Yesterday the Telegraph Journal ran an article about raising “Backyard” chickens. Most of what was quoted came from an article in the Vancouver Sun - where apparently raising your own food is ‘Soup de Jour” and backyard chicken‘s are more common than cats…. but then they have always been way out there in Lotus Land. They have been raising their own STUFF for years - you know what I mean.
I don’t know if this sort of thing would be for me though. I failed at herding Sea Monkeys as a child. Two gerbils and one turtle also met an early demise under my watch. The only reason our two cats thrive is that they are in control of the food distribution in our home and they are smarter than us. Last week we think they hid our ATM card.
Now before I start just let me say that I am all for reducing our impact on the planet and I really advocate everyone doing their part in attempting to go green. Heck! One of my hero’s is David Suzuki - my mother-in-law is on a first name basis with the man (blatant name dropping!) and I keep my signed copy of his latest book beside my bed! (I am going to read it one day)
Nope! No carbon booties for me! - but raising my own “Hot Wings”?
While researching this post I came across some interesting stuff. Like the guy in Vancouver that actually has a daily radio talk show about Urban Farming. His name is “Bucky Bukaw” (I don’t think that’s his real name - but very clever hey?)
Anyhoo…according to Bucky most people don't know chickens as well as they know dogs and cats, (I wonder why ), but these gentle birds can feel happiness, loneliness, fear, and pain, just the same as our furry friends. - O.K…
In their natural surroundings, chickens spend their day foraging for food, making nests, roosting in trees, flapping their wings, and taking sun and dust baths. They exist in stable social groups and can recognize each other by their facial features. Like us, chickens form strong family ties and mourn when they lose a loved one. A mother hen will turn her eggs as many as five times an hour and cluck to her unborn chicks, who will chirp back to her and to one another. (before we snatch it away and make an omlette)
Chickens are no birdbrains. They have at least 24 distinct cries to communicate, including separate alarm calls to indicate whether a predator is traveling by land or by sea. According to Chris Evans, who studies animal behavior and communication at Macquarie University in Australia, chickens have cognitive abilities "beyond the capacity of small children."
My God!, why are we even eating chickens to begin with? Just think of all the 'avian intelligence' we may have consumed. Are we CANNIBALS or something?
Bucky did go on to say that nothing tastes better than a chicken which has had free reign of your backyard, that you have stuffed with all kinds of good chicken feed and kept its habitat clean, pest free and safe from any harmful chemicals and fertilizers. Yum Yum….apparently once you have eatin one of your "pet chickens" you will never eat store bought again.
On a more serious note:
PETA - did a documentary a while back which was carried by a PBS station showing the conditions in which many animals are bred and raised specifically for mass production and consumption. I have to admit - very VERY disturbing. Chickens for instance are NOT protected under the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act. The conditions in which they breed and live was absolutely barbaric.
In modern society we are great when it comes to being outraged by the mistreatment of pets, whether they be dogs, cats, horses, or even hamsters. We're less inclined to apply such standards of decency to farm animals—the critters that eventually become part of our lunches or dinners. This is partly because of the "I don't want to think about it" factor— how the food gets to our plates is not something most people want a lot of detail about. But we cannot claim to be a civilized, compassionate society without addressing such issues.
So in ending - we are not going to stop eating chicken - I know that - you know that.
Which makes me think that maybe our efforts would be better spent bringing about changes to how commercial farming is carried out and little less about how to raise a chicken that TASTES better.
Til later
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