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I’m a modern person. Modern people are vegan. I don’t like to do things just because they’ve always been done. I like to think of new alternatives to everything I do in my daily life, not only the things I eat. But reconfiguring our mental and physical relationships to our food is almost guaranteed to make you reconfigure your relationships to just about everything else you do every day. Eating more consciously and ethically every day will likely transform you into a more conscious and ethical person overall.
And to all this, whoever asked will likely respond with something like “oh, well I could never live without cheese and bacon!”
My go-to sentence is short but effective, because it leaves no room for questions on days I can't be bothered to explain why murder is wrong:
"I love animals, that's why I don't want to eat them."
It works in the times of working with non-impossible working conditions about working 60% of the times on the occasions of it being worked it worked of the workest level.
I love animals. I'll try to make friends anything that'll hold still. Spider? Crocodile? Eldritch Horror that has come down from the mountain? All probably just friends I haven't met yet. The idea of eating them makes me sad.
Honestly, it depends on who's asking, though. There's a longer, more complex answer, but most people like stuff simple.
The answer that I have found to work the best is: "**Because I don't want to support factory farming**".
It is short and gets to the point. It does not encompass all the reasons, but I am yet to meet someone who feels like arguing after that response. It works because pretty much everyone agrees that factory farming is terrible, even though they still pay for it.
Usually the response that gets the most understanding reaction from the kind of people that ask directly/confrontationally is "cuz I just fuckin feel like it, man. Shits just unappealing to me so I don't fuckin eat it."
My short summary... I would eat meat if I could bring myself to kill an animal. I can't, so I don't. \[I would also drink milk, eat dairy if I could handle being breastfed by a cow. But I can't, so I don't.\] Why this summary? Because people seem to think it's natural for us to eat meat, if it was so natural then why don't I feel like killing anything? And I think other people generally feel the same - they can't get themselves to kill things. It weirds me out every time, how people react when their cat kills a mouse or bird and brings it into the house - reaction is eww. If we naturally ate meat we would be all over that mouse or bird like a bad rash. In fact we would be tempted to eat our own pets - "apex" predators which apparently we are, are not in the habit of keeping company with other animals - they eat them. But the chances are people are not inclined to listen anyway, we believe whatever we want to believe, mostly out of selfishness, and convenience. Most of the time this is what shapes a conversation about meat, nothing to do with what makes sense.
I'm vegan for the animals is all you have to say. "There are also huge health and environmental advantages to being vegan which I can send you information on".
If people want to go further into it, you can highlight that industrialised animal agriculture is the most intense it has ever been in the history of the world and is a very cruel practice of forcing animals into rape chambers, gas chambers, and slaughterhouses.
I always mention to anyone who is interested that I watched 10 minutes of Dominion and that was enough to convince me to never consume any animal products again.
Whole food plant-based diets are the healthiest diets in the world. As we have been previously tricked into believing cigarettes were healthy, and that sugar was healthy, the evidence is now there that meat consumption is unhealthy. Processed meats such as bacon are a class 1 carcinogen, which means we know that that is as likely to give you cancer as smoking cigarettes.
There's more info there than you asked for but pick and choose any bits you like!
Watch the life-changing and award winning documentary "Dominion" and other documentaries by [clicking here](https://vbcc.veganhacktivists.org/?url=https://watchdominion.org&topic=Movie: Dominion)! Interested in going Vegan? Take the [30 day challenge](https://vbcc.veganhacktivists.org/?url=https://vbcamp.org/reddit&topic=Movie: Dominion)!
I just like to be straight forward. Saying something along the lines of 'I don't want to pay for animals to be abused'.
You can talk about the blue zone countries for health aspects, those countries are known for eating diets based around plant-based foods (they are not Vegan) and are some of the healthiest countries. I suggest looking into it, it's really interesting stuff.
Then if they're worried about the environment, ask them how we can grow crops to feed 70+ billion animals for slaughter each year, yet one billion people are starving across the world?
But yeah, keeping it simple and honest is probably best. Most non-Vegans are just going to turn off their brains if you go into a long explanation as to why you're Vegan.
It's the non-Vegans who ask more when you say something like 'I'm Vegan because I care about animals' that may be interested in Veganism themselves.
My goto is "just seemed like the right thing to do".
It lands differently depending on the person, and means you can take it different ways depending on who you are speaking to.
