Road Kill: It's Fresh, It's Organic, It's Free

I have no particular objection to the unlucky animals
who come up against our technology being eaten.
It's an incredibly small number compared to the
farmed livestock, and those involved are obviously
working hard for their supper.

But I can't see myself becoming a convert - it's been too
long and I know I get queasy even in the meat aisle.

So far as the "independence" of butchering and getting
food free from the side of the road, I have to point
out that there is lots of other food at the roadside
if you want to forage - with no butchering or checking for
"maggots? no maggots?"

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That would be a serious deterrent in my book.

Plus, I think us urban dwellers would have a hard time finding enough roadkill to live on. Pigeons are plentiful enough, but they don't seem to die on the ground often.

I once saw a seagull impaled on the pigeon-proofing spikes of a light fixture above the Cold Stone Creamery on Pacific Avenue in Santa Cruz. Looked pristine, but who could get to it?

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Dogs or cats or humans (may have to go 12 miles off the coast for humans) who died before the body became too unhealthy for consumption may also be options to consider. I would of course be a little concerned that those who rely on dogs, cats or humans may do things to accelerate the availability of their meat. A similar concern is that people relying on road kill may not stick to the truly accidental kind.

I personally suffer from the "yuck" factor, and would be unlikely to join in the consumption of relatively cruelty-free meats.

Sincerely,
Aouie

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This guy is probably the most extreme example out there of ex-vegans who want to eat meat again because they like the taste, but feel the need to justify it as being somehow even more ethical than just not eating it at all.

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Advice from "Dr Splatt"? A reformed vegan called "Ursus"? Come on ...

America. Land of the brave, home of the people who scrape shit off the road and eat it? If we were talking about the Middle East you'd all be laughing your pelts off at their backwardness.

On a practical note eating dead deer is not to be recommended unless you know for a fact that it's been dead only a very few hours. Ungutted venison goes off at a rate of knots, as any poacher worth his salt will confirm.

What a brilliant website AlterNet is. I come here to read about politics and wind up reading how the world's greatest nation (tm) subsists on chowing down on hedgehogs scraped off the road.

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I live in an area of the country where it is common for many families to hunt for the food that ends up in their freezers - many families that would do without meat were it not for the animals they bring home during hunting season. Most of these people hunt deer, and some hunt wild fowl. Several people I've known for decades also bring home deer when it's been hit by a vehicle, and they even have local police who alert them when a deer has just been hit, so that the meat can be collected while it is fresh. The deer was either killed by a bullet, an arrow, or a car. What's the difference? Meat is meat. Although I'm a vegetarian, I'm not on a crusade to stop people from eating animals and it seems resourceful, environmentally conservative, and sensible to eat the meat rather than throwing it away or letting it rot. And it seems a lot more sensible than supporting the horrific cruelty of the big meat corporations that torture animals from the day they are born until the day they are butchered.

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i think collecting roadkill is illegal in texas (unless you're on the road crew)

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...would not have died in vain if people ate them.

Personally, I don't think I could do it but why not. They're a source of lean, chemical free, hormone free meat. Probably pretty tasty too.

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When I think of roadkill, it's of some dark reddish, slightly red stain on the blacktop with some unidentifiable hair blowing up off it.

*barfs*

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I agree with the author that we can utilize this unfortunate resource; however; keep in mind that in most states you will still need a take tag. A take tag is the same as a hunting tag, check with your local Fish and Wildlife or Game Department to be legit. Otherwise outside of the system you can still take it of course.

Another thought I had was, if this animal was hit by vehicle going 50-75 MPH; will there not be bone shards scattered throughout the carcass; making it unfit to eat?

Definitely better than consuming the crap that a for profit business usually provides.....

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what the fuck has that animal been eating??
we live in a polluted World, where the average person is more likely to encounter a deer in a near-urban fringe area... or along *roads*

In a continent where we can't even trust that 'organic' is actually organic without intense oversight, calling a wild animal 'organic' is a broad interpretation of its living conditions & damaged habitat...

