[Fwd: A cow - protection bill before the GBC]

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2/9/2005 12:26:12 PM

A cow - protection bill before the GBC

 

II ORGANIZATION OF COW CARE FACILITIES

 

Recommended

 

? 1) Devotees owning their own land and cows

 

? 2) Devotees owning some land and cows with access to communal

rotational grazing and harvesting in order to fully provide for

their cows.

 

? 3) A Cow/Land Trust established to secure cow care.

 

? 4) (Changed to)Temples establishing own Goshalla's with detailed

measures

 

for dealing with expansion of herd. (see VIII this section)

 

 

Permitted

 

? 1) Centralized goshalla operated by a few devotees where there is

an abundant congregation to support the goshalla and a Cow/Land

Trust to secure the cow care and a training program for new cowherds.

 

? 2) Small privately owned family farms working with the Cow/Land Trust.

 

? 3) Deleted: Both following breeding programs maintaining proper

proportion of animals to land capacity.

 

 

Not Allowed

 

? 1) Maintaining a centralized goshalla without appropriate

manpower, training, congregational support, and Cow/Land Trust.

 

? 2) Breeding without consideration for land capacity or expansion

of herd

 

 

III SHELTER OF ANIMALS

 

Recommended

 

? 1) Winter Shelter

 

a) All cows should have access to shelter from the wind, rain, and

snow. An open barn or shed facing away from the direction of the

prevailing winds is much preferred to a closed building. Many

diseases thrive in the warm, humid environment found in some closed

buildings. Drafts should be prevented as much as possible in open

buildings.

 

b) Adjoining outside exercise lot.

 

? 2) Clean water, feed, and vegetarian salt available at all times.

 

? 3) Summer Shelter

 

a) All cows should have access to shade from the sun, either in tree

shade or housing.

 

b) All feed must be fed so as to prevent mixture with manure.

 

? 4) All shelter should have access to sunlight and ventilation.

 

? 5) All shelters should have clean floors with dry bedding to

prevent problems such as hoof rot.

 

a) Use of dry bedding of some type is important. Maintaining cows on

dry surfaces helps prevent many foot problems such as hoof rot.

 

b) Pens should be cleaned daily or fresh bedding added.

 

c) Pens with hard floors are preferable to muddy lots and should

have a sufficient layer of bedding

 

? 6) Feed aisles or mangers should be constructed within the shelter

so feed can not be pulled into the area where the cows walk. Thereby

preventing wastage and feed mixing with manure.

 

 

Permitted

 

? 1) Clean rest areas with rubber bedding.

 

 

Not Allowed

 

? 1) Failure to provide shelter that protects against the wind,

rain, and snow.

 

? 2) Failure to provide shade in the summer.

 

? 3) Failure to provide sunlight and ventilation.

 

? 4) Failure to provide clean feeding conditions.

 

? 5) Failure to provide water (also in freezing weather) and

vegetarian salt.

 

? 6) Forcing cows to lie in sloppy, filthy pens.

 

? 7) Forcing calves to nurse on cows which have been lying in manure.

 

? 8) Overcrowding.

 

 

IV FEEDING

 

Recommended

 

? 1) All cows should have pasturing facilities. Herding and

intensive rotational grazing are the recommended methods of pasturing.

 

? 2) Diet

 

a) Milking cows, growing and working oxen, and breeding bulls should

be fed grains or high quality supplemental feeds such as silage

which should be secured to prevent overeating.

 

b) Change from one type of feed to another, especially from dry

feeds to fresh feeds, should be done gradually so that bloating,

which can lead to death, does not occur.

 

c) Clean water and vegetarian salt should always be available.

 

d) All feeding should be done under the supervision of the primary

cowherd to ensure the health and safety of the cows.

 

e) There should be sufficient feeding space so that all animals can

eat without undo stress from herd mates.

 

f) Hay or other feed should be available for all animals when

natural browsing is insufficient to provide minimal nutritional

requirements.

 

 

Permitted

 

? 1) Pasturing with as much rotation of paddocks as possible.

