Mumbai, May 6 (TIWN): I recently read the true story of a cow named Clarabelle. She had endured the loss of every one of her children. On a dairy farm, thats life for cows and buffaloes: youre artificially inseminated to keep your body producing milk, you give birth, they take your baby away so humans can steal as much of the infants milk as possible, and the process starts all over. Most male calves are marked for death by dairy farms around the world because they cant produce milk. In India, theyre often left to starve, abandoned, or sent to slaughter. Abroad, theyre typically crammed in a crate to be killed for veal. When her milk production started to wane and the farm was preparing to send her to slaughter, Clarabelle was rescued by a sanctuary. But she had a secret. She was pregnant.

When sanctuary staff discovered that they would have a new baby to love, they were delighted. But a week before her due date, Clarabelle began sneaking off, avoiding them, and acting strangely. A search revealed why: she had already given birth and hidden her baby in a faraway patch of grass to save the infant's life. She was slipping away to nurse and running back so as not to arouse suspicion. But Clarabelle was at a sanctuary now, and she would never have to suffer the pain of losing a child again.