Livestock for non-meat related profit

[Tiempo]

I'd love to hear about ideas/options, especially on a small acreage.

I should qualify by saying that I DO eat meat and have NO problem with people raising livestock for meat, but I have to admit that I don't have it in me personally to slaughter any animal that I own/have gotten to know.

It may indeed make me a hypocrite, but it's just how I am I'm afraid.

Thanks

[bloogrssgrl]

Show or breeding stock?

Fiber animals? Angora goats or rabbits?

A small herd of sheep?

[Siryet]

I have suggested before that when a person cannot eat the animals they raise that they might try find some one in the area that raises the same animal and swap them for their animal, at slaughter time, take the animal to the butcher right away and walk away. When the meat is ready you will know that YOU are not eating YOUR animal.

i do not butcher our hogs but we do eat them and the same for our sheep and know what, I don't apologize either.

Good luck with your endeavors.

[LisaInN.Idaho]

Originally Posted by Siryet

I have suggested before that when a person cannot eat the animals they raise that they might try find some one in the area that raises the same animal and swap them for their animal, at slaughter time, take the animal to the butcher right away and walk away. When the meat is ready you will know that YOU are not eating YOUR animal.

i do not butcher our hogs but we do eat them and the same for our sheep and know what, I don't apologize either.

Good luck with your endeavors.

Yep, we call it "sending them to freezer camp".

[Tiempo]

Ah...but I'd still know where I was sending them and I just can't do it.

I'm a wuss..I admit.

[sunflower-n-ks]

Chickens or ducks for eggs and bug control.

Rabbits, sheep, goats for fiber. Goats or cows for milk. Goats for brush control - on your property or to lease out to other people.

If you can process fish, raise fish in a backyard container. Or shrimp.

bees for honey.

[uncle Will in In.]

Dogs sell at pretty good prices, judging by the sales ads. Exotic birds are enjoyable, such as peacocks, pheasants, pidgeons, show chickens, or silkie chickens. Minature horses are nice, and unlawful to slaughter. Fruit and vegtables are in demand by everyone.

[BlueHeronFarm]

We run a goat dairy on 10.5 acres - works for us.

Also - I am a vegetarian, but managed to take our first two pigs to the butcher with no problems. You would be surprised at how easy it is. When they get big, they are not so cute to make you feel attached. I said thank you to each pig as she was loaded out of the trailer and we left. No drama. We should be picking up the meat any day now and we have two more - who are still cute, but on their way to being giant, less cute little lard buckets.

...you could raise alpacas.

[mwhit]

Originally Posted by BlueHeronFarm

We run a goat dairy on 10.5 acres - works for us.

Also - I am a vegetarian, but managed to take our first two pigs to the butcher with no problems. You would be surprised at how easy it is. When they get big, they are not so cute to make you feel attached. I said thank you to each pig as she was loaded out of the trailer and we left. No drama. We should be picking up the meat any day now and we have two more - who are still cute, but on their way to being giant, less cute little lard buckets.

...you could raise alpacas.

I have no problem eating the pigs. I don't find the stinking things cute at all. My butcher shot them here and I watched-- it didn't bother me I'd butcher them myself if I thought I could cut the meat right.

[Iddee]

Honey bees.....

[ajaxlucy]

Laying hens?

[turtlehead]

Ditto the dogs.
You could raise a cutesy "city" breed (lotsa money, but not sure in this economy) or a working farm breed.

[SFM in KY]

Originally Posted by turtlehead

Ditto the dogs.
You could raise a cutesy "city" breed (lotsa money, but not sure in this economy) or a working farm breed.

I think the dogs are taking a hit along with everything else. I know of two people (one a very good friend I've known for 30 years) that have bred dogs for years. Both people actually do a lot of showing and have top winning dogs that bring high-dollar prices and usually have a waiting list and have never had puppies unsold after 12 weeks or so.

Both of them had a litter last fall ... one lady still has one of that last litter than is unsold and my friend just sold the last one of hers last week.

[Toads tool]

PET FOODS. granted this is a niche market but I know a few that have made there living off of raising bugs. Mealworms, crickets, and even feeder mice can all be options.
There's always red wigglers or composting worms. People don't see them as a herd but they are. I'm not talking becoming a worm salesmen or big worm farm.
I often trade or barter worms to folks for bait purposes and I also preach vermiculturing.
If no other reason a person should have a hole full of worms to dump all their compostables. Plus their waste is golden for fertilizer, I just spread the contents of three bins on my lawn last night, It does wonders to help thicken my lawn; I'm trying to grow on clay, and turns it a nice dark green.
I also raise mealworms but crickets creep me out.
These worms work great as a protein soarce for chickens, they just love'em. (4th grade teacher sent home 3 last week. They really scrap over them.)
Mealworms are consumed in other countries, I've had a few in cereal in my youth with little ill effect.
Survival food stuff if nothing else.