 

? 2) Tethering when sufficient pasturing grounds are not available

and under the following conditions:

 

a) All tethering should be supervised by primary cowherd.

 

b) There must be sufficient availability of green grass and

provision for exercise.

 

c) The safety and comfort of the animal is the prime consideration.

E.G., Care must be taken to guard against a cow being strangled on a

rope especially in hilly areas.

 

d) Adequate water and vegetarian salt must be available if tethered

for more than a couple of hours.

 

? 3) If cows are being fed bhog? and prasadam scraps (not from human

plates) in addition to their other feed then such feeding must be

carefully monitored by the primary cowherd due to the fact that cows

can become unhealthily fat on scraps, sick, or in immediate danger

due to carelessly adding indigestible items such as kitchen utensils.

 

? 4) If grazing grounds are inadequate for the number of cows then

there must be a plan to eventually provide grazing land or replenish

existing land.

 

 

Not Allowed

 

? 1) Tethering which fails to meet even the Permitted standards

described above.

 

? 2) Total confinement.

 

? 3) Diet

 

a) Feeding by-products of animal slaughter.

 

b) Feeding a diet consisting entirely of kitchen garbage and

prasadam scraps.

 

c) Feeding prasadam scraps from human plates.

 

d) Feeding rotten prasadam and kitchen scraps.

 

e) Carelessly including in feed articles that are not digestible

such as garlands, kitchen utensils, floor sweepings, or burnt food

such as burnt chaunces, burnt custard.

 

f) Feeding moldy hay.

 

? 4) Throwing cow's hay and grains on the ground where they can walk

on it and pass stool on it.(refer to 3b & 6 of Standard 3 Shelter).

 

? 5) Failure to follow 2a through 2e of recommended.

 

 

V MILKING

 

Recommended

 

? 1) Training Cows

 

a) Cows should be trained by voice commands for the purpose of

safety during public events, every day health checks, etc.

 

b) All cows should be given names.

 

? 2) Milking

 

) Milking should be done by hand by trained experienced milkers who

regularly milk the same cow(s).

 

b) Cows should be brushed daily, and udder washed before milkings

 

? 3) A Calf and Mother

 

a) A calf and its mother should have as much association as

possible, especially in the calf's first week, to acquire the

essential colostrum.

 

b) There must be careful consideration to the eating habits of the

calf so that overeating does not occur leading to scours (diarrhea)

which can lead to death. Overeating can be prevented by limiting

access to the udder of the mother.

 

c) Weaning must be gradual, totally achieved no sooner than 3 months

with the option of 6 months or longer.

 

d) During the weaning process a sweetened grain with the proper

balanced ration for a young calf, first cutting, non stemmy hay, and

clean water should be available for access by calf.

 

e) Caution should be taken against putting calves on pasture too

early which can cause bloat (which can be fatal).

 

f) The primary cowherd should be supervising and instructing the

treatment of the calf and mother.

 

 

Permitted

 

? 1) Training Cows

 

Cows can be trained to lead by halter or gentle herding techniques.

This is for safety and health checks, not working as oxen. However

light work is allowed for non lactating cows and must be supervised

by the primary cowherd.

 

? 2) Milking

 

Milking should be done by hand.

 

? 3) A Calf and Mother

 

a) Calves may be bottle fed colostrum for the first few days and

later on milk.

 

b) A plan must be presented to correct bottle feeding allowing for

new calves in the herd to be with their mothers.

 

c) Gradual weaning can be prior to 6 months If the calf's coat

changes color or it looses interest in milk (ruling out illness).

 

 

Not Allowed

 

? 1) Ill Treatment

 

Failure to develop a personal relationship with a cow leading to

excessive use of whips, prods, beating, rough treatment, and

violence to the animal.

 

? 2) Milking

 

a) Milking by hand in which the following occur: pinch, pull or any

other action that may result in the animal becoming disturbed.

 

b) Milking by machine. This is not acceptable and can only be done

in a crisis situation, e.g., lack of sufficient cowherds. A plan to

correct the crisis situation must be presented.

 

c) Failure to provide all calves access to mother's milk either

directly from the cow or by milk bottle.

