Ally

From a young age, I was drawn to animals. I had pets growing up and always felt a deep connection with them. I remember once, as a kid, I clipped a peg onto my neighbour’s dog’s ear – not to hurt her (she wasn’t crying), but because I thought it was funny watching her try to get it off. My dad was horrified. He made me sit with pegs on my own ears until I understood why what I did wasn’t okay. That moment stuck with me. Not because it was harsh, but because it was one of the first times I truly grasped what empathy meant; what it feels like to put yourself in someone else’s place, even if that “someone” is a dog.

And yet, like so many of us, I grew up in a world that taught me contradictory lessons. My dad, who clearly loved animals, also paid for them to be slaughtered. I remember being confused by that – how someone so gentle with our pets could support an industry that treated animals as products. But he was raised on a farm. He, like many, inherited the belief that you can love animals and eat them too.

In Primary school, I remember giving PowerPoint presentations to my parents about why we had to save the tigers. I couldn’t yet articulate systems of exploitation, but I felt a strong urge to protect. That instinct for compassion was always there, it just got buried under years of social conditioning.

At 13, I began volunteering at the Animal Nursery at the Whittlesea agricultural show. I’d bottle-feed lambs and cuddle baby goats, but always felt uneasy knowing they were destined for the slaughterhouse. I didn’t have the words for it at the time, but I knew something about it was wrong. That discomfort planted a seed.

At 15, I saw a campaign from Animals Australia and watched Earthlings. That was it. I went vegetarian overnight. It was the most natural decision I’d ever made. But I stayed there, hovering in that in-between stage, for years. I knew about the cruelty behind dairy and eggs, but like so many, I found comfort in denial. I told myself I was doing enough.

Then, on my 21st birthday, I went out to an upscale restaurant. There were hardly any vegetarian options, and I ended up ordering seafood. The guilt I felt afterward was overwhelming. That night I went home, dug deeper, and finally faced the truth I’d been avoiding. I couldn’t call myself an animal lover and keep funding their suffering. From that moment, I committed to veganism.

Because here’s the thing; there’s nothing more backwards than teaching children it’s okay to hurt the very beings they instinctively love. Compassion is our default setting. It’s what we’re all born with. It’s the world that teaches us to turn it off.

Beyond veganism, I work full-time for a leading environmental charity, spend my weekends in nature or at home with my adopted animals, and train at the gym to prove a simple point; you don’t need animal products to be strong. At 65kg, I’ve squatted 110kg, benched 60kg, and deadlifted 150kg – powered entirely by plants, and without ever compromising my values.

As a Vegan Easy Mentor, I’m here to support anyone who’s beginning this journey, not toward perfection, but toward alignment. Choosing to live with compassion, especially when it seems inconvenient, can feel overwhelming at first. But it’s also one of the most meaningful things you’ll ever do. You don’t have to shout it from the rooftops to make a difference. You just have to start.

Let’s walk this path together. For the animals. For the planet. And for the child in all of us who never stopped caring.