kaytabug's comment on holly 's gift post made me think of this...

now that we are staying put, my friend broached this. we would split one. and maybe include other friends. we will need to buy a deep freeze

but that would be nice to have anyway. hubs will probably go hunting here and get a deer anyhoo.

are you officially staying put? I wasn't sure you'd made the decision.

I have heard of doing it - but we've never done it.

never done it but, my grandparents gifted their daughters with a cow, my aunt carries on the tradition with her kids. I want to try it

the deep freeze, does not want deer meat in it. everyone ate the meal I made it with, but no one ate the leftovers and there was a lot

leftover!!

we're officially staying. he made the decision Friday and told the company today. too risky with 2 kids. too stressful with his masters work

Congrats on a final call, limbo sucks ass!!!

I am not thrilled with the deer either, but the vendors for his work always plan elaborate outings to woo and there will be a deer hunt....

I haven't decided how I feel about it. just torn. both ways...

PS, when I said I wanted a cow I wanted it for milk. my boys go through 4-5 gallons a week. but I'd also like one for meat too!

ah.... I want a goat for that!! and chickens. pretty sure deed restrictions are going to be troublesome though!!

I can totally understand the torn feelings.

You can get a goat for $90 via my charity

hubby would never go for goats milk, he hates it.

If you have a deep freeze, it's the best way to get meat.

I think it depends on the goat. I hated the store stuff, meyenberg, but got some raw from a friend and it was great! tasted just like cow.

of course, it was raw and the store bought was processed.

rockingpony, you've done it? any idea how much a cow typically weighs? I know processing is going to vary in price due to our areas...

can I get away with a chest deep freeze or do I need the big suckers - 5,6 feet long?

why not an upright? I like our upright. my parents had a chest, not the big kind either.

Ballpark is 600 lb of meat for a whole cow. I think. A whole cow will fill the biggest deep freeze you'll ever buy and then some.

We'd butcher, fill the freezer, give the grandparents, aunts & uncles, and some to the pastor. It's a lot of meat.

I recommend doing a half if you have someone to share with. Plus the cost is less, too. If you can buy from a farmer, it's healthier, too.

mute

Sorry, hon.

sorry frenchgirlrn!!

oy, I was thinking we could split a whole one between us. it's cheaper to buy a whole than a half... I will have to see if we can get more

people to join in.

it's from a local farm. they produce meat for the local area. it's a small operation.

kaytabug, I am not sure of the types and sizes. I will have to work on it...

My bff did this

Her Hubby is an A+ cook, so knows how to prepare all the cuts properly

It's a really economical way to do it

when we went to buy ours, I thought I was going for a chest but came home with an upright. enjoy the research!

it's economical until you lose power...

my parents raised pigs for the meat. Remember you will tire of beef, we hated pork. Chickens can be a pain, somebody has to gather the

Eggs and that soon gets old and they become annoying, stinky and noisy. Goats are distructive, they eat everything! And can be hard to keep

Penned. We kept ours behind 4 wires of barbed electric fence and had to gather them daily, they can jump high.

Can you get a younger cow? One that would be smaller dressed?

and letting goats or chickens roam free is hazardous for your clean shoes. FYI, geese and ducks have poo that stains. And it is slick

and letting goats or chickens roam free is hazardous for your clean shoes. FYI, geese and ducks have poo that stains. And it is slick

To boot, so it isn't just the shoes that stain.

No, but somebody gave us once. We did not have a stand alone freezer so we had to give away some of the meat, but we still had plenty.

way to ruin the farm dream, justmylife!!!

we will probably never have the land to be able to have goats or chickens. I just hate having to search out the farm fresh eggs every week

and worry that we will run out.( my kid has them every morning..) I would love to have an easy source of raw milk, but the whole milking 2x

a day just doesn't sound fun, so I was more stuck on the chickens. however, we will always be too close to a city to realize that one...

Farm life is great, but can be messy Sorry for ruining it. Really we had only about 6 acres used with the animals. Just have to be

realistic about the number of them you get.

A dozen of chickens could get you a couple dozen eggs a day if they are producers. 1 or 2 goats could get ya milk, though we never tried,

Our nannies would bite a chunk out of you if they were in a foul mood.

I thought chickens just laid one egg per day?

You could keep chickens, fianna. A friend of mine in Oklahoma City suburbs has in her back yard.

if our neighbors didn't report us, definitely! our yard in Hou is large enough for a coop and then some. I will dream about it, but it

depends on what kind of neighbors we have when we move back there.

chickens are incredibly messy, both alive and dead. Chicken poo is everywhere if they're free range, and smells HORRID if they're caged.

And plucking dead chickens is the debil. Eggs, however, are a fun perk.

we want chickens and a cow, too...

well, I don't, but my dad & Harry do.

we have sworn off animals for a while. Although we should look into raising a calf to butcher.

heck, i barely want a dog, much less farm animals...

If we got a calf, we could house it at Dad's with his cattle. It would be no trouble for us. Win-win.

But we got rid of all the horses and the goat. It's just a lot of work.