The Quack Shack

[Trimurtisan]

Hope all your boys can get along.

My wants and goals tend to shift over time, sometimes it's a short time.

Now that I know we are moving to SC for sure, it kind of puts a diversion in the breeding goals. The failing in hatching has played a roll in this too. I still want to focus one some heritage breeding, but after we move I'd have a much better potential to be successful vs the backyard breeding that I would be doing here. So for the time I think I'm going try my hand at breeding some meaty hybrids.

I'd like to start supplementing some of the meat we eat here without resorting to Cornish crosses. I know they are not gmo, and so on, but I'm just not a fan of watching the one we have here. Even though there is no trickery, it just doesn't feel right, the breed that is. I'm going to harvest the one we have, and will be grateful for the meal, but it feels like hunting from my living room or something.

For the large fowl my plan is to end up with the AC roo and 1 of the new fellas.
I want to make some fibro crosses for fun and potential sex linking with Umbra, while making meat crosses with one of the Dampierre boys.

The Dampierre boys both look to be good for fathering a large framed meat hybrid. At only 4.5 months old they are pretty large birds, and meaty too. It's not just all feather and bone. So far they seem to be well behaved gents, but that's only based on them interacting with me and each other. Only 1 is going to stay here.

The remaining fellas are going to harvested besides the Dampierre. He is going to be rehomed again to live on a happy life.

 

[Miss Lydia]

We use to butcher our extra roos and probably still would if one started causing issues. But both myself and my husband have a really hard time now even thinking about it. I buy organic grass fed meat when on sale and unless we’re starving I guess we’ll not do any more butchering. We’ve gone soft. Never had to do a drake either I’d rather not hatch than butcher or even rehome which I’ve only done a few times I just get to attached to these critters. I have no problem with others that want to do this though. I hope you all can find just the perfect place in SC so you can pursue your goals. I know I’ll enjoy following along on your journey!

 

[Trimurtisan]

Good morning!

I know I’ll enjoy following along on your journey!

I enjoy having you along!

When I was going to do quail, it was going to be for eggs and meat. With the ducks, I'm not very comfortable with slaughtering them. I've considered it a couple of times, but just don't think I could go through with it.

With the chickens I sit right in the middle in regards to my emotional standpoint. My hopes are that by raising them with the intended purpose of providing for the family, I'll be able to give them a happy and healthy life with a honorable death. I don't have a problem with killing an animal to eat. I have a problem smiling at that animal, feeling compassion for it, then lopping off it's head.

That being said though, I still believe I can provide my family with better quality meat while providing that chicken with a better quality life than anything perdue produces. I can go grab a bag of coffee beans from the cabinet and track it all the way back to the individual plant, but I can't do that with any of the meat here.

Rule 303 (short version)
If you have the means at hand, you have a responsibility to act.

Why does talking about feeding my family feel like such a dreary subject?

 

[rjohns39]

Good morning folks

 

[Trimurtisan]

Good morning folks

Morning Bob!

 

[Miss Lydia]

Good Morning!! We finally got some rain!!

 

[rjohns39]

That's good.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Has it been dry by you Bob? Our poor little my river is so low it’s pitiful.

 

[rjohns39]

Last 10 days or so. We got flash storms a couple nights ago, but the rain didn't even register on my rain gauge.

 

[Miss Lydia]

It dries out so fast here shallow rocky soil. Hopefully next 4 days we have 50/50 chance of getting some hope you do too. Always concerning when you have a spring. So far it’s holding up.