As to not defer from Buggies thread, I thought I would start a new one.
Survival situations are no place for luxury pets. If you have any animals, they must be useful to you. That means no cats. Dogs can be useful in several ways. But, even with dogs - you must weight the cost vs. benefit.
Think of it this way. Here you are, wondering if you'll have to eat your pet to survive. If that's the case..then why have the pet and stock it's food and medicines? That is money, time, space that could buy more food for you and your family.
If the situation is so bad to where you might have to eat the animal, then that should answer your question - you have not stocked up enough yet. But, people become attached to their animals and have different priorities and values. Just know that it is yet another burden to deal with. Now, if your pet can eat that which your family will not...such as things which are spoiled or not edible for you, but which they can eat. OK, but how often will that be? Either way, to maintain the animal is to take away from your maximum potential for family.
If you can show how the animal can be useful, or even help to NET food...different story. Such as in a rural area - a dog that assists in hunting is very useful. Dogs can also search for things. But you need a WELL TRAINED dog, and of certain breeds. You also have to be a well experienced dog handler. Not just a pet owner. Most breeds people own are useless. And as owners, they are useless too.
There is a huge difference between the utilitarian side of things vs, the luxury side.
perfect compliment thread to my own post... basically sums up my thought process. I just wanted to find out peoples opinions on which dogs were best. So for everyone who read my thread... I recommend using thecriers above criteria. I know that I will definatley put it to use when searching for my own animals... and I will definatley invest the time and money into training them for their duties. No lap dogs in my house. and dont even get me started on cats lol
[edit] also, thecrier... I agree with your point about the pros and cons of stocking up for your dogs instead of yourself... however keep in mind that if things got really hairy, Dog food edible for humans, well balanced, and highly nutricious; much more so then every day human food (processed fast food in particular. Not including wholesome real foods like fruits and veggies etc). If a person is well prepared, mans best friend should end up being the last thing you would have to eat, and that would only be after the orchards and gardens have been plowed under, the canned and dry goods have vanished, youve picked every bush and vine clean of any wild edibles, and the kibble and shoe leather are gone.
See you all after.
A couple of thoughts on this....I can see how in a survival/bug-out situation some animals would be a hindrance, but if one is to bug in then an animal that was a hindrance could be an asset.
We are only looking at staying put right were we are and we have cats...that said we never feed them, they are strictly farm cats that eats rats/mice etc
I watched an interesting doco on the plague years ago and at one stage they went through the cities killing all the dogs and cats because they carried fleas...yep you guessed it, the rodent population exploded and the plague spread even faster.
If you have cats, you have less rodent issues with your stored food which invariably could become prey to their knarly little teeth, or are attracted to poultry to pinch their grain, eggs or chicks.
We have lived outside for extended periods of time for as long as 5 years over the last 20 years even in winter when the temp would sometimes get down to minus 9 deg celsius and there was seriously nothing nicer than have a couple of cats crawling into bed with you....hmmm unless they crawled in wet, then that was an entirely different matter altogether 😆
I can only just shiver and drift in and out of sleep at minus 7 deg, at minus 9 deg there is no such thing as sleep without the warmth of either fire or animals.
Quite a few times on the news I have heard where people have died of exposure at those temperatures or slightly warmer, yet snuggled up with a couple of dogs and cats it is seriously very cozy!
I think with any animal there are positives and negatives, it all depends on how you see it from your point of view or what experiences you have had with them. The Egyptians worshiped their cats and I think with good reason 🙂
BTW...I was never a cat lover, I loved my dogs, then I met my future hubby who was a cat lover 🙄
Tough call, lets see....I like most every dog I meet, my own included....people on the other hand not so much.I know, if I need dog food maybe I will just invite that neibour I dont like over for dinner, ....no I wont be eating my dog.
Tough call, lets see....I like most every dog I meet, my own included....people on the other hand not so much.I know, if I need dog food maybe I will just invite that neibour I dont like over for dinner, ....no I wont be eating my dog.
Tooooo Funny 😆
When I get to the Pearly Gates....Peter will have only 2 questions for me ...
1. You a Mason?
2. How many cats and dogs did you murder?
I would have to disagree. We have 3 dogs that allow use to sleep peacefully every night. Allow me to travel knowing that no one is getting into our house while I am away without severe bodily harm. The border collie is the alarm. She is always the most alert and I will assume its in the breed.
The shepard is the tank and in a bad situation I would not want to be the one breaking in. The third is a terrier which my wife loves very much and i would suspect I might have leave before her "baby". (Said in jest.....)
