Stupid PETA.....

     And that's not Ethan's favorite of "People Eating Tasty Animals." The activist group has a blog post which has resurfaced and tries to bash everything that livestock producers stand for -- the integrity of raising quality meat products. Until you've been told exactly why that calf is being drug by its hind legs (generally the easiest way to move them...), you shouldn't automatically assume that the calf is being tortured.
     There are about twelve points or so that PETA brings out in their post, but they are so off point that it's unbelievable. They specifically call out FFA members and don't mention 4-H members. FFA members have risen above with the hashtag FFAproud. Well, I was never an FFA member, but I've been around the organization enough to know they teach youth proper animal care. I also know that 4-H youth members start learning about proper care practices when they're as young as 5 -- all the way until they're 18 or 19. You can't tell me that the thousands of youth who participate in a livestock project (terminal or not) don't know how to properly care for an animal.
     I raised a livestock animal of some sort, for 4-H or otherwise, beginning at the age of about 5 actually. I loved helping feed the bottle calves, so that became my job. When I got my pigs, they were solely my responsibility. I had to feed and water before I got breakfast in the morning. If I didn't make it out the door before Mom did, she would know if my animals needed food or water. When it was blazing hot out, I was getting a sunburn to make sure my pigs didn't. Even in our less than state-of-the-art facility, my animals were treated like kings and queens, because for about five months that's exactly what they were.
     If I wanted to go on a trip, I not only had to find a way to pay for it, but also make sure my animals were taken care of. This generally included trading record book typing for chores with Ethan. Then it came time for him to go adventuring and guess who had to learn how to milk the does? Yep, that's right, this girl. Those silly goats had udders that were cleaner than a baby's bottom. Seriously, I'm not kidding. It made it worth it when I could see the full circle of the milk when we started bottling feeding a summer bummer calf. That was the cool part. I didn't even have to warm up the milk!
     My point is that livestock animals are well taken care of -- both in commercial facilities and private operations. While I can't be FFA proud, I sure can be #4Hproud because I am #4Hgrown.