[Mare Owner]

On a small acreage you can raise beef and sell at weaning. Then other people buy them to feed out and butcher. There are several smaller cattle breeds, and some of the offspring could be sold as breeding stock (higher sale prices than feeders would be).

Of course, that would really work for any type of animal you like, as long as you can find your market to sell the offspring.

[donsgal]

Originally Posted by Tiempo

I'd love to hear about ideas/options, especially on a small acreage.

I should qualify by saying that I DO eat meat and have NO problem with people raising livestock for meat, but I have to admit that I don't have it in me personally to slaughter any animal that I own/have gotten to know.

It may indeed make me a hypocrite, but it's just how I am I'm afraid.

Thanks

I think I can relate to this. I do not raise animals now, but will sometime in the future and this issue has weighed heavily on my mind.

Being the ULTIMATE animal lover, (and a strong believer in Karma), I do not think I could kill anything on purpose. I even throw spiders and "other bugs" out the door when I find them.

We are planning on having chickens (for the eggs only). I intend to let them die of old age. As for sheep, it would be for fiber only. I can buy lamb online or at the local meat processor's place. As for bunnies, well I will have them for fertilizer and fiber too.

It's funny because one of the things that I admire so much about cats is that they are such killers! They have no conscience at all. As strange as it sounds, I wish I could be more like that and be able to kill things and not feel badly about it. I have wanted to go squirrel hunting FOREVER but I cannot bear the thought of killing them, even though I don't "know them" personally.

I would say that you have a lot of options that does not involved slaughter. I'll be interested to see how this thread progresses, I need ideas too!!!!

donsgal

[Tiempo]

Yes, I'm really intrigued by some of the answers here.

We'll see how things develop when we actually have the farm

This summer will be just getting the veggies and grapes in (and probably currants and gooseberries) and plannig the mini orchard for next spring.

I will try to get set up for laying hens as soon as possible too.

Originally Posted by donsgal

I think I can relate to this. I do not raise animals now, but will sometime in the future and this issue has weighed heavily on my mind.

Being the ULTIMATE animal lover, (and a strong believer in Karma), I do not think I could kill anything on purpose. I even throw spiders and "other bugs" out the door when I find them.

We are planning on having chickens (for the eggs only). I intend to let them die of old age. As for sheep, it would be for fiber only. I can buy lamb online or at the local meat processor's place. As for bunnies, well I will have them for fertilizer and fiber too.

It's funny because one of the things that I admire so much about cats is that they are such killers! They have no conscience at all. As strange as it sounds, I wish I could be more like that and be able to kill things and not feel badly about it. I have wanted to go squirrel hunting FOREVER but I cannot bear the thought of killing them, even though I don't "know them" personally.

I would say that you have a lot of options that does not involved slaughter. I'll be interested to see how this thread progresses, I need ideas too!!!!

donsgal

[CIW]

Have you thought about buying a good milk cow. When she comes fresh you can go to a dairy and get 2 or 3 other calves and put on her. Just turn them in 3 times a day to nurse. The other part of the day make sure that they have good hay in front of them. You could also keep yourself in milk if you didn't put as many calves on her (3 instead of 4). Just milk a quart or 2 off before you turn the calves in.
In 60 days wean those calves off and put 2 more on her.
Feed the calves up to about 550 or 600 lbs. then sell them. At those weights, dairy calves commonly sell at a $1.00 + a lb.
You will start to decrease your profit margin for every pound over 600 that you keep them because you don't have enough pasture.
Breed your cow to a beef bull for added value on her calf. Artificial insemination would probably work well in your situation.
When people find out that you have a milk wagon cow, they will sometimes give you their "bummer" "twin" and "free martin" beef calves. As most of them die anyway and its alot of effort to bottle feed.
Thats a total of 6 calves @ 550 lbs. Thats a $3,300 gross from one cow.
By the time you pay for all the medicine, hay and grain for her and the calves. Plus a ten year payback on the cow and holding facilities you will come close to $2,000 annually from that one cow.
If you have some pasture it will offset some of those costs.
Now go buy another cow.