Goat and Horse Meat

big rockpile · #21 12/25/04, 09:59 PM

Dog is better than Horse if it hasn't been weaned,but Cat is better than both.But truth is we just eat Wild Game anymore.

big rockpile

ox · #22 12/25/04, 10:03 PM

I eat animals that chew the cud. Our mainstay as of recent years has been lots of goat and sheep because we have them in abundance. We've raised quite a few beef but haven't of late. Never ate horse meat but I would imagine it better than bear.

Alice In TX/MO · #23 12/25/04, 10:11 PM

When my older son was in high school, he caused quite a ruckus by wearing a shirt that had a picture of a sandwich with whiskers on a plate. The caption said, "CAT - The Other White Meat"

He was a totally NON-rowdy kid, and that shirt is probably the only episode of 'in your face' in his life. He graduated valedictorian of his class and now is a software engineer.

We do not eat cats, but anyone who eats chickens doesn't know much about them.

big rockpile · #24 12/25/04, 10:47 PM

Rose Cat is very tender.Very easy to clean.Fry them just like Rabbit.

Plus they have a very good hide.

big rockpile

desdawg · #25 12/25/04, 10:50 PM

"anyone who eats chickens doesn't know much about them"
Reminds me of an Archie Bunker episode where Edith had fixed tongue for Archies supper. Archie refused to eat it. He said he wouldn't eat anything that came out of a cows mouth. So instead he had a couple of eggs.........
Horse meat wouldn't be my first choice given all of the options available but if there was nothing else I wouldn't say no. Beats being a member of the Bonner party.

CountryGoalie · #26 12/25/04, 11:02 PM

I simply couldn't eat cat, dog, or horse. Personal preference, I suppose.

I fully understand that in some cultures it's alright - and hey, as long at they're not eating each other, what they eat isn't my business, right?

As I said, personal preference. For example, we raise rabbits. There are plenty of people who physically cringe at the idea of eating rabbits. Sure, there are a few in our rabbitry that I simply couldn't bring myself to eat, but we have them for a purpose, and they serve that purpose. Plus, they're really tasty when they've been through the pressure-cooker.

Now, life-or-death situation is another story, but... for all practical purposes, you can cross cat, dog, and horse off of my list.

Anyone here ever tried possum? We had one get into the barn the other night. My father dispatched it and discarded it to a field, but I was just wondering if anyone has ever tested their edible-ness.

big rockpile · #27 12/25/04, 11:16 PM

Possum to me is better than Coon.But I like Ground Hog better than both them.

big rockpile

BobBoyce · #28 12/26/04, 12:10 AM

Shot a possum out by the henyard yesterday, but wasn't tempted to try it for dinner. Tossed it out into the woods so some other critters could have it for dinner.

While I wouldn't go out specifically looking for a horse to slaughter, I would surely stock my freezer with meat if the opportunity presented itself.

Bob

pjd · #29 12/26/04, 12:22 AM

We have a simple rule. We don't eat anything that eats meat. We feel this eliminates some of the diseases animals carry. My husband got a kick out of this thread. His sisters are all horse lovers. He has been saying for quite some time he was going to buy a horse and name it chuck. That way if anyone asks him what he is eating he can reply ground chuck, chuck steak, chuck roast. haha! I would eat it just to try it.

reluctantpatriot · #30 12/26/04, 01:18 AM

While I have eaten horse, when I was in Spain, I don't think it would make for a good regular food item. The boyfriend of one of my Spanish apartmentmates told me that in Cuba, where he is from, the government tells the people to remember not to eat it more than 3 times a week due to the toxins in the meat that can build up in the human body. This is without the concern of the meds that are not for meat animals like we have in the United States. To me, what I ate tasted more like tought beef and liver combined. I wouldn't eat it unless I had no other choice. That is my personal decision, and I think that others ought to decide for themselves.

My view is that dogs, cats and horses are companions as they are used to brighten our lives from a historical standpoint. They perform tasks, from beasts of burden, rodent control or to share our lives with. Granted, this is me talking from my background and heritage viewpoint. Each of us are different.

