Chevon or Chev-off?

Allrighty. We raise goats. Every year we have male goats. No one really wants male goats. I mean you need one lucky buck to make more babies each year but other than that... shrug.

When we began researching goats to see if we really wanted to raise them, we found out that most male goats are used for meat. Goat meat is popular with Middle Eastern, Indian and Hispanic cultures. We knew this coming into the idea of raising goats.

The first few years we found pet homes for our male goats. It's difficult and it's really hit or miss. We pay close to $100 to place ads in different publications and sometimes we get calls; other times - crickets. In the meantime we are paying $$ to feed all these male goats and we are stressing trying to find a place for them to go.

It took awhile to change my mindset. Almost 5 yrs actually - that is a long time to mull something over and get used to an idea. Now I'm o.k. knowing that most of our male goats will be eaten. As long as the people know what they are doing and the death is quick, it's o.k. with me. I am a meat eater. I will NEVER be a vegetarian. I like chicken, turkey, beef, pork, lamb.... and I've ranted in previous posts about people not knowing where their food comes from. You know - like you go to the store and you get your package of hamburger or whatever and it's in a grocery store case and wrapped up all nice and neat. People don't generally think about how it came from a STEER.

We still have a male goat from the 2008 March kid crop. I called the woman who was gonna butcher him today and she doesn't want him. This is the same woman who raises cattle and who took the other 3 male goats we had this year. She has enough goat in her freezer.

We had an interesting discussion. I'm wondering if I could eat one of the goats I raised? She says when you eat an animal you raised, you KNOW what it was fed, you KNOW that the animal was happy and that is much better than eating an animal you didn't know that was unhappy or raised in a filthy environment and fed lord knows what.

I know what she says is true. And I know out here, most people would think I'm crazy for even feeling a bit squeemish over it... it's my city upbringing getting in the way. Someone even gave us a pound of goat hamburger this summer - we made tacos with it and neither of us could really tell a difference between cow hamburger and goat hamburger. I guess I've been trying to talk myself into it for a while.

Furry Husband and I talked it over. I pulled out my "Goats Produce Too" book which talks about goat meat (called chevon by the author) and the cuts of meat on a goat etc. Furry Husband says he could take our goat to the processor who lives a few miles away. (I'm not so far along in my thinking I'd be able to kill and butcher the goat myself!) I don't think I'd have trouble picking up the processed, tidy, packages of meat that used to be our goat - Linus. I've come a LONG way since we first moved here.

I've come a LONG way since Turkey Lurkey.

Turkey Lurkey...

We got this turkey one year along with our chickens. She'd roam all around our property eating grasshoppers and when one hen had chicks, she was really fond of the chicks. She kept trying to steal them away from the hen and we ended up moving the hen (named Daughter of Larry - a spoof from Kong - Son of Kong and all that... our rooster's name was, uh, Larry), Turkey Lurkey and all the baby chicks into thier own pen. They all lived together as a happy family. It was really funny to see all the baby chicks and Daughter of Larry nestled underneath and peeking out of Turkey Lurkey's feathers and Turkey Lurkey looking so smug and satisfied to be the big mama to her "family".

We talked about using Turkey Lurkey for our Thanksgiving dinner. I wasn't so sure about that. One night, something happened to make me come to a decision.

The fox came by, grabbed Turkey Lurkey through the fence panel and really wrenched her wing. Poor Turkey Lurkey had this broken, mangled wing and we didn't like seeing her in pain. We decided to have her butchered early, put her out of her misery and have an October turkey dinner. I still wasn't so sure about EATING her.

We took her to the processor guy that day and picked her up... we invited some family over and we had a big, ol' turkey dinner. Only I couldn't eat Turkey Lurkey. Oh, I took a couple bites but I couldn't really dig in. I kept picturing her out in the yard chasing grasshoppers and mothering Daughter of Larry and the baby chicks... Furry Husband wasn't at all helpful because any time someone said, "Please pass the turkey.", he'd reply, "You mean Turkey Lurkey?". He found my trouble eating the turkey quite hilarious!

So yeah. The fact that I'm ready to try this whole "eating something I raised" thing again... and especially with a goat! Goats are much more cuddly and cute and friendly than any turkey I know. But we've been here close to 8 yrs now... and it sorta makes sense. We drink the goat milk and eat homemade goat cheese. This week I'll be making yogurt from our goat milk. I'm gearing up a business based on the goat milk lotion I make.

It is sorta cool to know that I have a source of nutrition right here... and if we could begin eating goat meat... well ... it'd cut down on grocery costs. It'd cut down on feed costs. I'd know that my goats were well kept and happy up to the very end. I'm not saying it'd be easy exactly... but it's responsible management and another use for my very useful little goaties.

Certainly "food for thought".... pun fully intended!