Published Letters and Op-Eds from
COK’s Writers Group

Make Your Next Meal Vegetarian

To the editor:

Having lived near massive factory farms in the Carolinas for over 25 years, I'm comforted knowing that places like Farm Sanctuary exist to provide a safe haven for countless farmed animals who would have otherwise continued to suffer silently at the hands of the meat, egg and dairy industries. ("Farm Sanctuary: Former McAllen resident gains new perspective at vegan-run organization," July 24).

Like dogs and cats, animals raised for food are intelligent individuals who feel pain, sorrow and joy. Yet, every year, billions of cows, pigs and birds raised on today's modern-day corporate farms are denied individualized veterinary care and are subjected to painful practices including castration, de-beaking and face branding - all without painkiller.

Egg-laying hens spend their entire lives crowded together in tiny, wire cages so small they can't even spread their wings. Chickens raised for their meat are packed inside enormous warehouses, unable to escape the stench of their own waste. And mother pigs spend months at a time in crates so small they can't even turn around.

While not everyone will get the opportunity to visit Farm Sanctuary, we can all do our part to ease animal suffering by making our next meal vegetarian. We can choose from a variety of delicious meat-, egg-, and dairy-free products available at our local supermarkets and order vegetarian when dining out.

Dawn Ratcliffe, Takoma Park, Md.