Questions about children's reactions to butchering chickens

[ella&clara]

My daughter loves "chicken wings" from a wing place, and I definitely want to impart the logic of chicken is chicken, and if you won't eat ours you shouldn't eat any chicken. If I prohibit her from making them into pets I am sure that will help. She doesn't yet know what a vegetarian is

 

[FarmerJamie]

chickensducks&agoose :

we've got 20 meaties, 2 got processed today, both my girls promptly announced that they are vegetarians.... so....

And so it when with my (at the time) 14 yr old with the first batch of meaties. A year and a half later, she is now eating chicken again. We were talking about next year and were looking at picture of Freedom Rangers. Her response was "dad, we can't eat those, they're too pretty". Asked her about eating meaties, and her reponse "Yeah, I can eat those now".

It just takes time and chosing to eat a bland diet!​

 

[jaku]

My son is three, and he goes out with me to do chicken chores, I let him pet the chicks, and he eats the meat. I think when they grow up around it and you keep them aware that the chickens are food, it's easier than hiding it from them and trying to tell them about it later. He doesn't go out with us on butchering day yet, but in a couple of years he sure will.

 

[donrae]

I have very clear memories of watching chickens run around with their heads cut off---the old axe on the stump and let er flap method. I thought is was THE funniest thing I'd ever seen---I had to have been less than five. Maybe a slightly morbid kid

One of my mom's favorite stories......

We raised a steer, Toro, and butchered him. We'd known he was for meat, but I know my older sister rode him at some time

Anyway.........we sat down to dinner and I asked if we were eating Toro. My mom took a deep breath and replied we were, indeed, eating Toro. I forked a bite and said " He sure was a good ol' cow, wasn't he?"

Again, probably four years old. Morbid, morbid kid.

Littles don't know they're "supposed" to be wigged out by butchering animals. Just let them know from the start the cute chicks are to eat, and guard your OWN emotions, that's what will guide your kids, is your own feelings and response.

Good luck!

 

[Mrs. Feathers]

Our granddaughter was 20 months old when we processed 7 roos this summer. She loves the "chick chicks" and has helped us with caring for the adults and with hatching and raising chicks since she could toddle along with us. We were concerned that she might find the killing part traumatic so did not expose her to that for this first time. We did watch her dad and DH pluck and gut. Later she was helping me mix up some scratch in the garage looked up at me and said "Papa, Grampapa...chick chicks...meat...numnums". Made me think she gets it.....
I think it is a great thing to educate your children in where their food comes from. With the experience you provide for them they will learn respect and that food is not something to take for granted.

 

[MMPoultryFarms]

Start em now you would be suprised what the kids think Just dont ever mislead them for what it is so they dont feel like your killing there pets.

 

[CityChicker]

I think they will largely feed off whatever your emotions are. I can't even remember the first time I butchered a chicken, but probably when I was like 7-8 years old. We were always exposed to the processing though from as early as I can remember. We actually *liked* to go out with my grandma and process the chickens! It was fun for us. It all just depends on how you were raised I guess.

We really I think had 3 categories of animals. We had the animals that were fully considered "livestock" and the ones that were fully considered "pets". There were very few animals that were in between the two categories. We always got to have a couple of our own birds or whatever other livestock each of us was working with (I had goats and horses) in addition to the regular livestock. They were treated slightly more like pets, but still never on the same level as like our house pets. We learned the distinctions between the 3 categories very early on in life. A lot of BYC'ers though don't seem to have a distinction between livestock and pet (and again, as I have said a hundred times over, that is fine too). If you are someone that doesn't see the birds as livestock, you might have more problems getting the kids on board with butchering. Again, it all just depends on you and how you teach them to look at the birds.

 

[cjdmashley]

not to be totally gross but our kids like to chase each other around with the chicken feet (or use them like drum sticks) it all in how you respond. if it's no big deal to you they should see that it is really no big deal at all.

 

[cjdmashley]

Quote:
Love love love this picture!!!! she is adorable and looks like she very pround of her "'lil helper" skills

 

[ourflockof4]

I do agree that they will feed off of your emotions some at the age they are.

The first two meaties that we had were an accident. We picked them up at TSC along with some layers. After we realized what they were the wife and both kids refused to eat them, or even have them processed. After seeing them breathing hard at about 8 weeks old they changed there mind and said that I could process them and eat them myself.....a couple weeks later a friend gave us 4 more that they didn't want. knowing what they were they had no problem raising them to eat from the start. After they made it to freezer camp everyone was ok with eating all 6 of them, but everytime we had chicken they would ask if it was rock & turtle (the original two "pets")

Now the kids have no problem eating what we raise. We have always told them that we aren't going to have "pets" around the farm. If it doesn't have a purpose (meat, eggs, milk, selling offspring ect) we aren't going to raise it.......a couple of weeks ago our 7 year old DD opened the fridge and saw a chicken chilling, she looked at my wife and asked who it was. The wife just said it was "red" (a rooster, we name the layer flock) and that he started fighting with the other rooster. DD just said OK and shut the frig. Two days later we had chicken and the kids both asked if we were eating "red" cuz if so he tasted great