Hey there, I suggest taking a look around the PETA website. Here’s a few links that are very informative!

http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/factory-farming.aspx

http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/meat-and-environment.aspx

http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/eating-for-health.aspx

http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/free-range-organic-meat-myth.aspx

http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/more-reasons-to-go-vegan.aspx

http://prime.peta.org/2011/07/care

Watch this too

Violin:
My sister plays the vioIin never thought about the horse hair on the bows. This article http://www.johnsonstring.com/horse.htm states that “most hanks of horsehair are slaughterhouse byproducts” though apparently that is not always the case. Perhaps search for a bow that is made by a company that used the hairs from the live animals.

Veganism:
The egg and dairy industry are unethical consumeristic industries.

The egg industry: In the egg industry chickens are often kept in cages about the size of a shoe box with other chickens where they do not even have the room to spread their wings. For more information on this you can google battery chickens (a term derived from the compact living conditions). These chickens have no bedding and their feces simply slip through the cage bars result in a lack of cleanliness and rash living conditions. Laying chickens are often debeaked , which is a painful procedure where they remove the tip of the chickens beak. After the chickens are not laying “to their full potential” they are sent to the slaughterhouse where a painless death is unlikely. Male chicks are often thrown into grinders because they are unnecessary for the production for age. Let’s not forget what an egg is either: a chicken’s ovulation.

Milk/Cheese/Dairy products:

For health reasons cow’s milk is more calorific then almond milk/coconut milk, contains less protein, and it’s calcium cannot be absorbed without being taken or having an additives of vitamin d. Cheese has a very high fat content. It is unnatural to have another species milk and to have even your own species milk definitely after the age of 4 (I would say much earlier). In every cup of milk is an eyedropper of pus.

In the milk industry cows are most often kept in factory farms where they rarely see the sun.
They are milked by machines which can cause infection and swollen utters.
The natural lifespan of a cow is 17-21 years, a dairy cow’s is around 5 years.
After the cow is not producing enough milk it is sent to the slaughterhouse.
Calves are ripped away from their mothers (so that they do not consume the milk) and used in the veal industry where they are often tied up so they cannot move so there muscles are not stimulated (so the meat is more tender).

In both cases it is not uncommon for a large use of antibiotics and pesticides because of the high density of animals in a confined area. For more information on factory farming you can look at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Factory_farming

For reasons not to eat honey:
beekeepers often take all the honey instead of just any extra and replace it with a cheaper sugary substitute
Queen bees can live up to five years but are often replaced (killed) after two years
Bees may visit over two million flowers just to make 1 pound of honey!
Many hives are lost through exposure or burning to keep up productivity.
Bees can be crushed between frames and their natural hive life is altered through disturbances in honey collection.

So I figured since I’m moving out in a week and buying my own stuff why not go vegan right? Well I tried veganism like a year or 2 ago (been veg for 4 yrs) and had to go back to vegetarianism because my mom would not get any products for me so that I could keep up nutrients (keep in mind we have little to no junk food in the house and rarely eat out so its not that). Its just I dont know any facts that would really motivate me besides it helps the animals but why and how? And also I am a music major and was wondering what oppinions anyone has on that (i.e. the horsehair on violin bows) because it is basically REQUIRED to play and thinking alternatives makes me nervous on how that would sound and wear on the strings (they are beyond expensive!!). Soooo any comments will be much appreciated thanks