From coop to kitchen: Pets versus livestock and respectful chicken harvest

Nice story, thanks for sharing!

Well written from the heart, with details and honesty. Thank you.

I really enjoyed reading this detailed article about the real experience a family (including children) goes through when raising their own meat. I'm glad I stumbled upon this because I think the article and the video from it will be helpful to me when I get my first batch of Cornish X in September. I've never had to kill an animal before and I want it to be in a humane manner.

Thank you. Great article. So similar to my own story. I now have a less heavy heart for harvesting my roosters.

Good to know how these things are done.

Good article for those wanting to ethically harvest meat from their flock

Thanks for sharing your story.

I love that this was written by an ex-vegg head! It is OK to understand the circle of life, be conscious about your consumption, and still enjoy and appreciate eating meat. It may be hard for some to know that pets may cross over to livestock... but it is reality... and like the daughter here, I KNOW how my birds spent every moment of their life and harvest. To me the cone is no more disrespectful than the lap, whatever works for the keeper and minimizes stress to the animal. If you wanna keep a stag, adding to already mature ladies will help school him. Thanks for sharing!

I usually avoid reading much about processing birds (too squeamish I guess), but this article was so well written with a great deal of sensitivity, that I read every word.

What a great story. I often hear the claim that if we all had to process our own animals for food so many more people would be veg*n... But I genuinely believe that instead it would set so many more people's minds at ease instead. There are plenty of chickens out there deserving of love... And plenty that end up simply being problems. In the wild, problems get solved with predation and I think a knife is much kinder. Congratulations on your learning experience and accomplishing your goals.

Thank you for sharing this. I have struggled choosing sexed pulletsbecause of what happens to the males. I gladly would let nature manage my flock make up, but my husband isn't so willing. Your article illustrates how a person with similar values has dealt with this issue. I really appreciate that you put to words your thoughts and how your children reacted. Very well-written and thorough.

This is the story of one family's experience raising a backyard flock for the first time, highlighting the decisions (and their reasons) taken along the way, from what sort of chicks to acquire, to what to do with problematic birds. The discussion is thoughtful and sensitive, and well illustrated with pictures and a link to a very helpful youtube video on how to dispatch a bird well.

I really appreciate your perspective. Thank you for sharing.

This information is a must read/watch for every chicken keeper!

I just started my first flock and needed to read this. Thank you.