Would a Tennessee Valley deer be considered organic these days? How about one of those cute little deer that wander around residential Austin Texas?

The problem is, this is the same logic that has people eating from their gardens, not knowing what pollution is being harboured by the plant material from the air or soil...


though, I have to tell you, I've often commented that if the homeless started illegally trapping & eating park swans & Canada geese, you'd see some social provisions being made to support the Poor in our communities.

the problem is: our urban environment is so badly polluted, you've no idea what is stored in those animals.


Perspective.

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"...good ones will be sitting off the road or in a median where [they aren't] constantly being pulverized."

I think this is known as "tire tenderization."

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In Alaska it is law that you must report any big game killed by a car. The animal is then property of the state and is turned over to non profits to be butchered and given to the hungry. A 1500 pound moose will feed a lot of folks. It seems silly to let high quality, free range, organic meat go to waste along side the road. If other states would enact mandatory reporting laws, the meat could be collected while fresh.

I have family on the east coast and its amazing to see how many deer lie along roadways rotting. Then we get to rural Virginia where my family is from and you never see a dead deer. Someone, whether the person who hit the deer, or a passerby, always snags them quickly.

If you think you are above eating roadkill. Get over yourself! If its fresh, it is better than anything you can get in a store. As far a disease goes, it is very obvious when you are butchering a sick animal.

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A friend of mine lives in a relatively rural area and one year she hit two deer (different occasions). After properly reporting to the police she was issued a license so she could take her roadkill and have it processed into dog food. She had two good sized dogs at the time.

Apparently in Michigan if you hit a deer with your vehicle you can take it after getting the proper permits.

And deer hits are up, too. Some deer I've seen along the freeway are reasonably intact. Others are more mangled.

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I grew up on a farm with scant traffic past our place. Occasionally we would have a roadkill squirrel, rabbit, loose pig or even a couple of times a deer. We never picked up anything that was mangled, had protruding flesh or anything like that. Many times the animal will just be knicked by the fender or tire and that's all it takes.

If you didn't hit it or see it get hit then you should be extremely careful with the freshness of the kill. If the animal is still very warm, and not from heat on the road or sun, then it's likely fine. But once it cools down or even sits in the sun for more than a few minutes you should probably consider it unfit to eat.

Also don't pickup animals that died naturally, as they were likely sick to begin with. If the animal looks like it might have been sick and mangy then it's also not worth picking up. Leave those things to the carrion eaters.

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Hard core vegans suddenly munching down on carnivore roadkill? Doesn't sound very hard core to me. I seriously doubt the truth of this author. What a load of sensationalist crap. The ex-vegan stuff is all made up. Liars.

I conclude this article is mostly disinformation written by a zealous carnivore.

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This article is a put-on, right? Are the Yes Men behind this?

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And in the country where I live, I have that. If you don't, that's up to you. Good luck.

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My Ass!

IF the voracious vegan story is even true, those "vegans" never got it, and they never were really vegans, didn't believe in or understand the philosophy.

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What a wonderful article. With budget cuts many states no longer have game department or other people available to pick up a fresh hit deer, or other road kill, so having a network where one can call and tell someone they just found a fresh animal killed on the road, people need not go hungry.

Used to be, many areas had workers who would quickly retrieve the wild game and dress it out and the meat would be donated to food banks or homeless shelters. Wonder how many people know that Guinea pigs are food in South America.

One of my favorite films is Never Cry Wolf (1983) which was based on Farley Mowat's book, where as a scientist in remote Alaska he at mice that were plentiful.

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While it sounds odd I think the Freegan movement is on to something quite big. We are all slaves to our stuff and out notions of what is socially acceptable in our society.

