People ever give you a hard time about...

[FarmerChick]

Quote:
YUP!!!!

 

[CoopCrazy]

Yop !! I have family and friends that wont speak to me at the moment.. Because I culled my quails last week...

 

[FarmerChick]

Ahh..pity huh that someone's feelings is hurt that you did the most natural thing in the world.

it is cool....we all have hearts. some can take it, some can't.

but for me, I would love to eat a delish quail!!!!

 

[Sunny Side Up]

There's no hypocrisy in being friendly towards your livestock, just because you pet them doesn't make them your pets. Go ahead & scratch behind their ears, stroke their feathers, talk to them nicely, admire them. Considering the service they're providing, they deserve great treatment for all of their short lives.

And I don't have any issues with folks who eat raccoons & opossums, squirrels & rabbits, even monkeys & reptiles, cats & dogs. Certainly I prefer more conventional (to me) fare of poultry, fish, beef & pork, but I have traveled through China where just about anything you could grab with chopsticks was on the menu. With a quarter of the world's population to feed, I guess they just aren't as particular, or sentimental. Although some of my traveling companions were upset by seeing cats & dogs for sale in the marketplace I didn't see that as any worse than all the cats & dogs abandoned along US highways, left to be road kill, or euthanized by the thousands in county animal shelters.

 

[dancingbear]

Quote:
I can't pet them and scratch them and then butcher. I get too attached if I do that. I wish I could, but we'd end up with really expensive, useless pets if I did. I have to stay detached from the start. Besides, the pigs and poultry are perfectly happy not to have me pet them. It's not like those species have a natural longing for affection from humans, like dogs and cats. That's something we condition them to accept. They don't feel deprived if I don't pet them. They don't care. They're still happy to see me coming with the food bucket.

If one of the few "pet" layer hens gets badly injured or killed, (I've had a few get hit by cars, or have other mishaps) as long as I get to her quickly and she's still fresh, I'll go ahead and dress her out. Out of the 68 or so birds we have right now, about 6 have "permanent resident" status. The rest are all only here until time to butcher, or they quit laying well.

Now, a dairy animal that I intended to keep for a long time, and handle daily, that's different. She'd be my baby. Her offspring may be bound for the freezer, but the dairy beast would be petted and fussed over. I haven't kept a milk cow or goat yet, but it's in the plans for the next year or so, when ever we get things ready for one. Or a pair of them, more likely, they need another for company. Herd animals do better if they aren't alone. My DH thinks I might not be able to have a milk animal that I'd get attached to, then eat her babies. I won't know either, until I do it. I think I can.

I think even a dairy animal, when she outlives her usefulness, I could eat. If she seemed to be getting to be in pain or discomfort, I'd definitely butcher and make hamburger, rather than let her suffer. But that's a future dilemma.

 

[FarmerChick]

everyone has their personal demons to deal with.....to each's own levels.

life as we know it means moving forward and learning or staying exactly where your heart allows. what else can we do truly?

 

[petrelline]

I am genuinely surprised by this topic, that so many of you get so much grief from friends & family & neighbors about raising your own food. Even if you're in rural or farming areas! That's shocking to me.

I live in the san francisco bay area, which is totally urban and most people have never even set foot on a farm let alone have much of an idea how their food gets from farm to table. On the other hand there is a huge culture of food here, with abundant farmer's markets and a real interest in organic and locally grown food, both vegetables/fruts and meat of all kind.

When I tell people that I raise chickens for meat, I don't get much pushback at all. I get mostly curiosity about mechanics ("do you kill them yourself? How old are they before you can eat them? Do you have a really big freezer"). A couple people have asked if they can buy some.

 

[PlymouthRocker]

I get grief from people who find out I have pullets for eggs! They can't imagine eating an egg from the chicken like that. Perhaps next year or the year after we'll have meat birds, and then I'll get a whole other layer of grief. These are the people that buy chicken nuggets, chicken patties, frozen stir fry chicken meals - - - YUCK! They think I'm crazy for making everything from scratch. I have to because of my daughter's dairy allergy, but I don't mind - our diet is lower in fat, sugar and salt - - - and higher in protein and fiber AND FLAVOR. My kid gets teased for taking homemade food to school instead of Lunchables. She's 7. It starts early, huh? People yucking our yum.

 

[fitzy]

I think all the basics of "why do we do it" have been covered, and as several poeple have pointed out, "people have been disconnected" from their food....

If you want to "get someone off your back" about why ya want fresh meat, and what the difference is, have them watch FOOD INC. I've always known that "grocery store" food wasn't nearly as good , and probably not as healthy, but this movie has really opened my eyes....my wife swears she'll never eat fast food again, and wants to plant a garden next year!

As far as pets v. livestock, my rule is if we're gonna eat it, then we don't name it or play with it.....not that i will mistreat an animal, but i'm not gonna pretend to be its friend one day and eat it the next. I'll make sure it has food, water and shelter and is comfortable but i'm not going to teach a pig to catch a frisbee....just my personal opinion.

 

[Beekissed]

I name the food. I must admit that I "pretend to be their friend" and pet them while they are with me. I feed them treats and take great delight in their antics. I enjoy every facet of keeping animals for food consumption, as I don't attribute them with human emotions and thoughts. They are not going to look at me with reproach as I kill their flock mate, they are not going to cry over the slaughtered remains....actually they will be picking through those remains!

Animals, blessedly, do not have the very human ability to worry about tomorrow or even about the next five minutes. Any fear is due to a flight or fight reflex in the face of what they perceive to be a predator.

Because I know this, my animals are all treated like pets until the day they die. They are given the best foods I an afford, they are given fresh, sweet water, they are given the best housing I can provide. They are given names and I take photos. I laugh at them and enjoy treating them kindly. I don't like people scaring them unnecessarily(I have teen boys and you can only imagine

) and I protect them from harm. I doctor them when they are sick and I give them mercy when they are in pain. Their wellbeing is a big concern of mine.

I am their keeper and this is a responsibility I take seriously. But I still eat them.