A good death, and a not so good one
Published: Mon, 01/18/16
We ate more venison last night, very nice it is too. V also solved a minor mystery last week. We are quite friendly with our local butcher and V was telling him about the deer we are eating bit by bit. V also commented that the first deer we had was really rather tough to eat and needed a lot of cooking. The one presently in our freezer is remarkably tender, almost like lamb but leaner and tastier. The butcher shared a likely explanation which is this. If an animal dies pretty much instantly and painlessly then the meat will be fine. If the animal has been in stress, fear and pain then the meat will be relatively inedible.
The first deer I dealt with was brought to me still alive but badly injured. I had to put it out of its misery myself. (‘Put out of misery’ is euphemism for ‘I had to kill it.’ Strange how straight talking about death is so difficult.)
The second deer seems to have been killed instantly so minimal fear and pain and much more edible.
According to the butcher the emotional state of the animal at the moment of slaughter makes a huge difference to the quality of the meat that arrives at the butcher’s shop. Apparently a butcher can always tell if animals were stressed and afraid before being killed. Usually the slaughter houses manage the process quite well. Sometimes they don’t and the proof will be in the eating.
Enough to make you vegetarian. Or confirm your practice if you already are.
My personal feeling is that the issue isn’t so much whether or not to eat meat. I respect the personal choice either way. The big issue is the extent to which we are divorced from the reality of what a meal including meat actually means. An animal died and was prepared as food.
As you know I am aware of the relationship between a beautiful creature such as a deer and the meat on my plate. I would like to hunt my own meat. In the UK, unless you own the land or are on good terms with someone who will let you hunt on theirs, then shooting your own game is tricky. So, I tend to make do with road kill. Round here the wild life don’t seem to be well schooled in road safety so we won’t starve. (I picked up a pheasant yesterday which is now hanging in the garage awaiting preparation.)
What is always amusing (if you have a perverse sense of humour like mine) is confronting a committed meat eater with a freshly killed animal and asking them if they would like to eat it?
A common response is. ‘But, that’s cruel!’ Sorry? Its already dead. How can eating it now be ‘cruel’?
Another response is. ‘That is disgusting.’ Yes, taking a recently living creating and taking it apart into edible segments does take a reasonably strong stomach. (my least favourite bit is dealing with the bladder). So, should the real work of making an animal edible and the meat acceptable always be done by ‘other people?’.
The real problem is lack of self-reliance. Dependence on others to do what we should be capable of doing ourselves. I don’t mean that we should not support business’s such as Butchers to supply your meat. But every now and then skinning and preparing a rabbit does two important things for you.
Firstly it reminds you of the reality of what the meat industry does every day to thousands of animals. Secondly, it keeps you in practice in case you did need to feed yourself or your family from ‘natural sources’ rather than relying on prepared food from a shop.
If you really can’t face the idea of skinning a rabbit then maybe you should be vegetarian after all.
Self-defence is another area where self-reliance is an issue. We can just let ourselves be dependent upon others. Or, we can take responsibility for being able to protect ourselves should the need arise.
Again, it doesn’t mean that we never want the services of experts. Understanding self-defence helps us understand what the police face every day. Even in a society where the police are fairly reliable there is still an expression. ‘When seconds count, the police are minutes away.’ That is when you need to be self-reliant in your ability to defend yourself and loved ones.
Next Self-defence at the Stav Centre in Crewkerne on the 23rd of January starting 10am http://www.somersetstav.co.uk/sd.html
Or, if you would like to attend my three day seminars in Minneapolis, USA in May or Somerset in June. Please find dates and links at http://www.iceandfire.org/calendar.html
regards
Graham