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Monday, December 14, 2009

Self Sustained Living and Eating Meat


Well, it seems I have become a target for vegan-anti-meat types. I got an email from a lady today that supports a sanctuary that "rescues" and adopts out farm animals(cows, pigs, sheep, goats, rabbits, chickens, turkeys). Of course, I offered to relieve their overwhelmed sanctuary of farm animals but I don't think they liked that too much. Can you imagine the bar-b-que I could have? The whole neighborhood would get a meal! What an opportunity for me to teach others more about self sustained living!


While the intention behind the nice lady's email was a waste of hers and my time, she did make a couple good points right off I thought I should mention to my suburban and city readers. It concerns the keeping of chickens and rabbits.


Chickens and rabbits are super easy to keep in small spaces and produce a large quantity of food for just a little bit of feed and care. The problem comes in when folks try to keep too many animals in one little spot. Chickens need about 3sq feet of room to stay happy and healthy and you need to check your city ordinances before buying chickens so you don't end up having to get rid of your new flock as soon as you move them in. Rabbits should be kept in minimum of a 18"x18" cage and one per cage. big rabbits like Checkered Giants need a much bigger space. You must also think about butcher time. If you can't kill that animal when it comes time, perhaps you shouldn't think about raising them for meat.


For me, it's easy to whack even a cute little bunny for the supper table, but I've been doing this for a long time. The very first one was hard to do. Especially since it had a name, I petted it and cared for it, played with it, etc. The very first Hog I butchered, i cried all the way thru it. His name was Wilbur and I loved that pig. He made some pretty darn tasty sausage too.
There's lots of abuse going on in commercial slaughterhouses and chicken hatcheries. yes, they do some horrible things for money. Factory farms are an outrage to humanity and should be eliminated with extreme predjudice. I agree with that side of the arguement. If you don't like the idea of eating meat that was treated or handled in such a manner, DON'T EAT IT. Simple as that. If you think commercially produced pork and beef is nasty, don't eat it. If you think commercially butchered chickens are treated in an inhumane manner, don't eat them. Nobody is forcing any of us to eat meat from the grocery store. I don't eat meat from any grocery store, I raise my own. They are fed all natural feeds i grow myself without chemical fertilizers, they never get antibiotics or growth hormones. So, why is the meat I raise and butcher for myself bad? It's not and the meat you raise for yourself isn't bad either.
Just think before you bring animals home to raise for meat. If you can't kill them when it comes time, don't bring them home. If you can tho, you're going to be amazed at the quality and the taste of your own home raised meat!

11 comments:

  1. If one is a meat eater, one is a meat eater. Our chickens have a darn good life here. They are totally free range - in fact they keep visiting the neighbors - and get lots of good food. They are butchered humanely when the time comes.

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  2. You want animal cruelty. Look up and see how many citations PETA sanctuaries have gotten and what kind of conditions their rescued animals receive. Our animals all well cared for, receive what vet care they need and have nice pastures in the spring and summer, warm barns and hay in the winter. And yes we do eat our animals and most of them do get named. You've obviously hit a nerve getting this kind of response. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!

    God Bless.

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  3. Good post, sorry you've received unwarranted criticism lately.

    Here's a blog post I came across today that was realistic and insightful.

    http://hartkeisonline.com/2009/12/08/what-to-tell-vegetarians-who-say-eating-meat-is-immoral/

    Hope it's as encouraging to you as it was to me!

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  4. I am tired of self-righteous people trying to impose their values on me. I have no problem being a good steward of the earth and taking care of my animals, so why criticize me for it?

    Great post. Love the blog.

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  5. I'm glad that this is a free country, for now. And these people cann't tell my how and if I can raise my own food. I love the fact that I can raise my own food and that I know exacly how that meat was raised. I love reading your posts, keep up the good work. God bless

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  6. There will ALWAYS be people who want to impose their beliefs on you and sometimes these folks just don't have the real truth.

    Like the argument my son had with a classmate in, oh about fifth grade. We took a watermelon to school for snack and some kid wanted to know what it was. Well...my son told him a watermelon. To which the kid replied "na-uh. I've seen watermelon and that is not a watermelon". Well...my son told him again, yes it is indeed a watermelon. Finally the kid became so angry and beligerent he went and got the teacher and said "tell him that is not a watermelon....we eat watermelon and it comes from meijers and I've never seen it look like that. It comes in much smaller packages and is wrapped in plastic - it is never THAT big!". My son skipped his way home still laughing hysterically - four hours later!!

    OH well...what are ya' gonna do? Sometimes you just have to hold your ground and laugh...and sometimes people open their mouths and let their stupidity fall out and we must bring forth the truth!

    As always, lovin' the posts and enjoying living vicarioiusly through your efforts down on the farm!

    MaMaBear in the Mitten

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  7. When the kids thought they were going to name the critters, we gave them a list of appropriate names...
    the calf choices were: Steak, Hamburger, Ground Sirloin, Roast Beef, Critter...
    the pigs were Roast Pork, BBQ Pork, Ham and Easter Dinner...
    Never let it be said a parent can't have a sense of humor with a good dose of reality.
    Shy III

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  8. Our pigs were named Pork Chop and Bacon, lol! The calf we bottle raised was named *Chili*...as in "Chili's baby-back ribs"!
    I raised my kids to be realistic, too.
    Must be generational...my dad once told my horrified sister (when she balked at eating venison he had hunted for the table) "Yeah, it mighta been Bambi's mother...but hunters have to eat, too!" She didn't finish her meal...I had seconds!

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  9. To illustrate how clueless some people are about the source of their "food," I heard about an letter to the editor which said:

    To all you hunters who kill animals for food, shame on you; you ought to go to the store and buy the meat that was made there, where no animals were harmed.

    link

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  10. Please tell that lady adopter she can send me a hog. To save on postage she might just send the high part; smoked if she pleases. Thanks, Mountain rifleman

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