Bohemian Antiks Continue

Vegan Meat

In the deep of winter we went for a walk with Dog. As we do every day, whatever the weather.  Apart from if it is raining, as Dog will then flat-out refuse to go. The snow was deep but crusty, rather than fluffy, which meant that there was a hard surface formed on the snow allowing us to walk across open fields which would usually be inaccessible to us. It's a wonderful time of the year, and any day there is sunshine it's important to drop everything and run straight outside, because really, you do not know when you might see the sun again.

Anyway, I digress. On this particular day Dog was off the lead and had run somewhat ahead. We have to drive away from the house to let her off the lead because the bugger will pretend to go for a walk with you, and then when you are almost back to the house, will run away for her own stinky adventures in the forest. She will find dead things. If they smell, she'll find them, and if they are too long dead to eat, she will use them as a delicious dog perfume. Perfect.

We passed by a thicket and could clearly hear Dog doing something. Man called her back, but she ignored him, so he went into the bushes to investigate, and there he found the tiny lamb. It couldn't have been a week old. It was cold and dead, but there was still fresh blood - which is probably how Dog discovered it.

Cause of death? It was missing it's head.

People on the internet get incensed about the definitions of veganism. But the truth is it means different things to different people. I am clear about my own philosophy towards food. I think meat is delicious and not eating it is hard for me. However, I remember when I found out about the great lie - that the chicken on my plate was the same as the chickens in the story books I read. An animal that had been killed so I could eat it, or a piglet or a calf or a lamb. All of those lovely creatures that grace the pages of children's books and imaginations.

So, I don't eat meat all the time. And when I do, I need to know that the animal had a fair life. Ideally in a nice field with companions and a tree for shade and shelter. Or that it got to swim freely in the oceans. Not live out its sole precious wonderful life in some awful system of nets in a harbour somewhere.

If there were a fair-life accreditation on meat products I would be far more likely to buy it. But actually, I've only eaten pork and beef by accident as an adult - with the exception of one burger - at The Burger Joint - in New York. That was weird. And a once-in-a-lifetime thing. I didn't like it.

But - wild game, I think, is more acceptable. I know that these creatures lived real lives, and the hunters that kill them in these parts are also their greatest champions and protectors. And these animals certainly have a better life than those that are bred as units of production in an industrialised system.

In the past few years we have been no stranger to death. We found a freshly dead deer in the forest, which we took home and butchered with the help of youtube videos. A wood pigeon sunday dinner from a bird that was hit by a car. A moorhen barbecue from a hunting expedition from Cat Three, who was prolific, but mainly brought home rats. I once made the mistake of giving Dog an entire hare that had been killed on the road, and learned that too much of a good thing leads to a very stinky dog. Not pleasant in winter when it's too cold for her to be outside.

So - a headless lamb. This is the epitome of the vegan meat oxymoron for me. We are disposing of it safely. We know the cause of death. We are not contributing to the demand and supply of the meat industry in doing so.

I am very aware that the most awful behaviour comes from people who know they are right. So please be gentle with your comments. I only mean the best for everyone.