Butchering Day Blues. :(

[MysticalMom]

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And that's what I keep telling myself that helps me accept it. That while they were here they sure were spoiled rotten little ducks.

 

[katemary63]

Don't feel guilty. This is just real life. You don't have to like it. You don't have to watch it. But your guilt is false guilt. There is absolutely nothing wrong with butchering your ducks for meat. Duck breast is delicious! We like ours with bacon. I think it is being a good citizen of this earth to raise your own food. That's true if you are talking about a garden or meat of some kind. No guilt allowed here. Just go shopping and come back to the kitchen and try out your new recipies. It'll be fun!

BTW: I was raised in the city all my life and moved to a farm for the first time at the age of 40. I too am an animal lover and have pets all my life and still do. But we also now raise our own rabbits, hogs, beef, meat goats, chickens and ducks for meat. We butcher the rabbits and poultry ourselves and the others we take to the slaughter house. I don't enjoy the task, but I don't leave either. My husband and I do it together with the help of our children. And I am very satisfied knowing that while our animals were alive they lived very peaceful, healthy, contented lives. I am also satisfied knowing I have a freezer full of healthy meat to feed my family. No guilt what-so-ever.

 

[pascopol]

Yummmm Yummm.......

 

[Wifezilla]

You all should feel good about giving those ducks such a great life before they became food. No guilt. You done good. Seriously.

 

[MysticalMom]

Thanks you guys. Seriously. That's why I LOVE BYC. It's good to know you're not alone. And I know my misplaced guilt is silly. As long as I'm not here in B day... these recipes do sound delicious.

 

[pardygwyn]

Butchering is tough the first time. It never gets fun by any stretch of the imagination, but it does get easier with time.

 

[Snakeman]

Just for the record, I am not a fan of butchering day either. I provide my ducks with a good life and they are plenty spoiled. In return, they feed my family.

I do have my primary flock. These are the 20 ducks and Muscovy that I currently have that will not see the ax. They are pets and the producers of the eggs and young birds that I will put on the table. They themselves will live a long life and produce plenty of eggs.
Next spring we are planning to add 3 Toulouse geese and 3 female runners to the primary flock.

 

[MysticalMom]

Quote:

I love you but I still won't help you on Butchering Day.

And Wooooo Hoooooo for me.

You just gave me a confirmed yes on the Runners and the Geese!!!! Now I have it in writing AND I have witnesses.

 

[javajanie]

I love my Metzer Runners. They are so funny and sweet. 8 weeks old now and um, they still sleep in the kitchen at night because I can't bear to send them outside for good. They love to sit on our laps like cats while we watch tv in the evening. And who am I to deny them watching "Survivor"?

As far as the Crossing, it's good, but overpriced, so we haven't gone but a few times on special occasions. Head over to the bar side for some delicious cheaper eats. Their woodfire pizzas are delicious and big enough for two. Oh, and their Reubens are yummy!

 

[FenDruadin]

I hear you. I hate butchering day too and so far I've only done quail.

But you know, good for you. By raising some of your own meat, you will reduce some of the factory meat farming that most of us rely on for meat. Those poor animals live miserable, painful, traumatic, horrific lives and at the end of it are probably relieved when the bullet hits their brain (or whichever method is used).

You've provided your babies with a happy, fulfilling, pleasant life and they have no idea it's "nearly time." They're taking life one delightful day at a time and when the time comes, it will be over so quickly they won't even realize anything happened.

And the truth is, you can't keep a group of polygynous pets (i.e., animals that live in groups of one boy to several girls) without being a party to the deaths of others. Nature provides boys & girls in a roughly 50/50 ratio and if you can't keep them all... something has to happen to the extras. At hatcheries, boys are either discarded at birth and turned into pet food, or in some breeds, raised to butchering age (usually more of those miserable, horrific battery lives) and slaughtered for the commercial market. In either case, when you buy that one male and six females, you are in essence agreeing to the deaths of five boys.

This is why I agree with my vegetarian friend that you can't be truly vegetarian for moral reasons unless you are vegan, because all animal products (even milk eggs) directly or indirectly involve the deliberate killing of animals.

I am not vegetarian, and that is why we try to raise some of our own meat. In fact, I am seeking homes for some extra males but in my heart I know the truly humane thing would be to slaughter them and use the meat. Because sending them to homes as a bachelor flock will mean consigning them to a life of celibacy and handing them over to someone who probably won't care for them as well as my birds are cared for. It seems to me it would be more humane to let them finish their days as happy members of their birthright flock on the property where they were raised. I just can't quite bring myself to do it...

But I admire you for following through, and you'll feel better about it afterward. It's a mark of our compassion when it is difficult every time--you don't ever want it to be easy. And you may not feel like eating the meat right away. That's okay. Let it sit and you'll want it eventually.

Don't forget to let it "age" in the fridge for a day or so before freezing...