We all so programmed to think a certain way we can't imagine a world without some middleman taking a cut of every aspect of our existence, we can't imagine a world without Fast Food, water that automagically appears from the tap, having to stress about having a job so we can have health insurance...

and yet, as we are seeing glimpses of, this system is a house of cards that is slowly falling down on it's own weight.

Who will be best prepared to survive? Those who have already learned to live off the grid.

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{{ This isn't a sensationalist necrophilic bizarre fetishized kind of thing. }}

Uh-huh...but thanks just the same, for putting the thought in our minds.

{{ Our first feral feast of roadkill was on spring equinox of 2002. }}

Hmmm, spring equinox = pagan holiday "Ostara"!

Are you sure you haven't mistaken a Satanic cult for roadkill "foodies", and that Ursus's tattoo really said "Reagan", not "vegan"?

Your article also seems to attribute some mesmerizing force regarding roadkill, that hypnotizes even "hardcore vegans" to feel compelled to stare at the skinning, and eat of the flesh.

{{ After a couple hours on a spit, the grey fox was edible. }}

Yes, yes! The virgin sacrifice! An innocent maimed...and eaten.

{{ it was almost ritualistic, without trying to make it so. }}

Oh, you tried all right...and succeeded!

{{ Ursus tanned the skin and later wore it around his neck like a scarf. }}

The skin of the virgin. Ursus *is* Buffalo Bill!

{{ The more slowly you travel, the more you notice not only roadkill but all sorts of roadside harvesting possibilities. }}

Like hitchhikers?

{{ People enthusiastically took front-row seats to see these animals get skinned. }}

After you laced their green tea infusions with GHB, of course!

{{ Natalie coached Dylan, a previously uninitiated thirteen-year-old }}

Ah, yes, a Jeffrey Dahmer in the making. So proud! (And what's this about an initiation? Hmmm.)

{{ I could also fulfill my need for food whenever I saw some lying by the side of the road. }}

As in "some tired old wino snoring in a dark alley". Hey, this meal is pre-marinated; don't knock it!

{{ fresh, wild, totally free-range and organic meat }}

More likely: "rotten, diseased, totally de-ranged and tainted meat".

{{ If there are fleas on the animal there's a good chance it's still edible. }}

Sure! A million fleas can't be wrong. Besides bubonic plague, fleas spread typhus, skin infection, and tapeworms.

{{ Most of the animals we've eaten have been stiff. }}

Oooo, just the thought of that gives me a stiffie! Deer penis anyone?

{{ one of the most severe risks of roadkill is rabies. }}

Actually, the most *severe* risk is hooking up with rabid loons like you, who stalk the roads for dead flesh!

{{ Also, rabies will cook out of the carcass. }}

But not from your sick, tormented, blood-lusting souls! MU-AH-HAHAHA-HAAAA!

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I'm not big on Maggots.

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Who says the revolution won't be microwaved?Tell me that after the microbeam forces you back into your"free speech zone"!
OK I have to admit it,the other evening a herd of Carrots was crossing the road and I mowed them down with my S.U.V.
But in my defense I was hungry!mmmm peas in

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Hey, Sandor! Whatcha tryin' to do? Make me sick?

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Thanks to our foresighted state Rep. Tim Burchett. It's even literature. Haven't any of you read John McPhee's "Travels in Georgia"

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Now we know what to do with all those unwanted infants that should've been aborted. The other *other* white meat.

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is actually 'possum on the half shell...

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I have always wondered how the world might have been, had those who created roads/highway system/cars considered the slaughter of animals that this new technology would bring about. We could have seen an entirely different infrastucture, designed to protect our wildlife, and possibly, protect humans also. It's such a bad design, but, because it exists, we accept it, and don't envision a different reality.

