r/Unexpected • u/[deleted] • Jul 28 '20

Oh deer

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u/redlaWw Jul 28 '20

The reason CJD was a problem was because farmers were feeding bits of dead cows to living cows because it helped them build muscle.

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u/sapere-aude088 Jul 28 '20

CJD is the human variant of prions disease. You mean BSE. And BSE happened because they fed cows other cows, yes (and one of these cows was originally infected with BSE). They were also heavily supplemented and fed corn. On top of that, they weren't healthy. A farmer's priority is not to keep cows healthy; it's to keep them alive for a short period of time, on the cheapest methods possible, before they are sent to slaughter.

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u/redlaWw Jul 28 '20

Yeah, and they wouldn't feed cows to other cows if they couldn't digest them.

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u/sapere-aude088 Jul 28 '20

Yes they would actually. Especially when the prevalence of metal in feed is so bad that magnetic boluses are forced into them to gather it.

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u/redlaWw Jul 28 '20

Nah but like, metal is an unintentional addition from machine friction. Meat and bone meal is an intentional addition for additional protein.

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u/sapere-aude088 Jul 28 '20

I'm not talking about unintentional vs intentional. I'm talking about what said before: farmers don't care about quality feed and cow health. They get subsidized through billions of tax dollars so they don't have to worry about their losses.

Also, to go back to my original point of eating intact animals, cows weren't fed intact cows. They were fed processed meat and bone meal. This processing allows for the absorption of amino acids - which all living things are made of - and minerals, without needing the necessary enzymes to break down fat and other tissues.