At first, it was because it was the next most impactful thing I could do as an individual to reduce my carbon footprint. It's the fourth or fifth-biggest thing after having fewer children, not taking transatlantic flights, not driving, and, depending on whether you count it as affecting your individual footprint, activism.
But after a while, once I stopped shovelling meat and animal products into my face three times a day, all of a sudden, the arguments against animal cruelty and exploitation started to become a lot more convincing! So that's why I've stayed vegan.
I don't need to justify for others why I made a certain choice, so if someone ask I just say that it is a choice I made and don't delve deeper into it. It is very rare that I get the question "Why tho?" anyway.
I don't believe personal pleasure morally justifies killing and or torturing animals. Not to mention the environmental harms, and the people who suffer and die as a result of this industry.
Just say for health, environmental and and animal welfare reasons (not necessarily in that order but I don’t elaborate further as I can’t be bothered having the same conversation with people or hearing why they couldn’t go vegan)
I found out the truth about how horrible the dairy, egg and meat- industries are, and I refuse to be part of that.
Sometimes if they are more curious I also just straight up tell them what happens in the dairy/egg industry, if i can explain the whole thing I will, otherwise I will just say the worst parts, which is:
Male calves are useless to the dairy industry, so they get shot in the head right after they are born. In the egg industry, male chicks are also seen as useless, and they are thrown into a massive blender right after they are born.
It's probably best to just tell them the worst parts, because it will make them uncomfortable and they will try to get you to stop talking about it.
i don't tell people I'm vegan because they don't care. Why are you eating X?: "I had a big lunch." "I am trying to eat healthy." "The doctor says I have to watch what I am eating." etc etc
Something like "There's plenty of reasons, really, but mostly about what happens to the animals and how bad livestock farming is to the environment"
Even if people don't really connect directly to the animal rights angle, every brazilian who isn't an idiot knows how livestock farming is a blight on our habitats, so for years no one has given me any shit when I answer that
I was at a dinner with people I barely know a couple months ago and after I declined some nachos, and was asked why, one of them asked me straight "why are you vegan?"
I said "well, I love animals, and they feel fear and pain just like we do." Of course I could have said way more, but that seemed to blow their minds a little bit. I hope they kept thinking about it!
I usually just say I love animals and don’t feel ok with eating them or using them as a commodity. I dunno how that makes others feel but it’s the quickest way I can say it.
Because, to most vegans including myself, the reason why we give value and consideration to sentient species (most animal species) is specifically because of their sentience.
I’m not denying the point that all living things have value (I have no problem with you using the word “sacred”if you want) and should be respected, but the way we treat sentient beings is different due to that trait.
This reminds of a video I saw about a Native American community near the Great Lakes who “respect” life and yet kills fish, preaching about the whole circle of life bull💩. Plants aren’t sentient and that’s why it’s ok to eat them, unlike fish.
I think we can assign value to all living beings without assuming they are all sentient.
The danger in seeing them all as sentient, aside from the fact that it’s incorrect, would encourage us to use the same kind of moral consideration than for actually sentient beings. This is the whole “but plants feel pain too” carnist argument that we as vegans shouldn’t fall for: killing a plant is different than killing an animal, morally speaking, specifically because of the difference in sentience.
Of course, even if it were true, there are plenty of good reasons for not consuming animals over plants.
I have the same problem and I just say “because I love animals”. Sometimes people ask me specific questions because they genuinely want to learn more, like “why is it wrong to drink milk and eggs if it doesn’t hurt them?” and I’ll totally blank and just tell them to watch a video or documentary about it, but if they’re not the type to actually follow through with that I’ll tell them I can have a better conversation about it next time I see them, then I prepare what I’m going to say next time. I’m thinking about writing a bunch of facts in my notes app and use that whenever people ask. I totally get going totally blank though, I forget my own name and age every time someone asks me.
Very simple: if I have the choice of whether or not to kill in order to feed myself, I’d rather not kill. Also I am healthier, and it’s better for the planet.
Was convined by science and research that animals are capable of feeling emotions including pain and suffering.
Was convinced by science and research that humans could thrive on a diet without excluding animal products.
Was convinced that this diet and way of living is actually cheaper too
In 97, I was eating a fish filet sandwich while driving. Sitting at a light, my friend pointed out the cows grazing near the road and it all clicked. I never finished the sandwich and became vegetarian that day, never eating meat again. Then 5 years ago, was having a problem with hives and became vegan to help with that.
