Advice on butchering extra Roos?

[HinterlandHomestead]

How old do roosters need to be to butcher? Can I keep them all together until that age? I have a couple different med breeds.

Also I am not sure i’m up for the butchering myself, at least not the first time. And I know my husband won’t do it. How do I go about finding someone to butcher my extra roosters for me? What do ou generally have to pay for this? Or can you barter that they keep some of the roosters for themselves as payment?

I’ve had chickens for a year now but I’m newer to dealing with extra roosters.
Thanks for any help!

 

[Bettyboop7499]

Hello,

I'd go back to where you bought the chicks ask around or look for local "processing" like for deer processing, they will either do it or know someone.

Good luck!

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Hi, welcome to BYC!

A dilemma many of us face. My hubs also does not participate in processing. My daughter and I did/do it. We only do one or two here or there as needed to maintain good flock dynamics. Took us a long time to get there... we openly talked about it and knew that was where we were heading.

Yes I keep them all together until we process, regardless of breed... and we even eat our extra Silkie roosters. We did it our first time after watching a LOT of videos. It went horrible, but we got through it and learned A lot. We still don't enjoy doing it, but having the skill to confidently help out a bird I care about if they get in trouble has been invaluable. I choose the cone method as being the least dangerous to myself.

You can advertise on craigslist in the farm and garden section for someone to process. Or you can call all the local butcher shops and inquire. You might post a note on your local feed store posting board or facebook if you do that. I did find someone to process for me. It cost me $5/ bird and is well worth it. I have bartered for 30% of the meat since it cost me $10 to raise and $5 for processing that $15 total per bird, so I figure a 30% value. Most people who are willing to process, already have their own birds and not as willing to barter for meat. But each situation will be unique. My processing guy prefers broilers and I raise heritage breeds. They are MUCH different birds when prepared for the table. It takes weeding through replies to find someone who is actually good to work with and also it takes time. He did not reply when I advertised, but much later when he was looking for himself a rooster for his hens and wanted to barter. I had already found another person who was willing to do it for me for $4/bird... but they were 90 miles from my house so it would have been an all day trip that included transporting live and dead birds. You might even contact someone who is selling their broilers and ask them if they might process for you. I just apologize in my original message to them if this counts as soliciting.

Generally speaking, age will depend on breed some. Cornish cross can be butchered at 6-12 weeks. The heritage breeds not usually before 16 weeks to make it worth the meat. Many people wait until around 20-24 weeks, especially for birds like Orpington or Faverolles. So far we just process on our schedule when it's convenient for us regardless of age, but not usually before 16 weeks. And our first round boys were easily 7 months old before worked up the courage to proceed. Since my daughter and I only do a bird or so at time when needed... we skin instead of plucking.

Yes, it was large game processor (deer, elk) that hooked me up with my first good lead for chicken processing, mentioned by the other poster.

I was afraid I would be vegetarian before it was all said and done. But instead I'm just well aware of where my food comes from AND the quality difference. Our consumption has become more conscientious.

Good luck finding someone AND learning how to handle it yourself if need be.

It's a worthy adventure.

 

[Bettyboop7499]

I said to my husband, when he started talking about having a farm and growing our own food sources.."if we can't slaughter and process them when/if time comes..then we don't have any business having the animals". I don't know, I feel atleast I know I will do it the most humane way possible. I don't want the animal scared right before either..And they are mine I didn't hatch these but I will going forward so...I'm not looking forward to it though!

 

[RUNuts]

How old for the roosters? How big a carcass do you want? How long do you want to pay for feed? 6 weeks for a pound of meat or 16-24 weeks for a 4-5 pound carcass depending on a lot of variables.

I look at it like this. Someone cooks. This is the same as getting ready to cook meat. Instead of pulling it out of the package (plastic from store), you are pulling it out of the package (feathers from nature). It is exactly the same (only different).

We thank the birds. Then we make meat. I guess coming from a hunting background, I knew what to expect. Watch utube videos. Then watch some more. They are being flagged and removed, so it may be a challenge to find a complete one. This site is good for the kill methods. Find one that you can do and do it.

Advice:
1. Use a sharp knife.
2. Don't cut yourself. Meaning if you are anxious, calm down before proceeding.
3. Ask around, a neighbor or church member may be willing to teach you.
4. know what you want to wind up with. Have a goal. Delicious, home raised chicken.

If you get tired, stop. Pace yourself. This is mentally and physically demanding. Having a helper or friend is great. Even if only for moral support. It helps. You aren't alone.

Don't forget to smile! While it may not be pleasant, we are choosing to do this.

