Why is it people think i'm not vegatarian cuz of this?

Question

I'm not a vegan, only a vegetarian and I drink milk and have dairy products. And people are saying I'm not a true vegetarian because of that. Why?! It's not like ur eating an actaul animal!

Answer 1

Some people may be confusing vegetarianism with veganism. Just inform them the difference, and if they still choose to be ignorant after you have informed them, ignore it!

Answer 2

Yes, there is a difference between vegetarian and vegan.  Vegetarians don't eat meat but at least some eat animal derived products such as milk or even eggs.  Vegans don't eat meat or animal derived products.  I wouldn't be either one because people are omnivores and meat is good.

Answer 3

Because they are retarded and like to asume stuff. I have the same problem. It annoys me soooooo bad!

Answer 4

It seems like you got some good answers regarding the difference between vegetarian types and vegans, so I'm not going to reiterate what's been said and tell you why some people don't think you're an "actual" vegetarian.

However, the last part of your question "It's not like you're eating an actual animal" seemed to indicate you've got questions why some people choose not to consume milk.  Aside from health concerns (milk isn't nearly as vital as the milk industry wants you to think - traditionally in most European, Asian, and African countries, very few adults drink milk and yet the U.S. (highest consumer of milk) has the highest rate of osteoporosis in the world!), and environmental concerns (the waste produced by dairy cows often contaminates water supplies and is hard to dispose of + more and more land is  being destroyed for grazing areas for cows), there are very real ethical concerns about the huge, factory-farm style dairy farms responsible for most of the nation's milk.  As with any animal raised in bulk for profit, the animal is treated as a commodity, rather than an independent being.  The animals are fed hormones to alter their bodies and force them to produce more milk and the average lifespan of an industry dairy cow is less than half that of a cow raised "the old fashioned way" on a small farm.   Cows naturally produce more milk when they're in their prime childbearing years; after that, milk production lessens but the cow is far from ready to die - however, these cows are slaughtered for their meat and their place is given to new, "fresh" cows.  Also, the male calves of dairy cows (and there are a lot of those, because the cow must be kept constantly pregnant to keep the milk coming) are either sold to feedlots to become hamburgers or sold as veal, which is the cruelest fate of all.  I'm assuming you're interested in animal rights since you're already vegetarian - you should do some research into the dairy industry and the egg industry - try farmsanctuary.org and peta.org.  Those sites are loaded with information on veganism, if you're interested.  Alternatively, you could look for a farmer's market or co-op that has small farmers selling milk and eggs - animals on small, family farms are much less likely to have been mistreated than animals on a factory farm.  If there are any Hare Krishna farms near where you live, that's even better - Hare Krishnas are vegetarians, so they won't harm animals and they finance their temples by selling wonderful baked goods along with fresh milk.

Answer 5

Because some people are uninformed idiots.

Here's a better question.  Why do you even care what other people think?

Answer 6

You are vegetarian..just not vegan.

Answer 7

I'd like to hear their reasons for stating you're not a true vegetarian. In any case they are quite wrong but most people are clueless about this whole topic anyway (ie. people that think vegetarians can eat fish).

I'm completely vegetarian and I love my dairy although I am completely aware of the terrible conditions most cows are put in. It's a burden on my conscience that I hope to rectify at some stage.

Answer 8

I'm suprised you get flack for that. There are a ton of vegetarians that use dairy products. It was my understanding that lacto or lacto-ovo vegetarians were the majority among vegetarians. Anyway, don't sweat the judgment of others.

Answer 9

alof people think that being a vegatarian is the same as being a vegan which of course is not true,but why do you drink milk?i hate drinking milk and it really is not that great for you.did you know there is blood and pus in it?

Answer 10

because they are total jerks and need to stick a d**k in their ear.

Answer 11

Because they are wrong, and miss informed.

Answer 12

You are lacto-vegetarian, not strict vegetarian.

The creators of the English word "vegetarian" did not consume any animal products.

Answer 13

You are a vegetarian.  You are a lacto-vegetarian.  You are a real vegetarian.

Vegans are the ones who don't consume or use any type of animal products.

Answer 14

The majority of people in the US who identify themselves as vegetarian are lacto-ovo-vegetarians.  Lacto- refers to dairy products, ovo-to eggs, so lacto-ovo-vegetarians are those who eat dairy and eggs.  The majority of people in India who identify themselves as vegetarian are lacto-vegetarian (dairy, but not eggs.)  What that adds up to is a LOT of true vegetarians who consume dairy products.  The people who are criticizing you are either elitists or are ignorant as to the accepted definition of vegetarian.

(There are some really compelling reasons not to consume dairy, especially if your reasons for going vegetarian include animal cruelty, but that's another question.)