Ametrine: Your DS's position is a pretty sound one. It's pretty much the reason why our society has outsourced the production of meat to other people, and why we don't eat things we'd otherwise keep for pets, like horse, rabbit, or dog.

There are a great many benefits to having raised the meat yourself, as I'm sure you're aware, which are why you're doing it in the first place. Have you shared those benefits with your DS?

Another thought... are there other people doing this in your area with whom you could exchange products? If that were a possibility, you could ensure that your DS isn't eating Snip the Steer, he's eating one of Farmer Brown's cows from down the road.