daily diet containing“sufficient iron to maintain it in full
healthandvigour,”andmustreceiveenoughfibertoallow
normal development of the rumen.^105 These are minimal
welfarerequirements,andstillfallwellshortofsatisfyingthe
needsofcalves;buttheyareviolatedbyalmostalltheveal
units in the United States and by many in Europe.
Ifthereaderwillrecallthatthis wholelaborious,wasteful,
andpainfulprocessofvealraisingexistsforthesolepurpose
ofpanderingtopeoplewhoinsistonpale,softveal,nofurther
comment should be needed.
Aswehaveseen,thevealindustryisanoffshootofdairying.
Producersmustensurethattheirdairycowsbecomepregnant
everyyearinordertokeeptheminmilk.Theiroffspringare
takenfromthematbirth,anexperiencethatisaspainfulfor
themotherasitisterrifyingforthecalf.Themotheroften
makesherfeelingsplainbyconstantcallingandbellowingfor
days afterher infantis taken.Some femalecalves willbe
rearedonmilksubstitutestobecome replacementsofdairy
cowswhentheyreach theage,ataroundtwo years, when
theycanproducemilk.Othercalveswillbesoldatbetween
onetotwoweeksofagetoberearedasbeefinfatteningpens
orfeedlots.Theremainderwillbesoldtovealproducers,who
alsorelyonthedairyindustryforthemilkdietthatisfedto
calvestokeepthemanemic.Evenifnotsenttoavealunit,as
Professor John Webster of the department of animal
husbandry at the University of Bristol has written:
Thecalfborntothedairycowisroutinelysubmittedtomore
insultstonormaldevelopmentthananyotherfarmanimal.It
istaken fromits mothershortly afterbirth,deprivedofits