eat chickens that died from diseases?

I have never owned chickens before so excuse me if this is a crazy thought. I feel like I should explain myself so people will understand where I am coming from. I am a Buddhist and in Buddha's philosophy, he teaches compassion to every person, animal, and nature so this means being mostly vegetarian. I say mostly because the teaching also say it is ok to eat meat that has been prepared for you in order to not offend the host. Anyway, I am looking at having free range chickens for my farm and I am in the thought that when they die, it would be ok to eat them because I do not wish to waste such a precious creature. If anyone has an opinion about my thinking then please share. As for my question, I know chickens can die from many diseases. Would it be healthy for the body to consume an animal that has died from diseases? Could diseases be transmitted through the meat even if it is completely cooked through? Thank you for your help!

It depends on what the chicken is sick with, first of all. Not all diseases would affect humans, but considering you are just starting out with chickens, would you be able to accurately determine what disease the bird had?

Secondly, a sick chicken can be sick for days before dying. Lots of physiological changes could be going on, making the meat less desirable to eat.

Personally I wouldn't eat a sick bird.

...Su Ba
www.kaufarmer.blogspot.com

I generally agree with the poster above in that I wouldn't eat the body of a diseased animal, but there are a few other borderline morality scenarios to consider that I've participated in.....
*what about putting an animal out of it's misery when it is hopelessly wounded? I did this to a young deer once, both of whose front legs had been shot off and it was attempting to run on stumps. I gladly ate that deer.
*what about fresh roadkill, of which I've also made many a meal. Also the leavings of hunters, who often take only the backstrap, or in some cases the head, and fling the rest out by the roadside.
*At least in the above cases one could argue that by eating these critters I'm depriving the buzzards of a meal or two....but what about dumpster meat, which is on it's way to a landfill. I and many friends made this, and other dumpster food, the staples of our diet when I was living in community in Georgia years ago....

I advise against the practice of eating diseased meat.
While it is possible to destroy the bacteria in the cooking process, some forms of bacteria leave behind toxins which may not be destroyed by heat. A prime example is botulism and botulinum toxin. It takes exposure to 240 degrees for an extended period to destroy the toxin. Boiling will only reach 212 degrees at sea level, less the higher the elevation. According to wikipedia: "It is the most acutely toxic substance known, with an estimated human median lethal dose of 1.3–2.1 ng/kg intravenously or intramuscularly and 10–13 ng/kg when inhaled."

Ken Peavey wrote:I advise against the practice of eating diseased meat.
While it is possible to destroy the bacteria in the cooking process, some forms of bacteria leave behind toxins which may not be destroyed by heat. A prime example is botulism and botulinum toxin. It takes exposure to 240 degrees for an extended period to destroy the toxin. Boiling will only reach 212 degrees at sea level, less the higher the elevation. According to wikipedia: "It is the most acutely toxic substance known, with an estimated human median lethal dose of 1.3–2.1 ng/kg intravenously or intramuscularly and 10–13 ng/kg when inhaled."

I had been trying a while back to find the exact temperature botulinum toxin is destroyed but never found a proper source. Where did you read this?

I believe it was the Ball Blue Book. To reach the safe temperature, the time and pressure required to destroy the toxin is a fundamental aspect of their process formula.

For clarification I just now read from the link you provided and it states Botulinum toxin is denatured at temperatures greater than 80 degrees C (176 degrees F). This is good if true because this means the toxin can be boiled off but I do not know how much boiling will be required. Information was sourced from text Modern Food Microbiology: Seventh Edition. Thanks!

Alder, right! Roadkill is fine. Here it is eaten all the time. One seldom sees a vehicle killed pig, goat, or sheep left on the road for long. In fact, there's quite a bit of competition for it.

Discarded meat is difficult to come by in my area. Most stores and restaurants have arrangements with pig owners for the wastage. But if you can get it, some of that meat is perfectly fine.

Also the State and Feds conduct culling operations on government owned land. When feasible, they airlift out the carcasses of sheep and goats, sometimes pigs and cattle, and give them away to the permies.

Hunters here are mostly subsistence hunters. No waste. But if you could hook up with a trophy guide, you could possibly get access to fresh meat that normally would rot in the field.

I personally prefer to eat my own animals or those of friends where I know the animal had a good life and gentle death. I have compassion for animals, so good life and gentle death are important to me.

...Su Ba
www.kaufarmer.blogspot.com