eating your pet open discussion

[leliadax]

I remember when I was a little girl and my uncles would gather up a bunch and kill them after they got the right size...we as kids were freaked out after we saw the first one take off after...well you know, but my great grandmother made us help hergather them up and we found ourselves just waiting to see which way one would take off and after it we went lol! Back then people were poor, slaughter was a way to feed the family, I know some folks are offended but to the rest of us...oh freakin well, Im teaching my kids how to do itand everyone else I can too.

 

[Beer can]

A 2 gal. bleach jug is easier to come by and conforms to the shape of the bird better due to the "shoulders" on the jug. Will hold any size of chicken, even the 10-12 lb CX birds.

WOW! Wish I saw this sooner, but glad I have now! So simple yet perfect! And we have them! And worse yet I never thought of trussing their legs, duct tape/electrical tape/zip ties, huh!?
I was going to make some cones out of aluminum roof flashing next time, changed my mind, bleach jugs are it!
Next butcher will be much easier, thanks Beekissed!!!!

 

[Beekissed]

WOW! Wish I saw this sooner, but glad I have now! So simple yet perfect! And we have them! And worse yet I never thought of trussing their legs, duct tape/electrical tape/zip ties, huh!?
I was going to make some cones out of aluminum roof flashing next time, changed my mind, bleach jugs are it!
Next butcher will be much easier, thanks Beekissed!!!!

Sure thing! I once helped at a butchering session where they had all these fancy flashing cones and the CX were flopping out of those cones like crazy...big mess. I had brought a bleach jug just in case, so got it out, tacked it up to the fence and did the rest in that one jug. It held those huge CX and also the smaller breed hens some other folks brought and not one bird escaped that bleach jug cone.

I've tried the zip ties for trussing and they tend to cut in when they struggle, especially the CX as their legs are so young and tender but large and fatty. The duct tape was the perfect thing...no cutting in, they can't possibly shuck it off and it can be easily placed with just one hand as I am holding the bird with the other hand. Good stuff.

 

[chiques chicks]

In answer to the original two questions of this thread.

It is right for me. It may not be right for everyone.

It was part of my plan from the beginning. It isn't "enjoyable", just a fact of living.

Raised rural, learned the basics of butchering at 8, learned to skin and clean animals around 10, except fish, learned that way earlier. House rule was "you kill or catch it, you clean it, mom cooks it." Generations of my family were butchers, so I've always known where my food comes from.

 

[scflock]

It was never part of my plan, but became a necessity when I started breeding. There are always way too many roosters, and it gets to the point that you can't even give them away. At least I know they lived a good life, and I know what went into my food. I still sell as many as I can, but if they don't sell I can always start heating the water

 

[duckitup]

I'm with you. Animals are animals no matter what their semantic label, pet or livestock. It's hypocritical to call one chicken a pet and another livestock. Most of us don't NEED to eat chicken to survive. If a person chooses to eat their chickens that is their decision to make but I don't think it is right to call it just on all levels just because they treated said chicken well and or as a pet. Treating an animal nicely before you kill it does not make it, no questions asked, okay to kill it. Is it more humane than eating a factory farmed chicken?.....for sure, but is it humane? No, not on any level. Humanely kill is an oxy moron. I know that my views will be seen as extreme by some. To me, if you won't eat your cat or dog you shouldn't eat your chicken, cow or pig. Animals are animals to me just like people are people to me.

 

[Beekissed]

If the dog or cat tasted like chicken, I'm thinking I'd be eating cats and dogs freely and often, as this nation has an overage of both animals and I'd be taking in all those unwanted pets like crazy! Yep...I'd eat 'em.

Since all reports tell that dog and cat is an acquired taste and my dad has actually eaten dog during the war in Korea and didn't have much good to say about it, I have not resorted to eating dog just yet....but would readily do so in the absence of any other available meat protein.

 

[iawoodchip]

If the dog or cat tasted like chicken, I'm thinking I'd be eating cats and dogs freely and often, as this nation has an overage of both animals and I'd be taking in all those unwanted pets like crazy! Yep...I'd eat 'em.

Since all reports tell that dog and cat is an acquired taste and my dad has actually eaten dog during the war in Korea and didn't have much good to say about it, I have not resorted to eating dog just yet....but would readily do so in the absence of any other available meat protein.

Speaking about eating dogs & cats. Fox is in the canine family. I had an opportunity to taste fox once at a wild game buffet. Never again! At 77 YO I had never tried goat until I was in my 40s. I was impressed but haven't had the opportunity since. Still looking forward to goat again. The one thing that I think about quite often is horse meat. Processing horses is legal in the states as I understand. I've heard it's quite tasty. Still the phobia of eating horsemeat has overwhelmed the U S population as outrageous. I think maybe we all have a thing in our mind about "What's for dinner?"

 

[Beekissed]

I agree. Canines, I think, would have a worse flavor due to their diet but anything that is largely herbivore usually isn't too bad at all. Even black bears are supposed to be pretty tasty and some folks in the mountains here would rather eat black bear than any other kind of meat.

They say horse meat has a pretty sweet flavor and there's no question that they would have a huge amount of meat on them, packed very densely, so likely it's fine textured.

As for the question of humanity, I need look no further than the One who created humans~and all other things, for that matter~to find out what I should and should not be eating and what is considered humane by a higher standard. Gen. 9:3 is my guide, for I only answer to the Lord and not man's idea of what is "humane".

 

[shortgrass]

If the dog or cat tasted like chicken, I'm thinking I'd be eating cats and dogs freely and often, as this nation has an overage of both animals and I'd be taking in all those unwanted pets like crazy!  Yep...I'd eat 'em.     Since all reports tell that dog and cat is an acquired taste and my dad has actually eaten dog during the war in Korea and didn't have much good to say about it, I have not resorted to eating dog just yet....but would readily do so in the absence of any other available meat protein. 

I'm right there too lol... Dog...not sure it would actually taste good... But raccoon, ostrich, fish...frog legs, ......they all are omnivores and they don't taste so bad...rattlesnake is tasty for a slithery thing... If its meat, its meat. If you name it, you might not want to eat it because then you gave it a personality too lol

My first and biggest lesson in that was when I was 8. My first bottle calf... Norman. My buddy my pal, he was such a big baby... Played with him all spring and he knew me when they came back from pasture that fall... Best hamburger and steaks EVER. My school friends thought I was cruel. Lol I shouldn't have named him; that was tough

I wouldn't eat my dogs... But one is my coonhound, so she has a JOB, and the other is a chihuahua... I might get 2 meals out of her if I were lucky lol; we HAVE joked about her meaty legs