I eat meat. For years in my late teens and early 20s, I stopped eating red meat. It was like that for a while until one day I was just craving a steak. Now I eat red meat a couple times a month, but my daily diet consists of leaner meat like turkey or chicken. Part of the reason why I’m a meat eater is that I don’t think too hard or too much about the animals I’m eating. I’m sure if I ever developed a friendship with a cow, I would never want to eat steak again. Chickens, on the other hand, I couldn’t care less about. I’ve almost killed my neighbors’ chickens and that fakakta rooster with my bare hands. My point? I’m not sure I could do what Chris Pratt does on his farm. Chris Pratt raises lambs, he hugs them and loves them and takes care of them and then he slaughters them and eats them. He documented this affection and literal butchery on his Instagram, writing and saying:
“I’m excited to get back into posting stuff to social media after a much needed hiatus… I’m doing this new blood type diet and since I have a strain of alien blood that they’ve never seen before, it’s kind of a free for all with what I get to eat… Since I’ve been farming lamb for the past six months and fishing, I’m eating lamb. That’s right, fresh farm to table lamb. They are the happiest lambs on the planet. They are so sweet and then one day they wake up dead and they’re in my freezer. I don’t know how it even works but it’s amazing and if you’re a vegetarian, I apologize, I don’t mean to be insensitive but I did have a wonderful lamb lunch for my snack.”
“Look at all this glorious food! We will eat off him for a month. His wool is becoming yarn as we speak. He lived a very good life. He was groomed and shorn, his hooves medicated, de wormed, no antibiotics necessary. Surrounded by laughing loving humans, including children to whom they provided such joy. Nuzzled, pet and loved every day. No stressful travel to his final destination. Trauma Free. Just a touch of a usda certified wand to his head and he goes to sleep. The other sheep don’t even notice. It’s like unplugging a tv. Then Wocka my butcher works his magic. Right now the meat is for friends, family and gifts. Soon though it may be available to my followers as we test recipes and open up to market. Gotta get some things dialed in first. I have found a new passion to add to my many others. #farmlife and jack loves it! You’ll know where to sprinkle my ashes. I’ll tell you that.”
[From Chris Pratt’s Instagram]
I’m not naive – of course farm animals get slaughtered and that’s how meat ends up in grocery stores and how I end up buying the manager’s special on hamburger meat when I’m PMS-ing (I NEED IRON). But, as I said, I couldn’t do that if I saw children playing with the cow I was planning on eating. Maybe that guy was right… maybe I am just an uptight city girl? Hm. Or maybe I’ve just always anthropomorphized animals? That’s true as well.
As for Pratt and his farm and his butcher who carves up lambs… I mean, this is on-brand for Chris Pratt’s Americana-bro style. But it just leaves me cold.
Photos courtesy of Instagram, Backgrid.
Sounds like he still needs to convince himself. Publicly.
The more I read about his relationship with animals, the more I loathe him.
I always thought he was kind of cute, and funny – but the dog “abandonment and kitten “auctioning”, the sport hunting, now this? Ugh. I’ll watch him if there’s another Jurassic movie, but that’s it.
We know most farm animals are for food. But it sounds like he’s bragging about the slaughter. I’m starting not to like him. I think he takes joy in the slaughter of animals.
You know Jeffery Dean Morgan also has a farm and the way they talk about their animals are completely different. Jeff seems to adore his animals why Chris could give a crap. Jeff said his chickens are for eggs, he doesn’t kill them and his cows are strictly for milk, not slaughter.
I used to have a pet goat and even now you couldn’t pay me to eat goat. I can’t eat something that I consider a pet. Also I would never eat chicken that came from my grandparents backyard and I didn’t even like chicken, it was weird for me to eat chickens I knew, the same with pigs. My grandfather raised pigs for slaughter and I wouldn’t have any of that meat. Take me to a diner and bacon was on my plate. But I wouldn’t eat bacon that came from the pig I used to know as Buddy from the farm
YES V4Real. It’s not so much that he’s running a farm, it’s just how excited he is about killing an animal after allowing his children to become attached to them.
IDK maybe it’s just because we know how he’s mistreated pets in the past but…there’s something really off about him IMO.
Aww, that is cute about the pet goat V4Real. A pig named Buddy is adorable too.
I am a vegan, so meat eating leaves me cold, but I am not a zealot. My lifestyle isn’t a 100 percent vegan, so I keep it in perspective. I wish people would eat less meat overall as a start but whatever.
Cuddling your potential food makes you strange. I understand the idea of compassionate farming, but actually, bonding and cuddling are just off like kitten said. That is just extra but is on brand for him I guess. He doesn’t seem to think of animals with respect, so this makes the whole thing odd.
I can’t stand this man. His mediocrity and down-home bro All American dude super white guy routine is the opposite of what I find attractive in any man anyway.
I am vegetarian but if you can humanely raise and slaughter animals for food I have no problem with that. I couldn’t do it.
Vreal, you reminded me of the time I was at a friend’s house for dinner and I said dinner was good and they said it was Russell, the pig they raised in their back yard. I still remember russell. I couldn’t eat after that and they thought I was weird.
@V4Real;
That’s what’s bugging me about this – the way he’s so flippant about the slaughter. He’s trying to make the fact that he put a bolt in an animal’s head twee. I’m all for natural farming, but let’s not act like he’s doing the animal a favor.
I think he think’s he’s cuter than he is.
On one of the very original F-word programs, Gordon Ramsay decided to raise the turkeys he was going to server for Christmas lunch in his restaurant. He was worried that it would be traumatic for his kids, but he was the one who broke down when the butcher arrived. Farming is fine, but Pratt just feels like he’s enjoying the slaughter aspect of it a little too much.
We have part “ownership” in a small farm and raise chickens and goats. The chickens are for eggs and the goats are hand milked for milk. They will grow old with all of us.
I remember my mom’s stories of being the only person with no chicken on her dinner plate because she literally knew all of her aunt’s chickens. If she were at a friend’s house it was different and she could eat. That was unusual in those years in the south because many people grew/raised their own food. Still lots of pig pickings/barbecues in the south – nothing wrong with it but I just can’t. * shudder*
@EA
My southern family have pig roasts several times a year and think I am crazy for not wanting to attend. One of the reasons is they tease me, but with some, there is an edge to their comments. They have little respect for people from the coasts for the most part. There are exceptions of course.
