Writers

Caitlin Black is an illustrator living in Canada. Caitlin says of her graphic novel “Mary of Mud Creek”:

“It is a fictional story about a little girl growing up on a modern-day industrial pig farm in rural Ontario. In this sense it is a modern day “Charlotte’s Web” of sorts.”

Please visit Caitlin’s Art Corner.

We are pleased to present three excerpts from her engaging and riveting novel.

 

  1. After a fire has killed a majority of the pigs on Mud Creek Farms Mary decides to confront her father about abuses she has witnessed.
  1. Mary flees from the farm where she has seen the pigs being violently abused. She spends the night confiding in celestial pigs she has befriended in her imagination. (three panels)
  1. Mary makes a last ditch attempt to rescue the remaining sows the night before they will be sent to slaughter. (six panels)

Two other authors who have written about pigs are John Robbins and David Sztybel. 

John Robbins, The Joy and Tragedy of Pigs, The Animals’ Agenda (January 1989).

David Sztybel, Extending the Circle of Compassion to Pigs  (We are grateful to David for this poignant, original essay for Toronto Pig Save, February 2011). See David’s website here for articles such as The Holocaust comparison project.

Poetry

Anne Griffin is originally from Manchester, and now lives in Toronto. Anne says,

“I like to focus on farm animals by volunteering for Canadian Coalition for Farm Animals and doing vegan outreach. The last two lines of the poem were triggered one day by my cat lying in my arms being petted while I was on the internet and I saw a picture of a starving child in Africa. There are many pets being spoiled and pampered while children are dying but I translated this to tortured and murdered factory farmed animals.”

Winter at Pig Island

by Anne Griffin

Cold, crowded and scared
Frigid winter air
Blowing through the vents
We huddle together for warmth
Truck stops
A moment of relief
From the bone chilling breeze
Friendly faces approach from the windows
Some people pet us, some take pictures, some cry
Could it be true, is help finally here?
For a brief time
If only we could speak
Please help us, I would ask
Our journey then continues
As the truck pulls away
Destiny unknown, I fear, I dread

Wishing for a taste of freedom

by Anne Griffin

No room to crawl
Amid cold concrete walls

We long to run wild and fast
And to frolic and play in the grass

Oh to have some sunshine
And decent food to dine

We like to root and wallow in mud
But down the road people will taste our blood

We long to be free
But slaves we were born to be

To be a pampered cat or dog
Instead of a factory farm hog

Death Becomes Us

by Anne Griffin

We’re all seen as food machines
Not living sentient beings
Brothers and sisters all here
We wait and quake in fear
As we hear the screams of those ahead
Further down the line they’re all dead
After a life with no fun
Bacon and ham we all become

Pigs in Misery

by Anne Griffin

Artificial Light
A bare, single bulb
No fresh air or sunshine
An overwhelming stench instead
Cold, bleak concrete walls and floors
Surrounding metal bars
Not enough space for comfort
Many lives spent in this misery
Does anyone hear our pain?
But, alas, we’ve no voice
That’s why we need yours
Maybe, just maybe someone will listen

Susie The Pig

by Sophie Divilek

This is the story of Susie the pig,
She had never seen daylight, nor grown big.
Never seen the white clouds, never seen the blue sky,
Never seen the sun up so so high.
Susie was born on a factory farm,
Where every day she saw animals being harmed.
She had heard their yells, squeals and cries,
And seen the terror in their eyes.
In the Farm almost everyday,
Susie would see a crate take animals away.
She thought they went to a wonderful place,
With grass and trees and running space.
When it was Susie’s turn to come on the crate,
She imagined the new world being  pretty great.
But alas, young Susie, so docile and sweet,
Was tortured, slaughtered and turned into meat.
There was no afterlife for this young pig,
No funeral to hold, no grave to dig.
What’s wrong with this? A life was taken!
Just for a person to have some bacon?
This isn’t right, this isn’t fair,
Become a vegan and show you care.

Natalie Marconi, who wrote the poem below said: “Two things inspired me to write this poem (below). A t-shirt slogan  of which I have used in the first two sentences and this quote by  Pythagoras:”

“As long as men massacre animals, they will kill each other. Indeed, he who sows the seeds of murder and  pain cannot reap the joy of life.” – Pythagoras

I use to eat beings, they were called meat.
My fork was a weapon like a gun on the street.
Then one night in my darkest of dreams, coming down the road I heard their screams.
The pigs in the truck all staring at me.
Crying for help, hoping I’d see.
My eyes wide open for the very first time,
to the pigs, their plight  and the hideous crime.
The animal horrors are not on show.
Its all based on lies, that’s what I know.
I use to eat beings they were called meat.
Now that I eat plants there are no guns on the street.

There is a place called hell
It exists for all farm animals born
Coming into this world is full of sorrow and pain
Feeling unloved, cold and lonely
Wanting only to be healthy, happy and free
But that’s just a wild and crazy dream
While waiting to die a torturous death
Please ask your friends to GO Vegan!