Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[Beekissed]

Do y'all remember back in the day when chickens only came whole? Now most people don't even know how to cut one up. lol

You are right. A few years back I was finishing up processing my first batch of meaties when a friend stopped by. This lady is in her late 50s and has lived on a cattle farm for most of her life and in the middle of very rural, agricultural lands. She had never seen anyone peel chicken's feet and so she decided to help. Then she told me she had never even cut up a chicken from the store before.....you could have knocked me over with a feather on that one.

How do you get that old and never have cut up a whole chicken, especially living in a farming culture??? Of course, I ate at her house once...mystery explained. The woman thought cooking was nuking hot dogs and burning hamburgers on a grill. Goes to show it isn't always city folks that live their whole lives unfamiliar with farm life and homesteading skills, even those as simple as cutting up a chicken.

 

[BCMaraniac]

Hey Bee!

Here is a photo comparing the first and second egg from one of my new Marans pullets. Her first egg is on the left from yesterday, and her second one from today on the right!! They weigh 47 and 81 grams respectively....small and jumbo plus!

I bet that second one is a double yolker.




I am sure she will get the hang of it as her body gets hormonally balanced. The size contrast is pretty impressive, though.

 

[Lacy Blues]

Are you sure these are from the same pullet? In my experience, (only about 9-10 years of paying attention) when a pullet starts to lay, she doesn't lay every day but she would skip a day or two before she gets into the swing of things. This large egg couldn't be from an older, more developed hen?

 

[BCMaraniac]

Are you sure these are from the same pullet? In my experience, (only about 9-10 years of paying attention) when a pullet starts to lay, she doesn't lay every day but she would skip a day or two before she gets into the swing of things. This large egg couldn't be from an older, more developed hen?

No, I have two pullets, and got two eggs today, and their eggs are different colors

 

[Triple Willow]

Hey Bee! Here is a photo comparing the first and second egg from one of my new Marans pullets. Her first egg is on the left from yesterday, and her second one from today on the right!! They weigh 47 and 81 grams respectively....small and jumbo plus! I bet that second one is a double yolker. I am sure she will get the hang of it as her body gets hormonally balanced. The size contrast is pretty impressive, though.

Nice!

 

[Triple Willow]

I am one of those   I buy whole chickens but then cook them whole, if I want different cuts that is what I buy.  I tried to cut one up once and made a royal mess of it

Here you go... (sharpe knife helps)

 

[Triple Willow]

You are right.  A few years back I was finishing up processing my first batch of meaties when a friend stopped by.  This lady is in her late 50s and has lived on a cattle farm for most of her life and in the middle of very rural, agricultural lands.  She had never seen anyone peel chicken's feet and so she decided to help.  Then she told me she had never even cut up a chicken from the store before.....you could have knocked me over with a feather on that one.  How do you get that old and never have cut up a whole chicken, especially living in a farming culture???  Of course, I ate at her house once...mystery explained.  The woman thought cooking was nuking hot dogs and burning hamburgers on a grill.  Goes to show it isn't always city folks that live their whole lives unfamiliar with farm life and homesteading skills, even those as simple as cutting up a chicken. 

I know of people that work in a slaughter house and don't know how to cut up a chicken.

 

[RoseMarie1]

You can always do the chicken galantine/ballontine method!

Here's a turkey I did for Thanksgiving....just stuffed with potatoes, onions and garlic, rubbed with olive oil and herbs and roasted slow and low in a cooking bag. I've done one of my CX like this also.




Here's the vid on how to do this....

oh man now I am starving! YUM

 

[RoseMarie1]

I am TOTALLY AMAZED! I just watched that video and that is definitely one I'll be keeping in the files! I don't think, for one moment, that I could whack the leg bone of any of these birds with a knife and have them break the way he did. Just sayin'. But, if I should get a bird from the store, it might be easier to do this to. I appreciate that link though so thank you very much. I'd like to roast these birds whole (like a turkey) and have them be nice and tender. Is it possible with year old birds?

oh yeah you can with a little practice. With a little practice you find out where those joints are and you can hit it every time. Just keep working at it.

 

[RoseMarie1]

Starting to gather up my eggs for incubating some of my RIR's. I can't WAIT to see how well they do since I have been doing ff for so long now. AND can't wait to see if they have pasty butt etc. and they will ALSO be on ff. right off the bat. Thinking about sticking more in the bator to hatch out to sell since I dearly love messing with them. ;-) I guess I will HAVE to get NPIP to be able to sell to anyone around here since so many people are NPIP'd. lol

I bought them a flock block and they weren't eating much of their food and some got a diarrhea so I took it away from them and only going to let em have it once a week so they will have to eat their ff. They sure do love that flock block! Since they were having to stay shut up so much in that snow and ice they would have something to do by pecking at the block. But when this happened I said oh noooo you guys gotta eat your ff.