In many countries in the world,
families keep small animals at their homes to use for food and other products.
When I was in Madagascar last summer, we always kept 4-5 chickens with us to use
for their eggs and when there was a feast, they were killed and eaten. Most of
the vegetarians in our group didn’t like the idea of killing the chickens, but the
idea of raising your own food appeals to me.
I don’t eat meat for
environmental reasons, due to the high resource requirements of meat and
unethical forms of raising animals. However, by raising your own chickens, this
eliminates a lot of the issues with meat production since they you know exactly
what they’re eating, how they’re raised, and can use the eggs from them for a
few years. I think this is a much more sustainable way or raising meat and I
would likely eat chicken if I raised them myself.
But it seems I’m not the only one
who thought this sounded like a good idea. Apparently, a number of people in
urban areas of North America also decided it would be a good idea to raise
chickens but now hundreds of chickens are being abandoned by “hipster farmers”
as the owner of Chicken Run Rescue called them. They decided they would raise
chickens for eggs but didn’t realize the amount of work they would be. In Canada, there's a number of cities that allow people to own chickens, including Kitchener, Vancouver, and Niagara Falls.
Even though it sounds like work I still think the idea of raising your own food is appealing and would be interested in keeping chickens if I did more research. Would you ever consider raising chickens at your home?
Even though it sounds like work I still think the idea of raising your own food is appealing and would be interested in keeping chickens if I did more research. Would you ever consider raising chickens at your home?
My parents plan on owning chickens, and possibly a small goat and rabbits when they retire. I would love to own my own chickens and goat in the future - that would provide me with eggs, milk, and eventually (after a few years) some meat. Chickens are odd enough that I think I could handle not treating them as pets, but I could not handle rabbits because they are too cute and cuddly! I have friends who have chickens but only get them for the summer for eggs and then in the fall give them to a relative for their chicken farm.
ReplyDeleteThat's fantastic! I know your family already tries to eat very local with the extensive garden they have. This would be an awesome addition!
DeleteI think raising your own food is a great idea! It is great for environmental, ethical and even financial reasons. However, as your blog mentions it is important to understand that committing to raising these livestock is not an easy task.
ReplyDeleteIn Canada we also have to consider climate factors as well. Our summers may be great for raising livestock, but it might get difficult to care for them and keep them warm in the winter. Though, I think with the proper equipment it is possible.
I wonder what kind of effects everyone raising their own chickens etc. would have on the farming industry and farmers income as well, any thoughts?
That's a good point Rasha! Most of the people I know with chickens have a heated chicken coop for the winter, but also need space for chickens to be able to go out in the summer, and this can be a lot on its own. As well, Canada has a lot of predators that will eat chickens so everything on the chicken coop has to be secure. Last year, one of my friends lost most of her chickens from a weasel that got in.
DeleteFor the effect on the farming industry, if everyone suddenly raised their own chickens, it would have a huge impact on the farming industry and put a lot of people out of work since there'd suddenly be a huge supply with little demand. However, I don't think this will ever happen. Even if more people choose to have chickens in their home, the majority will not. As well, of the people that do have chickens, many will only use them for eggs rather than meat, so they would still likely rely on chicken farmers for this.