Pets or Meat? A homesteading parents dilemna

This year J and O - (ages 3 and 5) have hand reared orphaned lambs since they were only a week old. These Lambs had names and they are not the usual meal related names such as Kabob, Curry, Gyros, or Braised with gremolata and a side of baked stuffed polanta.

These lambs have PET names - Sunshine, Moonbeam and Starlight. They come when called and perform tricks upon demand - bounding 3 feet straight up in the air for a raisin treat. They have rainbow colored collars in case they get loose and animal control happens to be around.

So the dilemna - which to serve for easter dinner... and how to break it to the kids. After some discussion about similar, past experiences with J - it was determined to tell them and let them say goodbye to their "animal friend". We explained that we had chosen a lamb to eat for Easter and when would they like to say goodbye to it. No options.

The kids were actually stoic about it - although their favorite was chosen. Sunshine - the runt - the lamb who enjoyed regular rides in the doll stroller and looked especially cute in toddler clothing. Sunshine was not growing and like most other runts we have had experience with was eating 1/2 of the food each day though only 1/2 the size of the other 2 lambs.

They only screamed "NO DAD DO NOT KILL MY LAMB" for about 10 minutes. When offered the option of becoming Vegetarians and not eating meat - they inquired "Can we eat Hotdogs and cheeseburgers if we are Vegetarians?". Then a long list of food they love - How about bacon, sausage, turkey... Once Mike informed them that Gyros is made from lamb, their attitude suddenly changed. The tears stopped. They LOVE GYROS and we never eat out. How Mike will make it, I have no idea - but it is his problem. My problem is figuuring out what to say when the kids decide to tell strangers in the check out at the grocer "My Dad killed my lamb". Letting them know it is OK to be sad, Sunshine was their friend but she is part of our food chain. Not try to make it better. Let them mourn for awhile.

Sunshine was a runt, the smallest of quadruplets, when she arrived at our home she could not walk through almost a week old. She was not even half the size of a normal sheep her age. At a commercial farm she would have been culled almost immediately - Our neighbor - a small family farmer dropper fed her colostrom the first several days of her life then brought her to us. We bottle fed her every 4 hours for 8 weeks. At 6 weeks she developed Pnemonia and I was sure she would die. I carried her in warm blankets and a sling, fed her probably more then I should have. Rejoiced when she recovered - worried about all of them when they moved out of the house and into the barn. Harvested their manure for the compost pile every week.

It probably would have been easier to go to the store and buy some nameless faceless piece of meat. But then, would I be as thankful as I am now - for the experience of knowing my meal.

Michael stresses the point that the most humane was to kill a lamb is a hollowtipped 22 to the brain and then, cut their throat with a clean blade as soon as they hit the ground. They skin up just like a really large rabbit. Do not do this where your children or neighbors will see you. It does not matter how much they like Gyros - it is a bloody mess.

See the links for my favorite Lamb recipe.