BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[ronott1]

Thanks, everyone! I had a very tiring morning, but got 10 cockerels processed. I skinned all the fully feathered ones (@Beekissed has a great video that I watched and followed that really helped). The first was awkward, but the rest went pretty quickly after that. Then I dry plucked the three Naked Necks, which wasn't all that hard (though the weather was turning and my feet were killing me, so I waited on the pin feathers - I will pull those out in the kitchen.) I got done right before it started pouring, and all of them are resting in the fridge while I try to recover myself...

- Ant Farm

Nice Job!

I try to limit myself to three a day.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Thanks, y'all! I had one Naked Neck I decided to wait and keep for observation instead of processing today. Well, upon observation, he has a wry tail (never really noticed before).

Guess I'm processing again - maybe I'll wait until next weekend to give myself a break.

- Ant Farm

 

[oshun55555]

Buuuut........ isn't all the flavour in the skin?

Skin is from Jesus, it is the makings of fried chicken in my opinion. Crispy skinned baked chicken yumilicious.

 

[ronott1]

Skin is from Jesus, it is the makings of fried chicken in my opinion. Crispy skinned baked chicken yumilicious.

There is a lot of truth to that!

Sadly, there are some family members at my house that will not eat the skin.

 

[angry rooster]

Thanks, everyone! I had a very tiring morning, but got 10 cockerels processed. I skinned all the fully feathered ones (@Beekissed
 has a great video that I watched and followed that really helped). The first was awkward, but the rest went pretty quickly after that. Then I dry plucked the three Naked Necks, which wasn't all that hard (though the weather was turning and my feet were killing me, so I waited on the pin feathers - I will pull those out in the kitchen.) I got done right before it started pouring, and all of them are resting in the fridge while I try to recover myself...

- Ant Farm  

You are doing good to race through 10 before a storm hats of to you on your first skinning

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Quote:
Thanks!!! Bee's video was great - I was beginning to despair after the first one, which went slow, but the others went a lot faster. In pulling the organs out, I guess I was tired, because for one carcass, the gall bladder tore and leaked a little. I promptly separated all organs from carcass and rinsed everything multiple times. And I marked the carcass so I'd know which one it was. Any tips for preparing it? Will brining help? (That's what I intend to do with all of them before freezing them.)

- Ant Farm

 

[ronott1]

Thanks!!! Bee's video was great - I was beginning to despair after the first one, which went slow, but the others went a lot faster. In pulling the organs out, I guess I was tired, because for one carcass, the gall bladder tore and leaked a little. I promptly separated all organs from carcass and rinsed everything multiple times. And I marked the carcass so I'd know which one it was. Any tips for preparing it? Will brining help? (That's what I intend to do with all of them before freezing them.)

- Ant Farm

I have heard it going both ways--brining before freezing and after. I brine after freezing because I do not think it is good to brine them too long.

But yes, brine helps them to be more tender.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Hey, all, I have a question about wry tail that I'm not sure I have worked out after doing some reading on threads on BYC. Hoping to get some input here on this thread given that we aren't so wed to following SOP here...

I understand wry tail is a defect that is thought to maybe be genetic, and may be related to the spine. My question is: independent of SOP-type considerations, is there a functional/health reason to cull/not breed from a rooster or hen with wry tail?

This NN cockerel is a big ol' mottled mix in the first place, and I am only keeping birds for my backyard. I don't intend on pursuing a project trying to establish a breed with him. Still watching him, sometimes he holds it straight, many times it's cocked to the side. I may end up deciding to cull him anyway, but I was hoping to learn something about this.

Thanks!

- Ant Farm

 

[bnjrob]

Hey, all, I have a question about wry tail that I'm not sure I have worked out after doing some reading on threads on BYC. Hoping to get some input here on this thread given that we aren't so wed to following SOP here...

I understand wry tail is a defect that is thought to maybe be genetic, and may be related to the spine. My question is: independent of SOP-type considerations, is there a functional/health reason to cull/not breed from a rooster or hen with wry tail?

This NN cockerel is a big ol' mottled mix in the first place, and I am only keeping birds for my backyard. I don't intend on pursuing a project trying to establish a breed with him. Still watching him, sometimes he holds it straight, many times it's cocked to the side. I may end up deciding to cull him anyway, but I was hoping to learn something about this.

Thanks!

- Ant Farm

Can be a bad enough spinal deformity causing the wry tail, so not best for fertility/ability to mate, and for good carcass.

 

[Beekissed]

Agreed...the hens have trouble having their egg out of that crooked pelvis and, if the eggs are large, they can end up dying from it. I'd not deliberately breed a wry tail male over any hens if you can help it.