#livestock industry

[plethoraworldatlas]

Oregon’s gray wolf population did not increase last year due in part to a large number of wolves killed by people, causing concern among conservationists and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife officials.

The latest Annual Wolf Report found the population remained steady at 178 wolves, marking the first time in eight years that their numbers didn’t increase. Typically, the population has grown by 6% a year. Among the 36 wolf deaths in 2023, 33 were caused by people. The state sanctioned the killing of 16 wolves following livestock deaths and 12 were killed illegally, the report said. 

“The amount of poaching and other suspicious deaths is alarming, impacts our conservation goals and could affect our ability to manage wolves in Oregon,” Bernadette Graham-Hudson, the agency’s wildlife division administrator, said in a news release.

[jenniferrobingallery]

Document of the day: Protest Resolution Report

Mar 26 23 Today I learned about the ‘Protest Resolution Report.’ I might add that it is never included with the NEPA/Eplanning docs that we all view for government projects. This one is associated with Land Use Plans (LUP). While I don’t have time to follow up as to what laws BLM must conform to regarding these reports, I am going to assume by law they must do this, and make it available for…

[toxicanonymity]

the runt

A fluffy Thomas Hewitt slice-of-life in THE SPREAD UNIVERSE. WARNING: ref to hypothetical animal death.

When Tommy's shift was over, he stopped by the pig pens on the way to his old faded truck. Most of the pigs were in the barn but some juveniles were outside in the fenced section.

Jim, the man who handled the feeding, announced, "Bout to head out myself." Tommy approached the fence and looked over the edge, watching some young pigs play in the mud.

Jim wiped his hands off on a rag and walked over to join him. "See that one?" He asked, pointing to a much smaller one, resting in grass while the others played and are. "somethin' wrong with that pig, Tommy. Same litter as those," Jim nodded toward some pink pigs more than twice as big. "Ain't just a runt."

Tommy looked at Jim inquisitively and Jim continued, "she don't roll around. don't like the slop. I bring her cow's milk, but if the boss knew..." The piglet yawned and rose to its hooves. Jim bit his lip, then mused, “maybe we oughta put her out of her misery."

Tommy's arms tensed and his chest puffed up. She didn’t look miserable as she laid down again, this time in his shadow on the dirt. Tommy squatted, reached over the pen, and picked her up with one hand. He held her and looked her in the face for a moment, then he stroked between her ears with his thumb. Her eyes closed and she let out a barely audible snort.

[kelsonius]

What I find really interesting about Dungeon Meshi is how it explores the role of humans/humanoids in an ecosystem and what is okay to consume.

Take the kelpie for example. Senshi is attached to the kelpie that frequently joins him while he's fishing, even naming her. Marcille also thinks it's cute and supports the idea of Senshi riding it. After that doesn't turn out well Senshi apologises while delivering the killing blow, appearing remorseful. Nevertheless, he himself sets out to salvage usable ingredients from the now deceased kelpie and even Marcille uses some of its fat for soap.

That is an example of exactly the type of relationship I think humans should have with livestock animals. I'm mostly vegan (occasional exceptions made for fish and eggs) both because of the environmental and animal rights issues with large scale livestock farming/the meat industry. However, I very much support a harmonious approach shown by indigenous peoples and small scale farming for example. Where, similar to Senshi and the kelpie, the animal lives a good life and is loved by its keepers until it is killed and all its parts are utilised.

There is also something to be said about people's involvement in the slaughter of animals so they respect the origin of their favourite products, like Marcille with the soap, since that is likely one of the reasons people currently consume animal products in such copious amounts. I regrettably didn't save the post in my drafts, but I saw someone on here talk about how far removed we are in the west from the origin of our meat products and how absurd it is that people are disgusted by a fish served with its head for example.

Meanwhile, Laios and Chilchuck are arguing over whether it's okay to eat a fish-man since it resembles a humanoid. Laios naturally wants to eat everything but Chilchuck has reservations when it comes to humanoids. This comes up in later episodes as well, where the rest of the crew appears to have fewer reservations since the creatures are being killed in self-defense and they're now seeing the utility of not letting resources go to waste.

Now I wonder if they'll take it as far as cannibalism, but humanoids are already a close metaphor. In any case, it is a great way to showcase how the arbitrary values we attribute to different species influences what we consider to be acceptable food, even though it's all just meat. I mean, I could never slaughter a cat for example but somehow would be fine with eating human flesh...