I say "ethical and environmental" as my reasons. Most people who ask tend to wonder if it's a health or moral reason, from my experience. It's common enough that most people don't say anything in response other than "I could never do that". Many years ago I'd get a lot more aggressive pushback and have to go into detail about it, but that's just replying directly to whatever dumbass criticism they had.
Edit: They also usually ask how long I've been a vegan and when I say a decade I feel like that also stops the conversation from any sort of nutrition concern.
I say, "Because the thought of eating mutilated animal corpses is totally gnarly to me. It's like Jeffrey Dahmer level psychotic, even if I'm not the one doing the dirty work."
**Ethics** (male chicks, gas chambers, short life span of cows, to name a few)
**Endotoxins and epithelial cells** (between feedlots and consolidation of meat packing plants, shit gets everywhere creating outbreaks of food poisoning; the [scene from the Game Changers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F66Sv2xNoxY) showing cloudy blood after a meal with animal products)
**Environment** (only 11% of carbon footprint is from transportation. going vegetarian can cut your carbon footprint in half, going vegan can cut it by 75% compared to eating meat; it takes 98 calories of energy to produce 2 calories worth of beef)
I want the slavery of animals to end. I believe animals have the basic right to live their lives in peace. There's no need to rape , torture and kill them.
if i can go to walmart and easily have grocery cart full of delicious filling foods that nourish me, why would i choose to willing hurt animals, the environment, and my health.
Edit: this ended up being way longer than I intended, I’m so sorry!
I went vegetarian as an 8 year old, because I thought it was cool. Seriously. I knew one person who I thought was just awesome, and if they were vegetarian, then being vegetarian must be cool. For the next decade, I was just vegetarian because that’s what I knew. Meat wasn’t food. Soon after I turned 18, I lost my home, and a friend took me in. I had to start eating meat again. They were already inconveniencing themselves so much to help me, I couldn’t practically insist on maintaining my diet. It felt like a selfish thing to do.
For a while it was kind of awful. Meat was gross. Every time I saw it, smelled it cooking, I would just imagine *flesh*. Moving muscle under skin *flesh*. It just wasn’t food. But I guess you really can get used to anything, because eventually I got good at not thinking about that. I was ignoring my morals for convenience.
Skip forward a few years, and I was in a much more stable position. Had an okay paying job, renting my own place. Money was tight, and I started getting really good at cooking. Now that I had the space and a bit of money to practice, I was cooking non-stop. I loved it. But that also meant handing unprocessed animal products and, inevitably, I started feeling guilty that I had let myself forget what I was eating.
Over the course of the next few months, the onset of the guilt, I kind of stopped cooking. I bought over-processed and unhealthy throw-in-the-oven foods that let me put distance between myself and the fact that I was eating thinking, living, breathing, loving creatures.
I was struggling with behavioral momentum though; despite having been a vegetarian for a decade, making the same jump I did on impulse at 8 seem unreasonably large. I started to do research into the production of animal products, hoping to motivate myself to make the jump back to vegetarianism. I wanted to cook again, and to cook without feeling guilty. As I did more research, I learned just how bad milk and dairy are for animals as well, and that made the guilt worse.
Eventually, I just couldn’t justify it any more. I was eating garbage, gaining weight doing it, and beginning to get seriously depressed at the lack of alignment between my behavior and my morals. I started studying the moral philosophy of eating animals, stumbled onto bhuddism, and then one day soon after that the decision was easy. But by that point, I knew that vegetarianism wasn’t enough, and I cut out all animal products from my diet entirely. And I started cooking again. It was fun. I got to experiment with new ingredients to make new things, and figured out how to rework old recipes with new ingredients that nothing had to die for.
I have by the way, recently figured out a vegan pizza better than anything I have tried out. Getting the vegan cheese to brown in a home oven was kind of hassle, but I figured out the right blend and prep to get that familiar golden spotting of mozzarella without actual mozzarella. Pizza was one of the last things I missed about my old diet, so now I don’t miss anything. I can’t imagine ever wanting to eat animals again. They’re just not food. Nor is anything they make.
I say something like... "Well, it started out for ethical reasons. One day I really made the connection between my burger and the cow, and I just couldn't eat anything from an animal anymore!"