My Mamere now lives in a nice house but grew up in poverty so having chickens and being able to hunt, and fish kept them alive and able to trade for other food. It is part of their life. But as she has aged she eats more fish and less fatty meat, but she does tell stories of naming the chickens.
V4real
His tone is often off. Speaking about shooting coyotes he seemed gleeful and seeking that opportunity as frequently as he could.
Count in his other act of how he wanted to get rid of their dog to anyone that would take it… I don’t like him.
If he’s raising the animals humanely then I don’t think anyone has the right to complain. Do you think the leather on your feet always got there in a kind and a compassionate way? I don’t think so, not from what I have read about the terrible way cattle are treated in slaughterhouses, ie how many of them come to life again while they are being skinned. As for sport hunters, which he may or may not be, they should go straight to hell.
@Sabrine This is the point we’re making. We know farm animals are for food. We are saying that he seems to be enjoying the slaughter of his animals a bit too much, it’s like he’s bragging about getting his kid attached to that animal and then killing it. Are you aware of his track record with animals, even the ones he had as pets, not just the ones he hunted down and shot for sport.
We knoe where our shoes come from, we’re not PETA. I even said I eat meat and enjoyed bacon from diners, I just couldn’t eat the pigs that we’re slaughtered in my backyard.
This doesn’t bother me. People raising animals humanely and eating them is a big meh from me. There’s obviously the giant philosophical argument about eating meat and what gives us the right and all that, but how lucky are we to be able to complain about that as we have plenty of other food options. I grew up in the boonies and from my experience, farmers really do love and care for their animals.
I do think Pratt is really growing into himself and it’s not an act. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but at least he’s not faking it.
I have a cousin who has a farm, he genuinely cares for the animals. He feeds them healthy food and treats them great, I’ve even seen him singing and talking to his pigs. But when it comes to killing and eating them it doesn’t seem to bother him, he’s self reliant and feeds himself and his family.
Ps …I tasted the bacon from one of his pigs, it was amazing.
DH had never had farm fresh meat before we were dating. We got half of a pig from my dad and I thought Mr. Broody’s eyes were going to bug out of his head the first time he tried it. We’re fairly poor folk, but we make an effort to buy farm fresh meat whenever we can. The difference in taste is incredible.
I was in 4-H as a kid. I showed lambs and holsteins. It’s a way of life – often multiple generations of it.
Personally, I couldn’t do it. I can’t kill bugs without guilt. But I still eat meat (though I’m trying to eat less) and I know someone has to do it. We bought a side of pork from my husbands boss who farms part time – he is an absolutely great guy who treats his animals well.
I know another guy my age who was a big partier and now is a farmer. He has one pig that he won’t kill. He talks to him. If they can’t find him they’ll go to the barn and find him hanging out with this pig. He teaches him tricks. I think it keeps him sane, in a way, having a separation between pet and farm pigs. I’d have a hard time with it, though.
I kind of hate 4-H. It’s all about teaching children to think of animals as food and money. It’s totally bizarre to me that children are taught to raise and love an animal, show it, be proud of their blue ribbons, then sell it to be butchered.
Kelly – I was in 4-H in Canada to be fair… also in a very small town. It definitely was a lot different than the super competitive US versions. Ultimately, it’s a way to keep people in farming – which I guess is looking at animals as food and money. But there’s SO many other things in it – the showmanship side is a small part. There’s also some pretty competitive vegetable gardening going on – you don’t HAVE to show an animal at all. There’s everything from photography, cooking, cake decorating, first aid, floriculture, computer sciences, vet sciences, welding… etc etc. So no – it’s not ALL about teaching and animal to love then butcher an animal.
And for me – I showed holsteins. I used a calf from the small dairy farm one of the leaders owned, showed it, then it would stay on his active farm. Beef project is a bit different – but I was able to go back years later and find my first 4-H calf who came running for me. She would follow me around like a dog. No need to make me out to be some kind of twisted kid wringing my hands while looking at baby animals and jumping at the first chance to slaughter them.
that’s how I grew up. we had sheep and pigs. we showed them at fair. they were loved, but ultimately we knew they were there to sustain us. the meat was a far better quality than the grocery store. I see nothing wrong in raising humane food for your own consumption.
in this day of dietary illness I think it’s a great choice. we also eat Elk that my husband hunts. We fish for Salmon, Kroppie and Walleye. it tastes amazing! we are healthy and appreciate the animals.
This doesn’t bother me either. I agree – if you are anti-meat – that’s a different issue. But raising your own food brings a closer appreciation for it (be it meat or fruits and veg) – and being more conscious is surely a more ‘real’ way to live.
Yea I didn’t get the slant on this article. Farms raise their animals to eat them or sell the meat. That’s normal. It’s not just America either. I have one parent that grew up in another country (Haiti) and they were lucky they could afford to grow animals for food. They were considered lucky because many families couldn’t afford livestock which is less expensive than buying meat from a store.
And I don’t need to explain that the way they kill animals there is less pretty than here. It’s way of life. Chris isn’t doing anything that tons of people do day in and out.
I agree. This is admirable. I eat meat too and would love for all the animals I consume to have had lives as amazing as this sheep.
Honestly people have become too detached from their food. Where do you think your hamburger came from? Or your roast chicken? Or your sheepskin boots? Or any animal product, really? Have you seen a factory farm or a commercial slaughterhouse? It’s not pretty. Sometimes it’s not even humane.
I’ve eaten animals I’ve known in life and I actually prefer it that way. They had a good life, able to express their natural behaviors, not confined or mistreated, and they had a quick, humane death. And I *know* these things because I have seen them with my own eyes, not just been told that these things happened (or maybe happened, here’s a picture of cow in a field) by a faceless corporation. Many people where I live raise their own meat. A couple steers, a pig, chickens, sometimes sheep. There is a mobile slaughter truck that will come to your place and do the slaughter for you so the animal doesn’t even have to leave home. No stressful transport, no stressful new surroundings, just boom done. And you can control everything. If you are going to eat meat, I don’t know of a better way to do it.
