Help - Rearing to table and all points in between

[frustratedearthmother]

It really is a great way to exchange ideas! I learn new stuff all the time.

 

[CrealCritter]

What is your weather like? I'm in WI, we get a few days of 33 - 40 degrees 24-hours in spring and fall. That's when we butcher large animals so they can hang outdoors (or a garage or wherever) safely. We have a cement block outbuilding that insulates against temperature fluctuations so we get a couple extra days that way.

We process chickens outdoors. We have a wood "garden bench" work surface outdoors. Hubby brings them inside gutted and skinned. I do the rest. I debone and can chickens. (They're best for canning at 1 - 2 years old, so this is great with heritage breeds)

We process meat on the dining room table. Venison, mutton, and lamb, so nothing really large.

My family was mostly meat-independent just with deer hunting, when we lived in town. Hung the deer in the garage, processed on the table. We have not ventured into pork or cured meats yet - probably won't ever. We receive ground beef from hubby's uncle who raises them. Other than getting bored with what we have and buying pork, bacon, or lunchmeat at the store, we are meat-independent.

Hubby watches auctions looking for a deli meat slicer. That's one thing we would add. We have a grinder - we grind a lot of the venison trimmings. We process venison all boneless, but once we started processing lamb we needed to get a bone saw for bone in cuts. They taste so much better!

Do you have chronic wasting disease up there? That's why my brother in law comes down here to southern IL to dear hunt.

 

[Chic Rustler]

I don't have any of that stuff. But small things like rabbits and chickens are no problem. You would be surprised how much meat you can get from rabbits! And it tastes great too

 

[CrealCritter]

Meat slicer - i just checked thete is a ton of them on eBay, both pre-owned and new.

 

[Britesea]

I was interested in raising fish, but as cold as it gets here- tilapia is right out unless we have a heated greenhouse, which we don't. Catfish might work, if we could make sure the tank didn't freeze all the way.

I would love to at least get a weaner pig every year, but our little half acre is set up so there is nowhere we can place a pig pen and not have the odor wafting into the living room on warm days. Hunting and fishing is on the horizon, but since we would be just learning there is no way I want to count on it for our protein needs

So at present, we just raise chickens, and grow mushrooms, and buy good pork and beef when we can afford it.

 

[CrealCritter]

One "meat" option that's relatively easy, and is a great boost to the garden is raising fish. A 500 gal tank is big enough to put 50# or more of fish in your freezer (2 1/2# each) within 6-9 months. Then all the guts and water can be used to fertilize the garden. We're hoping to add tilapia this spring. We're planning fish for the summers, rabbits in the winter, chickens and eggs all year, with possibly one or two pigs next winter.

What a great idea... I never thought about farming fish. But I really don't like the internet for researching. I can find all kinds of sites that say tilapia is great for and all kinds of sites that day it's really bad for you - kind of worthless for researching... Anyways I like trout - it's my favorite fish to eat. So I need to research trout farming but not on the internet.

 

[NH Homesteader]

We are meat independent except anything we feel like buying (beef, usually). We raise our own pork, chicken and turkey. And will be raising a goat or two for meat this year for the first time.

 

[NH Homesteader]

Oh and we hunt deer also!

 

[CrealCritter]

We added little more - please keep the great ideas coming

• Hunting / Trapping / Fishing
• Animal husbandry
  • Care
  • Flock/Herd Mgt
  • Bloodline succession Mgt
  • Housing
  • Fish
    • Koi pond
• Processing
  • Butchering
  • Aging
    • Coolbot
  • Curing
    • Smoking
    • Salting
• Storage
  • Freezing
  • Canning
  • Open air hanging (salted)
  • Dehydration
    • Jerky