How do you mentally prepare yourself for the first butcher? - Page 3

I'd say around 4 lbs, give or take a few ounces. 

  I think the books say that poultry generally dress out to about 75% of live weight.  I know that the percentage is much higher than a mammal which is about 50%.

  I raise Delawares and butcher at around 11 or 12 weeks giving me 1 3/4 to 2 3/4 pound fryers.  They are tender and DEE-LUSCIOUS!!!  Most of you probably think of that as too small but you must realize that my wife and I are, uh, from an older generation that can remember when fryers (broilers) were UNDER 3 pounds!  Watch Julia Childs "Chicken Show".  (Ugh, that dates me!)

Good things can come in small packages!

~S~

I am SO GLAD I read this thread!  Someone else is feeling like I am!   I am raising my first chicks, they are 5 week old chicks. They are Araucanas, Blue Laced Red Wyandottes and Lavender Orpingtons., I recognize for a fact that I have at least 3 roosters. I was not planning on keeping any roos. I am quite fond of my chickens and I am not sure how I am going carry out dispatching them.  I have thought about finding them homes.....but I think people would take them to butcher them. I have already put in the time and money to raise them so far and giving them away would be a huge waste of resources to just end up with the same fate. I have never butchered anything before and I will be processing alone so I am very nervous.   I wish I could have started out with CX....seems like it would have been an easier first experience.  Any advice for me?

I agree with the everybody else is saying. I mentally picture my DH Grandmother who was one of those "sweeeet and nice ladies" going out in her yard picking a chicken and wringing it's neck for dinner. She is no longer alive so I can't get any advise from her but other family members tell me that is what she did. So if she could do it so can I. I also find telling the chicken thanks and God thanks helps.  Then the mental image of fried chicken helps also.

Quote:

Originally Posted by galanie 


Just the same as before. The first ones I processed were for the exact same reason. Darned if I was going to put in the time and feed to raise birds for someone else to eat! But it is harder than doing a bird that was hatched for the purpose of food from the beginning.

About what age do you think I will need to process them? I was kind of hoping they would come into adulthood and be obnoxious, and in some way that would make it easier to butcher them. Will the breeds I have be ready about the same time?

The man of the house & I had 2 understandings when I got the chickens & ducks - 1. This is my "hobby".  2.  We would not keep roosters.

I tried to avoid it by ordering sexed chicks, but  got 2 roosters.  Hey, it happens.  I bought 6 chicks because I figured it would happen.  I had one Buff Orp. & one EE rooster.

They started to crow (baby crows) at 18/20 weeks.  He wanted the deed done.  It was not the worst thing ever.  Not the most fun Sunday afternoon I have ever spent, but hey, I stand by my word.  I also see "free roosters to good home" on CL all the time, and I think there is no way to guarantee that is true.  I also have no way of knowing if the new owner will butcher them or not, and if they do, I have no way of knowing it will be humanely.  Add to that the trauma of moving them.  I just decided my best choice was to process them.

I have some sexed chicks coming to me in May, but I assume there will be a boy or two in the mix again.  If there are I will wait until 28 weeks to process them.  They just weren't meaty enough.