I don’t like Pratt personally, but have no problem with his farming and hunting. My cousins live on rez and hunt deer and moose, and they absolutely take care not to cause suffering or go overboard. There is farmland good for grazing that wouldn’t work to grow vegetables, and some animals overpopulate and wreck havoc on the ecosystem if their numbers are not kept in check. I firmly believe humans can play a positive part in helping balance nature, we just have to be more careful.
Its like people have completely forgotten about our very recent ancestors, grandparents, great grandparents. My family completely lived off of a farm. Meat, dairy, veggies, fruit…and yes they were kind to the animals. We have lost our way in a sense of how sanitized we have become in where our fed comes from and we if ever needed had to feed our our selves and families. Farmers shouldn’t be “mean” or awful to their animals because they will be slaughtered later. You can still be kind to animal, that is the right thing to do even if you know the poor animals fate. My grandpa swore the meat tasted different if they animal had been mistreated or ignored. Stressed animals tend to not be as healthy. Farmers should show kindness toward their livestock no matter if they are up for slaughter or not.
.
This is farm life. My cousins raised Pigs, lambs, and Heifers for 4H. Loved them to bits. Sold them at auction. Moved on to next year’s animals. It’s a cycle.
Yup.
Born & raised on a farm.
We would name the cattle and when the fall came, one would be hanging from a tree when we got home from school.
When it was butchered and put in the freezer it would be labelled with the cow’s name..
For instance if the cow’s name was Murphy.. we’d have the meat labelled Murphy Steak. Or Murphy Burger. Or Murphy Sirloin.
#farmlife
Yep, this is farm life. I grew up on a hobby farm. Animals had names and would end up on the table. It either bothers you or it doesn’t.
I’ve been a vegetarian for more than 20 years, so I guess it bothered me, but only for myself. It doesn’t bother me that others eat meat. My husband and kids do. The husband hunts and the oldest kiddo took a hunters safety course this past fall. If they are going to eat meat, hunt and fish, I just want them to do it respectfully and safely.
I really think this is just a cultural divide. I’ve lived in several cities and I’m always amazed when I find out friends have never seen a gun in real life. But I’m also kind of amazed to find out the PTA mom I’m chatting with has a concealed carry permit.
I support family farms and activities like 4H. This way of life in the US is disappearing due to unbearable expenses and there has been a rise in farmer suicides (awful). Pratt’s braggy bro approach is lame (keep it to yourself, bro). But I get the essence of where he’s coming from. I support my veg and vegan peeps here and everywhere else 100%, I just eat meat occasionally and find it’s healthy for my body type.
This always confused me as a kid when my farming friends were like, “well, they got sold.” Now I respect that.
And I can very much go visit my friend’s farm to see the steer I’ll buy next year.
I wouldn’t be able to actually kill the animals, I don’t even squish spiders, but I’m not going to judge Chris Pratt for doing it. He raises them, I’m sure they have wonderful lives, but in the end he eats meat, so to each their own. It’s better than the supermarket meat, God only knows what happens to those animals
Exactly. I get vegetarians not liking meat at all but it’s a bit weird to simultaneously eat meat (including meat that probably comes from much crueler sources) and also have this weird reaction to people who get their meat themselves.
Maybe you’re (Kaiser I mean) just a vegetarian who doesn’t know it yet? 🙂
I don’t think people remember plants have life and they are sentient beungs too when they try to put their lifestyle in a more positive light. What we eat results in death of others. Its the ecosystem
The fact that Chris doesn’t kill the animals or even observe the killing of the animals whose great life he just ended tells me he feels some moral reservation about what he’s doing. If you can’t even watch how your food is made, it’s something you probably shouldn’t be eating.
So because he doesn’t want to watch it killed or kill it himself, it means he shouldn’t be eating it? Do you eat meat? If so, do you watch the cow killed before you eat the steak?
No, I don’t eat meat. I stopped after I saw a documentary about how cows and pigs are slaughtered. I couldn’t even watch, and most people cannot.
There is a ton of evidence that we are not meant to eat meat. Most people’s aversion to the killing of animals (the fact that we can’t even watch the slaughtering of animals) is one indication that we shouldn’t be eating it when other, more nutritious food sources are so readily available.
If you can watch a slaughterhouse video and still eat meat, be my guest.
https://munchies.vice.com/en_us/article/4x58bj/this-virtual-reality-slaughterhouse-could-turn-you-vegetarian
I get my meats from local farms, farms run by family and friends. Animals have great lives and are killed as humanely as possible. Judge me all you want but I like meat, I don’t eat it everyday for dietary reasons but I do eat it.
@Annabelle if watching that documentary bothered you, you should be 100% on Chris’ side because that’s the kind of practice he’s trying to avoid.
@odetta that’s great that you’re not contributing to factory farming. Truly. Most can’t afford that option and instead choose cheap, industrialized meat.
But have you ever watched a slaughter? Have you seen an animal butchered post-mortem?
I’m not judging, only trying to enlighten. I ate meat for years, too. Then I realized with environmental, health, and moral concerns, I just could no longer justify it. I believe most people who truly consider it will feel the same way eventually.
“I’m not judging…”
LOL.
@JosieH There are lots of people who are truly unaware that meat production is one of the major causes of climate change, not to mention the thousands of other ways industrialized farming kills our planet. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/jul/21/giving-up-beef-reduce-carbon-footprint-more-than-cars
And some truly don’t realize that human health is severely compromised by eating meat. https://www.jhsph.edu/research/centers-and-institutes/johns-hopkins-center-for-a-livable-future/projects/meatless_monday/resources/meat_consumption.html
Others don’t realize the truly horrific lives, and deaths, these animals face. https://www.huffingtonpost.com/anna-pippus/meet-the-former-slaughter_b_10199262.html
I don’t think facts are judgmental 🤷🏻♀️
Gustatory reactions are not the same as moral reactions.
But there is plenty of scientific evidence that eating meat is extremely harmful to human health. https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/risk-red-meat
It is also pretty terrible for the environment. http://science.time.com/2013/12/16/the-triple-whopper-environmental-impact-of-global-meat-production/
Annabelle- isn’t the argument being presented that eating too much meat is bad, not that meat is bad full stop? Also I would offer some counter evidence that we were indeed evolved to eat meat. Front facing eyes, teeth that tear, and a digestive system that can digest meat all tell us we evolved as a predatory species.
