Meet the Mothers Behind the Milk

JUNE 18th

Norma sent a farmworker to the hospital for stitches after he tried to take her calf away. Since this was not the first time she had injured a worker while trying to keep a calf safe, she was scheduled for execution. But the farmworker she had injured pled for mercy, saying that “she was just being a good mother,” and the owner of the dairy agreed to surrender her and her calf Nina to the sanctuary.

This is the fact that dairy farmers want you to forget: Cows are mammals, just like humans. Their bodies only produce milk after they have given birth, and that milk is meant to nourish their offspring.

Every dairy, whether a huge factory farm or a small and ostensibly humane family farm, forcibly impregnates cows and then takes their calves away from them as soon as their milk starts flowing. Male calves are put into veal crates or simply shot or otherwise killed. Female calves are kept apart from their mothers and fed formula until they are old enough to be impregnated. When the milk runs dry, the cow is impregnated again and the cycle continues until her body wears out.

The suffering this causes is beyond compare. Try to imagine it, first from the perspective of the mother cow and then from the perspective of her calf.

But survivors of dairying are more than their suffering. Each is an individual with a personality, history, and relationships that are important to her.

Rose came to VINE in 2013 after eight years at a dairy, during which at least six calves were taken from her. She seemed shy when she arrived, but it turned out that she had been depressed. About six months after coming to the sanctuary, her playful personality emerged. Some years later, we were able to reunite Rose with one of her calves, Daffodil, who has since passed away.

Rose became the self-appointed nurturer of new arrivals at the sanctuary. Whether they were calves or adults, newly arrived cows can count on Rose for advice and support. Even before they step out of the trailer, Rose was at the window, telling them that everything would be OK.

Before Rose, the sanctuary's matriarch was her best friend, Autumn. Another survivor of dairying, Autumn had had nine calves taken from her at the dairy. At the sanctuary, she twice adopted calves who had been discarded by dairies. She also took up the practice of grooming goats.

After Autumn passed away, Rose took over the job of grooming goats as well as fellow cows. After Rose passed away, another survivor of dairying, Bea, took over as the chief nurturer of cows, goats, and sheep in the front pasture.

Ebony escaped from a dairy or slaughterhouse while pregnant, gave birth in the wild, and then kept her calf Ivory safe and well-fed during months on the run. Then they were chased by hunters, who killed their companion. Ebony and Ivory fled onto the property of an animal-lover who hid them from the hunters until they could come to sanctuary. Their companion who was killed by the hunters must have been Ebony's partner, because she gave birth to another calf, Cora, months after arriving at VINE.

As might be expected, Ebony is clever, confident, and supremely protective of Ivory and Cora. That may be why she and Norma "clicked" as soon as they met, becoming fast friends.

While forced by circumstance to use violence to protect her calf, Norma is a gentle soul. It's been a joy for everyone at the sanctuary to see her gradually let down her guard and relax within the safety of our multispecies community.

So, if you find yourself tempted by the lure of familiar dairy products, think of Norma, Rose, Maizey, Daisy, Ebony, and all of the other mothers currently incarcerated on dairy farms, hooked up to milking machines twice each day while mourning their calves, and ask yourself whether there might be another way of sating your appetite. With all of the plant-based versions milk, cheese, yogurt, and ice cream out there these days, we're sure you'll find something even more satisfying!

SHOUT OUT

LOUDER THAN WORDS is a cross-cultural, intergenerational art collective that targets sexual assault, domestic violence, LGBTQ+ equality, animal liberation, and mass incarceration. Collaborators S.A. Bachman and Neda Moridpour, both vegan, have recently turned their creative attention to dairy, with a new nationwide project that announces "Cow's Milk is for Calves." We're excited to see prominent feminist artists take up the cause of cows, and we hope this will spark other feminists to extend their empathy to animals.

RAINBOW RECIPE

To eat the rainbow all day long, try Sweet Tart Fruit Salad for breakfast, Rainbow Salad in a Jar for lunch, and Rainbow Pizza for dinner.

UPCOMING EVENTS

June 27, 12-5PM EDT

Rainbow-Palooza

Springfield, VT

If you live near enough to attend, visit RainbowPalooza.org for details and directions to our annual Pride & VegFest featuring free food, music, speakers, vendors, cooking demos, and more!

JUNE 28, 3 PM, Virtual

Queer Ecologies

Join members of the VINE Book Club to discuss selected chapters from the book Queer Ecologies: Sex, Nature, Politics, Desire. Register here, and your registration confirmation will include a link to a free PDF of those chapters.

OTHER WAYS TO ENGAGE

MEET THE ANIMALS!

Follow VINE on Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, and/or Twitter to stay inspired by meeting animals at the sanctuary.

TALK ABOUT IT!

Join the Pride Month Vegan Challenge Facebook group to chat with other participants and ask longtime vegans any questions you may have.