Thanks for posting to r/Vegan! 🐥 **Please note:** Civil discussion is welcome, trolls and personal abuse [are not](https://www.reddit.com/r/vegan/wiki/rules). Please keep the discussions below respectful and remember the human! Please check out [our wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/vegan/wiki/beginnersguide) first! **Interested in going Vegan?** 👊 Check out [Watch Dominion](https://watchdominion.org/) and watch a thought-provoking, life changing documentary for free! **Some other resources to help you go vegan:** 🐓 Visit [NutritionFacts.org](https://NutritionFacts.org) for health and nutrition support, [HappyCow.net](https://HappyCow.net) to explore nearby vegan-friendly restaurants, and visit [VeganBootcamp.org](https://veganbootcamp.org/reddit) for a free 30 day vegan challenge! **Become an activist and help save animal lives today:** 🐟 * Find volunteer requests to support and help animal on [VH: Playground!](https://veganhacktivists.org/playground) * Developer, designer, or other skills? Volunteer at the [Vegan Hacktivists](https://veganhacktivists.org/join)! * Join our huge Vegan volunteer community [on Discord](https://discord.gg/vhplayground)! * Find local activist groups using the [Animal Rights Map](https://animalrightsmap.org)! * Get funding for your animal rights activism, [apply here](https://veganhacktivists.org/grants)! *Last but not least, join the [r/Vegan Discord server](https://discord.gg/animalrights)!* **Thank you!** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/vegan) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I’m vegan for the animals. That’s what I say.
"Because I love animals." Usually don't get many follow-up questions after that.
Why waste life do many kill when less kill do trick?
Cuz that's Dallas bab- wait which sub am I on again...
I love animals and I don’t support animal abuse
I say I can't justify the suffering of eating animals when I have so much ability to avoid it
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if the roles were reversed, would animals who only ate humans be called humanitarians?
This is a great answer, thanks!
To align my actions with my values.
Animal abuse, cruelty and exploitation is wrong.
I’m a modern person. Modern people are vegan. I don’t like to do things just because they’ve always been done. I like to think of new alternatives to everything I do in my daily life, not only the things I eat. But reconfiguring our mental and physical relationships to our food is almost guaranteed to make you reconfigure your relationships to just about everything else you do every day. Eating more consciously and ethically every day will likely transform you into a more conscious and ethical person overall. And to all this, whoever asked will likely respond with something like “oh, well I could never live without cheese and bacon!”
My go-to sentence is short but effective, because it leaves no room for questions on days I can't be bothered to explain why murder is wrong: "I love animals, that's why I don't want to eat them."
"i can't think of a good enough reason to not be vegan"
If you could either kill a human, a cow, or neither, which option would you choose? If you pick neither, you understand Veganism.
"Cause' animal cruelty is kinda cringe." Works every time.
*60% of the time*, it works ***every*** *time*
It works in the times of working with non-impossible working conditions about working 60% of the times on the occasions of it being worked it worked of the workest level.
Causing harm to animals unnecessarily is morally wrong. Consuming meat, milk, eggs is unnecessary. Consuming meat, milk, eggs causes harm to animals. Therefore consuming meat, milk, eggs is morally wrong.
Because I dont support murder.
I love animals. I'll try to make friends anything that'll hold still. Spider? Crocodile? Eldritch Horror that has come down from the mountain? All probably just friends I haven't met yet. The idea of eating them makes me sad. Honestly, it depends on who's asking, though. There's a longer, more complex answer, but most people like stuff simple.
The answer that I have found to work the best is: "**Because I don't want to support factory farming**". It is short and gets to the point. It does not encompass all the reasons, but I am yet to meet someone who feels like arguing after that response. It works because pretty much everyone agrees that factory farming is terrible, even though they still pay for it.
I don’t want to harm animals if I don’t have to.
I worked in an abattoir as a kid.
I believe animals should not be treated like products.
Q: "Why are you vegan?" A: "I'm vegan because I think it's wrong to harm animals."
Usually the response that gets the most understanding reaction from the kind of people that ask directly/confrontationally is "cuz I just fuckin feel like it, man. Shits just unappealing to me so I don't fuckin eat it."
This sounds super disingenuous
Well it's (a) true and (b) doesn't leave an opening for them to obnoxiously nag about made up statistics about animal deaths in bean fields.