I am not at all trying to change your mind about how you eat, btw. I 100% respect vegetarians/vegans and am myself trying to add more meatless meals to my diet. I’m just saying if you’re trying to make the argument that we are not evolved to eat meat, I respectfully disagree.
@stripe the dose always makes the poison, so of course eating less meat is more healthful than eating more meat.
Whether we are evolved to eat meat or not is a discussion too rich for my blood this morning. But even when you accept that there were times in our evolution where humans needed to eat meat to survive, there’s no rational argument for eating meat in modern times – given the detrimental health effects and horrible environmental impacts – where other foods are so plentiful (for most).
Im going to go with Albert Einstein on this one, that “Nothing will benefit health or increase chances of survival on earth as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.” So I guess it depends on whether you believe humans have stopped evolving or not.
Annabelle:
Humans are not ruminate animals meant to be herbivores. We are meant to be omnivores. As noted by others, the studies you cite support a notion that eating too much meat is not healthy for your diet, not that eating meat makes humans sick.
Evolutionarily speaking, we have not and do not appear to be evolving into a species meant to be herbivores. Likewise, we are not obligate carnivores like some species.
As for your reference to poison, I can not that certain “poisons” are beneficial in certain circumstances and doses but it’s clear your goal is the same as the evangelicals hell-bent on converting people to their religious view and holding themselves morally superior.
That was my first thought too, AB. He’s very much removed from the most gruesome aspect of farming.
I also don’t eat meat anymore and I don’t miss it at all. Beef in particular is not something I can support knowing the strain it puts on our ecosystem.
And Annabelle, Vice Weekly has a great episode about beef and pork farming. It’s absolutely disgusting but should be required viewing for anyone who eats meat.
Exactly, Kitten. Is Chris really any better than those who grab the plastic wrapped meat off the shelf? He even said the slaughter “is like unplugging a tv” O RLY? Then why doesn’t he do it himself?
Yay kitten!
I didn’t know you weren’t a meat eater.
I hope you are doing ok. You have been on my mind. (((Hugs)))
Animals have feelings, and I spend too much time with them to eat them. There is outrage when cultures eat cats and dogs but not about pigs or chickens who are pets for some people.
Industrial farms should be illegal. It is torture and abuse what they do. That should be the start of humanely caring for animals.
Why? Many farmers don’t do their own butchering. Often it’s a matter of practicality. Do you know what all goes into butchering an animal? It requires skill, and specialized equipment and facilities. The actual slaughter is only the initial step, there is much more to follow before the meat is ready for consumption and to ensure the meat is fit for consumption. It’s much more efficient to have one person (or team) do the whole process. Either you take the animal to the slaughterhouse, or, as you can do around here, a mobile slaughter truck comes to you. That way you know the job is done properly by those trained and equipped to do it.
I’m okay with it. But everyone’s different. I’ve always felt like the weirdo in life because I don’t fall all over myself about animals, furbabies and such. I mean, I like animals and wouldn’t intentionally hurt one for no reason; but I don’t see them the same as people and I just never will. If he treats them well and uses what he takes, he’s a blessing to the animals imo.
If he wrote all that to excuse slaughtering his animal . I msure slaughtering that animal was not a necessity rather than desire to please himself and others. I am a meat eater, when I need.
The excuse of farm life applied for real farmers , he’s not let’s not fool ourselves.
I wish I had farm full fresh veggies, eggs, milk, meat…it’d be a nice luxury.
I get eggs from a neighbour who has chickens, they are so delicious compared to store bought.
I have zero issue with this and I don’t think anyone who eats meat has a leg to stand on the superiority argument. Giving them a loving home is great! This is what farming should be and for all his issues, this isn’t one of them.
I totally agree with you. Unless you’re a vegetarian, you have no argument.
With all the respect I disagree with you. Not everything is about superiority .
My argument with this, is why he telling us? Second he is not a farmer.
Three if you think because we eat meat we can slaughter whenever we want without awareness of our envirmnet.
What about awareness ? Can we still eat meat and be aware of too much meat , too much eat, too much slaughtering. Accessive fishing , hunting or more. ?
I don’t have a problem with this, though I can’t imagine doing it myself. The lambs he raises and ultimately kills probably have a better quality of life than most animals raised and slaughtered for industry. I see pig trucks all the time and it’s sad.
I don’t eat meat or dairy – I have seen footage of these local livestock auctions (a friend of mine works as a farm sanctuary) no one can convince me there is such a thing as humane meat. If an animal wants to live (they all do) then killing them isn’t ok. There is no humane way to kill someone who doesn’t want to die. End of story.
On that note, I will excuse myself from this thread because I have no interest in reading all about how people excuse torturing and killing animals because they “taste good”.
+1 million
I couldn’t agree more. You can’t say you love and respect animals when it’s ok to eat them because the meat tastes great. Those animals know they’re going to die. My tastebuds are not more important than an animal who wants and has the right to live.
Lala, I totally agree with you. Animals are not ours to possess and do whatever we want with. They are sentient beings. A couple of days ago I saw a video (popped up in my news feed) about a pig who tried to save his other pig friend from being slaughtered. This pig charged at men who were about to slaughter his friend. Yes it’s anecdotal, but if that doesn’t show you that pigs are intelligent beings that feel pain and emotion, I don’t know what will.
And a hungry tiger would savagely murder and eat that pig without thinking twice about it. That’s nature and we are very much a part of it.
Either way you look at it, it is morally justifiable for humans to eat meat:
-If we are not superior to animals, then we can eat meat just like they do. After all, we’re not better than them, right?
-If we are superior to them, then we CAN do whatever we want with them. Top of the food chain.
JosieH:
Humans are animals, too, don’t forget that.
A hungry tiger kills a human for food. Guess what? That’s nature and we are certainly a part of it.
But many people would hunt down that tiger for behaving as any predator in nature would. Why, because we are supposedly superior to them? Well, without our guns and technology, we are easy pickings for any apex predator in the wild. That implies we aren’t really at the top of the food chain.
If someone thinks meat-eating people can do whatever they want to animals because nature and also thinks that lions, tigers, bears, sharks, crocodiles, etc., that eat people should be hunted down, then his/her rationalization is weak and smells of hypocrisy.
