If you've ever fed out a beef steer for your table, you'll understand this...The steer is locked up in a small pen or stall for at least 3-6 weeks to get the grass out of them, and the good corn in them. You go in two times a day to feed and water said beastie. After about a week of being smashed up against the walls, hit with a mucky tail,tromped on,and run over, you can eat that sucker with a rusty knife and fork. Not so with the birds, or pigs, who always work on your feelings.
I don't think I'll ever catch up...This reminds me of growing up with a flock of sheep. Every year we had a dozen or so lambs, hauled them off to market and kept one for our own table. We always named them, and one year 'Snowy' was the keeper. So mom would call us for dinner....."Kids! Dinner!! We're having Snowy-burgers!"Never gave it a second thought as a kid, but now it does seem a little....I dunno...twisted?
Forgot to add: Sorry this quote is from HUNDREDS of pages ago. I'm leisurely reading it all from the beginning....maybe I'll be caught up by next fall
Thank you for sharing the video. It brought tears to my eyes but I'm glad to be informed. I've often wanted to start a chicken house business. If I were to, the chickens would be rotated on a field in front of each house and a field behind each house to free range on during the day and would recieve much better treatment. It would still be profitable. I feel like there is a need for better sources to buy eggs and meat from. There's a catch to it though. If I have chicken houses, how can I breed and raise quality stock to the standard of perfection, show, and sell? It is a law as far as I know that chicken houses can not be kept on the same property as someone's personal chickens. Even if I had the chicken houses on another property, I would be a hazard to my own chickens if I was managing the chicken houses. Any ideas or opinions on this?I'd tell her, "Sorry about your luck!" and keep the eggs out of the fridge and eat them yourself. If she cannot be educated about the whole where eggs come from thingy, then she doesn't get to eat the goodness of your labors.
Once you start disinfecting eggs, you've ruined the whole purpose of having "fresh" eggs in the first place and you might as well just cut to the chase, save yourself the work and expense, and just buy them from the store...where they have big recalls on eggs tainted with salmonella. The salmonella that is tainting these recalled eggs is on the inside of the egg, not on the shell. Unless she is counting on your having horribly unhealthy chickens and then eating the actual shells, she shouldn't be in any danger of getting the dreaded salmonella.
You're married to her...don't take the easy way out, man! Take the time to educate the woman!
Here, let her watch exactly from whence her "safe" store bought eggs come:
erin,
Very sad, huh? All for quantity. There is something sadly wrong with our world today...
The SC state NPP vet was just here. She is the "Biosecurity Queen"! She arrived here with a complete biosecurity suit, hair cap, gloves, and rubber boots. She told me that she had had chickens for years, but could no longer have them due to her biosecurity rules. Everything is scrubbed with Oxine before and after coming here. New jumpsuit, hair covering, gloves, for the next farm etc.The devil is in the details. I was raised by a RN, and know sterile technique, but this gal was impressive in her technique.