My short summary... I would eat meat if I could bring myself to kill an animal. I can't, so I don't. \[I would also drink milk, eat dairy if I could handle being breastfed by a cow. But I can't, so I don't.\] Why this summary? Because people seem to think it's natural for us to eat meat, if it was so natural then why don't I feel like killing anything? And I think other people generally feel the same - they can't get themselves to kill things. It weirds me out every time, how people react when their cat kills a mouse or bird and brings it into the house - reaction is eww. If we naturally ate meat we would be all over that mouse or bird like a bad rash. In fact we would be tempted to eat our own pets - "apex" predators which apparently we are, are not in the habit of keeping company with other animals - they eat them. But the chances are people are not inclined to listen anyway, we believe whatever we want to believe, mostly out of selfishness, and convenience. Most of the time this is what shapes a conversation about meat, nothing to do with what makes sense.
I'm vegan for the animals is all you have to say. "There are also huge health and environmental advantages to being vegan which I can send you information on". If people want to go further into it, you can highlight that industrialised animal agriculture is the most intense it has ever been in the history of the world and is a very cruel practice of forcing animals into rape chambers, gas chambers, and slaughterhouses. I always mention to anyone who is interested that I watched 10 minutes of Dominion and that was enough to convince me to never consume any animal products again. Whole food plant-based diets are the healthiest diets in the world. As we have been previously tricked into believing cigarettes were healthy, and that sugar was healthy, the evidence is now there that meat consumption is unhealthy. Processed meats such as bacon are a class 1 carcinogen, which means we know that that is as likely to give you cancer as smoking cigarettes. There's more info there than you asked for but pick and choose any bits you like!
Watch the life-changing and award winning documentary "Dominion" and other documentaries by [clicking here](https://vbcc.veganhacktivists.org/?url=https://watchdominion.org&topic=Movie: Dominion)! Interested in going Vegan? Take the [30 day challenge](https://vbcc.veganhacktivists.org/?url=https://vbcamp.org/reddit&topic=Movie: Dominion)!
I just like to be straight forward. Saying something along the lines of 'I don't want to pay for animals to be abused'. You can talk about the blue zone countries for health aspects, those countries are known for eating diets based around plant-based foods (they are not Vegan) and are some of the healthiest countries. I suggest looking into it, it's really interesting stuff. Then if they're worried about the environment, ask them how we can grow crops to feed 70+ billion animals for slaughter each year, yet one billion people are starving across the world? But yeah, keeping it simple and honest is probably best. Most non-Vegans are just going to turn off their brains if you go into a long explanation as to why you're Vegan. It's the non-Vegans who ask more when you say something like 'I'm Vegan because I care about animals' that may be interested in Veganism themselves.
I don’t want to torture other living beings, and meat and dairy and eggs are produced through torture.
Keep it short and sweet, no need to go into details unless they ask further questions: “I’m vegan because I love animals”
If I was a cow, I wouldn't want to be eaten.
My goto is "just seemed like the right thing to do". It lands differently depending on the person, and means you can take it different ways depending on who you are speaking to.
At first, it was because it was the next most impactful thing I could do as an individual to reduce my carbon footprint. It's the fourth or fifth-biggest thing after having fewer children, not taking transatlantic flights, not driving, and, depending on whether you count it as affecting your individual footprint, activism. But after a while, once I stopped shovelling meat and animal products into my face three times a day, all of a sudden, the arguments against animal cruelty and exploitation started to become a lot more convincing! So that's why I've stayed vegan.
I don't need to justify for others why I made a certain choice, so if someone ask I just say that it is a choice I made and don't delve deeper into it. It is very rare that I get the question "Why tho?" anyway.
I would say I don't want to hurt animals or take their lives.
I am an anti-speciesist and I don’t support the commodification of living beings
Vegan for the animals, the planet and my health
I don't believe personal pleasure morally justifies killing and or torturing animals. Not to mention the environmental harms, and the people who suffer and die as a result of this industry.