I agree. Some meat eaters take pleasure from saying things like that.
Totally agree.
Yes to all of this. He sounds so pleased with himself too. Guess killing lambs and posting it all over social media makes him feel like a man.
May I join you at this table? But I have to admit that the horrible videos didn’t turn me vegan; the happy frolicking cows ones influenced me, and then learning that cows have best friends sealed the deal. Plus, there’s really no reason to eat animals. 😊
You are probably right to leave this thread because you know it will be a messy one.
I stopped eating meat and dairy a few months ago. I’m hoping to keep at it. I cheated once for French toast and gagged, so I think it’s well and truly done for me. The slaughter bothers me for sure, but it was mostly for environmental and healths reasons.
It’s amazing how quickly your taste buds will adapt to a new diet. For me, the moral aspect sparked me to do research. The science is clear that eating meat does much more harm than good for humans.
“The science is clear that eating meat does much more harm than good for humans.”
1) This isn’t true, unless you are cherry-picking your “science” (which vegans/vegetarians are prone to do).
2) With the amount of STDs/STIs in the world today, one could easily make the argument that, health-wise, having sexual intercourse does much more harm than good for humans. Does this mean we are not meant to have sex anymore? Nope.
Humans are meant to eat and digest meat, just as we are meant to have sex, just as we are meant to walk upright. “Science” is clear on all of this.
Once you start reading and researching about animals and observe how that they feel and see them cry and fight to live, it is challenging to be okay with meat eating. The story about the farm sanctuary that reunited a mother with her calf because she cried for him and he cried for her until they could convince the farmer to give them the calf too is one of many stories. Animal behavior is hard to ignore for the sake of a meal.
The movie Okaja, of course, made me ugly cry but it summed up how I feel about meat eating. It is my choice, and my husband wasn’t a big meat eater when we met though he ate fish sometimes.
I am much less strident about the humane sourcing of eggs and dairy. I believe that can be done, but it isn’t something I am personally interested in doing.
that video from the Gentle Barn (Momma cow Maybelle crying for her baby boy Miles until they were reunited at the sanctuary) just had me gutted, crying hysterically.
They feel, they love, they want to live – who the hell are we to deny them their life?
See that is where I am. The Gentle Barn that must be where I saw it.
I don’t feel I have the right to end a life when I don’t have to and can find other nutrition that doesn’t do this. I tend to bond easily with animals and love their company so eating them is like eating a friend. Not for me.
I have some issues with PETA, but they offer a lot of good resources for people who choose to be vegan eaters.
Abortion isn’t humane either. But do you judge people who choose to get one or vote to make abortion illegal?
False argument.
OriginalLala: I’m with you. I have been a vegetarian for 30 years, since I was a kid, and have always been non-preachy about it, but the comments here are horrifying.
Raising, loving and bonding with animals, only to kill and eat them when they are still babies is horrifying, and IMO, completely psychopathic.
My father (WWII vet) grew up on a farm in the 1930s and could never develop this blase attitude about killing things. His experience in the war made him more empathetic about other living things, not less.
So yes, while I am a big believer in animals being treated humanely, the fact that ANYONE can switch from cuddling to killing something that they raised from birth is deeply disturbing to me.
he is gonna catch hell for this.
but, as a child of farmers, what i may think to be barbaric (i don’t) to others its a way of life.
He says they have a nice life, but isn’t the idea of lambs that they are still quite young? At what age does a lamb become a sheep?
Where do you think lamb comes from? It’s from lambs under a year. After that, it’s called mutton.
The year part was my question. Just wondering when lambs came of age.
More importantly does the lamb upon becoming a sheep get a Baa Mitzvah?
(I will get my coat and see myself out)
lolol 🙂
(I mean no offense to Jewish people). The combo is hilarious!
Yeah, I grew up on a farm so this is no big deal. A lot of people like to eat meat but don’t want to think about where it comes from. It sounds like this sheep got a far more humane life and death than most animals raised for slaughter are. I think his post is a little tone deaf though, he has a bad reputation when it comes to animal welfare so bragging about the lovely death his gave his sheep is hardly going to win over his detractors and I can’t help but think he posted it in spite of them.
If you eat meat then you can’t complain about hearing/reading about the process of it being made.
I don’t eat meat because I know if it came down to it and I had to slaughter the animal myself I could never do it. And I refuse to send someone else to do my dirty work for me.
I can’t believe I’m defending Chris Pratt, but I have no problem with this at all. This animal almost assuredly led a better life than those on factory farms, and at least Pratt’s doing his own dirty work. His son will grow up with a clear picture of where his food comes from and what the cost of getting his food on the table is, and the ability to make decisions for himself later with that information. That’s more than most kids get. Good for them.
I grew up on a farm. We butchered the animals, milked the cows, gathered the eggs, sheared the sheep. Never once did we celebrate and just gush over it. My grandma was a pagan. We were taught to respect and thank Nature for her gifts. To pray and end a life of an animal with love and respect.
The same when gathering fruits, veggies.
This guy is a heartless douche.
Thank you. It’s the way he talks about it that is so gross to me, like he’s thrilled to extinguish animal life.
God, reading his words made my skin crawl.
He’s farming.
He seems to eat what he kills humanely and that’s that.
The end.
Nothing to see here, folks.
Maybe he’s just proud of his product?
I wish I didn’t know this about him.
It’s not as bad as killing coyotes for fun.
Did he really say he was killing coyotes for fun? Maybe he was doing it to keep them away from his farm and animals. One of my farming neighbours had two lambs dragged off by coyotes last winter, coyotes are scary.
I think “fun” was part of it. He specifically stated he went to Wyoming to do it, and tanned the hides. If they own a ranch, or a friend has a ranch, it’s likely preventative hunting. I don’t think Wyoming has a bounty on them like they do in my state. Up above someone stated it was a cultural difference and that’s accurate. Coyotes will kill kids, pets, livestock, and can seriously injure adults if provided the opportunity. Much like muskrats and gophers, they prove a serious risk to farm life and in large numbers, wildlife and conservation.
I don’t support hunting them without a bounty program. I don’t know what Pratt was doing and am certainly not defending him, but there’s at least a bit more information on coyote hunting. I don’t think he expanded on more than the “fun” aspect of it.
