Shannon Larratt is Zentastic

First, some things that make me sad. I went to High Park yesterday with Rachel and Leeta. There's a small park there, with a few animals. It breaks my heart to see animals in small fenced pens, but there were two that really upset me:

This is a Yak. The Dalai Lama mentioned in his autobiography that as the yak metabolism is evolved for high altitudes, when you take them below 10,000 feet their lifespan is dramatically shortened… I'm not sure if the zoo value worth is worth this animal's sacrifice? Hmm… On a side note, maybe I'll make Tibettan food today. Overall I'm not a huge fan of it, but I do like momos.		This is a highland cow, Scotland's answer to the yak. I lived on a highland cattle farm for about ten years, and I hope to get highlands again in a few years. Highlands are rugged, noble animals, and seeing one in a sparse cage, watching it mope about and look up into the forested hills outside its cage wasn't very fun.

I should add that I have no qualms eating animals and wearing their skins and using their byproducts to enhance my life. I have no qualms with raising animals for consumption if it's done responsibly and with a purpose, but seeing pointless torture, be it in a zoo or be it on a factory beef farm is inexcusable. Life is still life; our duty as the masters of this world is to treat it with respect.