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  • From: Rain Tenaqiya <raincascadia@yahoo.com>
  • To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [permaculture] animals in food systems
  • Date: Tue, 18 May 2010 12:10:45 -0700 (PDT)






I posted that article because it seemed to really sum up a lot of the factors
that one should consider in deciding whether or not the use of domesticated
animals in food systems would be sustainable.  I also liked her consideration
of ethical issues.  I have been struggling with reconciling the these two
(sustainability and ethics as related to domesticated animals).  I have no
doubt that any domesticated animal could be part of a sustainable system.  I
even think that most systems would be more efficient and productive with
domesticated animals included (not to mention wild animals). 
 
My personal reluctance to involve domesticated animals in my systems are
mostly practical and ethical.  As a household of two with the closest
neighbors each a half mile away, it has been difficult for me to figure out
how to have more than just a cat (for killing voles) and fish without having
too many fences and never being able to leave our place for fear that the
animals would die of hunger or be killed by predators.  I'm still trying to
figure out how to have ducks.  Ethically, I reject caging animals for all or
a good part of their lives and regard this as a form of slavery.  I also
cannot bring myself to kill the larger, more sentient beasts.  Even killing
fish seems too selfish for me, but I'm trying to convince myself that my
situation (marginal land) justifies it.  I feel kind of stupid for not
wanting to take advantage of all the deer, pigs, and turkeys that live around
here and that often create problems for me, when they could be a
solution to my food needs.  However, I am committed to an ethic of creating
minimal harm, and until I prove to myself that I would be causing more harm
by growing my own nuts and legumes than I would by killing these animals, I
won't kill them.
 
Modern people living in rich countries now have access to an incredible
number of plants and an abundance of new technologies that make it much
easier to grow all the nutrition you need without relying on domesticated
animals.  Care for the Earth includes caring for all the wild and
domesticated animal species on it and each person needs to figure out what
this means at their particular locale and with their particular needs.  This
is a very complex and personal topic that I feel should always be an open
question.  There is no Ten Commandments handed down by the Universe that
tells us how to deal with the fact that life requires death.  As humuns, we
feel compassion for others and hopefully are always seeking to maximize the
benefits to others that we can create, while minimizing the harms.
 
Rain



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I can't recommend highly enough the book by Juliette de Bairacli Levy called
"The complete Herbal Handbook for Farm and Stable".

Scott Pittman
Director
Permaculture Institute
www.permaculture.org






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