Facts to convince hubby that processing ou own chickens is a good idea

[TennesseeTruly]

Let me explain.... I decided several years ago that when we moved to the country, I wanted to get chickens. I wanted them not just for eggs but I wanted them for meat as well. At the time, my hubby was all for it. We now live in the country and we have a year of owning/raising chickens under our belts. I would like to this year to raise meat chickens and turkeys.

All the sudden, hubby is dead set against it. He can't imagine us raising chickens and turkeys and then eating them. UGH! How can I convince him that this is really the best for our family?

I already told him that I would do the processing myself. I wouldn't ask his help. I've watched a couple of videos online and I don't think I'd have a problem doing it.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Laurie

 

[One Acre Wonder Farm]

If you are going to raise Cornish Xs and BBwhites then you can rest assured you will be more than happy for processing day to arrive. It is pretty hard to get attached to them if you convince yourself they are food from the beginning. They are pretty stinky and messy but they are delicious!!

 

[Mahonri]

Guess you can process and clean up when he is not around.

And then watch him enjoy eating the chickens.

 

[rhoda_bruce]

I really don't know what to tell you. If he has his mind poisoned against the idea, you have your work cut out for yourself. I would say you can try tricking him into the idea quietly, by subscribing to certain magazines and leaving them near the toilet or other reading place he might go to......provided you also use it and it doesn't look like the trap it is.
Maybe you can incubate/set from the stock you already have to start with and kill the unwanted roos, to get the hang of processing and prepare a meal without too much notice......like by the time he finds out, it would have been a done deal, and if you don't say,"I told you so," he might slide into the idea easier.
omg.....i feel like a partner in crime.

 

[freemotion]

Get the documentary "Food, Inc" and watch it together. Growing your own is the best way to have cruelty-free and healthy meat of any kind.

 

[Chieftain]

What a tremendous business opportunity!!

I have been told that heritage turkeys taste nothing like a standard store-bought turkey, and I am considering finding someone locally this year, who will raise me a 30 pound plus heritage bird for our Thanksgiving this year. I realize it will cost me more per pound than the "deal" I can get on a frozen bird at Winco, but the depth of flavor is what appeals to my culinary instincts and I would be more than willing to pay someone to raise a real heritage turkey for me. I think there are lots of others who would be willing to do the same thing, especially those who like the enormous family Thanksgiving dinners with lots of people, and who find it difficult to find a tasty turkey that is big enough...

Last year we fed 16 adults and one fat baby for Thanksgiving, and we roasted a 24 pound bird, and smoked two breasts (hazelnut shells...) as well, and we had just enough meat! I would LOVE to find someone here in Southwest Washington who would be willing to allow me to pay them to raise, slaughter and dress my Thanksgiving "heritage" bird for me. I would think that if you had the facilities on your property to do that with a particular breed, for a reasonable number of people, it could turn a handsome profit for you. I would rather trust someone who knows how to raise turkeys properly to do if for me, than attempt to do so myself and fail in the process.

It is my understanding that turkeys are very adept at coming up with new ways to die, so I would rather leave it to those who specialize in raising them under ideal conditions than to attempt it myself.

 

[rhoda_bruce]

I shared this thread with my husband and he says,"Just tell her to do it, like you do." I'm not sure what to make of that one.
I never heard of 'Food Inc.' I bet I can use it for motivation here when I feel lazy.
And our friend Chieftain is right too. Depending on your connections, you can make a bit of money selling your meat birds. I sold mine, live to local oriental people that liked killing their own food. But there are a few people.......like most of us on this forum, who appreciate farm raised fresh meat. Its really how you get the message out there.....but beware; I got to a point that I ran out of roos fast.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I don't know what his objections are so I can offer no specific suggestions on how to overcome them. If you can find out what the specific objections are, then maybe you can figure out how to overcome them.

Some general suggestions. Hens tend to drop off laying efficiency after a couple of years. To keep your egg-laying flock laying well, you need to constantly raise replacements and remove the older hens. One way to remove them is to eat them. Another idea, if you raise your own replacements from your own eggs (relatively inexpensive way to do it), you will get about half male and half female. You need to get rid of the extra males. Of course eating them is the best way. And if you hatch out more females than you want, you have another meat source. You will probably want to hatch out some extra females anyway since some of them may not meet your criteria to be a good addition to your laying flock. But I do think the best way to overcome his objections is to find out specifically what they are.

If you do want to raise meat birds, I would suggest going with the dual purpose instead of the Cornish Crosses for the first year. With the Cornish Crosses, you have a pretty specific timeline for processing them. With the dual purpose, you have a bit more flexibility in the timing. The dual purpose won't eat themselves to death if you don't process them on time. Once you get the experience in processing, you can better determine whether you really want to try the Cornish Crosses.

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

Nuttin' better'n fresh butchered beef, pork, or fowl!!!!

 

[Deanner03]

We found someone to process ours for us. It eliminated some of this, and was relatively inexpensive. I was a bit skeeved out by the idea at first, but honestly...our Cornish Xs were really not that fun (not nearly as friendly as our laying hens), so it was ultimately easier.