 

[red horse ranch]

I harvested 2 roosters a couple months ago. Both had been free ranging and breeding. The 9 month old rooster was so tough it could barely be cut with a steak knife after frying. And the meat was as dark as liver. (I like white meat) The one year old rooster is still in the freezer and he is enormous! I will bake him slowly in water most of the day to help tenderize.
The point of my story is, process them young (under 4 months for most breeds). I have 4 of them now that are just 12 weeks old but I will process them in the next few days. They are a barnyard mix. Perfect size for frying, even if they aren't real big.

 

[RWise]

It is one of those things that we just have to deal with. All of my birds are EEs and very mixed up,. I like to process at 4 months, that does not always happen, I just did a 2 YO, he made soup. He also had a lot of very dark meat, even black bones. But i know that my birds are not full of antibiotics and growth hormones.
The other side is I will sell a few with some old birds and a few pullets,. A small EE flock for beginners,,, at a reasonable price.
I will keep 1 or 2 sometimes if I think he will be of use in breeding later. You cant keep them all, or sell them, or even give them away sometimes.
I wish my significant other would do the processing, but she does the rabbits so I cant complain.

 

[Bettyboop7499]

I harvested 2 roosters a couple months ago. Both had been free ranging and breeding. The 9 month old rooster was so tough it could barely be cut with a steak knife after frying. And the meat was as dark as liver. (I like white meat) The one year old rooster is still in the freezer and he is enormous! I will bake him slowly in water most of the day to help tenderize.
The point of my story is, process them young (under 4 months for most breeds). I have 4 of them now that are just 12 weeks old but I will process them in the next few days. They are a barnyard mix. Perfect size for frying, even if they aren't real big.

Was the 9 month old just a mix breed? duck have dark breast meat, in comparison to chicken, never seen chicken with dark breast meat. Interesting..if you get another like that could you post?

I put my whole chickens in a crockpot so tender and yummy!

 

[CannedMonster]

Hi, welcome to BYC!

A dilemma many of us face. My hubs also does not participate in processing. My daughter and I did/do it. We only do one or two here or there as needed to maintain good flock dynamics. Took us a long time to get there... we openly talked about it and knew that was where we were heading.

Yes I keep them all together until we process, regardless of breed... and we even eat our extra Silkie roosters. We did it our first time after watching a LOT of videos. It went horrible, but we got through it and learned A lot. We still don't enjoy doing it, but having the skill to confidently help out a bird I care about if they get in trouble has been invaluable. I choose the cone method as being the least dangerous to myself.

You can advertise on craigslist in the farm and garden section for someone to process. Or you can call all the local butcher shops and inquire. You might post a note on your local feed store posting board or facebook if you do that. I did find someone to process for me. It cost me $5/ bird and is well worth it. I have bartered for 30% of the meat since it cost me $10 to raise and $5 for processing that $15 total per bird, so I figure a 30% value. Most people who are willing to process, already have their own birds and not as willing to barter for meat. But each situation will be unique. My processing guy prefers broilers and I raise heritage breeds. They are MUCH different birds when prepared for the table. It takes weeding through replies to find someone who is actually good to work with and also it takes time. He did not reply when I advertised, but much later when he was looking for himself a rooster for his hens and wanted to barter. I had already found another person who was willing to do it for me for $4/bird... but they were 90 miles from my house so it would have been an all day trip that included transporting live and dead birds. You might even contact someone who is selling their broilers and ask them if they might process for you. I just apologize in my original message to them if this counts as soliciting.

Generally speaking, age will depend on breed some. Cornish cross can be butchered at 6-12 weeks. The heritage breeds not usually before 16 weeks to make it worth the meat. Many people wait until around 20-24 weeks, especially for birds like Orpington or Faverolles. So far we just process on our schedule when it's convenient for us regardless of age, but not usually before 16 weeks. And our first round boys were easily 7 months old before worked up the courage to proceed. Since my daughter and I only do a bird or so at time when needed... we skin instead of plucking.

Yes, it was large game processor (deer, elk) that hooked me up with my first good lead for chicken processing, mentioned by the other poster.

I was afraid I would be vegetarian before it was all said and done. But instead I'm just well aware of where my food comes from AND the quality difference. Our consumption has become more conscientious.

Good luck finding someone AND learning how to handle it yourself if need be.

It's a worthy adventure.

 

[red horse ranch]

Was the 9 month old just a mix breed? duck have dark breast meat, in comparison to chicken, never seen chicken with dark breast meat. Interesting..if you get another like that could you post?

I put my whole chickens in a crockpot so tender and yummy!

The 9 month old was a Leghorn mix but the 1 year old rooster was a show quality Speckled Sussex. He was beautiful and I hated doing it but he was just too aggressive and way bigger than I like my roosters to be.

I doubt if either one of them would fit in my crock pot.

The 9 month old we ate had really dark legs and thighs. Never seen legs that dark and we eat a lot of home grown roosters. The breast meat (what there was of it) wasn't as dark but it wasn't white meat like I was used to. And it was tough too.