Is the broomstick method as foolproof as it seems?

[Brooks_]

Helium would be funny but not lethal I think

Might take longer, but would be lethal.

 

[Lillith37]

I just wanted to add this:
This is why I won't hold a chicken upside down or use a killing cone
To me, humane treatment means leaving the chicken in peace as calm til the end. Upside down in any form, even a killing cone is causing great fear and possibly pain.

That’s totally fair enough. I don’t like doing it either. If the bird is going to panic and flap and make the process harder/more prone to error though, that’s not great either. Unfortunately killing an animal is a skill and it doesn’t always go the way we hope if we are not practiced and confident.

 

[HeritageFan]

Umm don't think I could handle a turkey like that. Mine are rather flighty. Raised by broodies and not handled until the last day.
I learned not to play with my food lol

Well. Even though I’m a “girl”
Not opening up a Pandora’s box on that. Happy wife and mom of three
Also.
.... I’m 6’2”
And fuss w about 30 horses every day, between my personal crew and my day job.
A 1000-2000+ # horse makes a 30-40# turkey seem pretty manageable
So even my not so happy to be handled turkeys are not hard for me to pick up.
I get them against a fence or in a corner, grab them, squat down, and basically pull them between my knees- trapping their wings between my thighs until they calm down, and they can’t back up and escape because I’m not standing up.
Covering their eyes helps if they are worried.... but I corral and pick them up probably twice a month to check feet, look for lice/mites/ other issues, clip wings when younger- they don’t tend to panic when “grabbed”.
Then scoop them up.
Tucked into basically into my armpit, with my upper arm and side pinning the wings, a hand over their eyes if they are freaking out, a good hold on their feet with my other hand (also holding them up against my side), and a quick walk to the shed.
I am happy to grab one and have my hubby take a photo of how I wrangle them tomorrow (when he’s home) if it would be helpful for anyone.

Our turkeys are pretty good about being picked up and handled. I have tried hard to take your advice about not letting them imprint on us-
I do still pick them up and check on them, but now I start that when they are a bit older and have had ample time w their flock mates to know that they are turkeys

 

[Molpet]

Well. Even though I’m a “girl”
Not opening up a Pandora’s box on that. Happy wife and mom of three
Also.
.... I’m 6’2”
And fuss w about 30 horses every day, between my personal crew and my day job.
A 1000-2000+ # horse makes a 30-40# turkey seem pretty manageable
So even my not so happy to be handled turkeys are not hard for me to pick up.
I get them against a fence or in a corner, grab them, squat down, and basically pull them between my knees- trapping their wings between my thighs until they calm down, and they can’t back up and escape because I’m not standing up.
Covering their eyes helps if they are worried.... but I corral and pick them up probably twice a month to check feet, look for lice/mites/ other issues, clip wings when younger- they don’t tend to panic when “grabbed”.
Then scoop them up.
Tucked into basically into my armpit, with my upper arm and side pinning the wings, a hand over their eyes if they are freaking out, a good hold on their feet with my other hand (also holding them up against my side), and a quick walk to the shed.
I am happy to grab one and have my hubby take a photo of how I wrangle them tomorrow (when he’s home) if it would be helpful for anyone.

Our turkeys are pretty good about being picked up and handled. I have tried hard to take your advice about not letting them imprint on us-
I do still pick them up and check on them, but now I start that when they are a bit older and have had ample time w their flock mates to know that they are turkeys

I'm 5' 2", retired 11 years , so it's been a while since any one called me girl LOL.

My heritage fly over the fence while I'm trying to get the net over them sometimes. The BB were much calmer.
I have to catch them with a net anymore. Used to be able to grab legs when they were busy fighting until fall 2020. Having long covid doesn't help.

 

[SourRoses]

CO2 would do that, or nitrogen. Helium would be funny but not lethal I think

It's about oxygen displacement. Quite a few gases can do it, but most have unpleasant side effects that would cause pain and stress. Co2 is one of those, because living bodies are designed to filter it out.
In a closed room, a person would pass away from Co2 buildup long before the oxygen was depleted (about 4x faster). When we hold our breath and feel like we're starving for air, it's actually the body reacting to Co2 buildup. Once we take a breath, the fresh air takes on the Co2 so we can exhale it. All of which I found really interesting when I was researching this stuff for the future project.
Carbon monoxide is the gas people so often think of for a chamber design. In its pure form, it's difficult to get ahold of, and it's dangerous, even a small amount gets in your blood and takes some time to be removed. It's not something I would want to work with.

