Any current or former butchers?

[A_Hunger_Artist]

Hey guys, I did a search on this topic and nothing quite matched my questions so let me know if this has come up before or if there is a better place to ask this question.

I'm looking for someone who has experience in the butchering field to shed some light on the day-to-day of the career. My situation is that I'm 24, and I've done a little of pretty much everything there is to do in the kitchen. I've prepped, worked the line, catered, baked, and worked front of house. My issue is that the craziness of restaurant life is taking it's toll. I'm not really cut out for 18 hour days in front of a grill, getting home at 3am stopped being fun a while ago. I would love to stay in food world, though, and being a butcher has always appealed to me. I realize that it will never be a 9-5 and I'm cool with that. I was wondering what exactly a typical day for a butcher is, in terms of starting/ending work and what all is involved.

I know this is pretty broad, but I've been seriously considering signing on with Fleisher's to do training and wanted to know what I was getting myself into before I put my time and money into this.

Thanks in advance for any help

Edited October 29, 2011 by A_Hunger_Artist (log)

[heidih]

Perhaps you have already seen this topic but I thought I would link it for reference.

My father was a butcher. He apprenticed from age 12 in Croatia, then worked in Austria, and came through the ranks in California at a packing house and as a member of the local union. He brought a number of men through the program here. You may want to check with the union that serves your locale.

[Country]

I've never worked in a butcher shop, but I've been around butchers ever since I was young and never heard any of them complain about the work, or thinking about changing their line of work to something else. Don't know if this helps, but best I can do.