On this page, I will list anything that happens on the farm that I consider a welfare concern. My animal welfare standards are very high, so I will likely list many things that would be no cause of concern for others. (Of course, my “very high” standards for slaughter animals are very low in the eyes of an ethical vegetarian/vegan. Again, I encourage using the comments feature to discuss the ethics of raising animals for slaughter.)
- Early December to early January — Chickens — Nutrition. When I gave up organic feed, I switched to a locally grown and bagged grain. I forgot that this grain mix is not a complete feed. It does not have added minerals, or in the case of laying hens, added calcium. When the chikens started eating their eggs, I thought it was because they had picked up the habit during the power outtage from the ice storm because I didn’t gather the eggs for a few days because I couldn’t deal with it. About four days ago, I realized that they had had no calcium (not to mention other minerals) since early December when they finished the last of their organic feed, so I started giving them oyster shell and mineral salts. They devoured both when I put the pan down. Almost overnight, the egg eating slowed down. Today, I think they didn’t eat any before I got to them. The chickens were eating their eggs because egg shells are mostly calcium. This was a stupid oversight on my part that severely compromised the nutritional health of the hens.
- June 1 —Pigs — Health. A group of pigs came down with a bacterial infection. Two of them died. I had to treat six of them with penicillin for about five days, which required physically restraining them. The whole thing, from being sick, to being restrained and poked with a needle once a day for nearly a week, was stressful for them.
- July 4 — Sheep — Flystrike (maggots). Jason, the Icelandic ram, was badly infested with maggots around his head and neck. My inexperience prevented me from seeing it for at least a couple of days, so the infestation was absolutely horrific by the time I realized that there was something really wrong. Two weeks later, he is nearly fully recovered, but it has been a tremendous ordeal for him.
- July 8 — Chickens — Transportation. I recently picked up a batch of four week old meat chicken chicks from a local farm. We put too many in one box for the trip home, and one was smothered and trampled to death, and that’s all that I have to say about that.