Did you also know that he tried to give away his cat (on Twitter!) because said cat was too old and had too many health issues for him to be bothered with it? Oh, and that’s not to mention the dog he and his former wife abandoned. Also, he hunts for fun (?!) This guy has a BAD track record with animals.
+1,000,000
Exactly.
Sheesh! And hunting is straight up $hitty. People who shoot living creatures for sport are beyond my comprehension.
He’s being honest with himself and taking responsibility for the meat he eats. I respect this more than someone saying they eat meat but would be too squeamish to take on the responsibility.
I live in the middle of a big-ish city and I have chickens. My daughter loves them, but she eats the eggs and when the time comes, they will make excellent broth! That doesn’t make me a bad person! More people need to look at their food in the eyes!
(We also have a bunch of raised beds and fruit trees.)
Does not bother me in any way, I am not a hypocrite.
I love meat and am not a vegetarian, to me the animal has given it’s life, you honor that sacrifice by not letting as much as possible go to waste.
He is a meat farmer, nose to tail. That is all.
This doesn’t bother me at all, sounds like the animals will get a much nicer life on his farm than they would do on a commercial farm. Also I think it’s important to teach children where their food comes from at a young age. If this makes you squeamish and you are a meat eater I’d take a long hard look at yourself …. maybe you should go veggie.
Also it sounds like he uses all the by-products which is excellent and honours the animals life in my opinion.
As much as I can’t stand Chris I don’t see an issue here, he’s giving them a good life and slaughtering them humanely.
I’m mostly vegetarian because about a decade ago I started being unable to eat most meats, it made me sick to my stomach to see bones or muscles in my food and I felt bad for the animal. I do eat a burger or steak after my cycle, I crave them because I lose an ungodly amount of blood. I’m also iron deficient and have to get infusions yearly but it’s likely caused from another issue! That said, it’s a personal choice for me and I understand that raising then slaughtering animals is part of life, it’s a cycle of life. We wouldn’t be where we are if animals didn’t feed off one another, we wouldn’t have survived! So, you won’t find me peaching to anyone and it doesn’t bother me as long as the lambs have a nice life and go peacefully😄 but screw Chris Pratt otherwise, lol.
That’s some straight up Dexter Season 1 shit.
Chris Pratt, the man who auctioned off his cat to his Twitter followers, has himself a new hobby of slaughtering lambs. Is anyone surprised?
This is indeed farm life. I can never ever eat lamb again when I was traumatized by my grandma. We all went to the farm on the weekends and I used to love to play with the baby lambs and hug them and one day they were just gone. I am from Brazil but I have a very Italian straight forward grandma, when I asked them were they went, she very nonchalantly told me, a seven year old, that she sold them to the butcher. My dad tried to scold her but too late. I can laugh about it now but damn was it heartbreaking.
To this day I can’t eat the animals they kill there, it’s like “I met you already, I can’t eat you”, but most people don’t have that problem and that’s fine too.
Although I don’t like how Pratt seems to bask in the kills.
The line “It’s like unplugging a TV” is supercreepy to me, yeesh! And undermines everything he seems to try to be saying about being respectful to the animals. They’re not material objects.
Also just a note that growing up on a farm does not automatically mean you condone eating meat. My mother grew up on a farm and her brother, my uncle, became a vegetarian as a teenager in the 1940’s when he had to raise a heifer for 4H and then kill it. That was it for him! No meat ever since. My mother has flirted with vegetarianism too but it’s off and on.
To Kaiser’s point about hating chickens, that’s actually the imagery that finally put me on a path to being vegan. The footage of thousands of baby chicks on a conveyor belt being picked up by humans like specs of useless dirt and thrown down grinders to be shredded alive simply because they’re male and can’t produce eggs. Chickens actually have it the worst – there are no laws at all regulating the treatment of chickens, unlike cattle and others. With that said, I agree with others above that anyone who eats meat (myself included) has no moral ground to criticize what Pratt is doing. To me, buying meat all wrapped up in nice, neat little packages at the store while being disconnected and in denial aboit the torture, fear and brutality that factory farm animals experience every second of every day is much worse than someone who’s actually connected to their animals, raises them in a humane way and then eats them.
I think it’s pertinent that he mentions the blood type diet. The “alien dna” he’s talking about is probably O-negative blood. I have this as well and really do feel the best when I’m eating meat, veggies, basic hunter-gatherer foods. I was vegetarian from age11-26. Lamb is a beneficial food for O-negative secretors so I don’t fault him for his choice. I personally won’t eat lamb and could never be as casual about their slaughter as he is, but I get the idea of trying to fuel yourself best with the foods your body is designed to eat. The idea behind the blood type diet for this blood type is since it’s the oldest and originated during hunter-gatherer times, that people with this type benefit from the diet of the time, which is honestly sound logic to me, especially after all these years of listening to my body.
I live in a farming area, and while I’m not a big meat eater with a huge freezer, my parents are and routinely, once a year, but literally an entire cow (dead, obviously, and packaged) from a local farm. They eat meat at least twice a day – I don’t – but omg. The difference from grocery store beef was incredible. They know the farm, know the animals are treated well and I’m pretty convinced that if you’re going to eat meat, that’s the way to go if you can.
My dad was a milkman, he himself milked the cows and drove to sell the milk. We knew the cows, and he’d give them a name. HE usually kept the females and sold away the males. I loved how he kept the cows for a long time, he really cared for them well, and we never got rich because he loved the simple process of milking by hand, he never cared for modern tools.
U understand the process Pratt is saying, but he comes off as bragging.
Also, some of my in-law relatives have farms where they grow cattle and usually they export to the US. I can tell you that those cows have had it nice, not living in a factory-type thong. They have grazed around in big spaces, and doing their thing. I have seen otherwise, too, and I know about some farmers who are not very caring, but then I try to not eat too much meat and I am trying to get my husband to change his meat eating habits bit by bit.
So farm life? I personally couldn’t do it, but this is normal for a lot of people, including my grandparents.
you mean, how farmers do? give it a break with the outrage and stop shaming people who eat meat.
I can understand and respect that people are vegan and vegetarians but what I’ll never get is why they treat factory farming and local farming as the same thing. Realistically we won’t ever get to zero meat intake in the world but we can work on eradicating the cruelty of factory farming. I happen to know some farmers and they are really committed to finding the most humane ways to treat their animals and when I can afford to I buy their meat or am semi vegetarian.