[werebutch]

So many times I’ve seen people on here be like wowww it’s so funny seeing ppl rage over vegans 😁!! ….. these people genuinely have no idea what they’re talking about. If you mention all their stuff being made of plastic they cover their ears and go lalala like they’re 5. I’m sorry but it DOES make me mad. I wish your passion for the environment could go somewhere actually useful and not to blissful ignorance and even environmental harm. -_-

[athina-blaine]

while watching nimona, my friends and I got into a huge argument about how they could have scottie terriers with no scotland and jazz with no harlem renaissance so now I too just like to drop explicit references to real world things in my fic that have 0% justification being there in the first place and i feel like the funniest mfer alive

[ciboriaadastra]

Having a thought about how the amount of wealth Bruce comes into and then amasses for himself changed over the decades of Batman media, and the reason he's beeen scaled up to be so impossibly wealthy is probably because cities and companies in DC lore are analogs to real life places and companies.

Wayne Enterprises probably reflects how homogenous American multinational corporations are now, where a single company can make and distribute almost all consumer goods because it has bought out/merged hundreds of smaller companies + purchased everything it needed from the ground up so it does not depend on many others besides itself.

Just something that crossed my mind when I was looking up what WE actually does and the Fandom (bleh) wiki listed so many branches. Wayne Shipping? Wayne Foods? Like...is this Amazon and Bruce is now Bezos? Wayne Entertainment? He's also Disney? Wayne Electronics? This is Apple? Wayne Aerospace? Boeing??? Bruce is trying to be in control of and monitor every single means of production and every production line fr

Feel like that should influence how people view Wayne Enterprises and Bruce himself. Steadily creeping in and taking root in every industry. People get curious about a new construction project in the city, but once it's revealed to be a Wayne Tower it's filling people with dread. Though, it was a long time coming...everything you order online comes in a box with a W on the tape delivered to your address in a black as night truck with a giant W emblazoned on the side. The meds in your cabinet were produced under Wayne Pharmaceuticals. The cable and streaming services were recently bought by Wayne Entertainment. The Wayne Foundation started offering scholarships at the major college campuses. Your phone is Wayne tech. Your car was built with Wayne Steel. Soon the hospitals will be all Wayne Medical, your insurance company bought out. The local newspapers and stations will be bought up. The libraries. The clinics. The orphanages. The schools. The grocery store. You're never going to scrub that b ig soulless W out of your head. The way the logo looks like the head of a pitchfork, ready to stab and capture the intended prey.

Thinking about how Wayne Medical seems so innocuous in what it does except for the bit on how Bruce has access to every person in Gotham's medical records, because he can access the Wayne Medical databases and use that information to track suspects. And the thing is WE does not just exist in Gotham, it's a multinational corporation with bases in major cities not just in the U.S. but around the world. This man has millions of people's medical records easily accessible to him which feels both extremely unethical and extremely illegal. Not that civilians can prove he can and does access those records though.

[vegandude72]

[knight-in-baggy-sweatpants]

it is literal agony to read anything about livestock animals that is from the pov of or written by someone who does not know anything about the industry that surrounds them. i don't think i've ever said it here, but i've lived on a farm since i was just barely a teenager. one thing that the meat industry depends on is CHILDREN "showing" their animals at competitions, YES like dog shows. My brother and two of my sisters started out showing dairy cows(of which there was a competitive team already in place at my school), but two of them no longer show at all and my sister now shows pigs.

And the entire operation is focused on getting your animals the best they can be for either breeding or market(those are the actual official categories for pigs. for cows it is either dairy or beef) and those are two completely different categories with different standards! and there are so many different breeds of any livestock animal, and at least for cows they are specialized for one of the two categories! You would never see a Holstein heifer shown for beef, just like you would never see an Angus steer shown for dairy! they also have very different grooming standards and builds; dairy cows are much thinner, clean-shaven, and you should be able to easily see their prominent hip-bones and first few ribs, while beef cows are much stockier with shorter legs, usually left hairy and only trimmed a little. i'm not as familiar with beef cow standards but i know you aren't expected to be able to see their ribs.

all this is to say, if you describe an animal's breed or even just markings, i can usually identify which breed you're talking about(it is always a Holstein for cows). But then you go on to describe them as large and in charge, and that is NOT how dairy cows should be! if you want a big, tough cow, at LEAST go for a breed that is MEANT to be that way.

and YES, this IS about Batcow fics.

