Am i the only one who has never ate a homegrown chicken?

[buc]

Ok, this is my 2 cents.

On my small ranch we raise a vast majority of our own food, to include, sheep, cattle, turkeys, rabbits and yes - tada chickens.

Over the years we have bought most of your turkeys and chickens - raised them and sold some and yes, ate some.

I raise them for eating, not as pets, so they are rarely named.

The key reason for raising them is to eat. This way I know what is going into them and more importantly what is not going into them.

 

[Hotwings]

I personally can't eat any animal I know personally, but I am a city girl. I ate one of Denise's meat chickens tho. I don't think I can get attached to a meat chicken, there seems not to be much personality there. As much as I sometimes detest Jack and sometimes like to see his demise, I would never eat him, besides he probably be tough as nails anyway lol.

 

[AccidentalFarm]

Nope, never eaten a homegrown chicken, but I expect that will change in the near future, as we will have to cull some roosters. I'll re-home if possible, but honestly- how likely is that? I'm slowly adjusting to the idea of eating one of my own birds. I do think it to be better in every possible way to raise your own food.

I find it hard to make the distinction between calling the birds 'pets' or 'not pets'. They are animals that I care for and I try to give them the best life possible. Some get names, some don't. I love having them around, even the extra birds that I know I have to cull. They live happy and healthy and when it's time to cull, it will be quick and humane. In a way, they are all pets, but at the same time, some are destined to become food. I know this upfront and don't treat the 'culls' any differently.

I am anxious to try the homegrown vs. store bought and assess the differences. I imagine it will be very interesting.

 

[rotzilla]

if you raise them as pets it would be a very diffacult task ive never had to do it myself but were getting ready too as ideal sent 10 extra roos. i told the fam not to get attached or name them because as we all know 10 roos are to many so they need to be given away or................i have a buddy that can do it for me if i dont want to . lucky on that point

 

[hinkjc]

Well, I think the best approach is feeling comfortable in yourself and establishing the reasons for raising birds to eat. Once you have the mind set in place, you can do it. I raise meat birds because they are healthier for my family and I know where they came from, how they were raised and what they consumed.

I will say that I cannot eat my "pet" birds. Once they're named, they don't go on the table for any reason. Birds meant for "meat" are a different story and really can't be kept for pets, as they're lives are cut short by how they were bred to grow. They were meant to be processed, which has been fixed in my mind after our single attempt at raising a meat bird for "pet".

Here are some pics of our meat bird tractors in use and our "pet" meatbird Snowball, who only survived 7 months in a free range environment. She had a heart attack. Normal chicken life was not meant for them and I know that now. But I also know, we gave her a great life. And for those of you wondering, nope we didn't eat her. She was buried with our other deceased pets.

Here she is enjoying a Christmas tree with our other birds..

Jody

 

[hencackle]

I haven't eaten one of my chickens as my layers are pets. However, I did give away a hen to one of my employees to be eaten. The hen was an internal layer and she needed to be put down so she didn't go to waste.

Maybe I could eat a meat chicken I raised IF somebody else did the killing. I haven't bought chicken from the grocery in years and I won't eat chicken when I go out either. Same thing for turkey. I wish I could be vegetarian, but my body tells me that it requires meat so I get all my meat from a farmer that raises everything on pasture. Now, if I could just get my hands on some raw milk.....
Stephanie

 

[silkhope]

Shoot, I could barely bring myself to eat the first few eggs my first girls laid!! I had an aversion towards them the first few times.

So no, I could never eat one I raised, whether I named it or not. I still raised it.

 

[4H kids and mom]

I'm sorry, I just have to put my 2 cents in here.

I am a converted city girl. I always hated the city, and knew my heart belonged in the country. My DH is the same way. We are private people who keep mainly to ourselves, and that lifestyle just isnt aways possible in a city. When the chance arose to make a move to the country, we jumped on it, and here we are.

Personally, I see chickens as what they are intended for: meat and eggs. If they were meant to be "pets" then any pet store would sell them. Yes, I have strong attachments to several of our chickens, ChickenDuck mainly, but he is still a chicken. Could I eat him? No. He would be burried if he passed. Would I cull him if I had to? Yes.

Now, we are also raising "meat" birds. They are treated humanely, fed well, brooder kept tidy, and such. But, do I play with them, hold them, snuggle them, and give them names? No. They are food. I do not name or cuddle my food. Do you?

I would not eat a dog. A DOG is a pet. I would not eat a cat. A CAT is a pet. I would not eat a parrot. A PARROT is a pet, not food. A chicken is food. The only reason there are chickens around today is because they are FOOD. Wether it be meat, or eggs. They are food.

Let me ask you all...(if you are not vegan) do you eat store bought chickens? How often? Do you realize what THOSE chickens live through for you to be able to eat them? They never see the light of day, or feel the sun beat on their wings. They are raised in dark, large factories. They are dewinged and debeaked in most cases. I would much rather eat a chicken that I have raised, fed, cared for, and given the best possible life to than eat a creature that no one cared for and was fed goodness knows what, including other rendered animals, chemicals, pesticides...who knows. I, personally, would much rather eat a chicken that grew up in my presence, and was fed the highest quality diet. But, thats just me I suppose.

I'll probably be booed for posting this, but its the truth. If they were meant to be pets, then why cant I buy one at PetCo or Pet Smart? If they are meant to be pets, why cant I buy their food at a supermarket, or Walmart? Because they are LIVESTOCK, not pets. Livestock (suck as cows, goats, horses, sheep, and yes, chickens) are farm animals. What farmer (I mean REAL farmer) do you know that goes about naming all his cows? There are exceptions to every rule, and I personally know a dairy farmer who has a strong bond with one of his cows and she has a name, but none of his other 100s of them do.

Boo me if you must, but somewhere deep inside yourself you'll hear something say that its the truth.

 

[jmofaustin]

I totally agree, can you imagine eating the skin on a broiler that laid in it's own feces for 6 weeks till it's breast feathers fell out, gross . At least your chickens will not be laying in there droppings. OMG, I have got to buy some cornish x's so I can eat the skin again because I refuse to buy skin on chickens from the store.

I bet this subject should be moved to the meat bird section before someone gets really offended.

 

[hinkjc]

4H - you're definitely entitled to your opinion and that's what makes this site so informative. My question to you would be, do you plan on eating your hens when they aren't laying so well anymore? If so, then yes...your birds aren't pets.

But I'd also have to say that probably 3/4 of this board raise most of their birds as pets and yes, chickens can be pets. This is especially true to us. When I sit outside on a nice day in my lawn chair, my Peaches, Big Mama and Rosie hop on my lap for a snuggle. My Rocky Roo comes to greet me everytime I go outside and likes when I stroke his tail. Many of my chickens act just like my indoor cats do and love attention, respond to their names and appreciate my care. I provide them light on a dreary day and heat in the winter. They are treated better than some of my neighbors dogs. So to me, they are pets.

I completely understand the points of raising chickens for meat and do that too - but they are bought and raised as a sole purpose of being food. My pets are bought and raised to be my pets. There is a difference...no clear cut answer that fits everyone.

Jody