We started our day with Eric (and son Duke in tow) taking us to see the cow & calf herd. We hadn’t seen these animals for over a year so it was amazing to see that the calves we met before are now full-grown cows nursing their own calves. It was quite the contrast to recently being at the Cornell University Dairy Barn where the cows are all in a barn without their calves. Of course the main distinction is that those were dairy cows at Cornell and Eric’s herd is raised for meat, not milk.
While in the pasture with the cows, Eric introduced us to Audrey the cow! He sent us pictures of her last year and said that if it was a male they would call him David and if it was a female they would name her Audrey. So, Audrey got to meet Audrey and it was quite the honor!
We didn’t really hit it off at first since I was wearing perfume and she acted like I smelled repulsive and sneezed when she smelled my hand. Eric explained to us that scents like perfumes are unnatural and unpleasant to them and if I had more of a pasture/barn type of smell she would have not been as suspicious.
One thing that absolutely amazed us was how fearless Duke was around these majestic animals. At not much over four years old, he is as big as one of their heads and yet reached out to them as friends. But never without Daddy’s hand attached. Eric explained to us that as docile as they can appear, they are still prey animals with a “flight zone” and will react quickly to any perceived threat by collectively running to avoid that threat — not considering that one of us might be in the trajectory of their fleeing.
After visiting with the cow-calf herd and meeting Audrey, Eric took us to his barn to see the new additions to his animal family — pigs!
Eric’s older son, Beau, was also fascinating to watch as he interacted with the animals. He was only four in October of 2011 when he watched an on-farm slaughter of a lamb with us — his first experience of slaughter. He has grown so much in the past three years, yet he is affectionate as ever with all of the animals on the farm. It was really heart-warming to see him with one of his Aunt Cindi’s dairy goats.
One thing that we’ve always enjoyed about visiting Eric at his farm is the vast array of fresh meats and produce. It was a lovely end-of-summer day and we got to have lunch together with his family at a picnic table outside. Eric served us his famous recipe of chorizo along with freshly harvested vegetables and other homemade delights.
At the end of the day we were able to sit with Eric and reflect on how far Farm and Red Moon has come over the past four years. We would not be where we are now with the film or been able to experience what we experienced about animal agriculture and slaughter had it not been for Eric’s generosity and willingness to educate us.
We are always honored to visit Eric’s farm as it is a place where animals are cared for with the highest standards of husbandry and stewardship. Yet it is bittersweet because we know these animals will die prematurely to be our food. But what is important – and what we have found in making this film – is that the animals should be treated as humanely as possible while alive, and to be killed as humanely as possible when slaughtered. Eric lives and teaches this.