Please help me understand meat eaters not wanting to process a chicken!

[ChickenCanoe]

Wow, how timely is this article. http://news.yahoo.com/bills-seek-end-farm-animal-abuse-videos-181902626.html
New laws to prevent people from knowing about abusive practices. This really goes to the point of it all.

 

[luvmychixandducks]

People eat french fries, but are not criticized for not devoting their backyard space to potatoes...
I've eaten tuna but never made the financial committmeent to actually catch my own...
And yes, I was a hunter who processed my own game- deer, rabbit, grouse, pheasant, cooked and ate everything we harvested..
Butchering and preparing chickens and domestic rabbit was just part of raising them...
And I understand fully that being part of the food preparation process for some folks means jumping in in the middle and skipping over the raising and harvesting part of the process, be it animal or vegetable.
Not every consumer has the luxury of time, space, weather conditions and land availability to produce their own food - this doesn'tmake them a hypocrite, only a consumer with varied tastes when it comes to caloric consumption.
Those of us who can raise a portion of what we consume should count our blessings, rather than look for ways to be critical of those of us who cannot.
You will never make me feel guilty for not living in California or Florida in order to earn the right to drink OJ- and as a former baiter and pot hauler on my uncles' lobster boat, those of you who enjoy New England seafood don't think about the backbreaking efforts expended by fishermen in order to provide your ocean delicacies.

 

[pbjls]

That's my point. Many people are concerned about animal welfare. Well if they are, then do something about it.
With urbanism it probably isn't possible to do away with large scale poultry production completely but a significant impact would be made if all the people that are the subject of this thread only bought from humane sources or raised their own.
There would be many small holders that would rush to meet the demand. If the demand were significant enough then large scale producers might alter some of the methods.

.....................................
The thread was started with the plea for "help in understanding" that plea was obviously not ment to be answered. you do not want to understand them you want to change them. You seem to think that everyone one should know about factory poultry conditions and as a result of that knowledge should either only buy from people like you or raise their own.

yet you also recognize that "with urbanism it probably isn't possible to do away with large scale poultry production completely"

My expierence is that many know but don't care or don't care to know about the deplorable conditions in factory farms. Many can't afford to care because pastured poultry is much more expensive than factory raised.

For the people who are learning and expiermenting with changeing how and what they buy and eat it seems counter productive to push them to hard, much less riddicule them.

Lastly, as far as the market for pastured poultry goes, I have sold out reguardless of the quantity raised. two hundred or tweleve hundred does not matter. I always end up sending people to other farms(they all sell out as well) the market is there.

I just raise what I can, sell what I raise, teach who will listen, and thank them all.

 

[lelwood]

I cannot answer why I can't process, has to do with the whole feather pulling thing, but I love to get them as babies, watch them grow & eat them. To me the taste is so much better than the store bought chicken and the eggs that I get are beautiful. But I cannot butcher/process them. I even grew up on a farm where my dad or my brother butchered for dinner that night, I just cannot do it So I take them to an Amish community not far from here to have them processed.

 

[kalimero]

I did not read all the posts, as there are too many but I just wanted to explain my point of view...

I do not butcher animals I have at home - as I get attached to them (not just chickens, but also goats and cows) and cannot eat their meat. Even if it was done for me and I knew they were my animals, I couldn't eat them....
And this goes back a long time as I remember my grandparents having a farm and when they butchered the animals that were named, I could not eat them. Yet I never had problems with eating the unnamed (and unfriendly) ones of the same species....

I can also eat for example a deer or wild birds (pheasant) that are shot from nature - I do not have any problems with that. I could shoot a wild deer no problem, but I cannot shoot/kill an animal that trusts people (i.e. the named friendly cow) as I feel like a backstabing bustard if I do it....(not trying to say that people who do it are this, I just am trying to explain my point)

I do not think it has to do with being removed from the nature (we all are of course, to a point) because in nature you kill the unknown animals that are affraid of you and run away, whereas the domestic animals are (usually) very trusting - and it is especially difficult to kill them (at least in my view) after a long time with them...Personalization? Well perhaps yes, I will admit it - but I will also say that there is nothing "natural" in keeping domestic animals (but I do - for eating their products, tho rarely meat ).