According to several computer models, semi-vegetarian and vegetarian diets are actually better for the environment. They utilize available grazing land but don’t go overboard with it. It’s all about balance in nature.
I’m not hating on him for his. He’s raising his food and not being wasteful. That’s much better than the alternative.
Also if you don’t eat meat for whatever reason that’s great. But humans have been eating meat for ages. The only difference today is the factory farming, cruel treatment of animals, and the waste. People used to eat everything especially the nutrient rich organ meats.
I like that he is raising his own food. I’d probably do it myself if I had the resources. A small farm to grown and raise my own food.
I’m just starting to think that Chris Pratt is one of the people (probably due to political views and is dude bro / frat bro proclivities) that people will always judge. He’s not one of the Celebitchy faves that’s for sure.
So honest question, all the people who are complaining how horrible this is, how did you eradicate leather from your life? Had a friend who went vegan, became super preachy about it, but would come up with the stupidest reasons why her boots, gym shoes and purses were okay. She even had leather seats in her car. So for fashion purposes, killing animals was okay, but for sustinence purposes, not okay?
Ugh what a hypocrite and there are so many vegan options out there.
So hypocritical to say that slaughter is distasteful/disgusting, but still be willing to eat meat, and use animal products.
The life that this animal had was unequivocally better than in a commercial farm that is the source of most grocery store meat.
Either acknowledge that a carnivorous diet includes slaughter, or give up meat. Being a hypocritical outraged fool is what is really disgusting.
That’s what I don’t get either. If you eat meat, then you’re OK with slaughtering animals. Plain and simple. They must be killed in order for you to eat them ! I also hate how people pick and choose which animals are OK to eat. Some cultures eat dog meat or rabbit meat, etc. You can’t be like “it’s OK to kill a cow but not a lamb or dog”. They are all living things. I eat none of it but if I did eat meat I’d have to be OK with the slaughtering of ALL animals for consumption or I’d be a hypocrite.
It’s like unplugging a tv.? Regardless of what side of the argument people are on, it was a life. Not a inanimate object.
Eh, sounds like a more honest way of doing it, to be honest. Treat them well and slaughter them humanely, rather than treat them like non-entities.
I went vegetarian for awhile, and didn’t have too bad a time at it. If it wasn’t for my GI disorder, I’d probably do it again simply because I’m lazy and hate cooking.
i sometimes wonder how many people who are disgusted at killing animals for food have leather shoes, handbags, belts, jackets, saddles.
I stopped being a fan of his when he put up that gigantic cross (nothing against Christianity here just not into putting up humongous symbols of my belief and then plastering the image on the internet, it feels like you’re forcing your belief on others and is offensive). So him slaughtering animals does not surprise me. p.s. I didn’t read the post because I don’t want to get upset but only read the headline which was more than enough.
On our farm, we have a very small herd of registered heritage cattle. I was interested in keeping them primarily to preserve their genetics, and to fertilize our pastures and improve the soil. We do not give names to those calves who will be butchered or sold to another farm. I am personally not able to eat their meat (I am not much of a meat eater in general anyway), but we have family members who do so. I would not be able to describe the situation in the way Chris does. It seems somewhat cavalier to me. But farmers who raise animals for meat are doing the right thing when they are transparent about their process. (Giant food corporations are definitely not being honest, and their CAFOs are treating animals terribly). People who eat any meat need to demand that the animals be raised and processed ethically.
THIS!!
Rose Sayer: Nature, Mr. Allnut, is what we are put in this world to rise above.
I try not to comment here whenever he comes up, but today I will. A close friend of mine has known Chris since they were children; he’s close with her brother and they grew up together. She saw him the day after they released their statement announcing their separation, and he was kind and said absolutely NOTHING about Anna, gushed about Jack… He has no obligation to be a member of his hometown community but he chooses to keep his roots close. Nothing wrong with that to me.
The way people hate him here blows my mind. It goes to show you how someone appears as a celebrity isn’t necessarily what they are truly like as a person.
Glad he’s out on the island with some land, his son, and a farm. Good on him.
Chris pratt isn’t liked here that is why …
This isn’t some example of irrational dislike for a celebrity. Chris is not liked for a very a specific reason: his lousy track record with animals. I guess you, Patty, and Notsoanonymous haven’t been reading the comments.
To repeat:
1. Chris and Anna tried to give away their cat to anyone on social media because the cat was old and having health problems and they didn’t want to be inconvenienced. His attitude about the situation was similar to a person discarding an unwanted object.
2. C & A got rid of their dog for flimsy reasons. When they adopted the dog, they signed a contract with the adoption agency, agreeing that they would return the dog to the agency if they changed their minds or pay a $5000 fine. Instead, they gave the dog to someone else without notifying the agency. The dog was later found malnourished, wandering the streets.
3. Before he ever had his own farm, Chris went to various random farms, asking the owners if they had coyote problems, with the intention of offering to shoot them. For sport.
4. He said to Outdoor Life: “My passion for hunting is not simply the result of a need to feed myself. There’s grocery stores for that! I’m not eating ground hog or coyote!” He basically admitted here that he hunts for sport.
5. He said to GQ: “I’m definitely pro-hunter, but elephant is something I would never shoot. I would like to hunt in Africa. I’d like to hunt all the game animals in Africa.”
His callous behavior towards his pets and his history of hunting animals for fun is repellent to many people. I’m not buying the excuse that he only hunts for meat. And his quote about hunting bringing him closer to God is some bullsh-t pretense of spirituality.
I agree with other people who have qualms about killing an animal you “lovingly” raised. This animal puts its trust in you, shows you affection, perhaps loves you as its parent and you repay that by slaughtering it? That’s a terrible betrayal.
Thanks Stella. He’s a terrible (and incredibly stupid) person anyway you look at it. Even if you enjoy eating meat and understand coyotes cause problems for farmers, the fact is this is a guy who likes to hunt/kill for his own pleasure and his own pleasure only.
