For the past 2 and a half years, I've really advocated for the conservation of grey wolves / wolves on our planet, as they face endless perils that are plunging them towards worldwide extinction. Why the past 2 and a half years? It has been approximately that amount of time, since one of the Trump administration's final acts in office, was to lift all endangered species act protections from wolves. When I began my research, I realized that we have, as humans, manipulated every facet of wolves' existence and now, we have collectively decided that they are better off extinct. The more I dove in to the topic, the more I realized, that every peril wolves face to their survival, every one of them, are directly traced back to humans. Humans are the ONLY reason that the dialogue surrounding wolves has shifted to one of negativity, to one of being ok that wolves are eradicated. How could we possibly want to wipe an entire species off of this planet with no regard? Let's chat about the main culprit! Why Kill Wolves?Not my photo. Photo taken respectively from National Wildlife Foundation nwf.org The Main Culprit? LivestockThe conflict between livestock farmers and wolves is nothing new. In fact, a large percentage of wolves that are slaughtered are usually done so after they interact / kill livestock. A story recently emerged from Switzerland regarding the permittance of wolf pack slaughter to protect livestock, after several instances of wolves attacking / killing livestock. Livestock are easy targets for wolves as they are often rather defenseless against attacks. Chickens, goats, sheep, etc., these animals make for an easy meal for hungry wolves who are opportunistic hunters. After wolves kill livestock, it's almost a guarantee that they will be euthanized, disrupting wolf pack hierarchy. My question here is, why put food on a silver platter for hungry predators and then blame them for helping themselves? My problem here is if this livestock is such a precious commodity, and farmers are so very concerned about protecting them, why are the perimeter fences that house these animals so easily penetrable? Why is it that wild predators can so easily access livestock? Livestock are literally served up to wolves in order to justify their euthanasia, but why not address the reasoning behind this? Why not improve the perimeter barriers so that wolves can not feasibly access livestock? Why? Because killing the wolves is the easier and cheaper option and frankly, the narrative surrounding wolves right now is one that sees them as unimportant and nuisances to the animal ag industry. This narrative allows us to overlook the importance of wolves in their habitat, the importance of wolves in their hierarchy / social structure, and the importance of their survival on this planet. What's The Connection Between Wolf Survival & My Push For Meatless Mondays?
Will it stop at wolves? Not a chance. As we continue to steal land away from wild animals, other predatory species will undoubtedly have interactions with livestock, leading to their euthanasia. How long can wild animals sustain our continued growth, continued animal ag development and the toxic pollution that comes with these industries, and onslaught as a result of livestock conflicts? If we continue to develop at this rate, stealing land and killing predators, we must be willing to accept that we will push wolves, bobcats, bears, and other predatory species towards inevitable extinction. Are we really so unable to extend empathy towards the survival of an entire species because we love bacon? My advocacy for Meatless Mondays ties directly in to the survival of wild animals like wolves. Sure, I could get on here and repeatedly push the vegetarian / vegan narrative, hoping to inspire a large amount of meat-eating people to drop meat and adopt a meatless lifestyle. The reality is, it's so much easier to advocate for a small change, like ditching meat one day a week, versus pushing a meatless lifestyle. A small change like giving up meat one or two days a week would have a significant impact on the necessity of livestock. Imagine if all 34 + million people in Canada collectively dropped meat one day per week. The environmental impact would be astronomical. The amount of livestock required / killed would drop, and the need for more land to produce more animals would also drop. It is all tied together. I think one of the most frustrating things I've seen at the grocery store is when packages of meat are marked down 50% to sell them before they expire. This indicates that the necessity is not even there in some cases, and yet we continue to slaughter at the rate that we are. To think that we slaughtered a frightened animal to produce meat, only to throw it in the garbage when it expired is beyond frustrating to me given everything that comes along with that package of meat. So not only are we rapidly growing, rapidly taking land, and slaughtering animals in mass quantities, we are also doing so to such an extent that the necessity is not even there. An entire cycle of destruction that leads to products being thrown in the garbage after they expired. At the end of the day, we are all free to make our own choices regarding what we eat. This story is simply a reminder that our choices do not only affect us. If we continue to over-produce meat, steal land from wild animals to produce MORE meat, and continue to kill wild predators to protect meat, we will undoubtedly destroy every other species on our planet to put steak or bacon on our plates. Is it too astronomically outrageous to hope that there are enough of us who recognize that our choices are directly linked to the survival of other species on our planet? Are there enough of us who care? Enough of us who want to see wild animals survive for generations to come? Enough of us that recognize that we are on track to lose wolves, bears, and other predatory species which will disrupt the natural balance of ecosystems that rely on a healthy population of both prey and predatory species? Or, is it simply too late to change course and reverse the damage that we are on track to do with our continued growth? My hope is that even one person who reads this will make the connection between meat production and the eradication of our planet's predatory species. After making that connection, giving up meat one day a week doesn't seem so hard when the survival of an entire species hinges on our decisions. Wolves will go extinct to protect livestock, that is a guarantee, and it will not stop there. It's up to us to stave off the inevitable extinction of species we are pushing towards extinction for a piece of bacon. We cannot be this stubborn and lacking in empathy, I refuse to believe it. HAPPY VEG
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