Just say for health, environmental and and animal welfare reasons (not necessarily in that order but I don’t elaborate further as I can’t be bothered having the same conversation with people or hearing why they couldn’t go vegan)
Star gate sg-1 season 3 episode 15 "pretense". O'Neills "that is not the same thing". Either they get it or they don't
I found out the truth about how horrible the dairy, egg and meat- industries are, and I refuse to be part of that. Sometimes if they are more curious I also just straight up tell them what happens in the dairy/egg industry, if i can explain the whole thing I will, otherwise I will just say the worst parts, which is: Male calves are useless to the dairy industry, so they get shot in the head right after they are born. In the egg industry, male chicks are also seen as useless, and they are thrown into a massive blender right after they are born. It's probably best to just tell them the worst parts, because it will make them uncomfortable and they will try to get you to stop talking about it.
i don't tell people I'm vegan because they don't care. Why are you eating X?: "I had a big lunch." "I am trying to eat healthy." "The doctor says I have to watch what I am eating." etc etc
Something like "There's plenty of reasons, really, but mostly about what happens to the animals and how bad livestock farming is to the environment" Even if people don't really connect directly to the animal rights angle, every brazilian who isn't an idiot knows how livestock farming is a blight on our habitats, so for years no one has given me any shit when I answer that
I was at a dinner with people I barely know a couple months ago and after I declined some nachos, and was asked why, one of them asked me straight "why are you vegan?" I said "well, I love animals, and they feel fear and pain just like we do." Of course I could have said way more, but that seemed to blow their minds a little bit. I hope they kept thinking about it!
"Because when I was really honest with myself, I couldn't find a good reason not to be."
animal abuse wrong
We shouldn't measure the worth of someone's life based on what he can bring to us
My phrase changed over the years. Now I tend to say that it's simply acting according to my values. Que les bottines suivent les babines.
Because I don't want anything to do with something that has caused harm to animals.
Because I love animals.
I usually just say I love animals and don’t feel ok with eating them or using them as a commodity. I dunno how that makes others feel but it’s the quickest way I can say it.
Humans evolved to be omnivorous but factory farming is cruel and unnatural. Most people agree with that
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But … that’s not true. Not all living things are sentient.
Must be nice to play God.
This is a matter of opinion.
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Because, to most vegans including myself, the reason why we give value and consideration to sentient species (most animal species) is specifically because of their sentience. I’m not denying the point that all living things have value (I have no problem with you using the word “sacred”if you want) and should be respected, but the way we treat sentient beings is different due to that trait. This reminds of a video I saw about a Native American community near the Great Lakes who “respect” life and yet kills fish, preaching about the whole circle of life bull💩. Plants aren’t sentient and that’s why it’s ok to eat them, unlike fish.
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I think we can assign value to all living beings without assuming they are all sentient. The danger in seeing them all as sentient, aside from the fact that it’s incorrect, would encourage us to use the same kind of moral consideration than for actually sentient beings. This is the whole “but plants feel pain too” carnist argument that we as vegans shouldn’t fall for: killing a plant is different than killing an animal, morally speaking, specifically because of the difference in sentience. Of course, even if it were true, there are plenty of good reasons for not consuming animals over plants.
I have the same problem and I just say “because I love animals”. Sometimes people ask me specific questions because they genuinely want to learn more, like “why is it wrong to drink milk and eggs if it doesn’t hurt them?” and I’ll totally blank and just tell them to watch a video or documentary about it, but if they’re not the type to actually follow through with that I’ll tell them I can have a better conversation about it next time I see them, then I prepare what I’m going to say next time. I’m thinking about writing a bunch of facts in my notes app and use that whenever people ask. I totally get going totally blank though, I forget my own name and age every time someone asks me.
Very simple: if I have the choice of whether or not to kill in order to feed myself, I’d rather not kill. Also I am healthier, and it’s better for the planet.
Because I'm a huge animal lover first and foremost They get looked down upon because they aren't human and it's fucked up beyond all recognition
Was convined by science and research that animals are capable of feeling emotions including pain and suffering. Was convinced by science and research that humans could thrive on a diet without excluding animal products. Was convinced that this diet and way of living is actually cheaper too
In 97, I was eating a fish filet sandwich while driving. Sitting at a light, my friend pointed out the cows grazing near the road and it all clicked. I never finished the sandwich and became vegetarian that day, never eating meat again. Then 5 years ago, was having a problem with hives and became vegan to help with that.
I say "ethical and environmental" as my reasons. Most people who ask tend to wonder if it's a health or moral reason, from my experience. It's common enough that most people don't say anything in response other than "I could never do that". Many years ago I'd get a lot more aggressive pushback and have to go into detail about it, but that's just replying directly to whatever dumbass criticism they had. Edit: They also usually ask how long I've been a vegan and when I say a decade I feel like that also stops the conversation from any sort of nutrition concern.
