NH Homesteader's journal

[frustratedearthmother]

I've had folks gimme the "ah, poor thing" when I mention that we butcher. I look those folks in the eye and ask them if they eat meat. I've never had one answer that they were a vegetarian. That's when I tell them that if they eat meat the can't talk to me about butchering my own animals. That's also when I give them the same speech that Bay does... my animals have a great life with one bad instant.

I have had people want to buy butchered chickens from me. I won't do it - I HATE butchering chickens but I do enjoy the rewards of my efforts. No way I'm gonna sell that to someone else who hasn't worked as hard as I did for that meat, lol!

 

[NH Homesteader]

We used to sell whole chickens, but it's not worth it for us. We sell my parents 6-10 a year (well we just charge them what we have into them), and that's usually it. We might sell heritage turkeys butchered at some point but I'm darn well going to charge the going rate ($5-7/lb) or I won't bother. It's like any farm product, if it's not worth it financially, I'll downsize and just do it for myself.

My mom is the only one who gives me a hard time about the poor animals (thank goodness she didn't hear the gunshot today or I would have gotten a text), but she's in denial. And she does appreciate what we do, it just makes her sad to think about it. Crazy lady won't survive the apocalypse without us.

 

[NH Homesteader]

I think we might keep our other pig. We love her. Can have her bred for spring piglets for the price of feeding the boar while she's at our friend's farm with him... Hmm... After putting the other one in the freezer I just have this nagging feeling I don't want to put this one in there too. Our original plan was to breed her anyway... And she's so sweet. Her mom and grandmom have been amazing mothers so, yeah.... Maybe we'll have bacon bits. I'll have room in the barn to make her a stall for winter as long as DH agrees to be the one who cleans it out.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Woo Hoo! She gets a stay of execution! Yay! I do enjoy bacon bits.

How did the butchering go yesterday?

 

[NH Homesteader]

She's a runt, and runts usually have smaller litters which totally works for me!

Butchering went well. Slow but no issues. DD didn't want to watch the gunshot part, but watched the rest. She wanted to see the heart so badly, haha

 

[frustratedearthmother]

She wanted to see the heart so badly, haha

And did she see it???

 

[NH Homesteader]

Yep! She thought it was awesome lol

 

[frustratedearthmother]

That's cool!

 

[tortoise]

I remember having pork heart dissection in school. I bet you could find worksheets and instructions online for it. Also cow eyeballs, but I was way to squeamish to do that one. I have trouble with carcasses with eyeballs.

 

[NH Homesteader]

Hmm maybe DH will have to do that with her. I also don't do eyeballs... I don't even think DH would do that. But the heart he would. I'll have to look for that!

I don't do well with eyeballs either. I don't even like the tongue hanging out. Bleh.