For centuries farmers loved their animals and slaughtered them when they needed the food. Nowadays that is critically immoral behaviour because some vegetarians and some vegans believe you can survive without meat. Well, yes, you can, but it ain’t healthy long-term (decades) and particularly unhealthy for children. The problem is that the deficits of a vegetarian / vegan nutrition will show only very very slowly and very late which is why veganism/vegetarianism never gets the blame.
Notice that there isn’t a single national health department in the western world that recommends a vegetarian/vegan nutrition and they all recommend that children don’t go vegetarian nor vegan.
My children are vegetarian/vegans. I say slash because they do make their own choices when they are out because I want them to be comfortable in social settings and to understand why we are vegans at home.
My kids are tall and healthy. We are all very healthy. No diet-related problems. Lower end cholesterol. No fatty liver. No digestive issues. No food allergies. No leaky gut problems. We aren’t immune to viruses or anything, but there is nothing unhealthy about forgoing animal protein. It is the recommended diet for people with liver disease which is an epidemic in this country.
I would challenge you to get a physical exam with a full blood panel, go vegan for three months and go back. I know that there will be improvements in your numbers if you eat a balanced vegan diet. It is how the Supersize Me guy healed after his fast-food experiment.
My health improved and for vanity sake so did my skin, and it slowed down my external aging process. I am still asked for my ID, and I haven’t seen 21 in over a decade. I don’t get cosmetic surgery or injections, but I don’t smoke either, and that helps.
I just say try it and see before declaring it is unhealthy.
The only meat that gets consumed in my house is for my dogs and it’s usually poultry.
Personally, I just can’t be part of that cycle of cruelty. If I can’t eat my dogs then I sure as hell won’t eat any other sentient beings if I can help it.
This is a hell realm. Everything here is predicated on suffering, on life feeding off of death. I am just trying to minimize my own negative impact on others. That said, my grandparents used to raise livestock too and now it feels like a betrayal to raise such beings to depend on you and trust you and then turn around and treat them as a thing.
Many dogs are allergic to poultry. And if I were starving, I’d eat my dogs. Same as if I were being chased by a bear, I’d toss a dog in it’s direction to give me time to get away….we are meant to be shepherds and farmers and care for all animals -and plants, for that matter – with integrity. They’re lives are valuable, no question. Yet would I put an animal’s life above a child’s? Would I put an animal;s life above mine own? I don’t think so….
wood dragon I totally agree. No matter how one justifies the killing of the animal for meat, I am sure the animal did not want to be killed. No matter how supposedly ‘humane’, to raise an animal and then to have the animal killed is the worst betrayal. All sentient beings should have the right to live free from harm. It is not okay to slaughter another living creature that can think, feel and wants very much to live, just like anyone of us.
I work on a small organic, soy-free farm. We raise chickens, pigs, sheep, and cattle to feed about 35 families a year through our food box program. The animals are raised on pasture, with lots of space to roam and get sunshine and to graze. They are surrounded by people who care about their welfare and health and who by all intents and purposes , love them.
When it’s time to send the meat to the abattoir, we all feel a mix of emotions. Sad to see them go, hopeful the drive is not too stressful, grateful for the food they will provide and proud of our part in helping to tend to them
.
It’s a complex process and not so cut and dry as some may think. It is possible to caress a lamb and watch it grow and then when the time comes, kill it humanely and put it in your freezer and eat it later with gratitude and thanks – but also joy for just how tasty it is.
I read Pratt’s account as one who has done something similar and I see no gloating. Just a sense of accomplishment that he is lucky enough to be able to raise his food, teach his kids about it and process it on-farm to eliminate a very stressful drive to the butchers. Of course he can love his sheep.
If you choose to eat meat, this is the best way to do it, in my opinion.
I get the philosophical, moral arguments made here, and, for those who are vegetarian or vegan in whatever degree, I respect you immensely. I can’t go that far, but I don’t eat much meat, poultry or even fish. But I love it, on occasion.
I’m fortunate, now, that I live in an area where I can get poultry and the other white meat, as well as red meat (whether beef, lamb or other) raised locally in the manner Pratt has described. I also live on a mountain with acreage and welcome two responsible hunters each winter who cull the herd of deer that cover every square foot — last night I startled three off my patio where they were eating my azaleas and drinking from the birdbath. They have a national forest, I only ask that they leave my immediate habitat and landscaping alone.
But, I digress. My point is, I’m not judging Pratt here, even though I’ve cringed at the way he and his STBX wife have dealt with their domestic pets.
I also take his IG post as a marketing tool. He’s talking about “sharing,” selling, to his followers, if his method works well. I don’t take his post so much as tone deaf bragging as setting up his sales for later.
Christ Pratt is disgusting. I will no longer pay to watch anything he is cast in.
I mean, he did apologize if he was insensitive. Edited to say that I started following his IG after reading this post today on celebitchy.
This man is awful. In addition, it is amazing to me how many on this thread gives him a pass because the animals are raised ‘humanely’. It is not okay to kill animals regardless of this. They do not want to die. They do not want to be slaughtered. They have thoughts and emotions and want to live as much as any one of us. Their lives are precious to them. It is the only life they have. Secondly, animals do not exist for us to exploit and kill. They do not exist for us. This horrible man seems to think they do, like many other people.
Thank you.
He’s that deadly combination: stupid and privileged in the demographic sense (white male), and not stupid enough to have people not take him seriously. Gross.
Humankind’s relationship with animals is completely sociopathic, and Chris Pratt is the perfect example of that. Cognitive dissonance at its best. We have no physical need to eat flesh, our survival doesn’t hinge on it. We do it because we are selfish and cruel, literally no other reason. We are the only “moral” species on earth that proclaims to “love” something and then kill and eat it. That’s what Jeffrey Dahmer did. He ate his victims because he “loved” them and wanted them a part of him. Do we not realize how mental that is? And yes, chickens although small in size they may be, are cognitively complex, sentient, feel pain, have personalities etc etc. I guess we justify all that suffering by saying that animals are “inferior” to us somehow, that they are somehow less deserving of life. But what makes us so damn special? I mean seriously. Look at the destruction we cause on this planet. Shit, this superiority BS is all in our heads.
And eating lambs… DAMN. in case anyone has not seen a lamb, they are the embodiment of innocence and vulnerability. How anyone can willingly harm animals like that is beyond me. Babies. They are babies. Eating lamb means eating babies. What a fucked up world.