butchering your own animals

amacca

bit of a strange query here....out of curiosity and interest from a self sufficiency point of view

I've been told you cant butcher your own animals for your own consumption which I find a little unfair.......as I don't see why one should be prohibited from feeding oneself with their own stock (but on the other hand I am also aware there are good reasons for this - some of which I know)

1) I was wondering if anyone could confirm this absolutely however

2) I was also wondering if anyone could tell me what sort of hoops one would have to jump through to be allowed butcher your own meat for your own consumption (not for sale or distribution etc)

would you have to conform to certain hygiene standards, have a certain designated area, collect offal for proper disposal by a service....get trained as a butcher, get specialized equipment etc...what would be necessary

3) do these rules (if they exist to the extent I think they do) extend to killing something like your own chicken and plucking it for Sunday dinner etc


I am aware that you can get your own animals slaughtered and butchered by a butcher that offers the service who will give back the proper cuts etc but I am really curious as to how tied up it is and how much red tape would have to be jumped through to be able to do it yourself whether it makes sense financially or not

tonytoc11

There's a small bit on it in the thread below. You can't do it yourself.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056458049

amacca

ta...that sort of answers my questions

its not even close to being worth it financially and its not legal or possibly feasible for beef for someone like me starting from zero knowledge base

wouldn't mind getting a slaughterhouse or a butcher to do a heifer for me or a lamb or two for a fair price

how would you ensure you were getting your own meat back though.....thats the bit that bothers me...not knowing if someone is pulling the old bait and switch:D....I'd like to know definitively (truly beyond a shadow of a doubt) what my quality animals actually taste like

can you mark the hide in a way they cant or wouldn't bother to duplicate

+ does anyone know do they give you hearts, kidneys, liver in the case of lambs?


(I know...I have deep rooted psychological problems when it comes to trusting people)

Highland

Get the Butcher to leave the left ear (plus tag) attached to the carcase until you come to collect it - they regularly do this with beef but it can also be done with lambs - no mix up possible if the ear & tag still attached

amacca

Highland wrote: »

Get the Butcher to leave the left ear (plus tag) attached to the carcase until you come to collect it - they regularly do this with beef but it can also be done with lambs - no mix up possible if the ear & tag still attached

thanks ... that would seem to do the trick................will the left half of the carcass still be connected to the right?

pajero12

amacca wrote: »

thanks ... that would seem to do the trick................will the left half of the carcass still be connected to the right?

Will the head not be gone?

amacca

pajero12 wrote: »

Will the head not be gone?

no expert but I presume the ear can be detached from the head/skull and left attached by a piece of hide?

blue5000

OP I think you can still legally kill and butcher a rabbit for yourself, last time I looked I didn't see any eartags on them........yet;)

amacca

blue5000 wrote: »

OP I think you can still legally kill and butcher a rabbit for yourself, last time I looked I didn't see any eartags on them........yet;)

as long as you watch the ones with mixy:eek:

Highland

Head will be gone. so too will the hide (except the bit on the ear). The remove ear from top of head but leave it hanging on a strip of muscle that comes up from the neck.

blue5000

amacca wrote: »

thanks ... that would seem to do the trick................will the left half of the carcass still be connected to the right?

But your animal will have two tags, one in each ear, so the butcher is able to leave a tag on each side of the carcase when it's hanging. The bit to watch out for is the fillet, shaped a bit like a pork steak. Worth in the region of 20e/kg.

amacca

cheers for the responses lads.............very helpful.