A whole new meaning

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brmfan

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Well, I have always taken pride on making quick and clean kills, out of respect and also so I wouldn't have to chase down a wounded animal. Now my wife has convinced me to give up commercially processed meat and poultry after seeing how ungodly those animals are treated at the processors. I'm no tree hugger but I'll tell you what... I have to admit that it really bothered me.

Being a die hard carnivore I made her a deal... I'll eat only the meat I harvest myself. So I guess my favorite pastime is now going to be a bigger part of my way of life, although I may sneak in a cheese steak sammich now and again! ;)
 
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Do you have enough space to be able to raise any of your own livestock? Hunting season isn't all the time, at least it isn't here. If you raise animals you provide them the treatment they receive. The happier the animals the tastier the meat.

If you raise chickens you will have fresh eggs and fresh chicken. It doesn't take many chickens to have more fresh eggs than you know what to do with.

I have thought about trying to raise rabbits as well. They breed like rabbits, they grow fast and the meat is tasty. I looked into ways to try to provide them as close to a free range diet as possible.

Raising your own animals you will be more self sufficient and you know the animals lived in a humane manner and died in a humane manner. If you have a garden, all of the animal waste from the rabbits and chickens can be used to fertilize the dirt and you will have a better crop of whatever you plant.
 
I applaud you for doing what you feel right. The problem is it will have no affect whatsoever on changing the way those animals are treated. But I guess you'll feel better about it.
 
I've got rabbit burgers, deer burger, stew meat and roasts in the freezer right now.

You haven't felt bad till you see a guy "rolling" a lame cow across the loading line with a forklift. Rule is if it crosses the line on it's own, it can go to slaughter. They get it going with the fork lift then they let them roll "on there own" across the line. I'm all for using your own humanly killed game, and raising your own food. Our pork comes from my buddy. His hogs live and eat like kings till their day comes. He's getting cattle next year, and my wife and I will start doing big gardens again to help feed our two family's, after we move out of town to our dream home out in the sticks this fall that is.
 
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I applaud you for doing what you feel right. The problem is it will have no affect whatsoever on changing the way those animals are treated. But I guess you'll feel better about it.
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the same is true of how you vote.
 
If you have a garden, all of the animal waste from the rabbits and chickens can be used to fertilize the dirt and you will have a better crop of whatever you plant.
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Also, you can take all the vegetable waste (Carrot/beet/parsnip tops, potato peels, watermellon rinds, pea pods and all the fruits and veggies you dont' eat) and feed it to the chickens. Chickens will eat darn near anything (including mice!) ....
 
This might be a little off topic but, I get irritated by people who eat meat from a grocery store and feel like filling my freezer with venison is barbaric. If they only knew that hunters have much more respect for the game they use than the processing facilities do. Just my two cents.
 
Life is never fair !!

The Bunny-Huggers are alway accusing us of being purposely cruel to animals. They are really missing the boat for all they have to do, is closely look at you next order of fried chicken and note all the broken limbs inside. You can acually see where the break bled during processing. ..... :eek:

Be Safe !!!
 
We'd been in the process of looking at new homes out in the county with at least 10-12 acres anyway, so raising chickens and having a large garden were somethings we'd already planned on.

As I said, I will always be a meat eater and I know our decision won't change anything. But we have been involved in animal rescue and dog fostering for years, and animal welfare in general is something that we take to heart. In fact animal abuse is at the top of my "oh hell no you better not push that button" list.

So maybe I will sleep better at night knowing I walked the walk. Plus it'll give me even more reason to get out in the woods. I never go turkey hunting despite having every opportunity, but now I'm already making plans! :D

If they only knew that hunters have much more respect for the game they use than the processing facilities do. Just my two cents.
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It's not just you .284 I did a consulting job at a large processing center years ago and couldn't even look at a chicken for 2 weeks!
 
+1 on the chicken comments. Just got done slaughtering my first batch. Word of advice, though. Put the coop a looong distance from the house, or the things will drop manure all over your front porch and sidewalk.

Conversely, never had a bug problem around the house last year.
 
When you said you like a quick and clean kill and then referred to making your Wife a deal ... I was worried at first !
 
Just got done slaughtering my first batch. Word of advice, though. Put the coop a looong distance from the house, or the things will drop manure all over your front porch and sidewalk.
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We fenced the front yard, and the garden. The chickens had the run of the place, otherwise.

Those Norman Rockwell white picket fences of yesteryear had a purpose .......
 
I guess I'm not of the same make as you guys. I've been to slaughter houses and I've seen how its done. I know a few people who worked at them and two guys who are foremen (sorta) at the ones they work at. Frankly I can say I'm not ashamed of eating beef, pork, chicken or other meats from the grocery store.

There's stories of people who "roll" lame cows across "the line" but the three slaughter houses I've visited have done no such thing. Every animal that arrived there alive walked out of the trailer on their own 4 feet. They were all herded into the area to be slaughtered and each walked in their on their own 4 feet. I'd have to say that from my personal experience (which is just spending a day in one and a couple of days - not in a row - in the other two) and watching what was done out of sheer curiosity. I hadn't witnessed any such actions as what was mentioned.

I've also seen the actual kill - which is quite humane. The most widely used method (or so I was told) was the method I saw in all three slaughter houses - a steel piston is put to the forehead of the cow and it shoots out to strike the head meaning instant unconsciousness and death from trauma to the brain. The cattle feel no pain.

The only thing really that made me sickish was the constant stench of manure, raw guts and blood collecting in their garbage/sewage trenches from the entire day's slaughter.

Nothing made me swear off eating beef from the store. As for chicken - I've seen how they're raised (both for eggs and meat) and frankly I'm not appalled by any of that either. I'll gladly cook up chicken and eggs from the store too.

In the current society its darned near impossible to live entirely off the land unless you live on a large tract of land that is your private property which can handle the burden you'll put upon the resident animal population AND if you're inclined to poaching (which isn't a fault in my book if its for subsistence but your local DNR/Fish and Game won't look at it like that).
 
Agree with Hansam

I was a student at the University of MO, College of Agriculture from 71-75. It was during that time period the "tree hugger" movement started.

They didn't want chickens raised in cages, hog confinement operations, or the use of commercial fertilizer or pesiticides. My Ag econ professor had the perfect solution for them to allow us to turn back the clock 100 years. All they (the tree huggers) had to do was: Determine which 1/2 of the world's population (at that time) would be allowed to starve to death.

Sorry guys, but nothing that commercial agriculture does keeps me from eating food from the grocery store.
 
Frankly I can say I'm not ashamed of eating beef, pork, chicken or other meats from the grocery store.
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I'm not either- I just think I'd like a bit more control over who is doing the meatpacking and how they do it. Many, if not most of the people working in the packing houses around here are illegal immigrants ...... I've seen the shylock practices at our local butcher shop (now closed, and the owner disapeared back to Mexico, leaving debts across the county!).....

I'll cut my own, when I can, thankee.
 
All they (the tree huggers) had to do was: Determine which 1/2 of the world's population (at that time) would be allowed to starve to death.
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Oh, they have all kinds of stupid ideas that would contribute to mass starvation- look up "The Buffalo Commons" idea, where they proposed the forcible removal of all the occupants of the High Plains (some of the best cattle producing country in the world, and a not insignificant part of the corn and wheat ground that feeds much of the world) to make a large nature preserve ......
 
I love to hunt but I doubt I could feed my family on hunting alone. I think I would have to raise cattle and chickens if I was going to do that.
 
Don't get me wrong... we're still going to eat seafood (which we do a lot anyway since we live close to the Gulf). I'm basically talking about pork, chicken, and beef.
 
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