Well, I was attempting to sex/segregate the birds as the juvenile batch is getting older, and some of the males are starting to fight over the few females of reproductive age. As I was doing this, one of the big guys flew right up passed me and out of the coop. After a thrilling little chase with the bird net, he was recaptured (I wasn't going to hold a little thing like that against him, I would have done the same), and returned to the hutch...where he immediately began attacking the other birds. That wasn't going to do at all. So, to make a short story even shorter, I now have a nice big fat Quail decorating the inside of my freezer. In a week or two, he will belong to the dogs.Don't worry, I'm an old hand at this and it was fast. Seriously though, isn't this all apart of growing your own foodstuffs and getting back in touch with the Urban Farmer in all of us? Is it any better to blindly walk into a supermarket, be completely disassociated from the veg, egg, milk, meat or kibble you have purchased, and take that home to feed your pets instead not knowing what went into the animal or how it was treated before and after death?
I still felt bad, and I have decided firmly that I won't be eating the birds I grow or the eggs, they are for the dogs or perhaps to barter down the road with someone else for a foodstuff the dogs can use in their raw diet. I have also decided that a goal in feeding raw, aside from the primary health benefits to my dogs, will be to attain home grown products from small family farms and to support small, local business thru barter or trade. I won't be supporting companies like Tyson or ConAgra, and I accept the fact that although it may be more inconvenient, I will need to seek out those elusive old timey butcher shops from time to time and do what people did before there was kibbles.
Some exciting news, a family relation is raising a herd Kobe beef and my mom has some hearts, livers and kidneys waiting for me in her freezer, for free. I think the dogs are liking this Japanese themed raw diet!
Score on the Kobe Beef!!!
ReplyDeleteSorry that the quail acted up, but I'm glad you've already got a handle on how to handle situations like that. I admire what you are doing. You are 100% correct - taking responsibility for what becomes the food your dogs (or you!) eat rather than disassociating yourself from the foods in the grocery aisle make you much more aware, and responsible. Perhaps we could all use experience as Urban Farmers to be grateful for what we have, and be conscious of when convenience is taken for granted.
Keep up the awesome work, Lindsay!
Are the shiba showing a lot of interest in the live quail before their time? I recently started a small flock of 3 hens in my backyard. My shiba female is very curious about them, but I haven't seen any murder in her eyes. Then again, they won't be left alone together any time soon.
ReplyDeleteHi, thanks for reading the blog. Both dogs are now extremely interested in the birds, the female more so because she sees them now that I walk her past on occasion when I use her for pest control to dig out any rat nests. The male has never seen them, but he sits by the fence (and smells for rats, squirrels) and is interested in the sounds they make. I would not trust them alone at all, as I have encouraged the prey drive in my dogs for training. I suppose with the right positive/reward training, you could teach the Shiba to ignore the birds (but never leave them alone together as you plan to).
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