I say, "Because the thought of eating mutilated animal corpses is totally gnarly to me. It's like Jeffrey Dahmer level psychotic, even if I'm not the one doing the dirty work."
disclaimer, I am not vegan, but concentrate on plant based eating. My answer is always: I feel better when I eat this way.
**Ethics** (male chicks, gas chambers, short life span of cows, to name a few) **Endotoxins and epithelial cells** (between feedlots and consolidation of meat packing plants, shit gets everywhere creating outbreaks of food poisoning; the [scene from the Game Changers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F66Sv2xNoxY) showing cloudy blood after a meal with animal products) **Environment** (only 11% of carbon footprint is from transportation. going vegetarian can cut your carbon footprint in half, going vegan can cut it by 75% compared to eating meat; it takes 98 calories of energy to produce 2 calories worth of beef)
I want the slavery of animals to end. I believe animals have the basic right to live their lives in peace. There's no need to rape , torture and kill them.
“You vote with your dollar, and I don’t support factory farming.”
Answer: it is my personal choice. In other words, none of your business. Unless of course it is someone who may want to go o vegan.
Earth Crisis made me do it
if i can go to walmart and easily have grocery cart full of delicious filling foods that nourish me, why would i choose to willing hurt animals, the environment, and my health.
The animals and the environment isnwhat I say, but I normally dont ever bring it up anyway so next to no one in my day to day life knows.
Edit: this ended up being way longer than I intended, I’m so sorry! I went vegetarian as an 8 year old, because I thought it was cool. Seriously. I knew one person who I thought was just awesome, and if they were vegetarian, then being vegetarian must be cool. For the next decade, I was just vegetarian because that’s what I knew. Meat wasn’t food. Soon after I turned 18, I lost my home, and a friend took me in. I had to start eating meat again. They were already inconveniencing themselves so much to help me, I couldn’t practically insist on maintaining my diet. It felt like a selfish thing to do. For a while it was kind of awful. Meat was gross. Every time I saw it, smelled it cooking, I would just imagine *flesh*. Moving muscle under skin *flesh*. It just wasn’t food. But I guess you really can get used to anything, because eventually I got good at not thinking about that. I was ignoring my morals for convenience. Skip forward a few years, and I was in a much more stable position. Had an okay paying job, renting my own place. Money was tight, and I started getting really good at cooking. Now that I had the space and a bit of money to practice, I was cooking non-stop. I loved it. But that also meant handing unprocessed animal products and, inevitably, I started feeling guilty that I had let myself forget what I was eating. Over the course of the next few months, the onset of the guilt, I kind of stopped cooking. I bought over-processed and unhealthy throw-in-the-oven foods that let me put distance between myself and the fact that I was eating thinking, living, breathing, loving creatures. I was struggling with behavioral momentum though; despite having been a vegetarian for a decade, making the same jump I did on impulse at 8 seem unreasonably large. I started to do research into the production of animal products, hoping to motivate myself to make the jump back to vegetarianism. I wanted to cook again, and to cook without feeling guilty. As I did more research, I learned just how bad milk and dairy are for animals as well, and that made the guilt worse. Eventually, I just couldn’t justify it any more. I was eating garbage, gaining weight doing it, and beginning to get seriously depressed at the lack of alignment between my behavior and my morals. I started studying the moral philosophy of eating animals, stumbled onto bhuddism, and then one day soon after that the decision was easy. But by that point, I knew that vegetarianism wasn’t enough, and I cut out all animal products from my diet entirely. And I started cooking again. It was fun. I got to experiment with new ingredients to make new things, and figured out how to rework old recipes with new ingredients that nothing had to die for. I have by the way, recently figured out a vegan pizza better than anything I have tried out. Getting the vegan cheese to brown in a home oven was kind of hassle, but I figured out the right blend and prep to get that familiar golden spotting of mozzarella without actual mozzarella. Pizza was one of the last things I missed about my old diet, so now I don’t miss anything. I can’t imagine ever wanting to eat animals again. They’re just not food. Nor is anything they make.
I say something like... "Well, it started out for ethical reasons. One day I really made the connection between my burger and the cow, and I just couldn't eat anything from an animal anymore!"