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I do not agree with suffocation, because suffocation is not peaceful and when humans suffocate they struggle in an attempt to breath, and I'm guessing an animal would do the same because that's instinct. But the rest I agree with and this is a useful article.
I would probably just go to the vet, because I wouldn't be able to bring myself to kill a beloved chicken. I can kill a mean rooster or something, but a chicken that I'm attached to would be very hard to kill.

Also, I've heard about freezing chickens, which I don't recommend! Because that is a painful and very slow way to die, and may pass as animal abuse. Better safe than extremely sorry!

I recently had to euthanize one of my girls. It was a very sad day and a difficult thing to do, but ultimately it was for the best. One shot through the head and a second one to make sure she was gone made it quick and painless for her and much easier for me than any other potentially drawn out (or costly) method. Not everyone has the ability to do this, but ultimately I think the faster the death, the better, whatever method that may be.

@ChocolateMouse, your comment is spot on. I for one am SHOCKED that BYC would feature an article even mentioning such methods while ignoring other suitable and humane options. Euthanasia is about the animal, not the owner - if you can't do it right, don't do it at all! Suck it up and pay a vet or get your neighbor/spouse to do it. Imo if a person isn't willing to take on that responsibility when necessary then they shouldn't have chickens at all.

Pardon me, but the main point of euthanasia is typically to put an animal out of their pain. There is really no purely "humane" method, and nearly every (if not every) method will involve some degree of pain for some amount of time. Everyone I have encountered has used euthanasia not to put an animal to sleep entirely painless, but to put them out of their pain and suffering. From what I have seen, the point of euthanasia was to put an animal out of their unrecoverable suffering and pain. Also, this article was not meant to be an in-depth description of each possible method, but rather to show a few methods and let the reader conduct further research if they are considering a method.

cluckcluckgirl, suffocating an animal to death is a felony in all 50 states. So would be freezing an adult chicken, which would make suffocating worse. You're right, it's about making it as painless as possible, and it will never be totally painless and stress free. But the entire goal is to MINIMIZE suffering and make it quick, not make it worse for a long time before the bird dies. Improper CO2 poisoning, freezing or suffocating are slow, painful suffering for an animal and are illegal. There's ALWAYS a better option that is low tech, able to be preformed by anyone with hands, legal, and free. Broomsticking is easy and not even listed here. Just because it's more comforting to someone to be able to walk away while an animal suffers doesn't make it an acceptable end for an animal. There's ALWAYS a better option. If you can't take the bird to the vet or do it yourself, find someone who will. Letting an animal suffer for up to hours dying slowly is never because you "love" the chicken too much to do it right. It's selfish, cruel and wrong.

This article encourages felony level crimes against animals. In an amateur article nobody would see I would not care as much. If one person wants to write something dumb, that's dumb but I don't care that much. It won't effect thousands of people. Featuring it on the front page of a nationally recognized website for chicken care is disgusting and is severely lacking in oversight.

For people concerned with ACTUAL standards of euthanasia, here's the official AVMA PDF on it. It's a fantastic and professional read.
https://www.avma.org/KB/Policies/Documents/euthanasia.pdf

Also; People this year arrested for suffocating animals
http://6abc.com/news/arrest-made-after-puppy-found-dead-in-plastic-wrapped-crate/1262771/
http://www.texarkanagazette.com/new...cused-torturing-killing-3-family-pets/417821/
http://www.clackamas.us/sheriff/pressreleases/2013-04-25-CCSOPR-AggravatedAnimalAbuse.html
http://wavy.com/2015/04/17/2-charged-with-animal-cruelty-after-cat-is-found-dead-due-to-suffocation/

If it's not OK to do it to a cat, it's not OK to do it to a chicken. And this article could get someone arrested and charged with a felony. It should never have been featured and should be reported and removed.

I do not agree with suffocation or freezing alive
The hen obviously goes through a lot of stress
When not being able to breed or is in temperatures of about -18
I find the most humain way is breaking the neck
The chicken dies straight away no pain and no mess

I feel chopping their heads off is quicker and more humane than cutting their necks and letting them bleed out.

Thank you for removing the part about suffocating or freezing chickens. I still think that there's serious problems with the article and, but at least it's no longer encouraging felony crimes, even if it still violates AVMA standard for humane euthanasia. It only took most of the week and significant backlash to make it happen.

@orpington13 - re CO from your car's exhaust. Maybe that worked in days gone by (certainly in enough movies) but some cars, Prius specifically, do not put out enough CO to kill. Let's go back to the more quick and humane methods mentioned in the article and posts.

@QueenMisha well said.

@ChocolateMouse Great post, (I missed it before), you've said it all very well.

Regarding the drug method, I'm confused by the commas: is it 500mg acetaminophen and 100 Valerian? Or 500mg acetaminophen and 200 Valerian?

@susan6sw That would be at least 500mg acetaminophen and 200mg Valerian root.

I find the best way to perform the CO2 method is with dry ice because it produces a large cloud which immediately brings unconsciousness. Use a 5 gallon bucket (orange Home Depot kind works well). Purchase about 1/4 lb of dry ice from your local grocer for a few dollars. (Be very careful in handling dry ice. Use gloves as it can cause freezer burn.) Place the dry ice in the bottom of the bucket. Pour about a cup of warm water. Place a styrofoam or cardboard insert over the ice (to protect the bird from touching the ice). Let cloud build by placing lid on bucket but slightly ajar to allow gas to escape (otherwise you risk blowing off the lid). After a minute, lower bird into the heavy thick cloud of CO2 and put lid on again with a little vent allowed. It is the same technique used in CO2 fire extinguishing systems in computer rooms and factories. (Workers are warned to get out immediately as unconsciousness occurs within seconds, suffocation within minutes). This amount of CO2 immediately renders the bird unconscious. Body fluttering ends within 30 to 40 seconds. Bird is fully dead within a minute. It is the fastest, kindest way I have found.

@Lady of McCamley Thank you very much for going into detail on that method!

veganurbanfarm said:

I recently had to euthanize one of my girls. It was a very sad day and a difficult thing to do, but ultimately it was for the best. One shot through the head and a second one to make sure she was gone made it quick and painless for her and much easier for me than any other potentially drawn out (or costly) method. Not everyone has the ability to do this, but ultimately I think the faster the death, the better, whatever method that may be.

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Hello, I am facing this today and my question is what type of gun did you use? I had read to use a shotgun but I want to be sure.
Thank you,
tj

what about gabapentin od? i heard Tylenol can be painful and take a long time?

Yrat said:

Vinegar and baking soda produce carbon dioxide, not carbon monoxide. Carbon dioxide will not make the chicken fall asleep. The production of CO2 simply displaces the air in the container, including the oxygen. The bird will essentially suffocate/asphyxiate.

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That is an important point!! I used to have to 'sacrifice' lab mice and used a CO2 chamber--carbon dioxide. It is definitely not something that gently puts them to sleep. They jump around searching for air. Carbon monoxide puts them to sleep.

Some of the methods mentioned are not actually as humane as one might think. Here's some helpful advice: https://the-chicken-chick.com/how-to-humanely-euthanize-chicken-by-dr/