My only in-person encounter with a pig was very unpleasant

But I have decided not to eat them anymore anyway

In this post, and with some art I’ve been doing, I want to explore the idea that I’ve heard that we shouldn’t eat animals because we like them and think they’re cute or whatever. Thinking certain animals are cute or cool, makes it easier to empathize with them, probably; I get that. But I think it is likely better to arrive at the not-eating-animals answer by taking a different approach, so I’m not relying on whether I personally feel affection for them.

I begin with pigs, and the fact that historically I haven’t really liked them, in general. The only time that I met one in person was not a fun or sweet experience. I was a city child; I grew up in London, England. I was also afflicted by an obsession with horses, and at age 11 I found a way to be around them and ride them even though my parents weren’t in the least bit interested in facilitating this. My cunning plan was thus: volunteer at a city farm that had a therapeutic horse riding program, and ride the horses after the riding sessions were over.

It didn’t go quite as smoothly as that, but that’s another story for another post. I did spend some time at the city farm, though, and I met all kinds of animals I’d never encountered so closely before. One was a pig, a huge sow with piglets at teat, who got out of her stall one day and chased me down the yard, nipping at my bottom. It sounds comical, but it was terrifying at the time. I suspect she might’ve killed and eaten me if an adult hadn’t seen what was happening and rushed to stop it!

I have been biased against pigs ever since. I’m not sure whether it’s a coincidence that since starting to buy and cook only plant-based food just over two years ago, the only meats for which I’ve had any serious cravings, are those made of pork. Not bacon, as you might guess, not sausage, but pork belly, pork roast and pork chops. Pig. Let’s remind ourselves (myself) of the fact that “pork” is from a sentient animal: a pig. I am craving it much much less now, if at all, and just to clear, I have not been giving in to the cravings. I think it’s really sinking in that pigs are persons having subjective experiences, just like my beloved cat is a person.

Pigs are smart. Studies have shown that pigs understand symbolic language, have emotional intelligence, feel empathy, can be taught to use a joystick to move objects on a screen, can do and understand things that great apes and dogs struggle to do and understand. These studies have meant that some scientists who’ve studied pigs have suggested that they might be even more intelligent than dogs and some great apes (in general).

I still honestly think pigs are quite ugly and they sometimes give me the creeps when I see them from certain angles. Perhaps they are too similar to us in some ways. But I have allowed myself to see the horror of keeping these sensitive and clever creatures in tiny cages and then having them watch their fellows get violently killed, knowing they will be next. And so on. I do believe that once you are open to seeing the horror in something that most humans accept as everyday life, you have to do a lot of mental gymnastics to persuade yourself that it’s actually okay, enough to continue to participate.

I don’t want to do mental gymnastics anymore; I’m too tired. I have decided to keep it simple for once. I’ve decided to not eat pigs anymore, whether or not I ever think they’re cute. Even though I do think I might think that, someday.