Self-Sufficiency in Style
your own meat
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Self-Sufficiency in Style your own meat
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Some things we just don't want to think about, do we? We call slaughterhouses "abattoirs"
and But it is perfectly possible for smallholders to produce all their own
meat with sensitivity and kindness |
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Most sensible meat eaters do realise the illogicality of shying away from the subject of raising animals for food, whilst breakfasting on bacon and pouring milk over their cornflakes. They mistakenly equate farm animals with their own much loved pets. The reality fortunately is very different |
Theory... and Reality |
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A
sophisticated system exists to enable small numbers of animals to be
killed in a painless way.
The meat is returned ready to eat. Everything is done to make the system humane for both animals and indeed smallholder. There are three categories of animals on a smallholding: |
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| Your pets are just as loved
and well looked after as any in the town.
The cat does earn his keep by catching rats and feeds himself all summer on rabbits. The dog did deter burglars, but despite his ferocious looks was very much at home with orphan lambs, chickens and calves. He never made a sheep-dog though . |
Vermin Patrol |
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The sow gets a name and
a semi-permanent home. A
birthday present to Mrs P accompanied by perfume! |
Your ewes, cows, sows that produce the lambs, calves and piglets
that will, one day become meat, are semi-permanent residents.
They have names and are "nearly pets." They become tame and have friendly personalities and are treated accordingly. They don't actually curl up in front of the fire of an evening, but otherwise you get pretty fond of them. You may or may not have the male equivalents of ram, bull and boar as fixtures around the farm. Invariably not as well behaved though. |
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The offspring - lambs, calves and piglets are never named. Most are
destined for the butcher from the day of birth. Your objective is to rear
them well with good food and in a stress free environment.
It isn't as difficult as you imagine to eat them yourself. |
Never named |
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Just down the lane |
When the time comes for the youngsters to go, they will no longer be the
fluffy cuddly "toys" they once were. They will be unruly and
awkward teenagers barging their mothers and you. Both will be glad to be
rid of them.
If it is autumn, the grass will be failing, the thermometer falling and the mud deepening. Feeding becomes a chore. The time has come; you will be glad to see them go. Just a couple of miles down the lane to the nearby slaughterhouse. No stressful journey and no crowded market pens. |
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When the meat comes back from the butcher, put it in the freezer and forget about it. When the time comes to eat that steak or chop or ham, you will have long since forgotten the actual animal. Indeed, the cow, ewes and sow will already be pregnant with the next generation. You will be giving a good life and a humane end to your animals and be living off the fat of the land yourself. You can read about one year's meat supply on |
The source has been long forgotten. |
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living off "the fat of the land" at the strangely named Hangman's Cottage, just to the south of Misery Corner. |
