in fact, wild bees are better pollinators and their populations being threatened by the presence of domestic honey bees.

 If you oppose eating animal flesh because you think it is wrong to kill animals because we like the way they taste, then you should object to dairy, eggs and honey on exactly the same basis, since animal deaths are usually directly involved in the production of all of these products. If it wrong to kill an animal for their flesh, then surely it is equally wrong to kill them when their milk or egg production slows, or because you want to harvest what they make.  All of these welfare concerns aside, even without animal deaths at the heart of these issues is the fact that animals are being exploited for human gain. In all of these cases, we are taking something which quite simply doesn’t belong to us, and causing harm to animals concerned in the process. 

Even in those few cases where no deaths are involved, an animal does not have to be directly killed for this product in order for them to be harmed, breeding an animal and keeping them in captivity their entire lives, solely to make a profit from their bodies is harmful in and of itself, and regardless of whether or not they are killed during or afterwards, their entire lives have been taken from them because we enjoy the taste of what they produce. Treating animals as mere commodities to be manipulated, exploited, bought, sold and killed is denying them their right to their own lives, and that is the core of the issue. 

There are cases where a person cannot eat 100% plant based, or is using vegetarianism as a stepping stone, both these cases are completely fine and that is not what is being criticised here. The issue is when someone chooses to be aa vegetarian when they have the option to go vegan, despite the fact that the exact same reasons people oppose meat apply to other animal products, too. Sometimes this is simply a case of not knowing, and no one can blame you for that, but if you have read this post then you can never again say that you did not know, so it is now up to you to live in a way consistent with your values. If you any help going vegan I would recommend you look at these resources, and I would be more than happy to offer my support if you want to get in touch.

(More resources available at Acti-veg.com)

[shirlleycoyle]

Watch the Wild, Never-Before-Seen Orgies of the Humble Shipworm

Shipworms, a family of marine mollusks famous for their wood-eating skills, don’t look like much upon first glance. But these weird wriggly creatures have shaped landscapes, inspired novel drug compounds, and altered the course of human history.

Most salaciously, however, shipworms are also into all kinds of freaky sex stuff that nobody has ever seen before, according to a new study. Giving and receiving sperm simultaneously? No biggie for shipworms. Wrestling rivals with their reproductive organs? They do that, too. Housing harems of tiny males in cute pouches inside the far larger bodies of females? Some shipworms go for that.

Taken together, this “stunning diversity of reproductive strategies” many of which are “exceptionally rare,” can shed light on the evolution and management of these bizarre animals, reports a paper published on Wednesday in Biology Letters.

“Describing the behavior, and saying we've seen this for the first time, is the first step,” said lead author Reuben Shipway, a marine biologist at the University of Portsmouth, in a call. “I'm hoping this paper is like a springboard for renewing interest in shipworms.”

Shipworms engage in pseudocopulation, a form of direct fertilization. Individuals inseminate each other with the help of two tube-like “siphons” that roam outside the wooden burrows. The siphons grope around for each other until a donor finds a recipient, and then intertwine to trade sperm. Fertilized eggs are later released into the sea, and those lucky enough to land on wooden habitats can begin the cycle again.

Shipworm reproduction has not been extensively studied, which prompted Shipway—and co-authors Nancy Treneman of the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology and Daniel Distel of Northeastern University—to deploy pine panels off the coast of Charleston, Oregon, in November 2016.

By the time the researchers removed the structures in May 2017, dozens of giant feathery shipworms, or Bankia setacea, had bored into them (though they have “giant” in their name, the individuals are small, with millimeter-scale siphons). The inhabited wood was brought back to an aquarium to be monitored.

Aquarium holding a shipworm-infested pine panel. Image: Dr. Reuben Shipway, University of Portsmouth

Shipway and his colleagues expected to observe pseudocopulation, but they did not anticipate the frenzied orgies and novel competitive behaviors performed by the bacchanalian bivalves. Footage of the animals reveals wrestling between siphons, the unexplained rejection of certain sperm donors, and in one memorable case, a siphon apparently removing a rival’s spent shot off of a potential mate.

“You had this one individual come over and it tried to perform copulation, and it basically missed,” Shipway said of the latter event. “It put its spermatozoa around the outside of the siphon. Almost immediately, another one comes over and instead of pulling or batting the other one away, it just wiped.”

“Whether or not it meant to do that, or whether it was being clumsy, I don’t know,” he continued. “But it’s intriguing.”

Shipworms display “simultaneous, consecutive, and rhythmical-consecutive hermaphroditism,” according to the study, which means it can be hard to tell whether an individual is male, female, or perhaps both, at any given time during pseudocopulation

Individuals that rapidly grew to large sizes were generally more sexually successful because of the upper hand afforded by longer siphons. However, there are still plenty of open questions about the complicated sexual dynamics of the giant feathery shipworms, to say nothing of the many other diverse species of shipworm on Earth.