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big bumper gaurd on the front car or pick-up an hit them in the front part or the head an neck part if you stop on them do not get out with knife an crawl under car its all bad good ball pen hammer work better hit to head will do it real find

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OK, first this topic is hilarious. I mean really funny. On the serious side though, welcome to the world of game meat. What organic farming is to the vegan, hunting is to the carnivore. In spite of the redneck drunken idiot image so often put forth, some of us simply enjoy meat that was not force-fed chemicals on a feedlot. Maybe this will be 'food' for thought to some of the more extreme anti-gun, anti-hunting crowd. If freedom from industrial food is a right, it is linked to the ability to hunt. Trust me, if you think roadkill tastes good, wait until you sink your teeth into some range fed elk.
By way of public service, you really should educate yourself on how to dress game or you might poison yourself. Roadkill often has a ruptured gutsack, which can taint the meat. A quick call to your local NRA (gasp!) chapter will steer you in the right direction for a proper education in processing game meat. Don't sicken yourself or your family for a free steak! Happy BBQing!

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Great article, and I agree 100%.

EXCEPT for this warning:

"If it is covered in flies or maggots or other insects it's probably no good."

Maybe the MEAT is no good, but what about the flies and maggots themselves?

Gather enough of these little fellows and you can cook up some scrumptious stuff. Insects make up a good part of the diet of many primitive people.

Don't overlook the obvious! Don't waste those flies and maggots.

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...that sick, parasitized, poisoned or otherwise chemically contaminated animals would be more likely than healthy ones to be hit by cars?

I know I would!

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it's just sickening to see freshly killed fawns on the side of the road and know there are hungry people in the community and nobody can legally retrieve them.

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Here's a great menu:

http://www.roadkillreporter.com/

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While the topic of roadkill is newsworthy, what the author has writ is
sensationalist jabber...playing off the "ubermensch" carnivore against the
hapless, misguided vegan. As others besides myself have pointed out: dining on
roadkill is a risky proposition on your health, at best. Also, it is unrealistic
to expect more than a handful of folks to effectively gut, skin, and otherwise
transform roadkill into food and clothing. Typical Rambo fantasy, that is more a
reflection of fear by a dying breed of men who see their machismo as god's gift
to the world. Which it is not. In fact, it is the sole destructive cause of
violence, war, and discord...for which reason needs be eliminated for the
psychic plague it truly is.

I have no doubt that the sport of roadkill is taking off, due to these desperate
times where store bought food has become too expensive for the poor. But all
this will lead to, is a brief burst of roadkilling, then the total disappearance
of available wildlife as a consequence. Likely, there will be scavengers
competing for the booty, fighting and killing. These roads will become the
territory of whoever owns the most vehicles and powerful weapons. They will be
the "Roadkill Professionals" who will charge a reasonable price that families in
their area may eat. Of course, what is reasonable price-wise, will eventually
turn into extortion, as the edible wildlife becomes scarce.

I am reminded of the devastated continent of Africa, most of whose nations are
losing their wildlife at a rapid pace...in large part due to the starving masses
hunting down any creature they can, no matter how endangered. Is that the kind
of reality you want for yourselves and future generations, here in North
America?

Freeganism was founded as a vegan movement, to scavenge discarded-yet-wholesome veggies, fruits, nuts, bread, and other non-meat provisions. Naturally, it is the nature of carnivores to oppress and bash those who prefer to *not* eat meat...thus they have begun to make inroads into the formerly-veggie concept of freeganism.

Vegan freeganism makes good practical sense, too...for which foods are most
likely to become toxic sooner than other types? Meat and their byproducts,
including eggs and milk. (Cheese, however, keeps pretty well...and is not meat.)
You are far more likely to become deathly ill scavenging for discarded meat and
products containing meat, eggs or milk.

It is obvious that the author seeks profit over truth, by creating such an
exaggerated account of how even hardcore vegans can be excited about meat all
over again, when you introduce them to the manly glory of roadkill. I think
anyone seriously considering roadkill as food, can do better than what this
author provides...and find many practical resources on skinning, cleaning,
deboning, etc. elsewhere. I'm sure the Internet has some excellent sites on the
topic. But when you come across writers who stereotype vegetarians and play the
machismo card, realize you are probably not reading a reliable or trustworthy
piece.

