Culling... To eat or not to eat? the bigger picture...

[RedDrgn]

Quote:
I am certain that I will, if necessary though I have no desire to do so. To clarify, I will cull a bird if it winds up sick or injured beyond recovery and maintenance of a quality of life. I don't want it to suffer and waste away. I'd end it quickly. If the circumstances surrounding the culling were fit, I may use it for food. I certainly don't want to waste anything that I don't have to, and I think that if the bird was suitable for food at the time that using it as such would help mitigate the to culling; at least it could serve another purpose, I guess.

However, assuming nothing ever forces a cull on me and I have the means to support my chicken hobby and myself, I won't do it...even if they do stop laying.

 

[TinyChickenLady]

I'm raising pigs for slaughter and keeping a couple for breeding. We are also raising a cow for slaughter. So far my chickens are for breakfast only but I think when they get old enough and it's time to replace them, they will be used for meat as well. It's a hard thought to process because, like so many others, my chickens are named but it is reality. It's cheaper and safer to be self-sufficient. Like all living things, the chickens have to die at some point so I figure, why not give them a purpose? So for now they are my pets but eventually they will be my dinner. At least when they become dinner, I can say with certainty that they were treated with respect and dignity and that they died in the same manner.
Just a quick funny: My last pigs were appropriately named Bacon and Sausage. But now I have 10 and am running out of pork-related names

 

[peteyfoozer]

We name the pigs after politicians. It makes it a LOT easier to butcher them! LOL

We'll be culling some roosters today for the first time. They will go on the table. I feel its more humane for the chickens to die by our methods, than to get old, sick, or killed by predators. Their life is short anyway, we like to end it while its still good.

 

[TinyChickenLady]

We name the pigs after politicians. It makes it a LOT easier to butcher them! LOL

HaHa I love it! I'll have to do that this time around! Very good idea

 

[bullyforme]

I only have three tiny bantams (for eggs) but I would love to expand someday and be as self-sufficient as possible. I think I would have to keep them very distant emotionally, take care of them as I would my vegetable garden - with respect and diligence, but not with "pet" emotions. The actual act is something I think I'll have some nervousness about but not necessarily dismay.

Reading "The Road," "Omnivore's Dilemma" (and all Michael Pollan books, really) "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle," and watching Food Inc (based on "Omnivore's Dilemma") have all really changed my life.

Obviously, "The Road" is fiction, but it really makes one think of just what would we do if we had to survive in a post-apocalyse enviroment? How many of us would actually survive because we had learned to be self-sufficient? Makes the thought of butchering my own food a little easier to accept.

 

[lorain's fids]

Quote:
I like what you said.
I have been a vegetarian for over 10 years now. The reason I did become one is I did some research on how the animals were actually being slaughtered and the whole inhumane conditions in raising and slaughtering the animals. So I do eat eggs, I have been buying "free range" eggs, but I know that the conditions are probably deplorable at those "free range" chicken farms too. That is why we decided to get some chickens, for the eggs. The 6 that we have are definately my pets, part of the family. But I have been thinking about the benefits of raising meat chickens, my husband and my dogs eat chicken, so if we do decide to do this meat chicken raising- from the beginning I would have to distance my emotional self from them. Maybe I could find somebody who would do the culling for us.

 

[bullyforme]

I can't seem to find the post, but did someone here say they couldn't bear to eat their animals but butchered and buried their roos? Doesn't that seem wasteful? It seems disrespectful to have the animal die for naught. Maybe they could give the roos away to someone who could use their meat?

 

[bobbi-j]

I haven't read the whole thread, so I hope I'm not being repetetive here. Last winter we butchered our old, no-longer-laying hens. I have told myself from the beginning that we were going to do it, so I didn't make pets out of them, give them names (NEVER name your food!), or get attached. I feed, water, let them out in the morning and lock them up at night. It's the only way I can do it - convince myself from the beginnng that they're livestock. I need to remind myself that if I want more, I have to make room for them. I can't afford to feed non-productive chickens, and need the space for those who are laying. I was hoping for a broody this year so I could start my dual-purpose flock, but it didn't happen, so I guess I'll wait for next year. I don't have a separate coop for meaties, and would personally not have to buy them anyway. Too many leg and other issues. Sorry for getting off topic. This is just how I deal with it. Lots of convincing myself.

ETA - I didn't feel at all like a cannibalistic traitor. I knew what had to be done, and it was done quickly and humanely. They free-range during the day, and have a nice, big, comfy coop where they spend their nights, and where they live in the winter.

 

[runsw/scissors]

For me, meat and eggs were the whole point in having my bantie mixes... I watched "Food Inc"; like so many others, and was a little freaked. Esp when one listens (and reads) to all the food scares. YIKES!!!!!

I went out of my way to ensure that my chooks have the best space and food and conditions. But still! It's hard at first to have them used as food. It does get easier as I learned to distance myself emotionally from them.

I have 3 adult hens, 1 roo and 11 babies. Likely I'll have 1 hen and perhaps 5 of the babies to cull this Fall. My flock consists of Banty and Jersey giant crosses with some Barred Rock blood thrown in as well. To date only 1 hen is laying. (All of the hens hatched eggs this spring.) Who gets culled will depend on who starts laying!

 

[cubalaya]

not much meat on a bantam thats why we only have large fowl