Farm Dreams

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"How Can You Bear to Eat Your Own Animals?" A Question I Am Often Asked

Some months ago we were discussing our little farm with some new friends. At the time, we still had our pigs, although their appointment with the humane butcher was drawing near.

Our friend (let's call her Mary) said that she could never eat one of our pigs. Even though she would not be at our house in time to see the pigs, the thought that we had raised them and then had them killed would make it impossible for her to eat one. She requested that if we ever invited her over to dinner, please don't serve her pork.

Okay, I said, we could have chicken instead. But when Mary found out that we slaughter our meat birds ourselves, she was even more horrified. She could never eat our chicken, either.

"Well," I said, "at least our animals have a wonderful life and a quick and easy death compared to the thousands of chickens or pigs crammed into factory farms where they lead horrible lives and have even more horrible deaths."

"Surely not the ones we buy at our local grocery store?" said her husband (whom we'll call George.)

"Absolutely!" I replied. (In our area, unless you buy "natural" or "organic" meat from one of two specialty stores, you can figure than any meat you buy in any grocery store comes from factory farms.)

The time is drawing near when we may be hosting a meal at which George and Mary will be present. I have agonized about what to serve. They've refused to eat our chicken or pork. We don't have any of our own beef (yet), but would I really go to the store and buy "mistreated" meat just for them when we have a freezer-full of our own humane, pastured meat?

For a rare change I was on Facebook and saw a pop-up that appears because of things I have told FB about me. I got a glimpse of something about a major meat producer mistreating pigs before it disappeared. So I went searching on Google.

There I found a movie for which I will include a link at the bottom of this post. I'll give you two warnings in advance:

1) It's on a website called "ChooseVeg" whose goal is to convert you to vegetarianism. I am not and will never be a vegetarian. I believe ChooseVeg is throwing the baby out with the bath water. Yes, their featured factory farms and slaughter houses treat animals in such a way that makes me glad there is a Hell--and hope there's a special corner there reserved for every person who appeared in this video! But there is no law that says animals MUST be treated that way. And if you argue that everyone can't raise their own animals for meat like we do, I'll agree--and encourage you to check out the many farms that are humanely raising natural meat, milk, and eggs for conscientious consumers.

2) The other warning is that the video is extremely graphic. If you're like me, you'll probably be clapping your hands over your mouth and exclaiming in horror, all the while thinking longing thoughts of Hell! But if you ever intend to eat a bite of meat (or eat an egg or drink milk) again in your life, you owe it to your self respect and to God, Creator of all animals Who made man stewards of them, to watch this video all the way through. Especially if you have ever asked, "How can you eat animals you raised?"

I have made several decisions and resolutions:

I am no longer agonizing over what to feed George and Mary. I will unapologetically serve them our chicken or our pork. I'll warn them in advance and let them know that if that is not agreeable to them, they are welcome to bring something from home.

And then I'll encourage them to watch the video. Ignorance may be an excuse--until someone tells you the truth. There is no excuse for willful, blind ignorance of the truth!

I'm not buying any beef (while we grow out our steer) in grocery stores unless I drive all the way to one of the specialty stores and pay their exorbitant prices! Those prices are worth a clear conscience. I will picture our happy, content animals as I drive an hour there and an hour back--or I'll fix pork or chicken instead!

I'm also going to get my husband to watch this video so he will understand why I keep insisting he pay the price for organic milk (which we can buy locally) until we have our own. And I'm going to be his faithful assistant in building our milking parlor.

Our heifer says, "Now go watch this video, Meet Your Meat!"

After you've see in, I believe you will understand how we can bear to eat animals that we have raised and taken care of--precisely because we have raised and taken care of them!

This is one way we fulfill the responsibility of stewardship given to all human beings by God the Creator when He commanded Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden to "rule over the earth."

Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." New International Version (1984)

This is called the Cultural Mandate, and we are doing our best to fulfill it as stewards of God's Creation. What you saw in that video is the antithesis of the Cultural Mandate. God never intended for human beings to do that to His Creation. It is that simple.

Tags: Raising, animals, for, meat

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Comment by Jodie Westwood on March 20, 2012 at 3:38pm: I have several breeds which are confined in gaden season and free range during winter. Thanks Susanlea for the inspiration/encouragement. I know I could handle the job, but hubby is not yet a true farmer LOL. Has anyone mentioned the best way to kill besides Pat? for tenderness. As I was sitting in the doctors office, the doctor was so into how to properly kill a chicken that it was comical. Love that Doc. OK - lets be honest here - are store bought chickens that horrible that Ishould go through this? I certainly have the chickens to stuff the freezer - have the boiling pot - dont mind the "mess". I feel like I am a failed chicken prepper.

Comment by Pat Barr on March 20, 2012 at 3:55pm: Are the roos always agressive or just when you have them confined?

On "during gardening season", I let ours free range after the 2nd leaves are up in the garden. They help cut the bug problems tremendously. One of the early Presidents would have several flocks of turkeys they'd "march" up and down the fields to remove worms etc. (I think it was Jefferson but I'm not positive).

