Sometimes being an animal rights advocate is emotionally exhausting. Today is one of those days.
Last night I was watching Animal Planet, as I often do, and the show was about polar bears in the wild. There was a mama polar bear and her 2 cubs who were not yet full grown, but also not tiny. Due to lack of food, a big male polar bear was following the threesome in the hopes that he could eat one of the cubs (apparently they will eat their own kind if they can’t find other food). The mama and her cubs walked for hours trying to get away from him, but finally one of the cubs collapsed from exhaustion and hunger. The mama bear was trying to get him back up but she couldn’t and eventually she had to leave him so that she could protect her other cub and herself. I had to turn the channel before the big male bear got to the dying cub. And then I cried. Yes, I cried at the cruelty of nature.
What immediately hit me after getting so emotional about this is how nature is kind in comparison to the horrible cruelties humans impose on non-human animals, especially “food” animals. That cub probably lived just as long as any pig does on today’s factory farms…and he at least lived his short life FREE. He knew the love of his mother, got to swim, play, and run around. Chickens, turkeys, pigs and other farmed animals get nothing of the sort. They spend their lives cooped up in tiny cages, feeling pain and sorrow every day.
So then I got even sadder. Then today I read a story about a man who broke into his ex-girlfriend’s house and put her 5 month old puppy in the oven and killed him, and I got EVEN SADDER. I mean, how can a human being be so incredibly heartless? HOW?
Anyway, the thing about caring so much about animals is that it lends itself all too easily to sadness. I still have not figured out how to completely combat this. How do you find the energy sometimes to go about your every day life when you know how much suffering there is in the world around you – human and non-human? And how do we ever know if we’re doing enough? The truth is that I never feel like I’m doing enough. I’m vegan, and I educate others about veganism; I write this blog; I volunteer for an animal rights organization doing office work and event planning; and I have a dog and a cat whom I love dearly….but none of it really feels like enough. Will it ever? Will I ever hear a story about animal cruelty and not feel like surely I’m NOT doing enough if things like that are still happening? I don’t know. Anyone have any thoughts/advice?
(Sorry this post is such a downer….I guess it’s just one of those days.)
Being connected to your emotions is a healthy way to live, but it’s very difficult in a world with so much injustice.
To the question, am I doing enough? I don’t think it’s the right question. If you worked 10 hours to stop cruelty to animals, you might be able to squeeze in 11. If 11, maybe 12, and so forth. There would be no end!
The better question is, am trying I living true to my values? I value my friends and family, for example, so I spend time on sharing my life with them. I also value helping animals, so I spend time on that. I find satisfaction in doing what I think is sustainable and healthy, and no more.
I’m totally with you here… *big hug*
Go, Unny! That’s a great response.
I totally understand & relate to how you feel, Mindy. Sometimes we just have those days… Every now & then, I feel hopeless & just overwhelmed by sadness about the cruelty in our world. I had a day just like this a few weeks ago, and I was just stuck in an awful funk after driving past a slaughterhouse transport truck filled with pigs. Then I got to work & had to watch my boss eat two ham sandwiches. That day sucked.
However, like Unny, I take comfort in the fact that I live true to my values, every single day. I’m always aiming to do more & continue to improve myself & my efforts in advocating for animals… But seriously – being vegan & inspiring others to make compassionate choices is WONDERFUL. You should be proud of that! And even though you can’t control every injustice out there, you do help make positive strides for many of them – you do not contribute to any of the animal cruelty! Deciding to be vegan is a HUGE step & helps on so many levels.
Except that it’s not the natural world that’s driving polar bears to eat their own kind – it’s us. If it weren’t for all the factory farming and using more energy than the planet can support, the ice in the Arctic wouldn’t be melting at an alarming rate and polar bears predate the animals whose populations need natural controls and all would be in balance.
As for feeling like you aren’t doing enough? You are not alone. I’m reading Mark Hawthorne’s book “Striking at the Roots: A Practical Guide to Animal Activism” and it’s incredibly helpful. He addresses our feelings of futility or not doing as much as we feel we should by reminding us that as vegans we save 100 animal lives every year. And, for every person you help convert to veganism, we save another 100 lives per year.
It’s a little candlelight in the darkness of a world determined to destroy itself, y’know?
s.
