The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[lazy gardener]

Herbs for chickens: Aromatics for nest: Lavender, Citronella, Russian sage, cat nip, mint, ? oregano, lemon balm, bee balm, ? wormwood. I'm not sure about herbs for them to eat. Use all with caution and sparingly. Test them and the chicken's reaction to them.

 

[LindaB220]

BEWARE PICTURES OF PROCESSING A CHICKEN. IF YOU DONT WANT TO SEE THEM THEN SCROLL RIGHT BY (I don't can't use the spoiler option on my IPad)



Well I have sad news. Zorro just got louder and the neighbors were noticing. I tried to find him a new home but had no luck. So I put him in a dog crate last night and covered the windows in the hope he would be quiet. He was. So I did the right thing and culled him this morning, I used used milk jug to hang him in. Had to cut open the pouring end so his head fit through it. And I put a heavy duty leaf bag under the milk jug to catch the blood. He didn't fight after I sliced his neck. I let him drain about 20 min and then worked on feather removal. water temp was 150 degrees and the feathers wiped right off. I removed his feet and head then cut him open to take out his organs. He is currently reading in a milk bath in the fridge. I put a towel over him just because I know my son will yell if he sees the carcass. I took some pics of the organs. I've processed a chicken before when I was a kid but my job was feather removal.

Carcass as I opened it, I was surprised to see the fat.

More fat as I pulled out the organs


the organs outside the body cavity


I believe the lungs, liver & ? I cant remember what the small dark organ is. Gallbladder?

I believe this is the crop. It was covered in yellow fat. Not thick fat just a layer around it.

the intestines

I have no idea what this is. Its at the opposite end of the anus.

crop cut open. I would have to say the crop was the size of a tangerine. Solid. Inside was what he had to eat last night.

Heart & testicles

What was inside the crop that I took out. Fine & grainy. I could see little pieces of corn in there. He last ate last night around 5. I put him in a dog crate in the garage for the night.

Heart, lungs, kidney? & testicles

If I have mislabeled something please let me know. I couldnt label them on the pictures because I dont know how.

I'm cuious to hear from the old timers is that fat is normal? I didnt see any in the breast area just when I cut him open to remove the organs. He was 21 weeks old and on FF once a day since he hatched. He has been foraging in their space since then. And of course leftovers as we had them. I thought he was real skinny. But being so young I was surprised he has some good meat on his breast. He is currently resting in the fridge in a milk bath. His hatch mates were enjoying his heart. If I cant eat him he wont go to waste. His hatch mates & the other hens will enjoy him.

Very good pictures. And a VERY healthy bird. Look at the dark liver, etc. Bolded areas: Not the crop, it is the gizzard. And the other one is the bile duct, so you did well by not piercing it. Beekissed showed pictures of her chickens that were rolling in fat. This is not a lot of fat. Perfect for slow cooking covered at 275 degrees for 2.5 hrs. If he was older, like over a year, you would add a few tbs of water. As young as he is, it's not necessary.

Edited: By adding a few drops of dawn dish soap to the hot water, you can cut down on the smell when dunking him.

 

[LindaB220]

Any of you who home butcher please share how you use the different parts in the thread a tacked onto my signature... If any one has pics of cleaning gizzard or peeling feet I could use them... Also liver recipes... Perhaps how to clean intestines for consumption...
Thanks all

Recipes for liver: this is a no brainer. The best is chopped liver with carmelized onions and smaltz. Google it. Nothing in the world better than liver wrapped in bacon. The texture of the livers is different than store bought chicken livers. They say to boil them for about 5 min and then wrap in bacon and bake for about 30 min at 350. Dirty rice is made with a few chopped up livers. Happy cooking!!!!

Edited: Put the feet in boiling water for about 30 seconds or so. It will allow you to peel the skin off and pop the toenails off. Then put the feet in you freezer bag until you are ready to do a batch of broth. Amazing how much better it makes it. Worth the ewww factor. ha

 

[Toast n Jelly]

@Leahs Mom

I pretty much have the same setup as you do in my garage/barn. I tie-wrapped a couple of tarps over top and sides of the pens. Mostly over their roosting area and a little more, to hold their body heat in at night and also a warmer place for afternoon naps. Looking good

 

[armorfirelady]

AFL, the lungs are way the heck up - and are kind of nestled in the rib cage. So you reach your hand in as far as you can, and scrape them off, they are bright pink. they don't seem to come out like the organs do, you really have to scrape. They even make special tools to get them out - if you were processing a lot of chickens it would be worth it.

Otherwise, fingers.

When you take the carcass out of the frig, lay it on the counter on its back. hand goes in palm down. Or if you are going to cut it up before you cook it, you will see the lungs.

I just had the best homemade chicken noodle soup at the town hall - someone asked the woman who made it for her recipe and she just laughed and said you have to start with a home grown chicken!

Hmmm looks like I will be looking for those lungs after his milk bath. I am curious.....being that he is only 5 months old do you think I could roast him tomorrow night? It would be about 30 hours since he went in the fridge. And will he not be so stiff when he has soaked....maybe thats how I can tell when he is ready to roast?

Okay, I know I've asked this twice before, but this time I swear I'll bookmark it. Do you have a link to a good page about herbs that go well with chickens? My wife wants to plant some around the runs, and wants me to find out what to plant.

Seems like I remember lavender and bee balm being high on the list. Anything else in particular?

I have mint growing around the coop. As I found it in other areas of my yard I moved it to around the coop. Some was even coming up inside the coop. I dont mind it smells good in there and a good bug deterrent. I would also plant basil (antibiotic) & garlic (tho that's in the veggie garden under plastic wire to prevent the hens from digging it up.

Thanks !!! somehow I missed the crop somewhere. Boy that gizzard was solid & muscular.

Edited: By adding a few drops of dawn dish soap to the hot water, you can cut down on the smell when dunking him.

Thanks for the idea about the Dawn dish soap. I will try that next time.

 

[hennible]

Hmmm looks like I will be looking for those lungs after his milk bath.  I am curious.....being that he is only 5 months old do you think I could roast him tomorrow night?  It would be about 30 hours since he went in the fridge.   And will he not be so stiff when he has soaked....maybe thats how I can tell when he is ready to roast? 
I have mint growing around the coop. As I found it in other areas of my yard I moved it to around the coop. Some was even coming up inside the coop. I dont mind it smells good in there and a good bug deterrent.   I would also plant basil (antibiotic) & garlic (tho that's in the veggie garden under plastic wire to prevent the hens from digging it up. 

Thanks !!!  somehow I missed the crop somewhere.  Boy that gizzard was solid & muscular. 

Thanks for the idea about the Dawn dish soap. I will try that next time. 

You could eat tomorrow... I've eaten lots ( ok like 3 birds ) the day after butchering... Taste good cook just fine...

 

[Kassaundra]

Thought I'd share a laugh w/ you guys, I hope this coat, which I have slaved over all day is enough to keep my naked Rudy warm tonight.

 

[islandgirl82]

Thought I'd share a laugh w/ you guys, I hope this coat, which I have slaved over all day is enough to keep my naked Rudy warm tonight.

He has some pretty sweet dance moves.

 

[armorfirelady]

Thought I'd share a laugh w/ you guys, I hope this coat, which I have slaved over all day is enough to keep my naked Rudy warm tonight.

Poor Rudy......i am sure he will like it more once it snows and gets colder

 

[hennible]

Check out this amazing chicken door!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...do-you-have-one-pictures-please#post_10529866 it's in the first YouTube in this thread....