Why?????

Meat birds are different than chickens. If you start off raising them, you have to finish it because they will not last much longer than 8 to 10 wks. for genetic reasons.

Now to answer your question about why. Home grown chickens not only taste better, but are much better for you. You know exactly what has been fed to that chicken and what was used to make it grow.

 

So you know that they are raised healty and happy..they they had a good life...
instead of being crammed in warehouses...
So you know exactly what the bird ate...before you eat it.

 

Since you probably saw that we just did it ourselves, I have to say I believe all of the above. These are incredibly healthy, no antibiotics, no steroids, lived a very happy life and then it's over in an instant, very humanely. I believe that unless you are a vegetarian, you should be willing to kill what you eat. Maybe sounds brutal, but I feel much closer to nature now.

When my daughter asked me the same question, I asked her if she would rather eat a chicken that was raised one of thousands inside a dark, cramped, filthy house and could never even breathe fresh air or munch on weeds or run around and flap its wings, she had to stop and think. Not to mention all the awful stuff they are fed.

So that's why, for us at least.

PS I did post this on "Meat Birds, Etc." topic, didn't I?

 

I have not yet raised any meat chickens, but I plan on it. The chicken that we buy at the grocery store has been raised without though (Maybe some have, but most have not) to any thought of the animals quality of life. They don't care if the animals get sick as long as MOST make it to butcher time, so they can see a profit. They don't care how much sunlight those animals see. They don't care if the animals spend all their life in a small cage. To me animals deserve a quality life. Even if its short, it should be quality. They should have room to roam, sunlight, and they shouldn't be left alone if they are sick, someone should try to make them better, or humanely put them down. And that is why I want to raise my own meat.

 

Quote:I smell a seriously locked thread with a question like this....but I'll bite on this bait. I can't imagine why anyone has a problem with this concept! With all the threads and debate over commercially raised meats~cruel confinement operations that breed disease and contaminate the meat with medications~I can't believe anyone has to ask that question.

We kill our own naturally raised and humanely treated chickens so that our families can eat meats that won't eventually kill them. We kill our own chickens because they are primarily an animal raised for egg production and consumption. We kill our own chickens because it is the sensible and humane end to our chicken's life at our home....why rehome your chicken to an uncertain life and death? Why let your chicken live into an old age that may be painful and uncomfortable, to die naturally by organ failure or other illness that may, or may not, be painful until they eventually die?

I kill my chickens for various reasons and they all make extreme good sense to me and my family. My chickens free range and live a great life of safety and great food, fun and sun until they are given the quick hand of death by the person who has cared so well for them. That we should all be so lucky in our own life to live a great life being what we were meant to be and then become repurposed for another creature's life.

There are some people who feel that any other end for a chicken is foolish and unnecessarily cruel but you don't see us creating a thread asking "WHY don't you people eat your own chickens?????? Why can't you take responsibility for the creatures in your care?????? Why do you even obtain these animals if you are too weak to give them the hand of mercy when it is their time to leave this world?????"

Time to let it go and let everyone do their own thing, huh?

 

Our hens are pets regardless of age. Roos on the other hand, are different. We don't need an equal number of hens and roos (poor hens!!). The mean roos are dinner. They hurt my hens and other roos and don't need to be part of the flock. The select few roos that we do keep for our flock will remain pets. Being able to select the best roos for our flock means a stronger flock, while the extra/mean roos are much better for our dinner table. Raising our meat is not only tastier than store bought meat, but it is also nice knowing that they were raised kindly and lovingly.

 

Quote:I am not a vegetarian I am just very close to my animals.

I am also very close to animals but I dont want to eat one raised in filth and pumped up on steriods.And besides its not like your keeping the chickens for a year then butcher.You know once you buy them that they are for meat.This doesnt mean that you cant still treat them with respect and maybe some love.This all will only make the meat taste better and you feeling better about it.

 

another reason is that there is no way that I can possibly give away, more less sell all the roosters that I produce. And I certainly can't keep them all. My hens would go on strike.