Capon gasping and seizuring

[Poco Pollo]

Thanks for the info! I didnt think i went too far forward. Just strait in and out. But ill be aware of that next time! I really appreicate all the info/sugguestions everyone has! I am new to this and any tips are greatly appreciated!!

I’m happy to help. Having the bird sufficiently stretched will place the second-to-the-last rib above the abdominal air cavity. A bird tied loosely to the table will result in the second-to-the-last rib resting over the thoracic air sack. Some breeds are shorter in the body/chest and should be cut behind the rib cage rather than between the second-to-the-last rib.

 

[Mimi13]

Chickens have a respiratory system dependent on multiple air sacks. Their lungs are fixed (do not expand or contract). If you break through into the forward air sack, you compromise the chicken’s ability to inhale and exhale: this leads to gasping and ultimately, expiring. Chickens have nine ballon like air sacks. The cervical air sack is a single sack - not paired, but the rest of the air sacks are paired. When you caponize, you only want to break into the abdominal air sacks, which are on either side of the bird. Below is a diagram showing the nine air sacks. (Each has a pair except the cervical air sack). Cutting too far forward puts you in the thoracic air sack. This is no bueno for your chicken. To get air to the fixed lungs, a chicken must inhale twice. It’s like a bellows, sort of. The air comes into an air sack. Another breath moves the air to the next air sack, and so on. A chicken is okay with a breach in both abdominal air sacks, but beyond that, he is not going to be able to catch his breath.
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This is an excellent explanation. I’ve never really understood, but I do now. Thank you so much!

 

[Pye Wacket]

We pressure cooked our old hens and roosters and made stock, I spent YEARS as a kid picking the meat off the bones afterwards for soup. The bones would be nice and crumbly and I would squish them up and add them to the cat food. The cats loved it. Totally soft through and through, no splinters to worry about.

Not very appetizing for say fried chicken and whatnot, but fine in soup or stew.

 

[CindyinSD]

I’m happy to help. Having the bird sufficiently stretched will place the second-to-the-last rib above the abdominal air cavity. A bird tied loosely to the table will result in the second-to-the-last rib resting over the thoracic air sack. Some breeds are shorter in the body/chest and should be cut behind the rib cage rather than between the second-to-the-last rib.

By second-to-the-last-rib, Poco means between the last two ribs. If you see Pepto pink tissue, you have missed your rib and gone too far forward, but it doesn't sound like that's what you did. Just pointing that out for the benefit of possible future readers.

To find the right spot, feel (palpate) carefully with the cockerel stretched on the table firmly. I tie around the wings and around the ankle of the top leg. I palpate the ribs the night before also, by holding the bird upside down as I pluck the operative area. This helps me get a sense of that particular bird's anatomy whilst getting part of the job done ahead. Plucking the night before keeps down the time on the table and spreads out the stress a bit. Many birds seem to find the plucking more distressing than the actual surgery.

 

[Poco Pollo]

Thanks, @CindyinSD. I wasn’t precise in my wording. The technical term for the space between two ribs is “intercostal.” The incision should be made in the intercostal space between the last rib (at the bird’s tail end) and the next-to-the-last rib. On some birds, there is an indentation along the spinal column above this intercostal space. If the bird is stretched well, as you pull the top layer of skin back towards them tail, you can see the indentation above where you need to make the incision.

 

[PurpleCArTires]

Great idea to pluck the night before! I can see how it would limit the stress on the table.