Chronicles of Raising Meat Birds - Modern Broilers, Heritage and Hybrids

[SnapdragonQ]

I use a PVC pipe cutter to dispatch chicken and lopper on turkey. Sort of like a hatchet results

I think I might try this method too. All my trees for hatchet cutting line the property and are nowhere near to where I would need to do the deed. But a flat work surface would allow the use of better hand tools for me, which I can set up on my saw horses near the hose. And the PVC cutter takes the guess work out completely.

 

[ShrekDawg]

About half way down the page is the video-

https://www.communitychickens.com/processing-quail-meat-zw01912ztil/

Thank you!

 

[ShrekDawg]

I have sharp hunting knives. It’s the method itself. My whole family doesn’t like slicing. We have our own sharpening stones, round and rectangular. We are a family of hunters.

I just know that slicing prolongs in my experience. More twitching and what not.

Everyone has their own method they prefer

Isn’t the twitching just a muscle reaction though? They are already dead at that point. I did the broomstick with both of mine and they still flapped. I even held Wilma while she flapped. when I did Red it was a bit freaky because he flapped all over the yard and we were not expecting that at all. I mean, I had heard but never seen. Plus I accidentally popped his head off.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I'm sure there is an initial twitch before its just delayed nerve responses, but it's like when we kill rattlers here. There isn't brain function, it's nerves just finishing their missions

 

[FortCluck]

Isn’t the twitching just a muscle reaction though? They are already dead at that point. I did the broomstick with both of mine and they still flapped. I even held Wilma while she flapped. when I did Red it was a bit freaky because he flapped all over the yard and we were not expecting that at all. I mean, I had heard but never seen. Plus I accidentally popped his head off.

I have less twitching with the hatchet, the overall bleed out is quicker as well.

We had one run off when we did slicing after it’s head was off. It kicked out of the cone and everything, it was insane. I think that’s the last time we did slicing.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I have less twitching with the hatchet, the overall bleed out is quicker as well.

We had one run off when we did slicing after it’s head was off. It kicked out of the cone and everything, it was insane. I think that’s the last time we did slicing.

Huh, interesting! Thanks! Yeah, I’ve noticed with the broomstick they don’t seem to flap for long at all so maybe it’s similar to yours. I just know Red did like a few huge flaps/flips

 

[3KillerBs]

Isn’t the twitching just a muscle reaction though? They are already dead at that point. I did the broomstick with both of mine and they still flapped.

I used the broomstick and I found that I got the most intense muscle spasms from the ones that had the most perfect severing of the spinal cord. That is the ones that left about a 3-finger gap in the neck without taking the head clear off (probably a 2 finger gap for a man's larger hand).

I held them in the air by their ankles while they flapped and bled into that gap then cut their heads off over a trash can. It contained the mess nicely but I will try the cone and knife for doing more than a handful of birds at once since they're rather heavy to be holding that way over and over.

The flapping is, for me, the most unpleasant part, but once I realized that the quickest, cleanest severing of the spinal cord produced the most intense flapping I was able to put it into perspective.

 

[Morrigan]

I got 2 chicks from @BlueBaby in Maricopa, one was hatched from eggs laid by a hen she hatched from @Compost King -- that chick is twice the size of the others.

@Compost King 's birds live on! Was the NN you got one of the ones he crossed with a Red Ranger?

The flapping is, for me, the most unpleasant part, but once I realized that the quickest, cleanest severing of the spinal cord produced the most intense flapping I was able to put it into perspective.

The hardest part for me is seeing the beaks on the severed heads continue to open and close for a couple of seconds after the hatchet. The flapping not great either. I'm always just glad when the deed is done.

 

[Parront]

@Compost King 's birds live on! Was the NN you got one of the ones he crossed with a Red Ranger?

This naked neck was hatched from a hen from @Compost King 's eggs he sent to @BlueBaby with her NN rooster, which is very impressive. It has some Dorking and Red Ranger from the hen side, x NN cock.

This is it on the right @ 4 weeks old, Ideal white rock on the left is 3 weeks. It almost looked barred a couple of weeks ago when I got it.

I think the Silver Grey Dorking is what is giving this color. @BlueBaby kept it's hatch-mate with the 5 toes. This one was the largest in her brooder.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I used the broomstick and I found that I got the most intense muscle spasms from the ones that had the most perfect severing of the spinal cord. That is the ones that left about a 3-finger gap in the neck without taking the head clear off (probably a 2 finger gap for a man's larger hand).

I held them in the air by their ankles while they flapped and bled into that gap then cut their heads off over a trash can. It contained the mess nicely but I will try the cone and knife for doing more than a handful of birds at once since they're rather heavy to be holding that way over and over.

The flapping is, for me, the most unpleasant part, but once I realized that the quickest, cleanest severing of the spinal cord produced the most intense flapping I was able to put it into perspective.

This makes a lot of sense! I wonder if that’s why mine flapped so much.... I accidentally pulled the heads off at least on the first one then the second one I didn’t but almost. The first one just flapped around on the grass and the second one I just held while she flapped and it wasn’t that bad surprisingly. I did get a bit of blood on my legs and boots though. I didn’t bleed mine out or anything like that because I wasn’t eating them (sick) and that’s why I did the broomstick too... cause it seemed fast and easy and something I could do by myself. I might try the ax thing in the future though.