8 Small Acts of Veganism Anyone Can Do

If you are anything like me, you may feel sometimes that being vegan isn’t “doing enough” to help animals. However, at the low end of the range, every person who chooses to be vegan saves at least 1 animal’s life per day, or 365 per year (and often many more than that, according to the Humane League). These statistics consider the animals spared from your plate, but not the cows spared from becoming leather shoes and handbags, and the animals spared from horrific fates to become fur coats. But sometimes that still feels like it isn’t enough and we could be doing more to help the animals.

Regardless of your financial situation, there’s always something you can do to help animals. Here are some easy ideas for small acts of veganism that make a difference. Do what you can and notice how easy it becomes to incorporate these acts into your daily routine.

Wear vegan

Wear vegan clothing, jewelry, bags, or pins to show how common veganism actually is to people who aren’t regularly exposed to veganism. Bonus points if the shop donates some of the proceeds of your purchase to an animal rights cause! Support vegan brands if you can, and when possible, choose to buy products from companies that don’t do animal testing. Look for the Leaping Bunny logo if you aren’t sure.  And check out our friends at Vegan Happy Clothing!

Recycle

What’s good for the environment and the planet is good for the animals, including humans. Recycle whenever and wherever you can. 

Adopt a rescue animal who needs a home

If you cannot adopt, consider fostering or volunteering for a local rescue. If you can crochet or knit, make blankets or small soft toys to keep the animals warm and busy for the duration of their stay in the shelter, until they are able to find their forever homes. When you see a cat or dog living on the streets trying to survive, reach out to a rescue and ask them to get the animal or pick up the animal if it is friendly enough and take it to a rescue, where it will be safe and fed. 

Sign petitions

This action costs nothing and takes very little time, and you can save your information so that you can sign petitions with just one click. Follow animal welfare sites and sign petitions to punish animal abusers and to create more humane living situations for farmed animals. Look for a website that ends in .org or .gov. Some that I frequently use are Lady Freethinker, In Defense of Animals, Humane World for Animals, and Compassion in World Farming. 

Stay in the know

Keep up with your local lawmakers and speak up about laws that may have an impact on our animal friends. Encourage your representatives to support campaigns that help animals. Sign up for newsletters from your local leaders to keep up to date on current issues related to animals and the environment. 

Educate others

When you tell someone you are vegan, they are likely to follow up with questions about what being vegan means and why you made the choice to be vegan. Many people will be genuinely curious about your reasons to change your diet and lifestyle and may like to know what vegan alternatives there are to animal products. Or, you could meet someone with a health concern, such as dairy intolerance, and that is a great opening to discuss the many vegan alternatives to the foods they love, like ice cream, cheese, yogurt, and milk. There are many documentaries you can point them to for facts about farmed animals, including What the Health, Forks Over Knives,Cowspiracy , and Dominion.  

Donate

Donate to a cause that you care deeply about (and write the donation off on taxes!). Animal rescues are always in need of funds to pay for the veterinary bills and boarding of the animals they take in. Non-profit organizations may raise money to build sanctuaries, continue or expand their services, feed animals, pay bills, and the list goes on and on. Piece of Heaven Project is currently raising funds to build additional fencing to allow the sanctuary animals to graze in a larger area safely. Learn more about the project and donate here.

Build or join a vegan community where you live

Urban vegans may plan group protests against animal exploitation in entertainment (like the circus) or controversial restaurant menu items (such as foie gras). Join your local vegan group if you have one, and if you don’t consider creating one. Being with like-minded people could inspire you and give you the courage to stand up and speak out for animals. It’s also very comforting to know you have that understanding and compassionate community to talk to when things are difficult. 

There are so many things we can do each and every day to make life easier for the animals we share this planet with. There’s a quote by Max Lucado I love to remember when I feel like I’m getting overwhelmed with all the suffering that happens to animals in the world: “No one can do everything, but everyone can do something.” This single sentence is such an excellent reminder that while we cannot change the whole world overnight, every single little action we take makes a difference. And those little actions add up over time when many people participate.