To my mind, the butchering of any animal that can be used for another suitable purpose is illogical and wrong. The example of killing a colt that can't be adopted after three tries seems as logical as eating puppies and kittens from an animal shelter because they didn't get adopted after three chances to be taken to a good home. Again, this is just my personal view. Others may see things differently. I do eat homeraised chickens and eggs, and if we get ahead on bucks and rams, I will eat those goats and sheep.

And as an observation, I have also eaten in Spain squid, octpus, freshwater eel, a spanish dish of congealed sheep's blood and some kind of beef broth soup that had mystery meat parts in it. I tried it all, but except for the seafood and the eel, I wouldn't want to repeat the experience. Those are just my personal experiences and views. However, I would be very outspoken in defense of my views if someone belittled me for them, as I am sure someone else would be if theirs were treated the same way.

Call me culturally-restrained, but eating Trigger, Fido and Fluffy just isn't going to happen on my homestead. Even if I am despirate for food, they wouldn't be eaten as they would still serve a purpose in one fashion or another besides food.

Rhayven · #31 12/26/04, 01:19 AM

well I have ate goat, horse and monkey and a few other meats that at the time , thank goodness no one told me what it was...but I love goat meat, I used to eat it every day in Mexico. But I did have horse meat a while back and it was cooked in a slow cooker with veggies. It was very good and though seemed a bit stringier than beef. I think I too would have a severe case of the bambi syndrome(unable to butcher it) unless it was a last resort.

Rhayven

Quint · #32 12/26/04, 02:03 AM

I've eaten both goat and horse meant. Goat was ok but had a flavor similar to lamb and I'm not overly fond of lamb or mutton. Horse meat was pretty good actually. I don't have a problem with eating horse meat. People go absolutely ballistic about it for some reason. Some aspect of horse owning culture I never quite understood. I mean I like horses in general and I would dearly love to have a team of draft horses but I never thought they were some special class of animal nor did I think they were blessed with any extraordinary intelligence.

I've eaten all sorts of strange meat like dog, cat, possum, coon, rattlesnake, groundhog, turtle and sparrow to name a few. Wild game makes up a large part of the meat supply here at the house. I have some good homegrown beef in the freezer now which is really really good. Makes that god awful garbage that they seal up in Styrofoam and shrink wrap at the supermarket seem positively inedible.

Now I'm kinda hungry for horse.

Old John · #33 12/26/04, 06:55 AM

Hi Y'all,
Did you even read the Article from the USDA? That is the US Dept. of
Agriculture.

It's at: http://www.igha.org/USDA.html

Here's an exerpt:
Horses aren't specifically raised for food like most livestock and poultry. Their diets vary according to their age, breed and the work they do.

Can Hormones and Antibiotics be Used When Raising Goats and Horses?

Antibiotics may be given to prevent or treat disease in goats and horses. Hormones are not approved for growth promotion in goats or horses.

A "withdrawal" period is required from the time most antibiotics are administered until it is legal to slaughter the animal. This is so residues can exit the animal's system.

Goat and horse meat are tested for antibiotics, sulfonamides and pesticide residues if problems are suspected. Also, the Food Safety and Inspection Service's National Residue Program routinely tests horses and goats at slaughtering establishments. Currently there is no market for imported horse meat in the United States. However, imported goat meat is sampled at ports of entry for residues that may result from the use of animal drugs, pesticides, or environmental contaminants. Data from residue monitoring rarely show residue violations.

Are Goats and Horses Inspected?

Goats and horses are covered under the Federal Meat Inspection Act and thus must be slaughtered under federal or state inspection. Any carcasses slaughtered for sale must be inspected.

Goats federally inspected:

* 1984: 107,299 * 1989: 230,297 * 1993: 289,382 * 1994: 364,905

Horses (equines) federally inspected:

* 1984: 130,825 * 1989: 342,877 * 1993: 184,320 * 1994: 109,353

I was not talking about "small household pets" I was talking about
"Larger Meat Animals".
I was not talking about carnivores or omnivores. I was talking of
herbivorous herd animals.
I just wanted to make that distinction. I was talking about the nutrition
involves
Another exerpt:
Although many Americans have an aversion to eating horse meat, the horse meat industry is now rivaling the beef and pork industries in the amounts of fresh meat shipped abroad. In 1994, 109,353 pounds of horse meat was shipped overseas. In Sweden horse meat outsells lamb and mutton combined. It is also commonly consumed in Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands, but it is most popular in Belgium and France.

