My chickens.....my friends??? Pics of my meat friends on pg. 13

[Beekissed]

Thank you all! I would dearly LOVE to have a hands on class on these kind of things....I never realized how many folks hadn't done this sort of thing until I started on BYC.

When you live in the country and were raised killing and processing animals, you never pause to think that folks haven't at least SEEN it done if not having done it. That was a revelation to me.

Maybe someone has something like it on YouTube? If not, it would be cool to do this....but nothing beats standing there right next to it, huh?

I'm moving my broody hen to the brooder pen tonight for her big fake broody-time....little does she know that the four eggs I give her tonight will be 20 chicks in as little as 2 weeks! She'll be so proud!!!

 

[TanksHill]

Ah that is so cute. Aren't you clever.

They do have a million YouTube videos on processing chicken. I think I have watched them all. Everything from Joel to a lady whacking a chicken with a stick. They show it all. Very informative.

 

[Beekissed]

Another co-worker, same comment...... I showed them pics of my new chicks and, inevitably, someone spouts, "How can you eat those sweet little chickens after you have raised them?"

Are we surrounded by aliens??????

I told her I didn't like being a hypocrite and she got a startled look on her face and asked me what I meant by that. I then pointed out to her that she was just eating a hamburger but won't kill and eat her pet cow.

I explained that people who eat meat but won't kill an animal for food are basically just hypocrites. It's like condoning murder but just not at your house..... If you are going to stand on a principle, by golly, stand on it all the time and not just when it affects your little world!

Then I gave her the sermon on just how her meat is treated before it dies and how I didn't want to eat any animal that had to live that horrible of a life. How just buying that meat contributes to some poor animal being confined, fed junk, suffering severe stomach pains, standing in knee deep manure and then dying. Or, in the case of chickens, same sad story, different version.

She just shook her head and stated, " I just couldn't eat my own animals!"

Sigh....... There are none so blind as those who refuse to see.

 

[Farmfresh]

Amen sister.

 

[freemotion]

The comment I always seem to get is, "I don't like to think about it."

Well, you should. And if you keep making judgements on me, I will keep making YOU think about it. So there.

 

[dragonlaurel]

I don't want to stir up a hornets nest. But I'm vegetarian, and I believe if people want to eat meat- they should be willing to take care of the animal first, and kill it themselves. If you want to benefit from it- why not raise it first. Give it a decent life, with as much freedom to do the things that are natural to it as possible. Eating foods that are good for it, room to move around, and a healthy environment.

Hunting for food is an alternative, but I still think it's more fair to contribute to the animals life first. Then don't waste anything that can be used.

I hope this isn't offending anyone- just what makes sense to me.
edited to say what was on my mind more clearly

 

[Farmfresh]

I TOTALLY agree with you. I find a lot more in common with most vegetarians! At least you have the where-with-all to NOT eat meat if you think taking a life for food is wrong. That is standing by your beliefs and will never be wrong in my book.

I also have a lot less PROBLEMS with vegetarians. After I explain the WHY behind growing my own animals for meat, they usually understand and even applaud my ideals. I have had a couple tell me they "might" go back to meat if they could be involved in the care of the animal. Several vegans I know have given up meat only because of the current farming methods that bring the meat to the grocery store usually.

It is the "awe they are so cute.... Lets go get some chicken nuggets" crowd that really Hack me off.

I spent time with my "almost vegan" friend yesterday. She has EXTREME allergies that dictate her diet. We went to care for my turkey poults and my old egg hens and she asked my why I bothered to speak to, pet and give greens and treats to my turkeys if I was just planning on eating them. Once again I got the opportunity to explain my philosophy of giving them the best life they can possibly have before they are my dinner. I owe it to them to be healthy, happy and unafraid before I take their life.

 

[noobiechickenlady]

Great comments!! I completely agree with everything that has been said so far.
One of my friends and I were talking about this same subject not too long ago, thankfully she doesn't have the "But they're so cuuute!" thinking. We actually agree on this and she has seriously cut down the amount of meat she eats because she knows about CAFOs, but doesn't have enough land to raise anything yet. Plus she lives in town, no livestock or chickens... blah.

I feel guilty eating grocery store meat! I KNOW what those animals went through and I know that my chickens are happy scampering around the field and that my rabbits jump for joy when I put them in the tractor to get some pasture. I don't feel guilty eating them when I gave them a good life, thanked them for their service & sacrifice and gave them a clean death.

Free, I'm stealing that line. I get the guilt trip from some of my folks & no few of my friends and many of them say the exact same thing when I try to explain how the industry really is. DL, I wish I knew more vegetarians like you. Many of the ones I know (maybe 2 dozen all told) don't want to have anything die so they can eat. They say it is just flat out wrong to take a life so you can eat. Needless to say I don't talk to many of them often. There are 3-4 of them who think like you, and changed over to ovo-vegetarians when I was able to give them my real no-cruelty eggs. I keep them around and am seducing them into lacto-vegetarianism with my fresh, clean raw milk, mwahahaha Just kidding, one has asked for some to try because she needs to gain some weight and get some more protein into her diet and doesn't want to drink nasty, pasturized, hormoned, grain fed pus as she calls storebought milk.

 

[Farmfresh]

Now you need to help that friend FIND meat raised like it should be. Remember I live in a big city, raising my own pork, beef and sheep is totally out of the question and the ONLY reason I am able to raise my own chicken and turkey is due to my D1 having both acreage nearby and a willing to share spirit!

I search long and hard until I find local farmers that are raising animals the way I would do it and then buy my meat on the hoof from them and get it processed in a small family owned butcher shop that is a few towns away. Most of the farmers I find are like us. Really raising meat for their OWN consumption. Some of them now are beginning to raise three pigs instead of one or two or 2 bottle calves at the same time. It is actually better for their animal to have a companion, not that much extra work and when they sell that extra animal on the hoof to me they often make enough cash to pay their feed bill. They will usually even deliver my meat animal to the butcher for me! It is a win, win for sure.

I have been doing this for years now. Even though I CAN'T raise my own animals I CAN still make responsible choices about my meat!

 

[noobiechickenlady]

We're working on it! I've found a few places I can get decent meat but couldn't afford the whole package. Since we reconnected & found out we see eye to eye on it, we're both saving & scrounging to buy a half a pig & a half a beeve this fall. The few places that were willing to part with smaller portions than a half were nasty
I am going to pay her for some labor with a chicken or two when we slaughter, because she offered to come help. She wants to learn for when they eventually move to the country & can raise some stuff. Heck yeah!