Planned death vs unplanned death

[Ghost]

It is odd how for death due to mishaps seems to cause more of an emotional strain on me than a planned death. This is true even in the case where the individual could have been placed on a dispatch list but was not on a list at the time of death.

The GP I ate a few weeks back did not cause much emotional strain, other than a slight melancholy, I thanked the GP for leaving me a nice weighty carcass. I was a little disappointed in myself that the dispatch did not go quite as smooth as I would have liked, but once it was done, it was done.

In the last year, there were two deaths that were caused directly due to my mistakes and those caused me a bit of emotional pain. The accidental deaths were not ideal, but there was not a long period of animal suffering, once I realized the damage was severe, I went ahead and finished the poor thing off in less than 15 seconds after the initial injury. I was able to recoup the loss by feeding the carcass to a hungry reptile so the accidental death did not go to waist.

Has anyone else noticed that planning out a death makes it easier to deal with compared to an unplanned death. Even if there are not other factors are involved?

 

[KimitsuKouseki]

Yes, it's called mental preparation. When it's planned, you've already rationnalised the reasons why it has to happen and braced yourself for the loss. This makes it easier to accept and mourn.
On the other hand, unplanned deaths come as a shock and it's harder to process and rationnalise. A "maybe I couldve done better type of thing"

 

[Ghost]

Yes, it's called mental preparation. When it's planned, you've already rationnalised the reasons why it has to happen and braced yourself for the loss. This makes it easier to accept and mourn.
On the other hand, unplanned deaths come as a shock and it's harder to process and rationnalise. A "maybe I couldve done better type of thing"

I suppose you are right, In some regards, I am still getting use to the whole thing. I grow up citified and this whole processing animals was something I first experienced late in life. I did hear stories about when my mom grew up, she stayed on a relative's farm for a few years.

When I decide that I am going to kill, I get a surge of adrenalin that gets me through the initial hump of taking a life, and the spike is still present during the subsequent death process as the body shuts down. After that, processing the carcass will keep my mind occupied with the task at hand. Once I have time to reflect I have learned to accept that there is a circle of life and that killing is required for the production of meat.

In my former life, the death part of meat was just an abstract thought. like, "humm, this hamburger use to be a cow, oh well". Now occasionally see the animal which is used to make food for myself or one of David's creatures.

When I decide ahead of time, I do have more time to deal with the loss of life, and I do know who will get the benefit of a nice meaty carcass. With the unplanned death I am struggling to keep up with what just happened happened. The "feeding out" part is just a way to cut my losses.

 

[michaels4gardens]

When I decide that I am going to kill, I get a surge of adrenalin that gets me through the initial hump of taking a life, and the spike is still present during the subsequent death process as the body shuts down. After that, processing the carcass will keep my mind occupied with the task at hand. Once I have time to reflect I have learned to accept that there is a circle of life and that killing is required for the production of meat.

In my former life, the death part of meat was just an abstract thought. like, "humm, this hamburger use to be a cow, oh well". Now occasionally see the animal which is used to make food for myself or one of David's creatures.

.

Circle of life..
On this Planet ,all larger complex animal life, is maintained through the ending of another life.
This is true even if you claim to be "vegan".
Our food was once alive..
I think our focus should be on living in a good way, and helping our "food" do the same. This concept holds true for both our plant food, and our animal food.

Live in a thoughtful, considerate way, and be grateful for all life.....accept the fact that a life must end, for our life to continue..focus on ending that life as quickly, and efficiently as we know how..

The problem with being a "vegetarian" is, ...-- it is difficult to assure a "quick, clean kill", when you are killing plants.

 

[Ghost]

I can now understand what KimitsuKouseki means when she says, "When it's planned, you've already rationnalised the reasons why it has to happen and braced yourself for the loss. This makes it easier to accept and mourn.".

I am in the processes of editing two posts (I am still working on), concerning what I should do about the guinea pig I nick-named "Mother White Spot". As I wrote, I came to understand two things. Giving her a quick humane death in the near future, will spare her a harder death later on. Secondly, by culling White Spot soon, the herd as a whole will be healthier, and there will be more 'room' for new mothers to fill her spot.

It is sad because, I will cut her life short, and she could have had many more months of "good-enough" life. I still think that ending her life sooner is the best course of action. Putting the health of the herd first really makes up for the shorting of her life. I don't know when she would have had "died anyway", but I can understand culling as an act of mercy. Although, in my mind, I will count it as a dispatchment rather than an euthanasia.

As KimitsuKouseki said, I will still mourn White Spot's loss, but I will keep it in perspective and understand why culling her really the best course of action. And I am not ashamed to say, I may shed a tear for her.