|
|
|
Junior Member
 
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: Yesterday @ 12:11:28 PM
Posts: 283,
Visits: 779
|
|
| I don't think it's wrong to feel for any of the animals. When we have smaller numbers, they all have personalities and it does make it harder. I know that when I took my first to goats to the meat service, I had a few hitches and I think that's OK. I was still aware that this was what needed to happen. Deer season starts today and last night I saw a 1/2 dozen in the dark as I was driving home but that is part of the point; if there are that many in a 10 mile drive they will sooner or later overpopulate and a dealth of starvation would seem worse to me. I have to tell you my "sensitive" story: When I was having my house in Az built I ended up renting a run down house for a few months. To say there were a lot of mice, would be an understatement and at the time I didn't have a cat and refused (and still do refuse) to use poinson so I thought I could sort of coexist with them as I was rarely there. Well, that went OK for a bit but when I turned on my computer printer and one jumped out...that was it...the landlord called the exterminator. It is affectionately referred to as the "mouse house". Mary Ann
|
|
|
|
|
Junior Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 2/5/2010 2:41:54 PM
Posts: 316,
Visits: 520
|
|
I don't find it offensive at all. Rodents on a farm need to be controlled. If your feed is being soiled and contaminated by rats and mice, that's a health hazard for you and your livestock, never mind the expense of replacing the damaged feed. I'm lucky to have a couple of good cats who have cleaned out the rat population in my barn - I once found 12 drowned rats in one water bucket!  If your cow/horse/sheep/goat steps in a gopher/groundhog hole and breaks a leg, that's also a big hit to your pocketbook, never mind the pain of losing an animal. I don't have a big operation, but I don't want to lose my poultry to predators. I've had to remove possums from my barn - yes, I killed them. Not only do they eat eggs (and chickens!), they carry a nasty disease that affects horses. I've been hearing coyotes at night. Last night they sounded so close that I went out with a flashlight to see where they were. Sound carries, so I didn't see any, but if they start getting too close to the barn, I will have to deter them. I'll start with just having a radio playing, but I will not hesitate to shoot them, if necessary. The coyotes around here have a severe mange problem - I don't want that on my farm! If you find such ads offensive in a farming magazine, I think you may be in the wrong business.
|
|
|
|
|
Junior Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 3/6/2010 8:33:07 PM
Posts: 147,
Visits: 156
|
|
| Though I have never seen the ad, I understand that certain animals have to be taken care of to keep a farm going, and to keep it safe.... At one point, (we have 24 chickens) we had rats eating the feed we put out, they went through a 50lb bag in less than three days and at 12 bucks a bag, that sucked! I just don't agree with sticky paper, that's where I draw the line.
www.twinoaksstable.blogspot.com ************************************** The horse stopped with a jerk, and the jerk fell off ************************************** It's kind of like nuts-and-bolts, if the rider's nuts the horse bolts.
|
|
|
|
|
Junior Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 3/12/2010 5:11:55 PM
Posts: 240,
Visits: 225
|
|
I confess, I laughed out loud when I saw the photo in the ad. Does that make me heartless? I think not. It was the imagery itself that was so bizzare I had to laugh.
Ask anyone who knows me and they will tell you there is no gentler, soft hearted (some will say soft headed) man on earth. I have come to respect all of life but also, like the others, have realized that includes facing reality. I will seldom even kill an insect, yet when flies infest the house, or mosiquito's insist on having me for dinner I have to take action.
There's a difference though in thoughless killing and being concious of your actions and taking complete reponsibility for them. Perhaps some day we will all be freed from the "survival of the fittest" mentality, but for now we all have to eat and protect ourselves from those things that might harm us or the things that provide us with food.
When I was young I turned away from my father's urgings to hunt and fish. I was above all of that. Now that he's long gone and I live in the country where wild game abounds, I sometimes regret that I chose that course. But, not often, so the deer still eat everything they can get to.
|
|
|
|