Wow, I lost a whole lot of that post, and I don’t know why..hmm, sorry the jump in it, i had a intro.. I swear.. let see if I can track it down or re-write it.. odd..
Can’t even sell them to you to have you butcher him at home, because legally you need to keep all new livestock on your property for a full 30 days before self-butcher is legal.
So where does that leave me, it leaves me self-butchering high quality meat and not being able to share or sell my chickens, ducks, rabbits or turkeys with anyone..
It took me hours on the phone and traveling to different sites to see them with my own eyes to find my local butcher that will do my sheep/goats/pigs and beef, and I know that wonderful family run butcher is in fact looking to sell, as none of his boys want to take over the family business, so its only a matter of time before either a) it sells b) he retires c) one of the boys changes their mind.
I can’t be the only one that has hit these road blocks time and time again.. how many others are there like myself, where we realize that its easier to just keep different breeding programs at the self only stage..
I have more then enjoy room to raise an extra 5 turkeys or geese or ducks for friends and I know I have the market to do so, but I can’t find the butcher to make it happen in a legal manner and I won’t take risks, if I am going to do farm sales, it will be done following the law period.
So I know that when I see those “small” farms locally talking about raising bronze turkeys, I know a few things, a) they had to have ordered them and got the correct paperwork b) they sent them to butcher at one of the two huge butcher plants that will take them, only one would fit into the 100 mile rule and let me tell you I have gone and looked at it, and there is nothing small or family run about it.
So perhaps its true that the birds had a great life on the farm and the person paid though the nose per pd for that pasture raised bird, but the buyer still helped support the large hatcheries and the large butchering plants..
Still better then buying from the store right? I agree, it is! But there is so much more to it.. how was the feed grown, how was the bedding harvested or grown, is it covered in sprays? How was the wee ones hatched, where they debeaked? Where they allowed to eat normal amount or were they feed 24 hours a day to have them grow as fast as possable? How was they transported to the butcher themselves, have you seen those bird crates? and the list goes on..
How many birds does a farmer need to raise before you don’t consider them “small or family” in ontario we have a few laws that can help in this way, you are allowed to raise up to 300 hens in ontario or up to 50 turkeys without needing qouta’s, fair enough but did you know that in alberta, you can raise and sell up to 2000 birds.. still think both of those are in the same small farm areana?
So I guess I will leave it at that.. what defines your own veiw of small farm..
Just another Day on the Farm 
It just breaks my heart every time I see a truckload of animals westbound on the 401 heading for the Toronto/Kitchener area: poultry carriers stacked high, jammed with their flat plastic boxes with wing-tips and feathered parts poking out at impossible angles; little piggy noses sniffing vainly at ventilation ports; a brief glimpse of the wildy rolling eye of a panicked bovine, “her” fesces-matted coat pressed tight against the hauler’s perforated side…
I believe that “do unto others…” does not apply exclusively to bipeds. Surely we can do better? Please vote with your feet and your wallet by supporting local, sustainable agriculture. But, even more importantly, be sure to express your wishes loud and clear to your government representatives – ensure they understand the public’s sincerity and very real concerns about this incredibly serious health matter.
I hear you Deb, I do, that is why I pay extra to have my critters hauled by themselves! Instead of paying 3 dollars per animal to go in a local shipment, I pay a flat hundred to have the trailer to myself, and there is NO hauling them the day before and leaving them there.. he is here first thing in the morning, we load, I follow him to the butcher, we unload and I book in advance enough that my animals are done first that day..
The one and only time I took DH to the local auction, he was so mad that we had to leave, the condition of the animals, the handlers had him steaming mad to the point that he refused to stay any longer.
I hear you and will continue to write and joing groups and vote with my heart on this issue..
I’ve seen those hauler too Deb! Painful to watch… In the Kawartha Lakes, when you order your pullets, you get an appointment with the butcher at the time of pick-up. To the best of my (very limited) knowedge, there is only one butcher left – there are a couple of butcher shops who will chop the meat once it is hung and aged, but there is only one full service butcher and I gather he won’t do wild game. There used to be another at the north end of Sturgeon Lake but he closed up about 5-yrs ago because of the paper work.
Hi Lake Lili! Sad but true, eh? This has indeed been a very gradual thing: there was an abbatoire we used near Little Britain years ago (decades even?). But I know by the time of Dad’s last hunt they had an awful time finding someone… Funny, with “our government” cutting red tape and streamlining regulations for business this might be an area that needs some improvement and deserves their attention?; )
Your first comment Deb was very well stated!!
Thank you: )
Small-scale, grass-based animal husbandry, 2010 style: This year they’ll raise and process 4,500 chickens and partner with other small family farms—“an informal cooperative”—in raising 15 beef cows, 35 lambs, 18 pigs and 200 turkeys. Detailed descriptions of how the chickens are raised, fed and killed are on the farm’s web site , assuring customers of “the most gentle, most humane practices we can find.” The larger animals are raised with similar commitment to humane practices and care for the land. The scoop on processing regulations: Different regulations apply to processing chicken and large animals. Kookoolan uses a licensed mobile slaughtering service to kill large animals on-site rather than trucking them away, which is more stressful for the animal. The animals then go to a local processor they know and trust, and customers can pick up their meat, as small as one-eighth of beef, at the processor, the Hillsdale Farmers Market or through a food buying club. These “custom shares” of meat are purchased while an animal is still alive. Come to a class, bring your own chicken: Chrissie and Koorosh teach an occasional class on butchering a live chicken humanely and cleaning it in your house or yard. Killing a chicken is optional for each participant, as is BYOC (Bring Your Own Chicken, with a limit of up to three live chickens).