Are farmers and ranchers missing the boat? The national 4-H meeting had a Humane Society of the United States speaker present to talk about animal rights. Where was the Farmer or Rancher to speak about animal welfare and animal care? Where was the speaker for water quality measures being produced on the range?
Only 2% of the population is still on the farm. That two percent might want to start talking in schools, youth groups, and other entities to try and convince the next generation- we are doing right!
I had a chance to talk to a bunch of 1st graders from all over the county about beef. It was an amazing experience. One of the questions I asked the group was Cattle only eat plants, what do we call them? One young lady blurted out "Stinking vegetarians!" I didn't want to get into a philosophical discussion with a first grader because I figured I might lose but she hit the nail on the head. They are vegetarians and she knew what it was. She didn't know what ominovores or carnivores were. The rest of the class didn't know that beef came from cattle. These are basic issues that need to be discussed.
what a lot of kids have figured out is that ranching is hard hard work. We have horses as a hobby and THAT is hard work, but it pales in comparision to ranching. I don't have to handle cattle, brand calves, tag calves, castrate calves....you know what I mean. There is less money in ranching than working at a 8-4 or 9-5 job and that is why kids are leaving.
ReplyDeleteHolly, That is true. There is no money in ranching but there is a quality of life that is second to none. I understand why people are leaving the land but its the legacy which is more of concern.
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