DIY HUMANE way to Kill Slaughter Chicken (Stun-kill, Gas) - Page 9

According to a doctor I work with, peroxide and baking soda would only produce carbon dioxide gas.  So in essence, it would be suffocation.  Kind of like breathing into a plastic bag and not getting fresh air.

This seems like a lot of work for something that may be dangerous, may not be effective, and just much more complicated than it needs to be.  I stun my birds as well before I put them in the cones, but I hold them and my buddy whacks them over the head with a 1x2 board.  They never know what hit them, they are out for a couple of minutes, I slit the throat, and by the time they regain consciousness, (if they do,) they are close to the end.  You just have to accept the fact that you are killing something, or just pay the $2 to have them processed, IMO.

Bicarb and hydrogen peroxide do not make lye. I've used this combo many times to make a homemade deodorizer, I've gotten it all over my hands when washing a skunk-sprayed dog with it. It was mildly irritating, just as hydrogen peroxide is, all by itself, but it did not burn my skin, or the dog's skin, nor did it dissolve either one of us to mush. It will not dissolve hair, Booferd still had all of his when we were done. He just smelled a lot better.

To others, who are alarmed about all these horrible gasses we're talking about:
As for "toxic" gases leaving toxic residue in the meat....WE BREATHE carbon dioxide everyday, as well as oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, argon, methane, and a number of other gasses in our atmosphere. If they leave toxic residue, it's already in absolutely every single living thing on the planet. Including us.

The only difference is in the concentrations, if you breath any gas alone it will kill you. Including oxygen. Is oxygen a toxic gas? No. Neither is CO2. 

If you become alarmed by the mere word "gas", please, read which gas is being discussed, and if you don't know anything about it, look it up. It's amazing what you can learn in just a few minutes, even on Wiki.

I know there is a combo of gases that will quickly induce unconsciousness, without pain or panic, but I don't know specifically what the combo is, or the correct proportions. It may be carbon dioxide and argon, but I'm not sure.

I had a friend do it for me. I couldn't bear to. So I have no advice.

He mention this method for removing feathers. Taking a pan of rubbing alcohol and setting it on fire. Taking the bird and slowly rotating it in the fire, burns off all the small feathers.

ok so I'm a lousy chemist....  I was wrong on a couple of accounts there.  The lye formula wasn't a given, just an example of mixing-chemicals-gone-bad if we don't know what we are doing. 
I have no intention of using gas or suffocation...but the topic is interesting anyway.

According to the American Vet Med Association, CO2 is a humane method of euthanasia for many different animals, providing the concentration of CO2 is correct.

I've used bottled CO2 to kill mice, with the flow rate calculated to keep the concentration optimum. Within about 2 breaths, they're unconscious. Usually they've stopped breathing entirely within 5 - 10 more seconds. CO2 only "stings" when the concentration is too high because it can irritate mucus membranes.

CO2 also doesn't leave any harmful residues in meat (and has been used to kill swine for human consumption).

http://casemed.case.edu/ora/arc/Text%20Documents/AVMA_panel_Euthnasia.pdf

For home use for chickens, the cost would probably end up being the main issue. For the mice, I believe tank rental cost me about $100 a year, another $50 to buy a regulator, and then $50 to have the tank filled with CO2. If you're only slaughtering a dozen chickens a year, that's pretty steep!


ETA: CO2 also has "rapid depressant, analgesic, and anesthetic effects". So it's not like just suffocating under a pillow, or drowning. It actually does anesthetize an animal, and when it's done right, the animal barely even seems to notice anything's wrong before they've lost consciousness.

Good information, thank you!

The objective of euthanasia and cispatching for slaughter are different even though they both need to be humane.  The objective of euthanasia (culling) is to humanely duspatch a sick or unwanted animal.  No care is taken for preserving the quailty of the meat for human consumption or for subsequent disassembly of the animal.

CO2 has been used as a method to stun an animal, but the bird must still be killed by either removing the head or by exsanguination.  We prefer to decapitate the bird by using a hatchet or other appropriate device.

Jim

IMO
If you have a problem slaughtering/processing the animal, Take it to a local butcher shop or find someone to do it for you.Its  never easy to kill any animal but it has to be done.

Whatever you think is humane,I don't think putting it in a gas filled box is any different then decapitating  its head.Either way you are still killing it.

(That is my opinion...It isn't focused towards any specific person)

For those who are afraid of 'gas' leaving harmful residue, CO2 is used to carbonate beverages. If you drink soda pop, you're drinking CO2. You can safely use dry ice in a glass of any beverage, or use it to freeze food. You or your children have probably eaten ice cream or popsicles from a truck with dry ice to keep them frozen while driving around the neighborhood, though that's less common now than it used to be. Most ice cream trucks probably have refrigeration now. Dry ice is solid, compressed CO2. Don't handle it with your bare hands, because it's so cold it will blister your skin, but that's temperature, not a chemical reaction.

Nitrogen gas is commonly used in the food industry, to displace air in packaging foods like potato chips, cereals, tea, coffee, and may other foods. Both oxygen and normal air, will cause the foods to become stale very quickly. Using nitrogen gas to displace the air before sealing the container keeps the food fresh. It doesn't leave any residue, and is perfectly safe.