Pat

Comment by SusanLea2 on March 20, 2012 at 4:45pm: Pat, all my aggressive roos were free-range. The first was one of 6 Ameraucanas. They had a small coop on a wagon that we moved occasionally, shut them up only at night, and they had the whole property to roam (29 acres plus adjoining woods). It was my first experience with chickens, and I "chickened out" as soon as he came at me with claws extended. It happened out of the blue when I was going out to feed them (I was always the one feeding them.) He went back to the farm store because they said some people like aggressive roosters.

The next back of chickens were our 26 Naked Necks plus six Ameraucanas. They spent the night in a chicken tractor, but free-ranged all day. At the time we were read to butcher them, a few of the biggest NNs were getting a bit "attitudy" toward my daughter, but never to me or my husband, who fed them. Wren, the Ameraucana (well, they're hatchery birds, so not purebred, really an Easter Egger) rooster, was one of the lowest on the totem pole, so I thought he had a more docile nature and decided to keep him as he was gorgeous. He was fine until one gorgeous day when his beautiful green tail feathers were sparkling in the sunlight, and I sat down near the chickens to get close-ups of him. I think that was a bad mistake. He began sidling up to me, and it just got worse from there. As one who is still fairly inexperienced with chickens, I wonder if he didn't decide I was one of his harem. I lived in terror of him stalking me from then on; he would come creeping up behind me when I wasn't watching for him, and suddenly he would be after me with wings flapping and claws extended at me. We experimented when my husband was nearby. We played with me moving closer and farther to him and learned the exact distance away from my husband at which the rooster felt free to come after me. I couldn't leave the house without a metal stake! (Well, I forgot once, thus the purse episode!)

I wonder if the reason the roosters don't get aggressive with you is because, to put it in chicken terms, you're a rooster, too, and you're bigger than they are? No offense intended--I'm just trying to think like a chicken! LOL I guess that makes me "a dumb cluck"!

None of our Freedom Ranger roosters ever got aggressive; they were just beginning to crow when we butchered them. They were more confined than any of the others, but did get out of their chicken tractor every day.

My newest chicks are Ameraucanas (I won't try to save a roo no matter how pretty it may be); Welsummers, Light Brahmas, and Black Australorps. I'd love if at least one was nice enough to keep because some of these hens are known to go broody, and I'd love to raise our own chicks. Any advice there?

I know what you mean about crowded stores. We won't go near the mall after Thanksgiving!

Comment by SusanLea2 on March 20, 2012 at 5:00pm: Jodie, I know about DHs. :D I'm always out running in front and mine is trying to rein me back in. LOL Not that I blame him, he has to provide the manual labor for most of my ideas!

What a funny Dr. you have! Mine raises Tennessee Walkers, so she understands my lifestyle and my riding. Don't know that she'd be on board for killing chickens, tho!

I don't think you're a failed anything! We've only been doing this for about 3 years. Literally, three and a half years ago we lived in a suburban house in an upscale neighborhood and had 2 ferrets, a Sheltie puppy and an old cat. We were 53 and 56 when we moved out here and started this lifestyle. I had never heard of Food Inc. or Temple Grandin or free-range or pastured anything. My husband didn't even want chickens at first, not even for eggs!

I'll tell you what made the biggest change for him. I talked him into doing Nature Harmony Farm's summer business school. We might be considered dropouts because we came home with no intention of making our farm a business. But it helped clarify for us that our "target audience" is our kids and grandkids. Instead of me telling DH that we should do this or that, he was seeing first-hand what they are doing and seeing that they are great ideas. That's when we started thinking about doing more of our own pastured meat.

As far as "Is store-bought chicken so bad?" I, personally, don't want the growth hormones and antibiotics in my food, but even more, I abhor the way most of those chickens are raised and treated. We are lucky enough to be able to raise our own. When the day comes that we can't, I think I'll be going to Whole Foods.

As far as the best way to kill for tenderness, whenever I order chicks, I ask the breeder what is the ideal butchering age and also research it on the internet. I've learned so much that way! And I think you can cook any old hen for soup no matter how old and make coq au vin (slow-cooked) out of any old rooster. There's a difference between roaster and broiler size, but I have to do more research. Maybe Pat knows.

Good luck with whatever you do!

Comment by Caitlyn M. on March 20, 2012 at 10:41pm: I've seen a lot of graphic videos about the way CAFO animals are treated, but I'd have to say that one has been the most graphic so far... Twice I almost exited the page, but forced myself to watch the whole thing. This is re-lit my burner to provide good, clean food for folks in my area. Thank you for posting it!

Comment by SusanLea2 on March 21, 2012 at 8:33am: You're welcome, Caitlyn. I agree, I could hardly bear to get through it. I did sit with my husband and watched it a second time when I got him to watch it, but I literally closed my eyes at the worst parts. Once was enough!

I really admire those of you who are actually producing food for others. I could feel a bit guilty that we're only doing enough for ourselves and our kids who live near us, although I realize that at our ages we aren't in a position to launch a farming business. But kudos to all of you that are committed to the hard work involved to bring humanely raised food to the market!

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