Nutrition

Meat from goats and horses is low in fat. A 100-gram (3 1/2 ounces) serving of cooked, roasted meat contains:

Goat: 143 calories; 27 grams protein; 3 grams fat; 3.7 milligrams iron; 86 milligrams sodium; and 75 milligrams cholesterol.

Horse: 175 calories; 28 grams protein; 6 grams fat; 5 milligrams iron; 55 milligrams sodium; and 68 milligrams cholesterol.

Please read the article, That's 54 tons, shipped.
Have a good-un

Kevin and Laura · #34 12/26/04, 07:50 AM

I have always had an open mind about trying new foods, and would not hesitate to try horse if the occasion presented itself. I think for most people, it depends on the way the person was raised. I knew from an early age that a pet could become food. Our rabbits were named, loved and played with, but if you wanted a new one, you had to give up the old one. I ate Sir William, Ebenezer and Butterball and it never bothered me. Tuffy, the baby goat produced by Billy and Nanny (the most UNoriginal names we came up with), was fun to play with and then we ate him. If we hadn't moved back to Missouri, Rosie the Red Calf would have ended up on the plate too. I guess some people are able to separate the animal from the food and some aren't.

I would think if you were raising a horse for consumption, you would be raising it the same way you raise a beef or goat, and would be watching what you fed it and injected it with.

Laura

Irish Pixie · #35 12/26/04, 10:46 AM

Horses are livestock and thus are food-and we don't need any government regs saying they are anything different! They are not companion animals, or pets like dogs and cats-they are livestock. I've had horse meat, but I prefer beef. It is definitely a psychological thing for me. I would't want to eat any of the horses I own because they're on a bimonthly rotational deworming schedule, plus I spoil the horses I own and I just couldn't bring myself to eat the old gelding that I've cared for for years.

As hard as it for some people to accept we need horse slaughter in this country.

Stacy

mikell · #36 12/26/04, 11:16 AM

Only 2 places to butcher horses??? People must not get out of Texas much.

mikell

ratherbefishin · #37 12/26/04, 02:39 PM

This subject is purely and simply an ethnic prejudice.I have never eaten goat or horsemeat, but mainly because I have never been given the chance to.Around here the GREEKS are very fond of goat and anybody having them has a ready market for young kids.
We eat shrimp, prawns and crab[ which are bottom scavengers], but rebel at eating dog.The east Indian community has similar views about eating beef. Jews and muslims won't eat pork. Europeans eat horsemeat, the French eat snails and froglegs.Some Asians eat dog,cats, rats and snake.English people like domestic rabbit-many North Americans don't, although wild rabbit and squirrel are popular small game fare.We eat ducks and geese, but not swans or cranes
So, while some of these views are based on religeon[ the dietry laws of Jews and Muslims prohibeting the eating or pork and shellfish and also mixing meat and milk actually made a lot of sense in times without refridgeration and less than sanitary living conditions], and many other countries simply ate what was readily available, or could be raised on marginal farmland.
So- it just comes down to custom , nothing more nothing less, it's all ''meat''

Dances In Woods · #38 12/26/04, 03:24 PM

I do NOT eat horse, will NOT eat horse & will NEVER eat horse.

Goats? Have no desire to try.

agmantoo · #39 12/26/04, 03:34 PM

IMO....Opposition to eating certain animals came about by the fact that many large animals spoiled before they could be consumed. Spoilage was typically covered up by seasoning. The hotter the area, the hotter the spices due to more rapid spoilage. Eskimos eat the largest of animals and have almost no seasoning. If it can be eaten at one sitting nearly everyone eats it. That is why chicken is consumed so widely.

YuccaFlatsRanch · #40 12/26/04, 04:02 PM

"I do NOT eat horse, will NOT eat horse & will NEVER eat horse. Goats? Have no desire to try."

BTW - The above quote is not directed at Dances In Woods - it was just convenient to illustrate my point.

I frequently hear the same quote as above concerning many foodstuffs that people store in a years worth of food storage in the Mormon Church. My answer to all of them is:

YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS TO BE HUNGRY THEN. Given sufficient hunger you will fight fiercely for your share.