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Why Do Cows Moo?: And other farm animal questions
Provides answers to questions about farm animals, including how a chick gets out of an egg and why horses sleep standing up
32 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 1998
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April 1, 2011
It could have been better, but it also could have been much worse. Why Do Cows Moo? is a simple question-and-answer book about farm animals, which thankfully focuses more on their attributes than their exploitation.
The book is set up by showing a family attending a county fair, where they view the animals and have their questions answered. The illustrator seemed to depict fair animal quarters as he wishes they could be rather than how they normally are. Enclosures for the farm animals are large, grassy, outdoor pens—much larger and roomier than what would normally be at a fair or carnival.
However, chicks are shown hatching in a glass-sided tank with no mother hen in sight.
The major speed bump, from my perspective, came with the question, Why do only some goats have horns?
Because they haven’t been de-horned. Many goats are born ready to grow horns. Horns are hard and have no feeling—sort of like your fingernails. … [O]n a farm, sharp horns can be dangerous to people and other animals. When kids are a few days old, many farmers stop the horns from starting to grow.
While the horn coverings may be “hard and have no feeling,” they surround living bone. “Stopping horns from growing” isn’t comparable to clipping one’s nails—it involves burning, scooping or cutting with pliers or other tools, or the use of caustic pastes. As studies of calves indicate, this procedure most likely causes pain and discomfort. In the UK, farmers must apply local anesthetic to the site during dehorning. In the US, dehorning, as with all other invasive procedures done on farm animals, is done without painkillers.
The book is set up by showing a family attending a county fair, where they view the animals and have their questions answered. The illustrator seemed to depict fair animal quarters as he wishes they could be rather than how they normally are. Enclosures for the farm animals are large, grassy, outdoor pens—much larger and roomier than what would normally be at a fair or carnival.
However, chicks are shown hatching in a glass-sided tank with no mother hen in sight.
The major speed bump, from my perspective, came with the question, Why do only some goats have horns?
Because they haven’t been de-horned. Many goats are born ready to grow horns. Horns are hard and have no feeling—sort of like your fingernails. … [O]n a farm, sharp horns can be dangerous to people and other animals. When kids are a few days old, many farmers stop the horns from starting to grow.
While the horn coverings may be “hard and have no feeling,” they surround living bone. “Stopping horns from growing” isn’t comparable to clipping one’s nails—it involves burning, scooping or cutting with pliers or other tools, or the use of caustic pastes. As studies of calves indicate, this procedure most likely causes pain and discomfort. In the UK, farmers must apply local anesthetic to the site during dehorning. In the US, dehorning, as with all other invasive procedures done on farm animals, is done without painkillers.
Displaying 1 of 1 review