how do you kill your birds?

[bluere11e]

I tried several different methods until I found the one that worked best for ME. I don't think there's one best method for EVERYone. You have to determine what makes the job easiest for you which in turn will make it the most humane for your birds, because you'll be giving them the most efficient, effective end. That's the final kindness we can bestow on these livestock animals under our care.

For myself I found that I lacked the arm strength to do an effective hatchet chop, the broomstick method wasn't always reliable, and pithing took too long. I never tried using firearms, garden implements, or any other methods. Once I learned how to dispatch my birds quickly by cutting their neck veins with a sharp knife I haven't tried anything else. Before I made cones I would bind their wings with duct tape and hang them by their tied-together feet. Now I have cones, but I still bind their feet so I can hang them for plucking.

Hi Carol,
Carol taught me this method. It is fast, effective and you don't have to spend big bucks on a fancy cone, you can use a large jug that has the bottom sliced off and the top cut back so when it is nailed to a board, it acts the same as a cone.. Carol has orange traffic cones with the small end cut back so the opening is wide enough to allow the head to pass through. I've seen the "dispatch" done several ways. To me, pithing amps of the adrenaline of the bird, and you terrorize it to force its mouth open to knife the brain.. it doesn't always work.. takes too long and terrifies the bird before its done.. the broomstick method isn't always effective. the hatchet method allows blood to get into the lungs, and the birds don't always bleed out enough. Ditto on wringing the neck. The secret to proper slaughtering ties in with the amount of blood you can get out of the bird. The heart has to continue pumping for a while to effectively accomplish just that. By placing the birds upside down, it has a somewhat calming effect. placing the bird in the cone prevents any thrashing around in the dirt. It also allows for the slicing of the jugular/carotid on either side of the neck. It takes a few more seconds for the bird to cross the road, but, the heart is still beating helping to purge the better amount of blood. The death throes after aid in the final purging of the majority of the blood.
It's my understanding that commercially processed birds are usually done in a way that doesn't always bleed the bird effectively. That's why sometimes when you bite into a piece of cooked chicken there's dark blotches near the bone and black/dk.blue veins. It's important to get a proper bleed.
Kosher/Halal killing definitely has it's merits.