Even better: do yourselves the excellent favor of learning about edible plants
in the wild, how to pick them so as not to make them go extinct, and how to
prepare and eat them. If you have any land, start your own lovely garden.
Besides, road killing will by necessity *always* be limited to a tiny percentage of our vast population.

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Hi, commenters,
You should all know that here in metropolitan Sacramento, a huge ruckus was raised on whether to have a deer hunt in two western Placer cities (Granite Bay and Loomis). The basis for this suggestion was the sudden rise in deer strikes. This roadkill eating suggestion pretty engaging. I thank all of you for commenting, because it's so pertinent to the discussion here. The suggestion was this: to permit limited hunt by teens (!) based on the rise in deer strikes. How much simpler to use cell phone technology to collect the deer and get them to qualified butchers. I agree that the meat is hardly organic if it ranges around our sprayed landscape, but economizing like this is intriguing. To have extra carcasses lying about has given rise to a greater vulture population: there's a roost in Land Park (Sacramento) that's home to 60 or so of the birds. What's clear to me is that their carrion is coming from the roadsides. Commenters carrion!/carry on! -Tom

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{{ Even some hardcore vegans have found solace in scavenging. Here's why. }}

How absurd. Certainly, hardcore vegans find solace in scavenging...for discarded plant food. The implication made by the article's intro is that "scavenging" soley means collecting meat and its products.

NO hardcore vegan will ever find "solace" in scavenging for animal flesh. What a fat, stupid LIE!

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If there is anyone considering eating roadkill, as a veterinarian and having worked in a slaughterhouse controlling freshly slaughtered animals (its a part of the studies over here): any dead animal you eat should be disembowled in minutes after the killing. Bacteria from the intestines tend to migrate from the organs into the muscles (the flesh you intend to eat) making it inedible. Wild animals carry parasites like intestinal worms or trichina, which are often not recognisable to the eye. Look for any hard knots in the muscles - they could be a sign of infestation. Control the inner organs: are they difformed, do they carry patches, purulence or discolourations? If so, the animal wasn't healthy, so refrain from eating its flesh. Look for the lymph nodes, especially those around the lungs and the heart. Are they enlarged (a normal lymph node should have the maximum lenght of a bean)? If the nodes are enlarged, this could be a sign of infection, and many infections can be transmitted from animals to humans. To find out if the animal is infected with trichina (a condition which is very hard to cure in humans), which can be especially the case with wild boars, make a cut in their jaw muscle and control it for nodes. Make sure the meat you eat was well cooked, or freeze it for two weeks at -18° minimum. This will kill most parasites. Do not keep roadkill meat alongside dairy products and bought meat in your fridge, as infections tend to spread in those. This said: have a good meal.

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Full disclosure first: when my kids were young they watched a local PBS show where the hosts collected cool skins and bones from roadkill. As an "educational" activity, I agreed to help them skin and preserve any reasonably intact carcass we found.
Multiple squirrel, fox, groundhog, chipmunk, deer, and rabbit furs (and bones and teeth) later, I think I have enough experience with roadkill to tell you that it is nasty. 99% of the roadkill I stop and check is beyond sickening. And I couldn't imagine eating any of the bodies I've collected. People, these animals are nasty. They have vermin, fleas, and deer ticks that carry Lyme disease. Their bodies are full of parasites and disease.
These are the weaker animals that are pushed out of the wilderness by stronger, more competive animals, and have to accept polluted areas near highways. They are full of heavy metals, pollution, pesticides and herbicides. They eat junk food thrown from cars. There is nothing natural or pure about eating roadkill, and only a fool would do so.
This article is written by poorly informed people who think that what they are doing is "organic," simple, and natural. We're not living in the eighteenth or nineteenth century. This isn't Walden Pond. And it's criminal to write such an article telling others anything different.

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