Well, I’ll just say some of what I said in my post on Monday: do take care of yourself, do remember that there are limits to what you can do, and do check out pattrice jones’s book Aftershock if you haven’t already. As I mentioned, I’ve been able to only flip through it so far, but it looks incredibly helpful, and I’ve heard wonderful, wonderful things about it.
I just posted on this very issue today over at my site as well. I can completely relate to being emotionally drained watching suffering every day. One of the hardest parts of being an animal activist is that you are fighting a problem that the majority of the human race doesn’t think is a problem. It’s going against everything anyone has ever been taught.
I read an article by Susie Coston at Farm Sanctuary. I am going to post it here for you. When you are done reading that, check out http://www.yourdailyvegan.com to read how I dealt with the same issue. You’ll see I took Susie’s advice. It worked for me so maybe it will help you today when you need it. Stay strong my friend. Together we are making a difference in the lives of the animals we work for!
This is from “Sanctuary” Farm Sanctuary’s compassionate quarterly spring 2008 magazine, page 10. It really hits home for me.
On the Shelter with Susie
Need a recharge? Come to the shelter!
written by Susie Coston, National Shelter Director
Ever since I started advocating for farm animals more than 15 years ago, I have been talking with fellow activists about the exhaustion and frustration they often feel wile fighting for the rights of animals see as food by most of our society. And in a world where billions of these animals are senselessly killed every year, it is hard to deal with the range of emotions-from intense anger to pure sadness-that working against such odds brings up from our depths.
I have always felt very lucky to be able to see – through my direct work with farm animals – victories unfold before my eyes daily. This part of my job helps keep burnout and depression at bay no matter how physically exhausted or emotionally drained I am. Watching a sick, lethargic and scared animal blossom into a secure, playful and healthy being is a blessing – a rarity in a movement that bears witness to so much pain.
Of course, losing an animal who arrives too weak to survive, or a friend who has been with me for years, is deeply painful. But for every sad moment at the shelter, there is happiness right around the corner. For each of our residents whose bodies cannot fight the again process any longer, a new family member joins us and brightens our lives. For each cruelty case we investigate, only to hit a wall and not be able to save all the animals, there is another that is a success. The very fact that each animal we care fore once faced a horrible death, but now thrives allows us to remain hopeful.
If you’ve ever met me before, you probably know that I am constantly inviting people to come to the farm. I do this because the effects these animals can have on all of us are life-affirming. There is nothing like the joy that comes from seeing a cow, pig or chicken enjoying their lives – making a physical connection with them is even better. A few moments in their presence, in fact, not only reveal the gifts they give to the world just by simply being who they are, but also lifts weight from your heart because you know that the animals standing right in front of you are safe and have made it out alive.
Over the past eight years, I have seen countless activists heal and recharge at Farm Sanctuary’s shelters, each unique encounter they have with a survivor driving home the reasons why they are fighting so hard to touch the hearts and open the minds of others. So if your life as an activist ever seems overwhelming, I urge you to join me in taking a break at our shelters where you can shower a pig with love, play with a goat, relax with a cow or let a turkey nest in your lap. When you need that extra boost to keep going, let the animals show you just what your advocacy work is making possible every day.
I might be in a minority here – I am a vegetarian (I partake dairy but nothing else). I do feel sad about the animals, but not as badly as most you you.
The reason is that I believe that “Life lives on Life.” Every one kills – vegetarians and meat eaters. We kill plants and they kill animals. But essentially, we all kill.
However, what I feel very sad about is the fact that we human beings are the only ones who make a profession out of killing. We are greedy and it is that greed which makes us indulge in factory farming and finding newer ways of isolating, torturing and killing.
Having said this, I also believe that if we would like to make a movement out of vegetarain life style, then we have to stop pointing fingers at meat eaters for cruelty. It divides humans into two warring camps – the “cruel” meat eaters and the “compassionate” vegetarian.
Instead, we need to let them understand that we all are on the same side and that it is environmentally suicidal to eat meat. That is the reason why we must be vegetarains. That, I also think is the only reason that a meat eater will understand.
And finally, others have said it but may I add that as per Gita, we all just need to do “karma” – in your case, work for the welfare of animals – and not get disheartened by adverse results – they are not in your hands anyway.
Unny, Hase & Jess – Thanks! And you’re so right. All we can really do is live true to our values and do what we can with our limited resources and time. And I like to think I’m doing that…
NOTHONEY – I’ll have to add that book to my list – which is already huge! Thanks for the recommendation.