Helium and nitrogen, on the other hand, have no physical side effects besides replacing the oxygen in the lungs at high enough concentrations. Death would happen very quickly and the animal should stay relaxed. They are both readily available, for balloons or mechanical applications. And they pose no danger to the people outside of the chamber.

The important elements are that:
- the chamber be faultlessly sealed, so the gas maintains a high enough concentration.
- a one way valve allowing most of the air already present in the chamber to escape as the gas flows in.
Oxygen normally rises to the top, but helium is lighter so the valve would need to be placed low (I think).
- The chamber would need to be small enough to avoid wasting gas, but still comfortable, (and dark).

That's about as far as I've gotten. Still more research to do.

 

[Sussex19]

Does this broomstick method really work first try for the person that has never done this? I'm trying to gauge how hard I will need to pull the legs once I step on the stick. I actually prefer if the head comes off so I know the bird is dead immediately. That will be best case scenario for me. Maybe I should pull very hard. Lucky my neighbor has eaten many chickens he raised himself and is more than happy to help me with this process. He doesn't do the broomstick but he's tried to break the neck and says he's got about 50% failure rate- prefers the ax to get it done fast.

I don't think it is foolproof, but then what way is? Personally, the broomstick method is my chosen way of doing it, and done correctly it is very humane.
Why cervical dislocation is more humane then for example cutting the head off, is because you are not only breaking the spin and blood vessels, but you stretch and then snap the spinal cord. This re-coils into the brain, immediately stopping brain activity. Other things (like bleeding out) cause the actual death.
If you slowly pull on the neck without any sharp jerks, it is possible to break the neck and blood vessels but not the spinal cord. Thus the bird will die slower, and may still have some consciousness. This has happened to me a couple of times.
The way to tell is to touch the eye immediately afterwards, and see if there is any reflex.
I always do this now, and is important imo. If there is a reflex, you can either try it again (never worked with mine) or cut the head off. (is easy to do, as you would only be cutting though skin mostly)

You want to put the pole right behind the head, with the throat flat to the ground and beak pointing forward.
You can make a slight slot in the ground under the throat, but it doesn't make very much difference in my experience (the bird isn't there long enough to get distressed.)
Pull lightly on the legs just enough to stretch the neck out, before giving a hard and sharp pull.
If the head comes off, you know its dead, so that is what I would aim for the first few times. After that, it is a lot tidier if the head stays on, as that way the bleed out is contained in the neck. I hang them upside down after they stop flapping, and the after a minute cut the head off just below where the break is. All the blood will stay in the head half of the neck and can be tidily disposed of.

Sorry if this is a bit graphic, but I just wanted to give as much help as I could. The main thing is they have had a great life up to then, and even if it doesn't go a smoothly as it should it is still so much better then what may happen to so many of those one buys in the store.

 

[SweetieChicken234]

I don't think it is foolproof, but then what way is? Personally, the broomstick method is my chosen way of doing it, and done correctly it is very humane.
Why cervical dislocation is more humane then for example cutting the head off, is because you are not only breaking the spin and blood vessels, but you stretch and then snap the spinal cord. This re-coils into the brain, immediately stopping brain activity. Other things (like bleeding out) cause the actual death.
If you slowly pull on the neck without any sharp jerks, it is possible to break the neck and blood vessels but not the spinal cord. Thus the bird will die slower, and may still have some consciousness. This has happened to me a couple of times.
The way to tell is to touch the eye immediately afterwards, and see if there is any reflex.
I always do this now, and is important imo. If there is a reflex, you can either try it again (never worked with mine) or cut the head off. (is easy to do, as you would only be cutting though skin mostly)

You want to put the pole right behind the head, with the throat flat to the ground and beak pointing forward.
You can make a slight slot in the ground under the throat, but it doesn't make very much difference in my experience (the bird isn't there long enough to get distressed.)
Pull lightly on the legs just enough to stretch the neck out, before giving a hard and sharp pull.
If the head comes off, you know its dead, so that is what I would aim for the first few times. After that, it is a lot tidier if the head stays on, as that way the bleed out is contained in the neck. I hang them upside down after they stop flapping, and the after a minute cut the head off just below where the break is. All the blood will stay in the head half of the neck and can be tidily disposed of.

