Adopt A Turkey This Thanksgiving!

There is a great organization called Farm Sanctuary that advocates for farm animals' living conditions before they become our dinners. It is fact that if an animal is able to roam free and live a happier life, that will positively affect the quality of the meat that they produce. Farm Sanctuary, and all meat eaters, really, had a big win on election night when Prop 2 was passed enacting laws about the treatment of farm animals...Hopefully we are on our way to living a more conscious, animal friendly life style.

This bring me to my next topic...Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. The stuffing, the sweet potatoes, the pecan pie...I mean, can anything be better? This is actually my first Thanksgiving since I became a vegetarian and I am eager to see if I am going to miss the turkey. My hunch is that, with the extra stuffing to compensate, I'll be fine.

Farm Sanctuary does an annual Adopt A Turkey Project where for $25 you can adopt a turkey, save it from the slaughter and give it, it's own yummy turkey-friendly Thanksgiving meal (veggies only!). I am NOT trying to turn you vegetarian. It isn't for everyone, and I understand that. What I am saying is, make sure your turkey comes form an organic farm where the turkey's lives aren't compromised in order for us to be able to indulge. Especially since there are alternatives i.e. buying organic!

Some horrible practices are in effect in "turkey factories" which include: de-beaking and de-clawing so the turkies can't peck each other in their tiny, confined spaces. This also makes it impossible for them to control food intake. This procedure is done without anestesia which causes pain, excessive bleeding that leads to infections and often times, death.

They are also genetically altered to grow way faster than is healthy for them. It is said that "If a seven pound [human] baby grew at the same rate that today’s turkey grows, when the baby reaches 18 weeks of age, it would weigh 1,500 pounds.” This can lead to cardiovascular disease and death.

I guess my point is, this Thanksgiving, when we are going over all of the things that we can be thankful for in our lives, let's not take the very meal we are eating for granted. Make the choice to support organic, free-range, turkey farms and then you can have one more thing to feel good about! Make this Thanksgiving a compassionate one for all!