Always makes me both smile and cringe a little when animal attractions encourage public sympathy on the one hand and call animals by pet names, charge to see/stroke/feed them, put up labels - and then butcher them and sell the products on the other, however tasty they might be.
I'm always rather surprised that the public tolerates this (or falls for it?), and that the anti's haven't really got their teeth into the concept - yet?
I joked about it with the young man running the grill. The Reindeer Farm does not slaughter its animals. I do believe they sell live Reindeer as stock to other agricultural interests. Reindeer sausage is sold in just about every supermarket and from every hotdog stand I’ve seen up here. I’m not really sure how the distribution and marketing work regarding that trade. I believe Reindeer got their start here in Alaska when the government tried to introduce Reindeer herding in NW Alaska (Seward Peninsula centered on Nome). I’m not sure if the Native Alaskans run the Reindeer market, they do for Muskox Qiviut. I’ll have to see what I can find out about the Reindeer trade. I know we have a Reindeer operation up in Fairbanks…but I don’t know if it’s commercial. The young man did tell me that only Alaska Natives can sell Reindeer meat…commercially I guess…and I think there has been concern within the state about Reindeer intermixing with native Caribou. But I’ve seen enough Reindeer in captivity in different areas up here…so I don’t know.
Anyway, as the young man was grilling my Reindeer sausage (which was delicious) he was telling me that the Reindeer Farm sources the Reindeer you see at Christmas Events and The Fur Rondy here in south-central Alaska. I then joked that “I guess you guys source all the sausages too,” he pretty quickly corrected my assumption and emphatically denied their Reindeer ended up on the grill. But with 120 animals at the farm, and 34 of them being calves? Something has to give, no? Maybe live animals can be sold for personal and not commercial consumption?
Side Note (and totally a grumpy old man’s pet peeve) I do kind of get annoyed with zoo animals being named…I guess it’s good for public relations…but I kind of think that should be between the keepers, the administration, and the animal. Not the guest. But this facility is basically a big petting zoo (very well done petting zoo…miles above anything similar I’ve ever seen) and rescue facility (allowed by the state to house and exhibit Moose orphans)…so the name thing makes sense, I guess.
Yep. Just a quick search indicates that specialty processors here in Alaska source the Reindeer meat from herds (about 6,000 animals) managed by Alaska Natives. Which would line up with what the young man told me. Still doesn’t explain where all the new calves end up going…
@Pleistohorse
That is very interesting, thank you. The same is done in the UK with some farms (farm parks) selling venison from their own animals; and even some zoos doing it now too and not just with deer. It is odd that animals from a zoos own collection cannot be used for feeding to other zoo animals, but can be used for feeding to the public. Personally I cant get my head around the legality of this, and am amazed that the public (and the press/antis) are not interested.