Sorry if this is a bit graphic, but I just wanted to give as much help as I could. The main thing is they have had a great life up to then, and even if it doesn't go a smoothly as it should it is still so much better then what may happen to so many of those one buys in the store.

This was absolutely perfectly written. Great job here. See one of the things I was unsure of was to stretch the neck first then pull hard or just pull hard right away.
The store birds have a miserable life from hatch to death. I don't want to support that if I can raise my own.

 

[Karasu]

I don't think it is foolproof, but then what way is? Personally, the broomstick method is my chosen way of doing it, and done correctly it is very humane.
Why cervical dislocation is more humane then for example cutting the head off, is because you are not only breaking the spin and blood vessels, but you stretch and then snap the spinal cord. This re-coils into the brain, immediately stopping brain activity. Other things (like bleeding out) cause the actual death.
If you slowly pull on the neck without any sharp jerks, it is possible to break the neck and blood vessels but not the spinal cord. Thus the bird will die slower, and may still have some consciousness. This has happened to me a couple of times.
The way to tell is to touch the eye immediately afterwards, and see if there is any reflex.
I always do this now, and is important imo. If there is a reflex, you can either try it again (never worked with mine) or cut the head off. (is easy to do, as you would only be cutting though skin mostly)

You want to put the pole right behind the head, with the throat flat to the ground and beak pointing forward.
You can make a slight slot in the ground under the throat, but it doesn't make very much difference in my experience (the bird isn't there long enough to get distressed.)
Pull lightly on the legs just enough to stretch the neck out, before giving a hard and sharp pull.
If the head comes off, you know its dead, so that is what I would aim for the first few times. After that, it is a lot tidier if the head stays on, as that way the bleed out is contained in the neck. I hang them upside down after they stop flapping, and the after a minute cut the head off just below where the break is. All the blood will stay in the head half of the neck and can be tidily disposed of.

Sorry if this is a bit graphic, but I just wanted to give as much help as I could. The main thing is they have had a great life up to then, and even if it doesn't go a smoothly as it should it is still so much better then what may happen to so many of those one buys in the store.

I agree with this, I went for total decapitation the first few times as well. I still err on the side of caution.

 

[imacowgirl2]

Broomstick method is my preferred way too. I knew I couldn’t do a knife, I used terre loppers one on a youngish bird that had to be euthanized and knew I wouldn’t be able to do it on a full grown bird confidently. Broomstick method allows me to set the bird, then look up so I’m not actually looking at the bird as I dispatch it. It’s also the most foolproof for me…I carry the bird to the spot and then lay it down, with beak facing forward , lay the broomstick over its neck, put one foot on one end of the broomstick, get the stick firmly under that boot, then put the other boot over the other side of the stick and give one good firm pull. I aim for decapitation too, and was surprised at how easy it was. After I dispatch I stick them upside down in a cone to control the flapping and let them bleed out.

 

[Mosey2003]

There shouldn't be this much difficulty with the broomstick method.
Part of the problem is that so many are doing it for the first time with a fully grown rooster, they are much tougher than a young bird or a hen, there is a lot more strength in their necks and more connective tissue overall. With a bird like that, you have to place it and then pull HARD, like you mean it.
Should be laying the bird down back-up on grass or dirt, not a hard-hard surface. Rest your stick over the back of the neck near the head, use one foot on one side lightly to hold it in place, rest other foot on other side and gently pull up, to get it seated right behind the skull. Then step firmly and pull FIRMLY straight UP. As long as you're fully standing on your stick and you pull up very hard, the bird is going to pop. If you're of decent strength, the head is gonna come clean off.
Not multiple sharp tugs. Not one long pull. One soft pull to seat the stick, step HARD pull HARD, done.