Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[smyers32]

Quote from galefrances:

This is why I teach these things....this is an important part of keeping animals, particularly livestock. Vets don't often treat chickens and they are easy to dispatch at home when they are suffering.

Gale, it was most certainly not meant to offend in any way and I certainly never meant to be mean to you....I value your input to these threads and think you are a wonderful person. That opinion is just mine and doesn't have to be adopted by you or anyone but it is something which I have had experience with in people that I know, even family. All that I have known who are reluctant to kill animals are also those who let them suffer out of that reluctance and those who also will not kill to improve their flocks...another thing that usually leads to animal suffering.

This whole forum is full of posts about those who will not kill a suffering animal but will treat it mercilessly until it finally dies...all the while it suffers while they get pats on the back for their heroic efforts to "treat" the bird. I'm not a big fan of this type of animal husbandry. Treating simple things like parasites and poor conditioning is quite different than something that is causing a bird to need a quick death.

It makes no matter how you are raised, when stepping into the realm of raising livestock it takes some fortitude and..yes..a grown up attitude about reality. An animal could be suffering at 2 am in the morning...will you then call up the person you have hired to kill your animals to get them to come out to kill your chicken? It's not a realistic scenario and I'm sorry if it offends you if I am practical in my teaching this concept. Eventually when you keep these animals there will come a time to kill...will you always have your back-up plan in place or will you do what is necessary, as any adult should?

It was said in a teasing tone to your post but it had a true message. As an adult, we have to do a lot of things that disturb us and cause us emotional grief. That's life and not very often you can duck out of that when things don't go the way you planned.

I would hope that you could see past your hurt feelings over this difference in our opinions and accept my apologies for hurting your feelings...it was not meant as a personal attack on you, Gale. I wish you could have seen some of the things I have seen when it comes to adults who will not ease the suffering of an animal because they cannot kill an animal...it would turn your knees to water and your heart to a weighty stone in your chest for the "feelings" of these people. You could then maybe understand why I hold this concept so dear.

Some things are worse than death and sometimes true compassion means you get tough and give the hand of mercy to those animals you hold dear.

Very well put. Sometimes the kindest thing you can do for an animal is to kill it. Just because you buy land and have a place to keep animals, doesn't mean you should keep animals. And if you feel you want or need to, then I think you need to be willing to take on every responsibility that it entails, including ending suffering when necessary. It's never pleasant or fun, but it's just one of those things that has to be done sometimes. That is hard for some people to wrap their heads around when they didn't grow up seeing the cycle of life and death on the farm.

 

[Lacy Blues]

I for one will cull (cut out of the flock) a bird. I will also kill a bird out of my flock if there is a problem and the bird is suffering or the rest of the flock is endangered by the health of the one.

A couple months back, I had to kill my very very favorite hen because she had gotten sick. She didn't run as I caught her because she trusted me. This is an Andalusian mind you (flighty). I took her to the chopping block and cut off her head. And then I cried for about two hours afterwards. I'm still not over it, it hurts my heart. Another time, I had a rooster that got sick. Andalusian. He used to come up to me and want me to hold him every single day. Then one day he displayed sickness. Killed him. I think I cried for several days on that one. Thinking about him again brings tears to my eyes. There have been many many that I have had to chop for the sake of the rest of the flock and it breaks my heart every time! However, I have an OLD hen. I think she's about 8 this year. I really don't think she will make it through the winter, but she is not suffering... just slowing down. If she isn't sick or suffering, I won't kill her. She's the last of my original stock and she'll have a home until she dies... unless she gets sick.

My recent favorite hen... is my new profile picture... Kephtzibah.

 

[smyers32]

Like I said, never pleasant. I once cried when I shot a wild coon that had advanced distemper. Not even a pet and I cried for it, but I'd do it again a hundred times. It had to be done.

 

[ChillyChicken]

Isn't cull used more in relation to removing from the gene pool? I realize that it is most often done as killing, rather than the new term rehoming, (or whatever).

It also reminds me of one of the really nice terms I have seen on this site: freezer camp. Unfortunately with this term, some young city kid that has gone to gramma's farm to see the "pet" chickens ends up arriving just in time for freezer camp thinks that "camp" is just off for a short vacation.....

 

[Beekissed]

Yes, it is just removal from the gene pool. For larger livestock this can mean sending to butcher or to the auction or just selling right off the farm. Usually culls are sent to auction. For chickens? Those go to swap meets and chicken auctions. Honestly, who takes their best birds to one of those places to sell them? They take the ones that didn't make the cut...and then they show up here in the "HELP" threads.

 

[Beekissed]

Kind of veered off the road here, haven't we?

I don't want Gale to think we are ganging up on her posting in her absence. This is a hard thing to swallow for city folk but that knowledge will come with time. I'm sure it takes awhile to wrap their minds around it all. I have great respect for her and count her as a friend, if she only knew it.

The irony of it all is that city folk come from places where folks get shot on the street and it's commonplace, then get sickened when they come to the country and animals are killed for food. Country folks kill animals like it's nothing to worry about but are appalled by the things we see on the news from the cities. However did human life become so easy to throw away and animal life become so sacred?

 

[aoxa]

I've only had to dispatch one hen so far. It was so hard. Just not in my nature to do it. Thank God I have my fiance for that. If it needs to be done, I will do it, but I'd much rather NOT do it. I cried that whole day and had a panic attack on the way home from work the next just thinking about the look in her eyes.. It is tough..

As is the first time you bring your birds to the butcher (which is a really good friend who has now taught my fience how to dispatch our own at home). I was so upset when our first bird was not cooked properly.. Yeah.. I was emotional..

It is getting easier.

 

[Beekissed]

It does get easier but it is never easy. It's never easy to kill anything and I don't think it comes natural to any human being. It is an unnatural thing to take another life but it became necessary along the way of human existence. If it ever gets easy for me, I'll be very worried.

 

[Lacy Blues]

Ain't that a fact! I hate it.

 

[Island Roo]

I don't like to kill either - probably no one on this thread enjoys it.

A lot of people who love their animals (as much as Gale) will actually find the strength to do the right thing when faced with the prospect of allowing their animals to suffer. They just need support and guidance. (maybe a gentler approach for some Bee - we can't always see your smile thru the internet

)

I'm more concerned about the people who have no concern for animal welfare and allow animals to suffer thru negligence or for profit.