California - Northern

[Happy Chooks]

The killing part is the hardest. I have put down chicks, but I have not killed a grown bird for meat. I'm afraid I won't get a clean whack. DH does that part for me. I do everything from that point on though. Plucking is easy, but time consuming. The first time I did it, the smell of the wet feathers bothered me (doesn't bother me now though) and it's weird having the body cavity be warm inside. I tell myself they had a better life with me for 6 months than the grocery store chickens get for 6 weeks.

 

[debs_flock]

The killing part is the hardest. I have put down chicks, but I have not killed a grown bird for meat. I'm afraid I won't get a clean whack. DH does that part for me. I do everything from that point on though. Plucking is easy, but time consuming. The first time I did it, the smell of the wet feathers bothered me (doesn't bother me now though) and it's weird having the body cavity be warm inside. I tell myself they had a better life with me for 6 months than the grocery store chickens get for 6 weeks.

I say this same thing, in fact again just Tuesday when we did the cockerel. DH does the kill (although I think we've done enough I could do that now too), I scald and pluck (I'll admit I perversely like the sound of the plucking), then I remove the feet and put the bird in cool water for about ten minutes to cool down a bit. It is disconcerting to reach into a still warm body. I generally do three birds at a time, when I do I just let them all sit in cool water until I get to that point with all three, then I eviscerate them in order.

We're going to process a small turkey this morning and see if we like to eat them so small. I can't grow out all the poults I hatched, I must have close to 50. I have another eight eggs in the hatching nursery at State Fair.

 

[debs_flock]

I delivered the first batch of hatching eggs to State Fair yesterday (fair opens tomorrow). There were two eggs pipped when I packed up the eggs for the drive down. When I started to unpack into their incubator, a lakenvelder egg was completely zipped inside the carton. The handful of kids in the building were thrilled when the chick popped out within ten minutes.

I had an audience of everyone that was still around. The youth rabbit show finishes judging today, I think the eggs will put on quite the show for them!

 

[lawatt]

I say this same thing, in fact again just Tuesday when we did the cockerel. DH does the kill (although I think we've done enough I could do that now too), I scald and pluck (I'll admit I perversely like the sound of the plucking), then I remove the feet and put the bird in cool water for about ten minutes to cool down a bit. It is disconcerting to reach into a still warm body. I generally do three birds at a time, when I do I just let them all sit in cool water until I get to that point with all three, then I eviscerate them in order.

this reminds me of a story: several years ago i did a sailboat delivery from Hawaii to SF, so we were 2 weeks at sea making the crossing -- one of the crew, David, had trained long ago with a sushi chef, and so had some trolling lines off the end of our boat, which were quite successful! when we caught our first ahi tuna, David got him cleaned and filleted and turned into fresh sashimi and sushi, which we were just about to eat, when another ahi caught the line! so the second one got beheaded and cleaned and etc, which took about 20 minutes or so -- then David wrapped the fish in foil & handed it to me to put in the freezer -- and it was STILL MOVING! I guess those fishes' muscles do nothing but swim swim swim so intensely, that the muscles keep working for quite a while after they are dead.

after that, i kept a closer eye on my sushi, to make sure it didn't jump off the plate!

 

[Country Chick at Heart]

I'll try to take a look through my pen for you.

Thank you Deb! If I need to wait, I can wait....it sounds from your posts like you're really busy!

I am just being over concerned for the lonely girl. She will probably be fine! Just keep me posted!! Thanks! And the folks at the fair will love to see the little chicks! That's so exciting.

 

[PetRock]

That's why I like processing with my friend who has the farm in Brentwood. Her husband does all of the killing and they have a plucker machine. It is also more "fun" to do it as a group. The last processing day we had, we were able to do 42 chickens and 1 big old Tom turkey. We started at around 9 in the morning and were finished by 1. Many hands make light the labor!

 

[PetRock]

I delivered the first batch of hatching eggs to State Fair yesterday (fair opens tomorrow). There were two eggs pipped when I packed up the eggs for the drive down. When I started to unpack into their incubator, a lakenvelder egg was completely zipped inside the carton. The handful of kids in the building were thrilled when the chick popped out within ten minutes.

I had an audience of everyone that was still around. The youth rabbit show finishes judging today, I think the eggs will put on quite the show for them!

How fun! It never gets old for me! I do not get much done when I have chicks hatching. I love to watch them pop out!

 

[debs_flock]

Quote: Maybe that why I've gotten nothing done in the last two years and I have WAY too many chickens!

 

[Shark Akhrrana]

I say this same thing, in fact again just Tuesday when we did the cockerel.  DH does the kill (although I think we've done enough I could do that now too), I scald and pluck (I'll admit I perversely like the sound of the plucking), then I remove the feet and put the bird in cool water for about ten minutes to cool down a bit.  It is disconcerting to reach into a still warm body.  I generally do three birds at a time, when I do I just let them all sit in cool water until I get to that point with all three, then I eviscerate them in order.

We're going to process a small turkey this morning and see if we like to eat them so small.  I can't grow out all the poults I hatched, I must have close to 50.  I have another eight eggs in the hatching nursery at State Fair.

My dad usually does it. I can clean them once they are dead but I just can't deal with a live one. I'm way to attached to them.

 

[ronott1]

My dad usually does it. I can clean them once they are dead but I just can't deal with a live one. I'm way to attached to them.

Sometimes I am attached but other times not so much.

One of the Bresse Cockerels has attacked me and gives me the "eye". He will not be so hard to process.