Never in my life have I ripped the legs or wings off a fly or eaten lobster. 

I knew when I was 5 years old that they feel pain.

But why do I still eat chickens and cows sometimes?

It really doesn’t make sense.  I would not eat any animal if I’d seen it alive.

I used to be sad when a cow got hit on the road, now I’m glad they don’t have to live through the torture and horrors in the feedlots.  It’s better to be dead than to have to suffer.

I’m still hoping to get chickens one day and then I’ll stop eating chicken.  Just like I don’t eat dogs and cats.  And I don’t eat pigs because they’re so abused and tortured and they’re smarter than dogs.

I also remember my grandma chopping the heads of her chickens, the boiling water, the stench … and then we ate them.

I hope I never have to watch that again and I’d skip that meal.

I eat the wild-caught Alaskan sockeye salmon because they’re supposed to be so good for the brain.

And I rationalize that they lived a hopefully good natural life and would die anyway.

What’s the difference between a bear eating them or me eating them?

I’m hoping that they are killed quickly and not left to suffocate.

I used to eat bison until I realized that they’re farmed just like cows.

Never seen it organic, only the “natural” that means absolutely NOTHING, but somehow fooled me.  They’re not even raised according to USDA organic standards, slightly less cruel than conventional.

While hunting is often justified due to overpopulation of deer etc., hunting is no substitution for the (almost) extinct predators.

Wolves and other predators kill the weakest, the sick and old and the babies.  Humans strive to kill the largest and strongest animals.   I grew up with antlers in my grandparents’ house.    But they didn’t kill the animals, they FOUND the antlers.

Part of my brain damage is that I have way too much empathy and compassion.  Not a good fit in our ruthless cruel society.

https://www.studyfinds.org/octopuses-squid-crabs-emotions/

Animals avoid pain just like people

It may seem hard to believe now, but up until the 1980s there were some who theorized that “pre-verbal human babies” did not feel pain. Even today, countless people believe most animals, including invertebrates, don’t experience pain and merely react unconsciously to negative stimuli.

These beliefs may be prevalent and ingrained in some cultures, but researchers say they aren’t grounded in science. Research over the past few decades on mammals, fish, octopuses, and crabs have all produced the same results: Animals avoid pain and dangerous situations to the best of their abilities in any given situation. Some animals, such as cows, even display signs of empathy. A mother cow will often become distressed if her calf is in pain or some kind of trouble.

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