Campaign to save Bill and Lou, Oxen in Vermont

These two animals are due to be slaughtered (if it hasn't happened yet) to give a couple of months worth of very poor quality burger meat. They have laboured years at the college and have been offered a retirement home and medical care in the Vine Sanctaury but the college have refused this.

Articles about this:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bruce-...b_1967361.html

New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/29/us...mont.html?_r=0

and Boston Globe: http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/201...XiK/story.html

Also a video of an interview with Miriam Jones from Vine Sanctuary:
http://blip.tv/for-the-animals/99-gr...-abuse-6420752

Green Mountain College have a defensive video on youtube where people can leave comments http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBKHpn9QBms and a campaign page on Facebook

Another place to leave comments http://www.rutlandherald.com/article...900/0/INFO0302

And if anyone feels like calling the college ...a quote from the FB campaign page

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I saw this on facebook: "The Vermont Agency of Agriculture is taking note of EVERY call they receive about Bill and Lou (the two oxen at Green Mountain College) and are registering how many people are calling to express their concern about this matter SO PLEASE CALL THEM NOW: 802-828-1619. They ARE taking notes of every call they receive about Bill and Lou; they're not taking the calls lightly. The lady, who answers the phone, Faith, is a VERY, VERY polite lady so please call now and leave a POLITE message to save Bill and Lou. Tell her that GMC was offered about $50,000 to $100,000 to purchase the two oxen and a FREE sanctuary (VINE sanctuary) at NO expense to the college, and the college still declined the offers."

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There is a petition somewhere as well, I'll find it tomorrow, family duties call

I do not understand why they are declining the purchase? What do they exactly have against these poor animals? So sad.....

I have heard rumors that they have already been slaughtered.

I've heard rumours (I'm English and spell it that way - not digging) too, but some people are convinced they are still alive.

Edit: Post on face book of them in a paddock photo taken 30 mins ago.

They want to demonstrate sustainability and ecological awareness as I understand it. Of course, if they are eating beef some poor cows/steers whatever are going to be slaughtered for them to eat. It just seems so strange that these animals thet so many students have bonded with are going to be killed to provide what will be pretty disgusting meat. And they have worked so hard for years for the college.

Though, that I suppose is what traditional farming is all about. Raise animals and sometimes have some sort of relationship with them but still keep the attitude of 'These are products to be eaten.' I don't get it but it is how many people raising animals seem to separate their emotions

I just signed a petition about this http://signon.org/sign/president-oba...d&r_by=5906999 Maybe if nothing else the students will reflect a bit on what they're eating in future :/

Quote:

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harpy

I just signed a petition about this http://signon.org/sign/president-oba...d&r_by=5906999 Maybe if nothing else the students will reflect a bit on what they're eating in future :/

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Very good point Harpy, what is wrong with them?

Sorry I've not been back - I've had some ...... family difficulties. Lou has been 'euthanased' but there is a lot of mystery about it. Apparantly the official line is that the college administration were afraid he might have been administered a painkiller that would have made his body 'unfit for human consumption'. Local and local(ish) slaughter house had all been contacted by protestors and again apparantly were unwilling to be involved.

Tbh, if this college is going to be serving beef to their students animals somewhere are going to be dying and tortured for them, whether or not it is these two animals. It just seems crazy to me that for the sake of principle they are going to use 10/11 year old animals that have been working hard all their lives in service of the college.

Experienced farmers are aghast at the thought of how tough their flesh will be. Some students are against this and loved Bill and Lou but have been made very uncomfortable when trying to speak out about the issue. They were offered a retirement home and I believe money for them as well, it would have been such good publicity for GMC but they have got stuck in a position they will not back away from. I am saddened by the whole situation.

Yes, eating those animals versus some others is probably six of one and half a dozen of the other from a vegan perspective, but if people who wouldn't normally think twice about eating meat develop empathy with specific animals it makes sense to encourage them IMO. (It's a bit similar to drawing people's attention to the similarity between, say, dogs that they wouldn't eat and pigs that they would, although I have had mixed results with that one :/ )

Indeed Harpy, I'm all for having people think a bit.

I'm late coming into the conversation. I think what lesson we can derive from this, is that the donors of the animals should make it a condition that whenever the receivers of the animals feel that the animals have no place with them anymore then the donors should first be consulted on where they think the animals should go.

But that's no guarantee that the animals will be spared because if the original owners see the value of the animals in the utilitarian sense then, they will see that the college is just being logical. Like you here, I wonder why the college turned down the offer of money to buy.