➡I accidentally bought Balut eggs: 2 live ducks! Now a Chat Thread!

[Kiki]

That's OK. You raise, they butcher, you all share in dinner. Were they squeamish about it?



I don't know if it is different for quail, but I never soak my meat birds. I rinse them in cold water, pat dry and let rest in a bag in the fridge for a couple of days.



It never gets easy, but I think that the first time is the worst. I always tell myself that raising your own meat is a lot kinder to the bird involved then buying factory farmed.



Are there other techniques that may be faster? Cervical dislocation? I guess they are too small for an axe to be feasible.

The Mini is the only one that wasn't bothered in some way by the whole process.
I am pretty sure I won't ever be able to do it unless there was a way I didn't have to actually hold the quail.
The whole fluttering thing really really bothers me.

 

[BantyChooks]

The Mini is the only one that wasn't bothered in some way by the whole process.
I am pretty sure I won't ever be able to do it unless there was a way I didn't have to actually hold the quail.
The whole fluttering thing really really bothers me.

A mini cone?
When we were doing a whole batch of CX, we cut the heads off and dropped them into a barrel to flap and bleed out. That way we didn't have to collect them from around the yard, and they didn't get blood everywhere.

 

[BantyChooks]

The Mini is the only one that wasn't bothered in some way by the whole process.
I am pretty sure I won't ever be able to do it unless there was a way I didn't have to actually hold the quail.
The whole fluttering thing really really bothers me.

Kids are suprisingly good with butchering. It's us old, set in our ways people that find it tough.
The person I processed with last spring had her 2 and 4 year olds close by. The youngest got scared by the flapping, but the oldest thought it was neat.

 

[Molpet]

I have pipe cutters and they work great on chickens.... I would think the neck is too short on quail..... How much room is there between the head and shoulders?

 

[Morrigan]

A mini cone?
When we were doing a whole batch of CX, we cut the heads off and dropped them into a barrel to flap and bleed out. That way we didn't have to collect them from around the yard, and they didn't get blood everywhere.

That's a good idea. We (DH does the swinging) use an axe to de-capitate, then immediate put the bird in a cone. Minimizes the flapping and the blood goes in a bucket.

 

[Kiki]

I have pipe cutters and they work great on chickens.... I would think the neck is too short on quail..... How much room is there between the head and shoulders?

An inch or two...

 

[BantyChooks]

I have pipe cutters and they work great on chickens.... I would think the neck is too short on quail..... How much room is there between the head and shoulders?

I think there's plenty. They hold their necks much farther in than they have to.

 

[BantyChooks]

I could process my injured quail tonight with the pipe cutters and report back?

 

[Kiki]

That's a good idea. We (DH does the swinging) use an axe to de-capitate, then immediate put the bird in a cone. Minimizes the flapping and the blood goes in a bucket.

If I could figure out a way to make a mini cone then I think I could do the cutting...just as long as I don't have to actually hold the bird.

 

[BantyChooks]

If I could figure out a way to make a mini cone then I think I could do the cutting...just as long as I don't have to actually hold the bird.

I used baling twine to make leg shackles... gets a bit messy though.