Explaining the dead bird in the middle of the table.

[eepster]

So, DS is at the point where he has realized that dead animals get eat by other animals and sometimes people, but is quite content with the idea that we don't b/c we don't want to hurt animals.

I'm bit worried about how this new level of understanding is going to play out at a big family dinner with a dead bird sitting in the middle of the table.

[noobmom]

Does your family always serve Thanksgiving dinner with the turkey as the centerpiece? My family keeps the bird on the kitchen counter, so it's not as visible. Would your family object to that? I know some families are really tied to "tradition" so I don't know if that would work or not. I realize that people would still be eating meat, but the turkey wouldn't "be on display", so to speak. Since your DS already understands that some people eat meat, it may be no different than any other extended family dinner.

[eepster]

Originally Posted by noobmom

My family keeps the bird on the kitchen counter, so it's not as visible. Would your family object to that? I know some families are really tied to "tradition" so I don't know if that would work or not.

It's not a tradition, but having it out of sight would probably result in the diabetic cat gorging himself.

[ShadowMoon]

We usually have Thanksgiving dinner at my Uncle's house. They keep the carcass in the kitchen and keep the vegetable dishes in the center of the table. Ds is still too young to understand what's being eaten and what the food consists of and I'm not sure how we'll handle it then, but keeping it out of plain sight helps a bit.