DD wont let me butcher

[picklespickles]

i think its intersting that she used to hunt but doens't want to anymore. so her reaction is not just knee jerk. i think you are right to listen to her and also right not to just butcher them while she's away.

i know people who have cows who eat each other's so it's not so personal. how she said, but does it have to go in OUR freezer made me think of that.

when we were kids, we crabbed but i just could not eat the ones we'd caught.

could you say this first generation lives and then all new ones are up for grabs. i know that you told her at the start but like you said, caring fo rsomething every day makes a differnce. i like the fact that you said she took good care of htem. maybe she'll be a vet when she grows up or something.

i have a lot of respect for you for considering her feelings in this.

i butcher for myself and also for others who just can't bear to. i think it's good to just let her be and the new rules can start now. (or maybe she could choose one from each batch to keep or something.)

you sound like a really good caring mom to me.

 

[birdbrain2]

even though i am just getting egg layers, i will cull the sick or unproductive. i too have a daughter (8yrs) and worried about this. so i have explained all the ways to cull chickens in detail, and why, also that we might eventually eat one now and then. when ever we eat fried chicken or MC Donalds chicken nuggets i remind her of what she is eating and how it got on her plate. (my wife does not like this approach) but i don't like to sugar coat everything, kids should be taught the truth. if a pet dies i don't say it went to live on a farm i tell them the truth. my best friend is a Buddhist and says he could never kill an animal, and i say your family will starve to death if there ever was mass food shortages or economical collapse. don't get me wrong i don't want to kill anything but it is the way the world works.
oh and if i do ever cull i will give my daughter the option to watch or help, but not make her.
bye the way great topic

 

[imfowl]

It is extremely important that you butcher these chickens. It seems as if your daughter is in a place where she is about to decide where she stands on some issues, and she needs to know exactly where her food comes from and how it got there. If you make an impression on a child while they are impressionable, it will be a lot easier than later on. We live in a society that has become such a bunch of pansies about killing stuff. people are carnivores. we kill stuff and eat it. That is how we have survived for thousands of years. The losing interest in hunting leads me to believe that maybe some of these animal rights freaks are putting things in her head, and that is scary. Have you ever seen a healthy looking vegetarian? Please, if you care about your DD, you need to do this FOR her. I would get her involved in the butchering process,too. It aint pretty, but it is the circle of life. I pick up my chickens and pet them every day, but when it comes time, well, I am higher on the food chain, so I eat them. Just take her and show her how too dispatch them humanely, and explain to her how yard chickens are cleaner and better for you than the stuff you get from wal mart.

 

[Akane]

Growing up on a farm you learn the difference between pets and food and not to become attached to food. If you don't grow up with that lesson it's hard to take something you raised as a pet and didn't expect to die and kill it for food. Children can't really see that far ahead to remember it's going to be food until it happens. For that reason I would not have started with layers and I probably would not butcher the layers first. They'll still lay good for another year anyway. I would get meat birds and say specifically that these are for food, do not get attached, and stick to it. Soften the blow so you don't completely put the child off and then once the idea is there butcher the layers as they start to drop in production. Personally I would also give her a few that she can keep for as long as she likes as pets. That's how we grew up. We had pets we could get attached to and we had food. You have to learn to not cross the 2 and get too attached. If you just suddenly take away what she's thought of as pets it may have some major repercussions. Being as stubborn of a child as I was I probably would have refused meat and become a vegetarian just to show my mom that I would not let my pets die. Some may decide to go that route just from the shock and stress of losing their pets that way. I know several adults that decided to become vegetarians after trying to raise meat animals because they couldn't keep from getting attached. I'm told meat birds also are harder to like because of their personality (or lack of) and shorter lifespan.

However despite being raised on a farm our food was still hauled away and came back as prepackaged meat from the butcher so it was still hard to butcher my first quail last night.

 

[phoenix rooster]

It's my wife that won't let me butcher, my kid misses the big roos that I gave to another guy to butcher, but I told my 3 year old the roos flew away.....

 

[picklespickles]

arkane, thank you for your sane, well seasoned approach.

 

[al6517]

I have to be honest, I did not expect to read such well thought out responses, and some very good suggestions to your dilema. I would have thought most people would have aired on the chickens side, as is the norm hereabouts.

WTS I agree with the consenses, please don't fib to her, maybe let her keep one as a pet, your decision to get some meat birds may even help sort this out with her. she is at the right age for you to get this handled, after awhile she will be fine with it.

I also encountered the same thing when our DD was very young, and after many relaxed talks she understands now, no thanks to the DW who would rather have cutie names for all 70 birds and toenail polish on them. as in any farm we have seen many animals come and go, I realized the sooner I get them both on board the better, I would surely break my heart to break hers and then that would be my fault for dodging the subject. This year she helped me process our Turkeys for the holidays, and enjoyed the meal more, even saying how tasty Tom was, so I am over the hump.

I wish you the best of luck, and don't worry if it takes a little time.

AL

 

[ScoobyRoo]

Thanks to all of you wonderful people for your replies. Our debate is still going on. I don't worry about her turning into a vegetarian. She loves to fish and she still does help her Dad with the processing of wild game and eats it. She just got attached to these feathered animals more than I expected. I won't sugar coat anything for her. Right now we are thinking about taking them to the sale barn when it comes time to rotate. If we start the hatch now, keep some of those and sell some of our 1yr olds and extra rooster (or put them in the freezer) that will keep the population down. And still have eggs all year. We still have some kinks to iron out.

 

[morelcabin]

I think Akane has a wonderful idea about getting the meatbirds...for one thing, they WILL most likey get sick (leg problems) if not butchered in a timely manner...this really really help in showing her the differnce between pets and food...Akane that was a very well thought out post and totally agreeable:>)

 

[asher]

Quote:

Seriously?!

Yes, it's important to decide, she's going to decide on some issues. There is NOTHING wrong with being a vegetarian at. all. I have seen plenty of healthy looking vegetarians and plenty of sick looking carnivores!

I will say as a child, we had pigs that my parents planned to butcher. (I don't recall if we knew this at the time, I was 4 years old.) We named the darn things. When my dad put pig on the table one night, NONE OF US ATE! Our relatives enjoyed the three pigs that we once had as pets.

I have discussed getting meat chickens and butchering them later. The kids and I have discussed it. They have their pet chickens and those will not be touched. They were (kind of) okay with me getting meat chickens, but did not want to see them be butchered. We have discussed where the meat from the grocery store comes from and how it is treated, etc., etc.

I would suggest letting her keep hers and/or sell/trade for other breeds she wants, then get a tractor for meaties that everyone knows from day 1 are for butchering. No naming, no getting attached. Feed and water and that's it.

I am not a vegetarian, but have seriously considered it since getting more animals. I have cut down a ton on my meat consumption, though and honestly thinking about where it comes from makes me not want to eat it at all so if I need/want meat, I have to not think about it!