• Home
  • Energy
  • Sustainability
  • Climate Change
    • Eco Editorial
  • Environment
    • Environmental Issues
      • Environmental Pollution
      • Global Warming
      • Population Explosion
      • Renewable Energy
      • Species Extinction
      • Sustainable Management of Resources
    • Animals
    • Pollution
    • Environmental Policy
  • Green Technology
    • Green Tips
  • Contact Us
  • Home
  • Energy
  • Sustainability
  • Climate Change
    • Eco Editorial
  • Environment
    • Environmental Issues
      • Environmental Pollution
      • Global Warming
      • Population Explosion
      • Renewable Energy
      • Species Extinction
      • Sustainable Management of Resources
    • Animals
    • Pollution
    • Environmental Policy
  • Green Technology
    • Green Tips
  • Contact Us
Book Review of Mad Sheep
July 1, 2013
Photo Credit: Some rights reserved by mhaller1979 via Flickr.

Photo Credit: Some rights reserved by mhaller1979 via Flickr.

A Fine Line Between Safety and Panic: A Sheep Story

My grandmother’s first husband died of Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease, otherwise known as mad cow disease, years before my grandmother married my grandfather. But since that time, this disease has always been in mind – when I studied in England in 1996, I was glad to be largely vegetarian, eating only one hamburger during my time there at the height of the mad cow scare. I hear about cows being slaughtered because their flock has been contaminated. I wonder how these things happen.

Now, I’ve read Mad Sheep: The True Story Behind the USDA’s War on a Family Farm by Linda Faillace, my understanding of this disease is further complicated by seeing that the battle against it has wandered into hysteria and panic. It did so in the case of Faillace family, a shepherding family whose entire flock of sheep was taken away and slaughtered by the USDA because of supposed “susceptibility” to mad cow disease. There is an impossibility of sheep ever getting this disease and despite the fact that the Faillace family’s flock of sheep had been tested and was awaiting certification to show that they had no susceptibility for scrapie, “mad sheep” disease there flock was still slaughtered. The book chronicles this family’s beautiful and painful story while also educating its readers about the actual dangers of infected animals – many of whose flocks are not quarantined and who may end up in the food marketplace – and the ways that these dangers can get contorted and twisted into panic, delusions, and ineffectual solutions.

#FF salute to @threeshepherds – Linda Faillace is the author of the incredible book, Mad Sheep! http://ow.ly/4womv

— chelseagreen (@chelseagreen) April 8, 2011

This book is worth the read both for the heart-wrenching, anger-inspiring story it tells but also for the lovely writing and the inspiring commitment that this family has to living a life that is about promoting health and family, rather than government or big business. Linda Faillace’s story helps us understand that the USDA has ways of preventing mad cow disease but isn’t taking those methods; instead, they sometimes go to extremes of making a “point” that really has no point.

One note – this book does itself a disservice, at least for readers like me, by including a foreword by Ronnie Cummins, National Director of the Organic Consumers Association, that reads to be alarmist and of almost a “conspiracy theory” bent. While that idea of a conspiracy certainly plays out to be true in the book, this foreword sets a paranoid tone that belies the fair and personal nature of the tragedy that the book details.

Government puts rare sheep on death row http://t.co/TWaBRUeB reminds me of the book “Mad Sheep.”

— melissa mcewen (@melissamcewen) December 9, 2011

This book has once again made me glad that I’m a vegetarian who doesn’t have concerns about ingesting animals that have been fed bonemeal or other meat products that may have come from mad cow-infected animals. But now that I’ve read this book, I will be even more cautious about what I encourage my friends and family to partake of. I will look for ways to help farmers like the Faillaces, even if it’s just by encouraging other people to read this book and spread the word about the ways our government can be dangerous and about the dangers of the meat industry itself. Oh, and I’ll probably start eating a lot more sheep’s milk cheese.

book reviewsmad ship
Share

Animals

John Tarantino
My name is John Tarantino … and no, I am not related to Quinton Tarantino the movie director. I love writing about the environment, traveling, and capturing the world with my Lens as an amateur photographer.

Leave a reply


Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

  • Recent Posts

    • The Environmental Impact Of Biomedical Waste And How To Reduce It
    • What Are the Most Eco-Friendly Types of Water Filters?
    • The Top 7 Eco-Friendly Kitchen Cabinet Picks For 2023
    • How To Sustain A Carbon-Neutral Lifestyle
    • Sustainable Fishing Methods to Fish More Responsibly
  • Categories

    • Animals
    • Climate Change
    • Eco Editorial
    • Energy
    • Environment
    • Environmental Policy
    • Green Food
    • Green Technology
    • Green Tips
    • Green Travel
    • Infographics
    • Other Stories
    • Pollution
    • Recycle
    • Sustainability
    • Toxics
    • Uncategorized
  • Archives

    • March 2023
    • February 2023
    • January 2023
    • December 2022
    • November 2022
    • October 2022
    • September 2022
    • August 2022
    • July 2022
    • June 2022
    • May 2022
    • April 2022
    • March 2022
    • February 2022
    • January 2022
    • December 2021
    • November 2021
    • October 2021
    • September 2021
    • August 2021
    • July 2021
    • June 2021
    • May 2021
    • April 2021
    • March 2021
    • February 2021
    • January 2021
    • December 2020
    • November 2020
    • October 2020
    • September 2020
    • August 2020
    • July 2020
    • June 2020
    • May 2020
    • April 2020
    • March 2020
    • February 2020
    • January 2020
    • December 2019
    • November 2019
    • October 2019
    • September 2019
    • August 2019
    • July 2019
    • June 2019
    • May 2019
    • April 2019
    • March 2019
    • February 2019
    • January 2019
    • December 2018
    • November 2018
    • October 2018
    • September 2018
    • August 2018
    • July 2018
    • June 2018
    • May 2018
    • April 2018
    • March 2018
    • February 2018
    • January 2018
    • December 2017
    • November 2017
    • October 2017
    • September 2017
    • August 2017
    • July 2017
    • June 2017
    • May 2017
    • April 2017
    • March 2017
    • February 2017
    • January 2017
    • December 2016
    • November 2016
    • October 2016
    • September 2016
    • August 2016
    • July 2016
    • June 2016
    • May 2014
    • March 2014
    • February 2014
    • January 2014
    • December 2013
    • November 2013
    • October 2013
    • September 2013
    • August 2013
    • July 2013
    • June 2013
    • May 2011



Home | About | Advertise With Us | Bike The Netherlands | Current Environmental Issues | Eco Editorial | Contact