Killing your extra roosters - How to deal with it?

[ChickensRDinos]

i do not agree with this vid. I freeze my older ones and have raised meat chickens. The easiest and most human way is just grab them by the legs and put there head on an old log. They will stretch there necks over the log. Have a sharp Axe and one swing its all over. Think about it. Would I rather have my throat slit or in one easy motion have my head cut off. I'll take the second.

Unless you are managing to perfectly sever the brain stem from the brain every time then the two deaths are scientifically the same, as conciousness will last in both cases for a few seconds until the brain is deprived of oxygen. A beheading at the throat is a quick death but not an instant one.

I think picking the method you are most comfortable with is important. I pick the way that I feel personally I have the least chance of messing up based on my own tools and skills. That is my biggest fear in the process. People who are used to another method are likely to have better success doing that. There are a variety of perfectly fine ways to go about it.

 

[NestingHillsSC]

Yes I agree with you.

I was reading around the net and thought maybe this will also help you. I liked it.

"To me, death is a spiritual thing. Everything in life must die. Everything in life, must take life in some form to live. Life begets life. We can't get around it. What we can do is respect that life. Take care of what takes care of us. Treat your food like it will soon become part of you, it will.

 

[buttercup hill]

Before I made my first attempt I did a lot of searching on the methods for the most humane way. The lady in the already mentioned vid was my first pick but I found it too difficult to hold the bird and do the deed.

Another vid showed how to hang it by the feet which was better, for me, and seemed to calm the bird. But the bleeding out method seemed, to me anyway, to take longer and frighten the bird as it could see what was going on.

The method I found the least traumatizing for me and the bird is shown in this video:
http://www.hobbyfarms.com/hobby-farms-videos/how-to-butcher-chicken-part-1.aspx

I fully agree with ChickensRDinos that picking the method you are most comfortable with is important.

 

[ShadowSwirl]

Bumed out this morning. Only had 4 birds to start with killed my first two Roos yesterday had a 3rd Roo crow at me this AM. We can only have a max of 6 I started with 4 and tonight I'll be down to 1. It wasn't such a big deal bumping them off, not so much different than killing a fish for dinner but I'm not raising meat or egg birds I'm trying to do some organic pest control under my fruit trees and I just had to give 2/3's of my garden staff the axe,

 

[ChickensRDinos]

Maybe try looking for some point of lay pullets to buy - that way you know for sure you are buying hens and you don't have to start all over.

Sorry

 

[ShadowSwirl]

Maybe try looking for some point of lay pullets to buy - that way you know for sure you are buying hens and you don't have to start all over.

Sorry

Kind of what I'm doing this morning. The woman who gave me the birds wants to look before the last Roo. gets the Ax. She thought they were all hens when she gave them to me. I'm a bit more interested in getting some Bantams that will forage aggressively than more Plymoth's even if they are kind of pretty birds to look at.

 

[ShadowSwirl]

any one in western WA. looking to reduce their flock by 3 or 4 young hens?