A siphon depositing sperm. Image: Dr. Reuben Shipway, University of Portsmouth

Given that these animals hide inside their wooden homes, they are tricky to observe and identify in the wild, which is why the new study revealed so many previously unseen marvels. “Because they're cryptic, you can't tell what species they are just from looking at a piece of wood and seeing siphons,” Shipway explained.

Watching shipworms have weird sex makes for great entertainment, but it could also have big implications for protecting coastal infrastructure, understanding the carbon cycle, and developing novel artificial compounds.

As the only animals in the sea that have perfected the art of eating wood, shipworms cause billions of dollars of damage to piers, boats, and other marine structures each year. While this is a headache for beach dwellers and seafarers, especially in developing nations where wooden infrastructure is more common, shipworms also enrich their ecosystems with nutrients, such as carbon, extracted from their timber meals.

“On an ecological level, these animals are simply amazing,” Shipway said. “They're processing all this carbon through their guts. In terms of the ecosystem, it is massively beneficial.”

“If we don't understand how they reproduce, we don't understand that process,” he added.

Moreover, the unique enzymes and bacteria that allow shipworms to digest cellulose are being used to develop new drugs and technologies, including antibiotics and biofuels.

“There's this boom of research that's going on into them,” Shipway said. “We culturally forgot about them for a number of decades and now they are going through a little bit of a renaissance at the moment, which is really cool.”

Watch the Wild, Never-Before-Seen Orgies of the Humble Shipworm syndicated from https://triviaqaweb.wordpress.com/feed/

[eternalcritique]

This kind of criticism of agave not only comes from a single NPR article that was not sources well, but we actually don’t know much about the biology of long-nosed bats, we know that their species is declining but we don’t know why. The agave harvesting causation theory is just that, a theory. Agave production for human use also hasn’t increased enough to account for the decline in these bats, its also important to note that many other species of bats, birds, and insects are also declining at similar rates in areas where agave is not being harvested. Yes, more research needs to be done, however, there isn’t anything even approaching a definitive causation link currently. And even If it were agave which is the problem, the vast majority of agave is harvested for tequila and a tiny amount is used as agave sweetener.

You also seem to be creating a false dichotomy?. It’s not an either-or situation. Either you buy agave or you buy honey. There are many types of syrups you can use in place of both as well as sugar solutions, or just not using sweetener. It’s also important to note that these also aren’t necessary items. Many vegans (including myself) don’t consume either honey or agave syrup. 

Choosing to consume honey also doesn’t make sense if you are concerned with animals (or the environment) since the honey industry is so harmful to bees, both domestic and wild bees. Commercial beekeeping for honey is harmful as standard practices in commercial beekeeping regardless of locality/size including killing off entire hives before winter to reduce costs, artificial insemination, a process where which male bees are crushed and drained of their semen, which is then forcefully inserted into a queen bee, ripping the wings of queen bees to prevent them from flying away and taking all or most of the honey bees produce, and replacing it with a sugar syrup substitute. Honey making is also an incredibly exhaustive process for bees and taking ANY of their honey is harmful to bees (both those being exploited and wild bees whose populations are being damaged as a result) in fact the substitute given to replace the honey taken from hives is thought to contribute to the development of disease in honeybees because it does not provide the proper nutrition and may produce a toxin under heat that kills the honeybees. Honey bees make exactly enough honey for themselves, and when they make extra it is storage food for winter periods where bees cannot otherwise find food easily. This “ excess” honey is storage for a tough period. It’s their food source.

~ Bees are sentient creatures, who experience pain and are much more intelligent than thought with emotional capacity and thought, they also have extremely sophisticated social systems!  

~  Bitesizevegan has a great short video on the subject (here)

Vegans of tumblr, listen up. Harvesting agave in the quantities required so you dont have to eat honey is killing mexican long-nosed bats. They feed off the nectar and pollinate the plants. They need the agave. You want to help the environment? Go back to honey. Your liver and thyroid will thank you, as well. Agave is 90% fructose, which can cause a host of issues. Bye.

[renatorizzuti]

Food To Put You In The Mood, That’s Amore!

By Maria Rizzuti 

William Shakespeare once wrote, “If music be the food of love, play on.”  I say, “If certain foods are the foods of love, then let’s eat them!”  All in moderation of course! 

It is a scientific fact that certain foods stimulate blood flow and in turn stimulate amorous responses in the person that consumes the food.  Make your Valentine’s Day extra special this year by designing a meal consisting of “the foods of love.” To use cooking terms, allow your passions to simmer slowly, then slowly turn up the heat and eventually boil over! 

It is said that Italians are great lovers…or let’s say very very passionate people.  The Italian diet contains “foods of love” such as garlic, basil, pine nuts in pesto, chili peppers used as a spice, and truffles used in risotto and pasta dishes. The number one Italian food that could be considered a “food of love” is of course the tomato. 

