No cow, ox or bull is ever slaughtered
- All the residents of New Gokul live out their natural lives. The average life span of our cows is 18 years, although for some breeds it can be 20-25.
- Like humans, cows and bulls cannot work their whole lives but eventually reach a retirement stage where they can relax and grow old in peace. Ours usually retire between 12 and 15 years of age depending on their constitution, strength and productivity. For example some oxen are strong and healthy enough to work happily when they are 14, but others grow weary of work by the age of 10 or 12.
- Also like humans, our cows and bulls need a pension when they are retired. This means we need enough resources to look after them in their final years, which the cows themselves cannot pay because they are no longer giving milk or working in the fields. So we have a pension plan in the milk sales, and a few pennies per litre sold are dedicated to looking after all the New Gokul cows in their old age.