This was tougher than I expected. In preparation for winter, we decided to cull almost twenty roosters from our flock. This gives us a good amount of food, but also makes it more cost effective to keep our birds through the winter. But, when you have so many beautiful birds each with their own special names... it just makes it that much tougher of a job, emotionally. Enjoy the show!
On this farm, there was no question: ALL of them! My husband could not abide crowing at all. And they always were done first.
People often give names to their pets. And perhaps because of this attachment, slaughtering animals is not easy for them emotionally?
That has got to be tough, I question the wisdom of giving them names in the first place, if you are raising them for food.
My parents were from a different planet, where every household (in the countryside at least) had chickens and coops. I'm sure the women and children named them as they scattered feed about for them.
For a time when I was a child, we kept hogs. It was my job to feed them morning and evening.
At one point one of the sows dropped a litter, and daddy and other men took the males and cut their "Tooshes"(not sure how that would be spelled, but they were the buds of tusks that were not allowed to grow )
There was one RUNT that would normally have been done away with, but mama kept it as a pet. I don't remember the name, but I have very fond memories of mama walking down our dirt road in the evening, looking for flint chips, arrow heads or pottery and especially nails.
She was followed by our Yard Dog, House Cat, a Rooster, and that pig.
For me it is always tougher than expected, even if you don't give them names. I have only 2 nameless roosters left for meat and I am constantly delaying last moment. Anyway by the end of the month, I'll have to cut their heads