 

[TheCrazyChick]

To each his own. I'd like to raise meat chickens - the kind that are good to go in 8 weeks - and don't think I would have a problem with eating those chickens, but my husband, who was born and bred on a huge farm, says absolutely no way. I respect his opinion and will not ask again. I love his tender heart. If his opinion changes, I will be looking for a processor, though. My choice.

I grew up with hunters and checked our traps before I went to school. (Yes, I may have long blonde hair and wear 4 inch heels, but I have always been a tomboy for sure!) We always had duck or goose for Thanksgiving Dinner that was shot that very same morning in the wild. (Thanksgiving dinner was always LATE in the day!) I grew up with deer in the freezer and am told my mom's bbq muskrat was the favorite of The Toledo Blade's Outdoor Editor. Was never my favorite, though.

My point being that everyone deserves the right to their own opinions and FEELINGS. It doesn't make them stupid or weak, or hypocritical, it just makes them THEM. My husband's opinion comes from unpleasant childhood memories of all things farm animal-related. The farm was not his favorite place. He is 70 years old and until recently has never enjoyed eating chicken PERIOD. Now he does enjoy a good steak or burger (or hamburger helper), even though they raised and butchered Angus beef cattle. But his chicken memories are not fond.

This forum can get so judgemental about things sometimes. When it comes to this subject, there simply is no right or wrong answers. Not to mention, not everyone who owns chickens can legally slit their throats in the backyard. Seriously people, chill out.

 

[kmessman]

I was raised hunting and was taught you clean, butcher and eat what you kill. My parents have a small farm on our land and raise cattle, pigs, goats and chickens. When they first got the calves, we made them into pets and when it was time to take the to the butcher it bothered me and then when we got the meat back I just couldnt imagine eating it. That was our pet. Well now, 15 years later, we still make all the animals our pets but it does not bother me one bit to eat the pork or beef. I even tried smoked goat for the first time last year. I helped my mother kill a chicken several weekends ago becuase i am raising meat chickens and need to learn. It was very distrubing to me to watch my mother cut the neck and then hold the bird down in the barrel to bleed it. ONce that process was over I was fine. I will be killing my own chickens this coming weekend and my mother is only giving me moral support, lol. I know I can do it. My 6 yr old son has been raised to see the birth of the animals as well as the slaughter so that he can appreciate where his fresh meat is coming from. I think everyone should see where their meat comes from whether they can stomach the slaughter or not.

 

[tackleberry]

i just got stitches, I threw up.

 

[newcutesgaw12]

i's so understands.

killing chiggens is very sad.

 

[Letta]

As a newbie to chickens I find all this a bit ovewhelming! I had no idea so many could be so passionate on both sides of the fence! I am raising my first flock including two cornish crosses that we intend to harvest and process ourselves. (first time out did not want to overextend ourselves) Our granddaughters went with us to pick up the chicks and were told immediately that the two chicks they liked the best were NOT pets and would be on the dinner table within 8-12 weeks. I thought this would be a good lesson in where food comes from and their parents were on board with this lesson. By the time we got the chicks home, the girls 5 & 7 asked if they could name the "food birds" so here I go again with the "they are not pets they are food" to which I got "we know that, let's call them lunch and dinner and when we cook them, can we help?" Laughed myself silly. Im guessing these ittle gals will have no trouble proccesing when they are old enough. I think this is why so many have trouble with butchering their own food - no early exposure -so it is not normal to them. I myself grew up hunting & fishing, cleaning our fresh game was treated as part of the fun and my mom even found a way to make us think cooking it was fun too! I hope to pass this on to my kids and grandkids~