Author Topic: Homestead Harsh Realities  (Read 565 times)

Offline Jackalope

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Homestead Harsh Realities
« on: September 20, 2021, 05:04:19 PM »
   I've been homesteading, in one fashion or another, for over 40 years.  I like homesteading because it makes our family more independent and closer to the cycles of nature.  We get to see our animals develop and our gardens produce.  Yet, there's also the other side of homesteading, where the Grim Reaper makes his appearance and takes his bounty.

   About 12-14 years ago, my wife and I acquired our first batch of chickens as a couple.  I had raised chickens previously, but didn't have a flock at that particular time.  So we went to the local Tractor Supply Store (about 75 miles away) and picked up a dozen Rhode Island Red chicks.  Unknown to us at the time, we ended up with 4 roosters and 8 hens.  Chicks are indeed fun to raise, and they are cute to watch.  Even our Great Pyrenees dog at the time, Tessie, enjoyed watching the peeps run around, eat, sleep, and crap.

    Of course, chicks grow into chickens.  And four roosters are too much for eight hens.  I took it upon myself to cull the flock and butchered two of the roosters.  My future spouse was extremely upset that I had harvested the two roosters, but she eventually understood the need to give the hens some rest.  The two remaining roosters continued to mature, and as roosters do, they had frequent dominance fights.  Eventually, the rooster that had a sweet disposition was killed by the other rooster.  It was a sad time, but survival of the fittest, right?

     The remaining rooster grew into a magnificent example of the breed.  He was very large, and for the most part, handled his duties well.  He certainly liked to hop on the hen's backs, that's for sure.  Normally, he respected the dogs, my wife, and I.  He did go after me once, for no reason at all, just a sneak attack.  He also knew when I was upset, and he made sure the flock knew it too.

      Anyways, all this is leading to the death of our big boy.  I found him a few days ago, lying just outside the chicken pen.  Apparently, it was a gentle death, I suspect a heart attack or stroke.  He was 12-14 years old, and he had serviced 4 generations of hens, so his death wasn't unexpected.  He was crowing and doing his rooster duties until that very afternoon.  It was indeed sad to find such an incredible animal in the clutches of death.  My wife and I pondered the circle of life, which is so ably demonstrated on a homestead.  I suspect the hens miss the old guy, but they also probably breathed a sigh of relief, as now they can grow some feathers on their backs before winter sets in. 

      We've found a young, worthy candidate to replace the old rooster.  He's another Rhode Island Red that's only 5 months old.  He hasn't matured enough to breed the hens, but I think he'll learn quickly.  He has already demonstrated flock protection skills, so he should be a worthy successor.  The circle continues within the flock.

      Urbanites don't learn how life and death are intertwined.  Only a small percentage of our population has any close contact with animals, whether farmers, homesteaders, or sportsmen.   Modern society has lost the intimacy we once had with our furred, finned, and feathery co-inhabitants of earth.  Instead, we spend more time staring at LCD screens, while life and death continue their eternal ballet.  I encourage folks to take the time to learn about the cycles that surround us.

Offline pkveazey

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Re: Homestead Harsh Realities
« Reply #1 on: September 20, 2021, 05:24:00 PM »
Good one Jackalope. I grew up on a farm and we had 2 Roosters and they were always fighting. One was docile and the other would spur the Hell out of you. Grandma would harvest the roosters first because too many roosters is a bit like having too many Generals in the Army. Some people will call me a liar but I swear I can taste the difference between a Rooster and a Hen. Hens taste better and are more tender. The saddest times for me on the farm was when one of the animals that we thought of as pets would pass away. I don't know why but Horses and Goats were always my favorites. The Pigs and Sheep just didn't interest me much. OK, I did have a favorite Milk Cow but even though Cows aren't stupid, they sure act like it sometimes.

Offline JohnyMac

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Re: Homestead Harsh Realities
« Reply #2 on: September 21, 2021, 02:09:02 PM »
Great post Jackalope.  :thumbsUp:

It is truly amazing that most folks think that protein comes from cellophaned packages in the grocery store.

Our pork comes from hogs we raise. Our butcher will not take 'em unless they are dead and washed. My job is to put them down.

Our beef comes from a local cattleman. We pick out our steer based on his recommendation and then he feeds them grain and new alfalfa cut hay about 60-days before slaughter.

My neighbors buy about 24 meat chicks and raise them till they weigh in at about five pounds. Then slaughter them and put them into the freezer. They feed the chickens locally grown untreated grain. They are allowed to roam in the yard till they are about one pound then locked into a pen to keep them from building muscles and being tough. Even though they order hens on occasion a roaster comes too. They are harvested when they are in the three pound range so they do not upset the flock of meat chickens.

They also have a rabbit corral. It is a 30x30-foot area that is fenced in. They put in natural shelters along with straw so they could build their own nests. Again, they are fed locally grown food that has no additives. This past spring someone forgot to latch the gate properly and they had a rabbit breakout from the coral. Most actually returned on their own as the corral was security to them but we have a few still running around. Last Sunday, I heard a .22 being shot and knew that dinner was being skinned. Yesterday, instead of three white rabbits in my yard there was two.

Inclosing, I too can tell the difference between a roaster and hen. Different taste and a bit more tough. Good for soup. And...it is always a sad day when a faithful farm critter moves onto his maker.

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Offline FeedingFreedom

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Re: Homestead Harsh Realities
« Reply #3 on: September 21, 2021, 03:14:18 PM »
I grew up on a small farm, my parents both had businesses but we raised most of our own food. The rule was that we could have one dog and one housecat, every animal other than the barn cats was for food. We raised Black Angus and rabbits, and bartered for chicken and pork from neighbors. Friends of ours used to name their piglets Ham, Sausage, Bacon, etc. so the kids wouldn't get too attached.

I started raising meat rabbits as a 4H project, and it spiraled from there. For a few years, we would raise batches of around 500 rabbits every summer. When they got to 5 lbs., it was my job to humanely put them down, hang them, skin them, and put them in icy brine for the trip up to the house where they were chilled rapidly before being wrapped up either for our freezer, bartering, or getting shipped to NYC for sale. I had a lot of pets, but I had no illusions where my food came from. I still prefer rabbit over chicken, hands down. If I can get a shed up soon, I'd like to get some breeder rabbits to start raising a few again. They're quiet, pretty clean, and convert feed to meat much more efficiently than chickens. And rabbit manure can go straight onto the garden. No eggs though.
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Offline JohnyMac

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Re: Homestead Harsh Realities
« Reply #4 on: September 21, 2021, 07:49:11 PM »
Awesome remembrances FF. Thank you for sharing.  :cheers: My wife LOVES rabbit by the way  ;).
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