 

d) Feeding calves milk replacement or by the bucket method.

 

? 3) Working cows as oxen except in dire emergency.

[Guest guest]

Dear Devotees

 

The below standards for calves are unacceptable in India so how can the sub

committee include them ? Why on earth should the calf be bottle fed

colostrum? Of course the calf should be with mother all the time for the

first few days to drink colostrum at will There is no question of Indian

breed calves being bottle fed and this is misleading. Of course the ISCKON

Goshallas all keep western breeds in spite of good advice to develop the

best Indian breeds,

 

It is not possible to wean Indian breed calves at 6 months. The suggestion

of 3 months is outrageous. A year old can be weaned/ Otherwise they

will not be able to grow properly. And neither will the mother continue to

give milk without her calf/

 

Two teats can be milked and two left for the calf who can drink while the

cow is being milked. To pull the calf away and tie him during milking is

a struggle(. bad management). This is for Indian cows.

 

So if the subcommittee does not want to control the breeding of cows for

milk, where is the proposal for the future of the male calves? It was not

included in the original message here/ ys Labangalatika dasi

 

-

Noma Petroff <npetroff (AT) bowdoin (DOT) edu>

Cow (Protection and related issues) <Cow (AT) pamho (DOT) net>

Thursday, February 17, 2005 9:14 PM

[Fwd: A cow - protection bill before the GBC]

 

 

>

>

> V MILKING

>

> >

> a) A calf and its mother should have as much association as

> possible, especially in the calf's first week, to acquire the

> essential colostrum.

>

> b) There must be careful consideration to the eating habits of the

> calf so that overeating does not occur leading to scours (diarrhea)

> which can lead to death. Overeating can be prevented by limiting

> access to the udder of the mother.

>

> c) Weaning must be gradual, totally achieved no sooner than 3 months

> with the option of 6 months or longer.

>

> d) During the weaning process a sweetened grain with the proper

> balanced ration for a young calf, first cutting, non stemmy hay, and

> clean water should be available for access by calf.

>

> e) Caution should be taken against putting calves on pasture too

> early which can cause bloat (which can be fatal).

>

> f) The primary cowherd should be supervising and instructing the

> treatment of the calf and mother.

>

>

>

> Permitted

>

> ? 2) Milking

>

> Milking should be done by hand.

>

> ? 3) A Calf and Mother

>

> a) Calves may be bottle fed colostrum for the first few days and

> later on milk.

>

> b) A plan must be presented to correct bottle feeding allowing for

> new calves in the herd to be with their mothers.

>

> c) Gradual weaning can be prior to 6 months If the calf's coat

> changes color or it looses interest in milk (ruling out illness).

[Guest guest]

Hare Krishna!

Dear Devotees,

Please accept my humble obeisances.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

 

First of all I would like to anounce the arrival of our new 4 leged member

of our family. We named her Surabhi. Surabhi was born on Jan.13th,2005 at

our homestead in Sri Dham Mayapur.(picture will follow)

 

So far we are not tying her up any time during the day or night. Surabhi is

a very nice and gentle little calf. During the morning hours she sits down

in the sun besides her mother Vishnupriya, her BIG brother Balaram and her

sister Sundar Nandini.

Surabhi drinks milk after milking time at 6:30 am, than again at about

9'o'clock and again at about 12'o'clock. At Lunch time we put up a small

fence so that her mother can eat in peace. At that time Surabhi comes and

spends time by my side. She watches me do my chores and even comes in the

house to see what I am cooking (although I don't really like her in the

house so much) When I take a nap, she lies down right beside me on the

veranda. At 4'o'clock All the cows go out 2 hours for a stroll into the

forest. This is Surabhi's favorite time during the day. She gets to explore

and meet other cow friends. At evening milking time we take a little milk

for my boys and the rest Surabhi gets to drink. After she had her dinner she

goes (by herself) in her little corner under her mosquito net and sits down

for a nights rest. Surabhi is really a nice little happy calf.

 

Hare Krishna!

 

Your humble servant,

Hrimati dasi