How Old Were You....

[davidwelsh]

I remember as a child I would absolutely refuse to eat meat on the bone. It wasn't an conscious, intellectual thing, I just couldn't bring myself to do it - it was so disgusting. My mum said that when I was about 7, I picked up a chicken leg off my plate, saying "You mean this is the leg of a dead chicken!?". She's veggie now, and says she'd have let me go veggie then if she'd known better!:p


I still happily chomped down meat that didn't bear too much of a resemblence to an animal's corpse until around my 17th birthday. I decided to become a Buddhist around that time, which made me think about vegetarianism - and when I started thinking about it, well...

Just before my 19th birthday, I read "Animal Liberation" and was vegan within about 3 weeks. That was nearly 6 years ago, and there's no going back for me:D (I honestly can't understand how people can "lapse" - I don't mean that critically, I just can't get my head round it...)

[sandra]

Yes, I don't get the 'lapse' thing either!

[Aaron]

i think i was about 19, or 20 years old at the time meat made me feel sick so i stopped eating it and i went lacto oval vegetarian, after a year or so i went vegetarian and after 15 years roughly i went vegan ,then i went fruitarian 100% raw food april 3rd 2005

[June]

I went vegetarian at 10/11, my parents were not happy about it, it took me a year to convince them it's what I really wanted. Over a year ago I started looking into Veganism (until then I thought Vegans were crazy for not eating cheese :o) and six months ago I officially went vegan. It feels like a lot longer though.

[Moto]

I became Vegetarian when I was 16 then, after many false starts, finally became Vegan when I was 23.

[Memma33]

Hi all! I became a vegetarian when I was 12 once I realised what meat actually was!! (I saw lamb brains on a supermarket shelf) After almost 9 years of that, I decided to explore veganism as it came up alot on vege sites and the amount of further exploitation of animals such as cows for dairy products was shocking! I immediately became vegan then when i was 20.

PS: NONE of my family/friends are/were vegan/vegetarian (there's alot of slashes there...sorry). My family were against it from the word 'go', and so far my efforts to convert any member of my family have been fruitless - WHY DON'T PEOPLE CARE?? It boggles my mind...

[RachelJune]

I was 12 when I first decided to become veggie. It was actually my Dad who influenced me in that direction, despite him being a big meat eater back then. He was very honest with me about what meat was and where it came from when I started to question it. I think my family initially thought it was just a phase :rolleyes: But I'm still here, over 10 years on and now a vegan (for about 4 years I think)! :D

[Guacamole Gal]

I went veggie at around 13/14 years old,then made the logical progression to Vegan 6years ago! I can honestly say it's the best thing I ever did, i only wish I'd done it sooner, but hey, 6years and counting and I couldn't be happier! (Well okay, I'd be happier if all animal cruelty was eradicated such that there was no longer even any need for the word vegan, but until then...)

[VeganLiz]

Veggie at 15 then vegan at 20 years.

Liz X

[boombanda]

I went vegan at the age of 18, when my parents weren't legally allowed to control what I ate. I was vegetarian about 4 years before that, but even BEFORE that I have never been able to eat meat without someone forcing me to. My parents just brushed it off as being a whiney, picky kid, and I think they still do that.

[GreenEnvy]

I turned vegetarian at 6 years old. Everyone said it was just a phase that I'd forget about, but I didn't. I simply came to the conclusion that if you love animals then you don't eat them. A few days after I turned vegetarian my mum made me some pre-made pasta thingy that had ham in it, but the pieces of ham were so tiny that my mum thought I wouldn't notice. However I did notice and became really upset, and so she's never done anything like that since.

I became vegan when I turned 16 after I picked up some "Go vegan" leaflets from a vegan stall in my local town. I never knew the cruelty of dairy until then, and once I did know I couldn't ignore my conscience.

It's so messed up that something I realised when I was only 6 years old, most people never realise in their entire lives.

[sandra]

That is so right GreenEnvy, good on you for going veggie at 6, that's the age my little daughter became veggie too! Now her and my son are both vegan! :)

[Melanie]

Veggy at 13, vegan at 16 I believe :), 18 now :)

[Pisces]

I was vegetarian at age 16 and vegan since age 17. :)

[pavotrouge]

I went fully vegetarian when I was 18, but vegan only three months later after years of being on- and off both trains.

[Sluggie]

Veggie at 38, vegan at 40.

I got extremely upset at seeing a dead pig hanging up in a butcher's window when I was a small child, but my parents were evasive about what it was doing there, so the connection with meat didn't burst upon me. My uneasiness at eating animals just grew gradually over the years. It took me an awfully long time to grow up. :(

[RJane]

Our whole family went vegan when I was 8. That lasted for 3 years. I went vegetarian when I was 15, fell off at 17, back at 20, vegan at 21.
Super thrilling. I know. Actually, veganism *is* great.

[Jjt]

I tried to go vegetarian when I was in my teens but my dad's freind discouraged me and I went back to eating meat. I became vegan when I was living on my own I think right around the beginning of 20, so I've been vegan for about two years.

It's interesting because I used to have a bad attitude about vegans and looked down on them. One of my bosses was a vegan and wasn't as understanding as I would be now, but I still tried to assure my boss I cared about animals. Then one of my co-workers was vegan and I didn't have the best attitude toward that person about veganism either.

I don't remember how the revelation came about, but it involved reading that book called "mad cowboy". It was about this guy who used to be a cattle rancher but now he's a vegan. Anyway I know something happened before that, because I went to go get the book because I felt convicted about it i think.

Anyways I think that God made me vegan to teach me a lesson and because it's defenitely good to be vegan anyway.

[Vegan630]

veggie at 15 and vegan at 16, almost 17 now lol. i idolize all of you in this forum, you are amazing <3

[sandra]

I idolize you Vegan630! I wish I'd been vegan at 16! :)

[cobweb]

I went veggie at 14, vegan at 21.

[BassPixie]

I was raised veggie and I turned vegan at 13, two months before my 14th though, so if that changes it.....

[Julilla]

I went veggie at 15 and vegan at 17.

[horselesspaul]

Last edited by BassPixie : May 30th, 2007 at 21:57. Reason: too many numbers in a row.....
LOL kiddo. You rule.

[Frosty]

I was 16 when I went veggie, and 24 when I turned vegan.