1st time slaughtering help plz

[UBkevy]

i have a bird that seems to be egg bound or is an internal layer. I have tried treating her but there has been no improvement and the other birds are starting in on her badly. I have decided the only fair thing to do is cull her and make soup. I do not have any equipment and plan to do it like I would a turkey I would have shot but with some differences because I will be starting with a live bird. I am just wondering if this plan sounds good or not.

1. catch bird and tie feet and wings down
2. take a hatchet and remove the head
3. hang bird and let bleed
4. remove feet at the knees and wings at elbow
5. skin and gut the bird
6. put body in ice water to chill


does that sound like a fair plan, if this is an ok plan and works out well i have 10-12 other birds that will likely be processed this way

 

[NevadaRon]

This is the best how-to video I've seen. He slits the throat - very humane. Check it out!

 

[MMPoultryFarms]

I would Suggest Catching the Chicken and putting it in a Kill cage or box of some sort. keep him in it for 24 hours, (to allow the crop to empty and bowels also.
Building a Kill Cone out of something I use those construction cones found on the Highway. After taking the bird from the darken crate, (gently)
Pull his neck threw the bottom of the Cone hanging Up somewhere (I have mine on an old tree.)

Find a Sharp Knife and Slit just under the ear on the throat Softly. (idea here is to only cut the juggler vein Not the throat or asaphogus. (forgive the spelling

Let it bleed out peacefully. (I believe in my heart this makes the meat More tender. take that with a grain of salt but I try to keep them happy till the end.

Remove the legs and wings Just at the Joint. (there should be no having to cut bones)

Skin and Gut as you Posted

Chill the Bird (i do 48 hours rougly with a hint of Apple Cider Vinegar in the water and ice.) Some people say 4 hours Some people say 24 hours. (Rigor Mortis, a stiffening of the muscles, usually starts to take place at around 3 hours after someone is dead with full rigor occuring at about 12 hours after death. After the 12 hour mark the rigor slowly ceases and at around 72 hours rigor disappears.) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rigor_mortis

Hope this helps you Good luck.

 

[slackwater]

For your first attempt that seems reasonable. You would figure out what works and what doesn't after your first.

Some people say to only cut the juglar - I decapitate the bird (hanging upside down in a killing cone). I, personally, would not like to be conscious while I bled out from the neck. I *personally* think beheading is more humane.

Then I skin, gut & let rest in the fridge for at least a few days.

 

[Winsor Woods]

There's a certain amount of time that the brain remains conscious after it stops getting blood. I personally feel that decapitation is LESS humane than bleeding out because, in an instant, the brain recognizes that it is no longer connected to the body. I've killed birds both by decapitation and bleeding out and I'm convinced that bleeding out is more humane. Having a separated head move it's beak and blink it's eyes at you with utter confusion was very disturbing. In contrast, bleeding out leaves as much of the body in tact as the blood supply to the brain is cut off. The birds seem to drift off in a peaceful state. The "death throws" come long after the brain has stopped receiving blood so, in my best opinion, the birds are not aware that their bodies are making the involuntary spasms.

Try both ways and see what you feel comfortable with. If I had to choose between the two for myself, I'd choose being bled out over decapitation without a doubt.

Here's a link to a BYC thread where I link to a polyface farm video of bleeding out. You can make up your own mind on what you think is better.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=244807

Dan

 

[Sparklee]

Quote:
Of course it's a matter of 1/2 dozen of one, 6 of the other, but I happen to like air chilling of the carcass.

I read up on it a little bit on line.

Some studies say it makes no difference, but a few say there's less contamination of the meat--as in if one bird has a bit of bacteria, giving them a bath together gets the bacteria on all of them. But if you don't rinse the table between birds, the same thing is happening anyway. ::shrug::

Some say that the birds soak up a lot of water and make marinating later less doable. Some say you can't brine them easily later, too.

Some reject the water bath method, especially if the water is chlorinated as city water always is -- unless you let it sit out overnight, right? Or filter it. The air cooling method is pretty standard in Europe.

I've done it both ways, and I think it's less labor intensive to just take each bird (or two birds at a time) in and plop it in a glass pie dish or glass lasagna pan, cover it with Saran wrap, and put it in the fridge. I shape it the way that they do in the stores. They sit in the fridge a day or two and then they get frozen. The are in a good shape for freezing. When I used the water bath, they were a horrible long, drawn out shape and I had a difficult time getting them in any bags for freezing. Plus I had to have extra ice and buckets outside. Waste of water and time for me.

 

[MMPoultryFarms]

Quote:
Of course it's a matter of 1/2 dozen of one, 6 of the other, but I happen to like air chilling of the carcass.

I read up on it a little bit on line.

Some studies say it makes no difference, but a few say there's less contamination of the meat--as in if one bird has a bit of bacteria, giving them a bath together gets the bacteria on all of them. But if you don't rinse the table between birds, the same thing is happening anyway. ::shrug::

Some say that the birds soak up a lot of water and make marinating later less doable. Some say you can't brine them easily later, too.

Some reject the water bath method, especially if the water is chlorinated as city water always is -- unless you let it sit out overnight, right? Or filter it. The air cooling method is pretty standard in Europe.

I've done it both ways, and I think it's less labor intensive to just take each bird (or two birds at a time) in and plop it in a glass pie dish or glass lasagna pan, cover it with Saran wrap, and put it in the fridge. I shape it the way that they do in the stores. They sit in the fridge a day or two and then they get frozen. The are in a good shape for freezing. When I used the water bath, they were a horrible long, drawn out shape and I had a difficult time getting them in any bags for freezing. Plus I had to have extra ice and buckets outside. Waste of water and time for me.

Just curious as to how a man who slaghters say 50 Birds per kill as we do Air drys a chicken in a fridge? You are correct about the chlorine in th water its best to use distilled water If you can I use well water from a natural cold spring that runs out here so I don't worry bout it to much. any feed back would be apreciated on the air drying. It takes 48-72 hours to Cure a bird Least here it does on my farm. perhaps I could buy a fridge just for air drying? But then will 50 chickens fit in a fridge at one time?

 

[Buster52]

Quote:
Excellent, except there is no need to tie wings. Wire the feet with enough room on the wire to hang it from the nail. Use a block with two nails about an inch or so apart to hold the head and stretch the neck. Chop and hang, letting the bird flap while it bleeds out.

Also, go out to your coop at night and just pick the bird up and put it in a cage. No need to do any chasing or catching.

 

[Buster52]

Quote:
Yeah, I don't buy any of that. I've done both and while I find slitting sufficiently humane if done correctly, chopping is just quicker. For this reason, I chop the birds I plan to eat myself, slit those I give to friends or plan to sell.

 

[peachlover]

You really do not have to tie anything. Just catch the chicken, grab the hatchet: skin it, gut it, and put it on ice. The faster and cleaner the better.