Earlier in the fall I visited Stone and Thistle Farm in upstate New York for a farm stay. Stone and Thistle’s main product is meat (chicken, turkey, rabbit, pigs, goats, lamb) and they raise the animals cage-free and with organic feed. Our stay consisted of a tour, a wonderful dinner cooked by the owner/chef, a cozy room with a library, and early morning farm chores. It was peaceful for me see how these animals live (quite nicely I thought) even if they are scheduled to die. Of course, not all animals live like this, but it is really important that we raise farming standards so that more of them might. I think being concerned with the quality of life of what we eat is really important, specially on a day like Thanksgiving.
And here they are! The Thanksgiving turkeys, raised every year for mass slaughter right before the holiday. Yes sad, but every living thing dies, and look at their surroundings. Not too shabby. They are moved around every few days so they can always have fresh grass.
The newly received baby turkeys (chicks?). They are actually shipped overnight from a hatchery in the midwest.
Our friendly rancher guide. Talking about the life (and death) of the animals. Yes unfortunately the cute bunny will die to become food someday too. Sorry.
The baby goats as well… Although some of them are for milk only.
My farm buddies.
Our lodging:
Early morning chores on the farm: hanging out with the goats (one of them actually nibbled on Ashley’s butt), feeding the pigs, the chickens and the rabbits, and picking some fresh tomatoes…
Finally, after a long day of work, a nice hammock nap with the herding dogs. Like I said before, nice living, for all of those involved.