Depending on the situation ( or your group size) you cannot provide 24 hour surviellance, but dogs can and do every day if you listen to them. We include dog food in our preps and table scraps when available.
In our situation our dogs will always be "included" in our plans. For use there is no way they would every be excluded BUT we are big dog lovers. Others may disagree or have different plans and thats fine, just for us this works best. Your milage may vary.
I've never been that attached to a pet or livestock i keep, and I have a wife and kids I would prioritize over any animal.
People often think I'm a big dog lover when they see me petting all over them.
In actuality I'm really checking the tenderness of the choice cuts.....
My wife - yes.
My dog - maybe.
My guns - never.
Those who are unwilling to defend freedom, will become unfree.
My wife - yes.
My dog - maybe.
My guns - never.
Say what? What you talkin about Wilson?
"We 'Prep.' to live after a downfall, Not just to survive."
Well, ya know ranger, we gotta have our priorities. Just lettin' ya'all know where my dog stands.
Those who are unwilling to defend freedom, will become unfree.
We have 3 dogs, one is a goofball/ Golden Doodle, one a hunter survivor/ Coonhound/Lab, the other is the yap, pom/A.shepard. In the end if I had to GOOD, then I would be taking the goof and the survivor with me for different reasons. Jake the GD, is an alarmist, and a flusher, retriever. Madie the CL, well she is a hunter survivor, her and her sibling survived 4 month on their own in Mennonite country. We got her from an animal rescue when she was 7/8 month old. Since then, she’s killed 5 skunks and 6 squirrels. Jake and Madie are a team, of the same age (5/6) and have been constantly play/fighting for the past 3 years. In a real fight I would lay my money on Madie. In a pinch Madie could provide enough food for both of them. As well both of them provide comfort, protection and warmth. Even though they are just dogs, they are family and I would do grievous harm to the SOB that would hurt these dogs.
"We 'Prep.' to live after a downfall, Not just to survive."
I hear ya brother.
Those who are unwilling to defend freedom, will become unfree.
When the SHTF, history repeats itself as it did with Katrina. Most people just let them go to fend for themselves - and many may do well at that, scavenging dead humans. Most overlooked danger in SHTF scenario is hungry packs of dogs.
Anyway, it has been shown that packs of dogs are a threat during SHTF scenarios. Domesticated as they may be, hunger is the ultimate motivator and they still have animal instincts. They form into packs, which has a leader. It is the leader who sets the "policy" and that is usually the largest, strongest, most vicious dog. The one least likely to like humans. In warzones or war torn and disaster areas, they have been known to attack people.
That is why it has been the practice of different armies to shoot any stray dog or dogs on sight. Once out on their own like that, having feasted on human corpses and put into that kind of desperate situation, as well as recommitted to the pack - they are not to be trusted again. Might as well just consider them wolves.
My wife - yes.
My dog - maybe.
My guns - never.
its a list of things they can live without! 😆
I think once again the point is being missed by the criers post, so correct me if im wrong. What needs to be said is that obviously no one would ever want to eat their pets (except maybe cats, I heard they are delicious). If you prep properly you should hopefully never have to enter this scenario. HOWEVER, over the course of history there have been times of great distress and starvation where the eating of pets has been common place as a last resort. As thecrier has stated else where, in 1945 Germany was under attack from all sides by the allies during WWII. their food production had been decimated, and what food was available was being diverted to the troops at the front lines. Cities were firebombed, there was no safe haven, and their was in many cases not a kernel of corn in the cubbords. When a person has gone 3-4 days without food, no matter how much they loved their animals sometimes muffy just seems a little too plump and a little too much like dinner.
Again, not saying that this should ever be the case, or that it will be the case for everyone, just simply understand that this HAS HAPPENED, not just in 3rd world countries where the eating of domestic animals like dogs is an accepted practice (south east asia, parts of africa, etc) but in "civilized" western states. NOt everyone would be able to do it, this is true. As for myself, I have no idea how I would respond to starvation as I have never truely experienced it. I hope that I will never have to. I prep so that myself, my loved ones, AS WELL as our animal survive, and I hope that everyone on here is able to do the same. Because having useful animals around will prolong my ability to live and provide normality.
Also, in regards to thecriers comment about stray dogs in a shtf scenario. I agree. the wild packs have been seen time and time again. Dogs are predators at heart, no matter how fluffy and cuddly they may be during peacetime. The same can be said of humans. When their backs are against the wall, they will either die or do what they must to survive. think of a pack of starving stray dogs the same way you would think of a mob of starving marauders. having them around you, your family, and your preps is a firefight waiting to happen. so beware.
See you all after.