The tomato may be, in effect, the cause for a healthy “love” drive. A tomato’s colour is significant because it’s red, and red is the colour of love. Tomatoes are often called the “love apple” and have been scientifically proven to be a “superfood.” Tomatoes are rich in lycopene, especially when they are cooked, which is believed to reduce the risk of cancer and they also contain Vitamins A and C. So they are very good for maintaining our chemical balance and in turn, good health leads to good romance. So get that tomato sauce on the boil and have a romantic dinner for two with Spaghetti al Pomodoro! 

Garlic has been one of the most popular ancient aphrodisiac remedies. It increases the blood flow, stimulates the secretion of gastric juices and aids digestion. It is said to stir amorous desires.  It is okay to put a little extra garlic in your tomato sauce on Valentine’s Day, however, too much garlic can be a turn off if both parties smell too strongly of“garlic breath!” 

Basil is also said to stimulate the romantic needs and boost fertility after the passionate desires have been consummated. It is said to cause a sense of general well being for the mind and body. So if you are feeling fine, you are more likely to be in the mood for love. Basil can be used in your tomato sauce, pesto and Caprese Salad which is vine ripened tomatoes with fresh basil, extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and buffalo mozzarella. Let basil give you the “green” light for romance! 

Pine nuts are rich in zinc. Zinc is a key mineral necessary to maintain males in a functioning mode for romance.  They have been used to stimulate desire as far back as medieval times. That is probably why there are medieval stories of lovers being out in the forest and becoming overwhelmed with mad passion. They had been snacking on pine nuts!  Now you don’t have to trek out to the forest with your lover, just use the pine nuts in your pesto and serve the pesto on top of pasta or pizza! 

For the hot Italian lovers who use chili peppers in their cooking, there is a reason things get heated up on the love front.  Spicy foods are generally connected to heat. The link is made between the heat of the food and the ensuing “heat” of passion.  Chili peppers increase the body’s metabolism, including heart rate and blood flow therefore supposedly increasing the flow of fascination. Heat things up with some chili peppers and you’ll be feeling, as the song goes, “hot, hot, hot!” 

Truffles are a rare and delicate type of edible mushroom. Truffles grow underground among the roots of elm, chestnut, oak, pine and willow trees.  Truffles’ musky odour is caused by a combination of the pheromone androstenol and the steroid androstenone. Apparently, this musky odour can have an amourous effect on pigs.  This is why they are also found in a spray called Boar Mate which is used by farmers to help calm the sow and get her more in the mood for artificial insemination.  I guess old McDonald knew exactly what do on his farm, that is fine if you are a pig farmer, but what about the truffle effect on humans? One theory is that the smell of musk which is a popular cologne ingredient has commonly been associated with romance and that love induced by truffles is a phenomenon which is part of an established behavioural link between musk and romance. White or black truffles are high priced and have a very pungent taste. Truffles are among the most expensive foods in the world.  Depending on the size of the truffle, they can sell for $300 to 500 US dollars, hence this is why they are to be used sparingly and are generally served raw, and shaved paper thin over various foods. So if you want to impress your mate add some truffles overtop your risotto and then watch the sparks of romance fly! 

There other foods that are considered “foods of love.” Some other examples are bananas, oysters and, of course, chocolate.

Bananas are rich in potassium and B vitamins which are necessities for “love hormone” production and function. So you can literally “go bananas” and perhaps make Bananas Foster for dessert.  Its made with bananas, vanilla ice cream, with a sauce made from butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, dark rum and banana liqueur.  The butter, sugar and bananas are cooked, and then the alcohol is added and ignited.  The bananas and sauce are served over the ice cream. You can impress your better half by performing and preparing this delectable dessert as a flambé.  But whatever you do don’t wear too much hairspray that evening otherwise your hair will go up in smoke and that would not result in a romantic ending to your evening! 

Oysters have the distinction of being the most widely considered “love food.” The actual truth is that oysters are high in protein and are very nutritious. Oysters are rich in zinc and iron. Iron is very important for the transport of oxygen through our systems. You certainly need lots of oxygen if you are in store for a romantic evening! Zinc is an essential element for stimulating our metabolism which in turn stimulates our desire for close personal amorous contact. Oysters also contain on average 18 micrograms of Vitamin B12 which is a Vitamin that plays a key role in the normal functioning of the brain and nervous system and for the formation of blood. All these must be operating normally in order for any “love” responses to happen automatically. So go ahead, have an oyster feast and then have a love feast! 

What woman in their right mind would say no to chocolate?  Aside from the wonderful taste of chocolate, it contains phenylethylamine, the same chemical that is released in the brain when you fall in love. The sweetness from the chocolate also triggers the release of endorphins.  Other stimulants present in chocolate are dopamine and serotonin, which alleviate pain and encourage a good mood.   No wonder we love chocolate so much! Get me a box of Lindt Lindor Truffles and I will agree to cook you anything! 

The “foods to put you in the mood” can be used as a prelude to romance….That’s Amore.  Have a happy Valentine’s Day to all you lovers out there and buon appetito!