The most important thing you can do to help animals is not to eat meat or, better yet, any animal products. It is essential for parents to be honest with their children and to tell them how burgers and salami are made. It is often the case that teenagers resent their parents for not telling them the truth about the origin of their food but have had to find out, unpleasantly, themselves.
This proclamation by the pigs who control the government in the novel Animal Farm, by George Orwell, is a comment on the hypocrisy of governments that indicate the absolute equality of their citizens but give power and privileges to a small elite.
We usually hear animal rights activists speak on behalf of animals because animals cannot speak human languages, BUT … For the first time in history, animals themselves are fighting for their rights in a human court. In the story, The Turtle Who Fights For Animal Rights, animals come up with firm arguments and very respectable witnesses to support them such as Nikola Tesla, Albert Einstein, Leonardo Da Vinci, Leo Tolstoy, Franz Kafka, and George Bernard Shaw (to name a few).
Vegan Fest is the largest vegan fair in Austria, where I had the opportunity to present my vegan books for children. I enjoyed talking to many inspiring people from the vegan community and one of them was Mr. Hubert Gassner, whose story is fantastic. He is a former conventional animal farmer who has become vegan. I would like to share with you his incredible story that shows how real change is possible.
One of the tricky questions about zoos is whether they are good for animals, mainly because like prisons, not all zoos are alike. There are prisons where inmates have their own toilet, shower, TV, and even a yard. Some giraffes have two or three rooms, a lounge, a garden, and a dining room. Giraffes in their zoo apartments might appear to have a lot of space, but they would rather replace it for a slice of freedom.
Adults usually give children lessons on how to be kind and how to treat living creatures. It is expected of adults to be wiser and set an example for children by their own behavior. Unfortunately, this is often not the case. Animal cruelty laws rule the adult world, so sometimes children are there to teach them true values instead. In the story ‘The Doctor Donkey’, the child teaches the adults how to treat animals kindly.
We don’t need to make up fictional vegan superheroes when we have plenty of animals that show us how it is possible to be super healthy, extremely strong and amazingly fast just by eating plant-based food.
I’m afraid it won’t help much if we just give kids a lecture on nutrition. I think that young children can learn more from a monkey or an elephant in a story than from an adult telling them to ‘eat your veggies!’ ☺
Three reasons why people choose to become vegan are empathy for animals, care for their own health, and care for the environment. Veganism is a combination of noble emotions, responsibility, and common sense. Here are 10 facts that might make people think seriously about switching to a vegan diet:
Vegan children’s books are a good way to educate young children about veganism and make them aware of the unjust treatment of animals. In some books, those messages are delivered in violent terms and images which could shock kids and make them feel fearful.
One creative way to promote the vegan belief that animals should be treated as friends, not as food, are picture books that encourage empathy and respect towards all living beings. One of them, written in a witty way, is An Unordinary Lion about a scary predator who decides to get out of the cruel food chain that he was part of.