We're ready to process our 3 laying hens, which are done laying for the year. Its cold where we live, and the shed isn't heated, and they aren't producing...and we're hungry!
This is our first year keeping chickens, and we've never done slaughtering before. We read up on it in books, looked at many you tube videos on how to do it, including some put up by BYCers! We got set up and all physced up.....we were told by experienced friends that we had to starve them for a few days first so the digestive track wouldn't contaminate the meat if we broke it the wrong way.
Then my fiancee went out to the coop and there was 3 where there was 4 only a few hours before. The missing bird was dead in the run outside, and had been badly cannibalized.
The birds have been extra picky with each other in general lately since they went off lay. We decided not to slaughter that night, as it was late and we were grumpy and tired and shocked at the dead bird, and a little freaked out.
So we started feeding again....
Now we're getting lots of bad weather lately, snow, hail....and I feel like the birds are using all their energy to keep warm and probably losing weight.
I haven't fed them since yesterday am, is it ok to slaughter them tonight?
Heather=^..^=
This is our first year keeping chickens, and we've never done slaughtering before. We read up on it in books, looked at many you tube videos on how to do it, including some put up by BYCers! We got set up and all physced up.....we were told by experienced friends that we had to starve them for a few days first so the digestive track wouldn't contaminate the meat if we broke it the wrong way.
Then my fiancee went out to the coop and there was 3 where there was 4 only a few hours before. The missing bird was dead in the run outside, and had been badly cannibalized.
The birds have been extra picky with each other in general lately since they went off lay. We decided not to slaughter that night, as it was late and we were grumpy and tired and shocked at the dead bird, and a little freaked out.
So we started feeding again....
Now we're getting lots of bad weather lately, snow, hail....and I feel like the birds are using all their energy to keep warm and probably losing weight.
I haven't fed them since yesterday am, is it ok to slaughter them tonight?
Heather=^..^=