Just Butchered My Cornish X. Now I Feel Terrible.

[B-Goock]

A local butcher shop owners bumper sticker "for you to eat something died"

 

[cassie]

Yes - to end a pet's suffering. I would find it very difficult to do regardless. I had a meat chicken pet - unintentionally because somebody just left her in my front yard. I didn't know at the time that she was a meat chicken.
And I can tell you that even a meat chicken has a personality. lol She was smarter than my bantams...she conveyed clear and understandable emotions with every sound in her vocabulary. I could pick out her voice in a crowd of chickens. And she cried out when she died...she had a heart attack (I did not see it coming). Sure, she was just food - as long as you didn't know her... But I find myself missing her as I do when I lose a dog.

I know how you feel. I did have a meat chicken as a pet. He did not have a long life but he was fun to have around.

 

[canne50]

i made a thread earlier about what to do after butchering my cornish x. see link below

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/about-to-butcher-cornish-x-need-help.1475243/

this was my very first time butchering a chicken, i have cleaned and processed fish and clams before and never felt bad, but this time i feel so terrible.

i am pro gun, pro hunting, but damn, this hits me hard. i am a fully grown man and aint some social justice warrior or special snowflake.

anyone else on here felt the same after killing their chicken??

here is a pic. it weighs a little over 8 lbs in the bag. he is 12 weeks old.

it must have weighed about 10 lbs before removing the skin, organ, feathers and other body parts.




View attachment 2717139

I kept my meats separate, did not name, or get too attached. I still have a couple of weeks without eating chicken!.

 

[ChickensRsmart]

I've had to put a few severely injured animals out of their misery before (wild animals) - including a dove that was disemboweled in mid air right in front of me - Hawk attack. It was not enjoyable or easy to do, but the alternative was pointless pain and suffering - before death.

However, I could not do this to one of my pets (even a pet chicken). I just could not do it...