Comments

Episode-2322- Listener Calls for 11-1-18 — 7 Comments

  1. Regarding getting people to eat home raised meat:

    This is usually a problem because there’s no common point of reference between those who are OK with it and those who aren’t. I’ve never had issues slaughtering, butchering and eating animals, to me, that’s just where meat comes from and I like meat, so it’s hard to empathize with objections and you can come across a bit forceful and/or condescending when trying to give others rationalizations. It’s not a rational objection, it’s usually emotional, so those arguments won’t convince them, it’ll just frustrate them.

    There’s the old “walk a mile in another man’s shoes”…

    I bet most people who are fine eating meat would still be uncomfortable eating insects, to spite the fact that they are a common food source.

    Buy a bag of cricket flour and add it to food. It might be an off putting concept intellectually, but in the end you’re eating a cookie, and it ain’t bad, so no big deal. Then try fried meal worms, which can be bought pre-cooked. That might be a little more uncomfortable, but it’s kinda like eating bacon bits. Then take it up a notch, go to the pet store and buy some live meal worms and cook them, then eat them. Now, most people are approaching the level of discomfort that some people have eating meat. You can rationalize eating insects, they’re nutritious, good for the environment, cheap, taste good… But I’ll bet that doesn’t keep that sinking feeling in your stomach at bay when you’re about to take your first bite.

    If, like me, you’ve never experienced any anxiety over eating meat, this might be a valid exercise just to give you some insight into the experience that the person you’re trying to convince is going through. Maybe even do it with the person you’re trying to convince. “you try this venison, and I’ll try the crickets”. Then you’re willing to go out on that limb with them, you’re going to be a lot more persuasive.

  2. Hello Jack,

    Your friend JR, hit it out of the park about myths about Suicide.

    Several years ago, I was given some training on prevention of suicide, but that was back in the late 1980’s and only about 4 hours.

    I think that this would make a Great rewind episode and if possible may JR will read this and offer to come on the show to do an interview about himself and this topic more in depth.

    Thanks for all you do, keep it up and let the bastards grind themselves down.

  3. If I worked in an office building, I don’t think I would tell anyone in the office that I was prepared to rappel out the window

  4. Regarding slaughter and children,  I second the notion of a turkey.  My son raised a 4-H bronze breasted turkey-a mean bird.  Always ripped at him with his beak, and at the county fair poultry showing, it was whipping around taking chunks outta my son. Slim Jim met his end with my son during the 4-H turkey harvest.  That turkeys go after things like toes in sandals or jewelry means you best watch kids’ eyes when they are in their pen.  Roosters also can go for kid’s eyes with their spurs.  I was collecting eggs with a garbage can shield until my dad figured out what was happening.–Never tolerate an aggressive rooster!  However, on another note,  my dad did meat rabbits.  We always each had a pet rabbit, but the others were food.  Just finding the others gone made it so you didn’t get attached to the “meat harvested” ones.  We grew to find it the cycle of life.  Agree with Jack, the meat appeared much later than the harvest.  Lastly, the cruelest thing my first-grade teacher did was read Charlotte’s Web out loud in the first grade.  This will set your kid up for a melt-down if they see you do a slaughter.  My dad slaughtered a chicken after that book, and I cried a half day in my room.

  5. Just going to say about your quail dying and this is just a thought, our chickens and baby goats got diarrhea because we didn’t realize the rats were spreading coccidiosis to our animals.  They don’t always have blood in the stools and the animals do go down fast.  Not only does it mean dosing medicine in the water but also keeping the rat traps working, one action won’t work without the other.  Another reason to never tolerate rats on your homestead or property, they spread disease. It is also quite capable of spreading to humans. Practice good bio-security: hand washing, esp before eating.

  6. An alternative to the “youth is wasted on the young” idea came from an article I read in a woman’s magazine in the mid 80’s, I have no idea who or what magazine but I loved the statement: “Youth isn’t wasted on the young, it’s all they have and without it they would be nothing”

  7. On Quail dying —

    I’ve noticed the non growth problem with chickens.  I’m not sure what causes it but I have a strong suspicion.

    If you expose newly hatched chicks to shavings they will sometimes eat them.  Eating them fills the crop with a non-food that they can’t get rid of and they slowly die.  They won’t grow, they just get skinnier until they die one day.

    Because of this I use sheets of newspaper for the first ~week and a half of brooding.  I’ve never had the non-growth problem when I’ve used paper.

    Other notes:  I’ve brooded many a chicken in my years of homesteading with a near 100% survival rate.  I always do these things:

    Put a splash of RAW apple cider vinegar in water (vinegar will say “with mother”)
    Change water daily
    The first week they get once daily meals of 50/50 cottage cheese and normal chick food (this is in addition to always having dry food available)
    The first week they get at least 2 meals of scrambled eggs, preferably 4 meals
    Chick grit is made available and replaced if pooped on
    For at least one week flat sheets of paper are used as bedding.  The dampness of the paper is closely monitored.  Wet or damp paper is removed immediately.  The brooder stays dry at all times.