Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[NativeBeauty]

Well, thats it...I will no longer be using CL for posting sales

People can be such jerks!! No new home for my drake boys this weekend and so now looking at freezer camp for these boys again. I hate to do it, but I can't have seven drakes fighting over the two lone duck hens either

My kids and DH are trying to be understanding, but this is their first experience in raising birds/livestock and well, I HATE being the "bad guy".
Does anyone here have a poultry processor that is skilled in smoking duck? I thought to keep the tears to a minimum here in the house, that I would donate the smoked duck to the homeless shelter. I am very sure that my family would have no interest in eating any of our home-raised duck and I don't want the boys going to a home that is ill prepared for their proper care nor waste beautiful lives to becoming freezer burned and subsequently thrown away....so THIS is the down-side to raising poultry

 

[NovaAman]

I use a processor here in Holland, I am not sure what she charges for ducks, though I do know that they do them also. I don't know how far it would be for you to travel though. I know that a couple of my Asian friends would take muscovey drakes, but they'd not want to pay for them really. Like my fellow Dutch, they are real penny tight! LOL. Well anyway, she just processes, doesn't smoke them. Its Kapenga Poultry and Processing. I can find her number for you if you are interested. They are on the corner of New Holland and 112th, Holland, 49424

 

[Stacykins]

Smile!

Her head wasn't stuck, she can get back through just fine. Thankfully, the rest of her can't get out, just her head!

 

[NovaAman]

That face just says, "This is what trouble looks like."

 

[fuzzybutt love]

Did you know there is mercury in them? The cleanup recommendation for a broken energy efficient bulb is to leave the room and let it air out! I would be iffy about having it near the chickens...... (Accident prone)

 

[RaZ]

Just a few days ago, I turned on the kitchen light and the CFL bulb exploded. This is the third bulb to explode in less than 2 years, two in the kitchen and one in the bathroom. All of these bulbs are made in Asia for some reason, maybe because they don't have health and safety standards.

These things are supposed to save on the electric bill but my consumption went down 2% from last month, but the rate went up 13%. Go figure.

 

[SillyChicken]

Smile!

Her head wasn't stuck, she can get back through just fine. Thankfully, the rest of her can't get out, just her head!

awww,... she looks like my boys....... and they are double trouble!!

 

[Opa]

Every year it seems I hear of someone complaining that when they got their meat back from the processor, be it beef, pork, or venison, they were shorted and received far less than than they should have. I doubt that if that is truly the case. The problem is that most people fail to realize the difference between live weight, hanging weight, and processed weight.

I process my own venison and the doe I shot this past Thursday was a real nice fat doe. I would estimate her live weight to have been about 140 lbs. Her actual field dressed weight was 105 lbs and that would place her slightly above average in size. Most hunters overestimate the size of a deer. I have killed well over 200 deer and rarely have I taken one that weighed much over 140 lbs.

As you start removing the inedible parts like hide, head, and horn, the weight drops even further and you will start processing a carcass that is roughly 50% of the live weight. This doe was neck shot so there was minimal loss due to bullet destruction of tissue. A shoulder shot can often ruin a substantial portion of both front quarters. A healthy doe carries a lot of fat and I probably removed 5 lbs of hard fat before I started cutting.

My preferred method of processing is boning. Not having to waste valuable freezer space storing bone makes perfect sense to me. Also it allows me to remove as much tendon and sinew as possible. My thinking is that if the Indians used it for bow strings and sewing thread it is something I don't care to eat. Additonally, as you break the meat down into muscle groups you will encounter pockets of fat that you can remove.

Once I was done and evrything was vacuum sealed I weighed the end result and it was 39 lbs. Roughly 100 lbs of loss. I know I didn't cheat myself out of a few steaks, as the processors are often accused of. Hope asked me this morning how much meat did I think I'd get and I missed my estimate by one pounds. While meat that is processed bone in will result in heavier packages it will still be less than 50% of the live weight.

Hopefully this information will give those of you who are new to all of this, reasonable expectations.

 

[tdhenson86]

Opa,

Thanks for the explanation!!! I myself knew that there would be a lot of waste in processing a deer, but had no idea that it would be that much.

Thanks!

 

[tndalexander]

Well, a lot can change if they approve the bill as is this Nov. Even grandfathered properties will be required to follow the space and environmental requirements, so look into a "waste management " plan and whatnot just in case! That way you will have a quick answer if they come to you.

Good to know I am a fighter they better come with a warrant prepared to fight me to the supream court! Thank you for the warning tho