Animals are virtually my life at this point, and my beliefs contribute. I do not believe that death is negative and actually find many positive aspects of it. The reason I'm a vegetarian is because I disagree with the way that the animals are treated while they are alive. The whole 'they're gonna die anyway so lets treat them like their already dead' doesn't sit well with me. Plus I never really enjoyed eating meat that much..
What most people don't get, is that if I went out and hunted and killed an animal, I would eat it. When you hunt you look for the 'older' animals and animals that have been wild all their lives and have not had any torment. When killing, it's usually as quick as virtually possible.
:]
I for one really understand this part of your choice. I have seen with my own eyes several processing plants, for poultry, beef, and milk. And I flat-out refuse to eat that anymore. I no longer ever buy meats from the grocery stores. Not only are the animals treated extremely poorly, but the sanitation and procedure...ugh.

Now, I'm as far from vegetarian as you can be! I love meat, love love love it. However, my meat is either raised by my own hands, my close neighbor's hands, or taken humanely from the wild at a ripe tasty age. This includes my own milk and eggs!

My livestock are treated like pets, and get the best care. I just came from outside, I spent a few hours cleaning the very spacious pens, and I cut some nice branches for everyone to peck at or eat. They live happy healthy lives, and taste a heck of alot better!

I do know that's certainly not an option for everyone, and some people find it hard. I was raised to do this, so it doesn't bother me very much. And of course, living in the city, you can't have goats and chickens and whatnot.

But anyways, I just wanted to share my understanding.