The Ter-moo-nators (Cows in Action)

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This draining cycle of pregnancies, births and milk production is extremely hard on them, which is why often they develop severe diseases or physical ailments. Many die from these diseases or are killed as a result. The majority of cows in the UK are stunned with a captive-bolt pistol. Once stunned they are hung upside down by one leg, lifted onto an overhead conveyor and moved to the ‘bleed area’. Here their throats are cut and they are left to bleed out. Stunning can be ineffective and some cows have their throats cut while still conscious. Dairy Fact 4: Cows In The Dairy Industry Could Never See A Pasture However, while the shooting on-farm may have been banned by the majority of retailers and dairy producers, the fate of these innocent animals has not changed as they are still being killed.

Cows in Action Series by Steve Cole - Goodreads

We have an incredible opportunity to remake our food system. By shifting subsidies from the dairy industry to support plant-based alternatives, and by providing financial support for farmers to transition to arable farming or land rewilding programmes, we can futureproof farmers’ jobs and create a kinder, more sustainable world in the process. The dairy industry even admits that this practise is extremely problematic, calling it an ‘own goal’: Shooting bull calves is potentially a massive own goal when we are talking about showing how great our industry is National Farmers (NFU) Union dairy chairman Michael Oakes (Jan, 2020) Another common disease resulting from continued milking over a period of several years is mastitis, an infection of the udder which causes secretion of pus. Up to 50% of cows used for their dairy suffer from mastitis.

Not only that, but the dairy industry is pushing our planet to its limits. Like all animal agriculture, it is a driving force behind species extinction, deforestation, water scarcity, land overuse and global antibiotic resistance. Producing a glass of dairy milk every day for a year needs land as large as the size of two tennis courts - that’s ten times the land needed for oat milk. Once she gives birth, she starts producing milk for her newborn calf – milk that her baby would naturally drink during the first 10 months of his or her life. Currently, an estimated 16% of UK dairy farms have adopted the zero-graze system and the number, sadly, is expected to grow.

Cows In Action 7: The Pirate Mootiny (Cows In Action, 8) Cows In Action 7: The Pirate Mootiny (Cows In Action, 8)

According to a 2020 report, every year in the UK an estimated 60,000 male calves– approximately 15% of all male calves born in the dairy industry – were shot on-farm. However, in dairy farms – whether small-scale, certified organic or intensive – the milk she produces will not be given to her baby, as it will instead be bottled up for human consumption. And so, her calf is separated from her and swapped for a milking machine which is attached to her teats. Help us stop this: sign the petition Dairy Fact 2: Male Calves Born In The Dairy Industry Are Sent to Slaughter This tragic fate has been defined by many as the ‘dairy’s dirty secret’ and long criticised by animal protection organisations, as well as the general public.We should be able to trust the Government to use our taxpayer money wisely, but as a conscious consumer I am concerned that the Government is choosing to support an industry that is responsible for damaging our planet and taking mothers from their babies. In a zero-graze system, a cow is not allowed to graze or be outdoors on the grass. Instead, she is fed silage (wet, fermented grass) and a high concentrate mix of cereal, soya, sunflower meal and maize.

Cows in Action 5: World War Moo by Steve Cole | Waterstones Cows in Action 5: World War Moo by Steve Cole | Waterstones

The process of artificial insemination is distressing, as she is forced into a confined space where a farmer inserts an inseminating gun in her vagina to deposit sperm. While doing this, the farmer inserts one arm in the cow’s anus to manually manipulate her reproductive organs. Just like humans, cows only produce milk for their babies. For this reason, once a cow is around 15 months of age, she is artificially impregnated – for the first time. Due to increasing pressure from the public and animal welfare organisations, retailers have started to implement new rules to limit the killing of male calves, which were planned to come into force by the end of 2021. Stop cow and calf separation Dairy Fact 7: Mastitis and Lameness Are Common Health Issues that Cows DevelopArmistice Day: A Collection of Remembrance - Spark Interest and Educate Children about Historical Moments Some of the most common health problems that cows develop are metabolic starvation, mastitis and lameness.