If animals were treated humanely before being slaughtered and DURING being slaughtered I would most definetly still be a meat eater. In most (not all) cases, animals are treated poorly while living and while dying. They are not given free range, birds are kept in cages where they can't even stretch their wingspan, cows are kept in cages to be milked and their calfs are taken away from them and slaughtered - sometimes not even for meat. Usually animals aren't killed humanely, either. They are not given drugs, they are not given a quick death, they are given prolonged agony. Cows are usually slit at the throat and then are allowed to bleed to death. Birds have their beaks broken off before they are killed.

Can you imagine the pain they go through? It is awful. If this weren't the case, I would eat meat. I'm not doing it for my health. I'm not doing it because it's "cool." Being a vegetarian is annoying. It's hard to find food you can eat, especially when you're a picky eater. You're constantly questioned ... "you mean you NEVER eat meat? How can you do that? We're made to eat meat!" and blah blah blah.

However, I will not ever go back to eating meat after being a vegetarian. It would be wierd, and this time I've been doing it will have been a waste. Fake meat is finally starting to taste good to me. Restaraunts are starting to make veggie burgers. I have absolutely no problem with them cooking it on the same grill as the meat. That's not what I care about. What I care about is the animals' well being.

And just for a disclaimer, what I stated is true for most cases, not all. There are several farms who have poultry and beef raised for meat who are treated and killed humanely. I have no problem with that. I never understand how people do it, though. I could never eat something that I raised, much less slaughter it I've always felt that way.