[petsincollections]

Phillip Gregg and Dr. James L. McBee Jr., Buckwheat Festival, Preston County, W. Va., ca. 1965

Shown in the picture is Phillip Gregg, son of Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Gregg of Masontown, with his Baby Beef Carcass that placed Second in the Carcass Contest sponsored by Sterling Packing Company of Reedsville, W. Va. Shown with him is Dr. James L. McBee Jr., Associate Professor of Animal Industry of West Virginia University.

West Virginia History OnView

[plethoraworldatlas]

Somewhere on a remote mountainside in Colorado’s Rockies, a latch flipped on a crate and a wolf bounded out, heading toward the tree line. Then it stopped short.For a moment, the young female looked back at it’s audience of roughly 45 people who stared on in reverential silence. Then she disappeared into the forest.

She was one of five gray wolves Wildlife officials released in a remote part of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains on Monday to kick off a voter-approved reintroduction program that was embraced in the state’s mostly Democratic urban corridor but staunchly opposed in conservative rural areas where ranchers worry about attacks on livestock.

...

It marked the start of the most ambitious wolf reintroduction effort in the U.S. in almost three decades and a sharp departure from aggressive efforts by Republican-led states to cull wolf packs. A judge on Friday night had denied a request from the state’s cattle industry for a temporary delay to the release.

The group watched as the first two wolves — 1-year-old male and female siblings with gray fur — were set free. The male bolted up the golden grass, running partially sideways to keep an eye on everyone behind, then turning left into the trees.

The crowd watched in silence, then some hugged each other and low murmurs started up.

[makerscockandballs]

if you think vegan food is just shit like quinoa and imported "exotic" foods you dont know jackshit about veganism outside of movie stereotypes and animal agriculture industry propaganda (which is a real thing, big surprise. capitalism is full of industry propaganda) and should inform yourself outside of that. read a fucking cookbook at this point.

[teabookgremlin]

i love listening to people who have devoted their lives to working with cows talk about cows

[vibinwiththefrogs]

Today in lecture my professor really challenged the idea that grass fed cattle are more environmentally friendly than grain fed. Obviously I have some thoughts on that because generally I exist in environmentalist and agroecological spaces outside of school. But I've never heard the idea really challenged. I emailed her asking if she had any research she could recommend, so we'll see where that goes 👀

[cruelsister-moved2]

if you bring up soy unprompted when someone tells you they're vegetarian/vegan I need you to google "global soy use" really quick first ^_^

[thepotentialof2007]

A fish is an exquisite and fascinating creature: a stunning answer to the question of how to live in the sea, one which has been honed by evolution over hundreds of millions of years. Fishmeal is all of that but dried, squashed, and ground up into powder. It's also astonishingly rich in protein: between 50 and 70 percent by weight. And in 1950, farmers were just waking up to its potential. And so the world bought fishmeal as fast as Chile and Peru could haul anchovetas out of the Humboldt Current, while the lessons from California about the long-term consequences were completely ignored. Between 1950 and 1973, world fish harvests tripled, but the amount of fish directly consumed by humans stayed the same. The rest went to fishmeal, as a supplemental food for livestock, and this became an essential ingredient for modern industrial farming. Britain imported all that it could get and by 1960 half of all fishmeal was being used as pig food. With the addition of industrial farming methods and antibiotics, farmers could grow more pigs more quickly, in less space and for less money. By 1960, Peru was the world's top producer of fishmeal, and in 1964 it caught 40 percent of the entire global fish harvest. When overfishing and environmental conditions caused Peru's fish harvest to collapse in 1972, shutting down the fishmeal supply, the price of British bacon doubled almost immediately. And so the extraordinary consequence of upwelling water along the coast of South America isn't just that it has produced a huge marine ecosystem in a relatively tiny area. It's that it has provided the biological bounty to feed pigs and chickens (and increasingly, farmed fish grown in other countries) all over the world. Those animals were raised to feed humans, who were probably blissfully unaware of the marine source of their protein, and also its colossal cost to the natural environment.

_ Helen Czerki, The Blue Machine: How the Ocean Works, 2023