STEPHANIE – Thanks – your post helped inspire mine.
KD – Great article and so true. Being at Farm Sanctuary last year really lifted my spirits. I think I am due for another visit. Thank you for sharing.
SANJEEV – I don’t think I agree with the premise of a lot of your comment here. Killing plants is nothing like killing animals. Plants don’t have nervous systems and can’t feel pain or fear. I don’t lump myself in with meat eaters as a “killer” simply because I eat plants.
Secondly, I disagree that the only thing meat eaters will listen to that would make them go vegetarian would be environmental arguments. I used to be a meat eater, and the environment wasn’t enough for ME to switch…but compassion for animals was. I think different things appeal to different people, and while the environment might be a much bigger driver for you and maybe make more sense to you, it certainly doesn’t for me.
Lastly, I don’t think that what I was doing was necessarily “pointing fingers” at all meat eaters. I believe that many meat eaters are compassionate at heart, but don’t know how to change, or are afraid to, or simply don’t have the information they need…or they convince themselves they can eat “happy meat” and it’s all okay. But I don’t think I ever divide people into “good” and “bad” depending on what they eat. Heck, if I did that, I’d have to send my family and lots of my friends to the “bad” camp, and I’d be almost all alone!
Thanks for your comment.
don’t feel bad, there is literally no way you can quantitatively analyse your contribution to animal welfare. Especially when it come to isolated instances of idiocy overseas. The most important thing is that you contribute. Fell good.
It is very difficult being an animal lover in a world which gives approval to animal torture. I live in farm and Amish country where puppy mills, hog confinement houses, and chicken houses are common. It is difficult to just drive by them. I no longer eat meat–it wasn’t something I stopped overnight. THe more animal suffering I witnessed, the more aversion I had to meat. I love animals more than people–it is just a fact.
I love polar bears and any kind of animal. To tell the truth, I weep at every animal cruelty ad I see; weather it be on the computer, in a magazine, newspaper or television! It seems to me that the animals that have a bad reputation and are known for attacking humans sometimes are the ones that have to be hurt or beaten, even hunted. Take the Grizzly for an example:often shot because they either come to close to people or because they are spotted by careless hunters. Just because they are feirce predators, that doesn’t mean they have no feelings or tolerance for anything on planet earth! You may think that they could atleast show some respect to human beings, but that’s not clear. If you think about it, they do have some respect for humans___we are pushing them to their limits! Killing because we cannot see through that angry fur or thick skinned head linned with thousands of teeth, we just don’t get the fact that this is how life is. There is nothing they can do to chang what species they are born into! The most ruthless creature on earth is not the shark, the bear, the tiger, the snake,the spider,the bull,the eel,the elephant, nor the dinosours, even the t-rex if it was alive today!____but the human! Destroyers of everything!So ruthless we are! Some people want to help others,like people who pass requests to build factorys, to get money, to help other people get money,to make more things.We always want to help other humans. But have we ever considered careing about polar bears, probably not. We look up to humans as inspiration, for advice. Do we ever look up to polar bears? You should find a nice one,make him famous.
I love polar bears and any kind of animal. To tell the truth, I weep at every animal cruelty ad I see; weather it be on the computer, in a magazine, newspaper or television! It seems to me that the animals that have a bad reputation and are known for attacking humans sometimes are the ones that have to be hurt or beaten, even hunted. Take the Grizzly for an example:often shot because they either come to close to people or because they are spotted by careless hunters. Just because they are feirce predators, that doesn’t mean they have no feelings or tolerance for anything on planet earth! You may think that they could atleast show some respect to human beings, but that’s not clear. If you think about it, they do have some respect for humans___we are pushing them to their limits! Killing because we cannot see through that angry fur or thick skinned head linned with thousands of teeth, we just don’t get the fact that this is how life is. There is nothing they can do to chang what species they are born into! The most ruthless creature on earth is not the shark, the bear, the tiger, the snake,the spider,the bull,the eel,the elephant, nor the dinosours, even the t-rex if it was alive today!____but the human! Destroyers of everything!So ruthless we are! Some people want to help others,like people who pass requests to build factorys, to get money, to help other people get money,to make more things.We always want to help other humans. But have we ever considered careing about polar bears, probably not. We look up to humans as inspiration, for advice. Do we ever look up to polar bears? You should find a nice one,make him famous. (This is not to be understood literally)