Processing Day Support Group ~ HELP us through the Emotions PLEASE!

[gypsychicken]

You are kind! How do I join the NOrcal Group?

 

[ronott1]

You are kind! How do I join the NOrcal Group?

Go there and say Hi!

We love new Members.

 

[jajeanpierre]

1 rooster so far. I also read she said 1000fps, but my husband said 600 would be ample to do the job, so that's what he bought. It was an instant kill. Neck went limp instantly, some flopping and flapping then still. Base of skull aimed at a slight upward angle point blank. I say upward angle because the rooster was not upside down. We looked up where the brain /spinal cord would be and aimed for it.

I got into a discussion with my vet's vet tech yesterday. I told him I was going to kill my next batch with a pellet gun. He said I should aim for the brain stem, that there was a forumen (opening) at the base of the skull. I guess that would be the same as going back a half an inch or an inch back from the back of the comb and aiming a little upwards towards the beak.

I will use the rifle pellet gun for my next group, but might buy the same little pellet gun you have and have the rifle all loaded in case of an error with the slower pistol.

How much struggling/flapping did he do? I've seen gross videos of a chicken repeatedly leaping four or five feet in the air after decapitation. Did they struggle that hard?

Thanks for sharing.

 

[Kassaundra]

I got into a discussion with my vet's vet tech yesterday. I told him I was going to kill my next batch with a pellet gun. He said I should aim for the brain stem, that there was a forumen (opening) at the base of the skull. I guess that would be the same as going back a half an inch or an inch back from the back of the comb and aiming a little upwards towards the beak.

I will use the rifle pellet gun for my next group, but might buy the same little pellet gun you have and have the rifle all loaded in case of an error with the slower pistol.

How much struggling/flapping did he do? I've seen gross videos of a chicken repeatedly leaping four or five feet in the air after decapitation. Did they struggle that hard?

Thanks for sharing.

Mine have all been in the cone w/ legs restrained so no leaping for sure. Some jerk more then others, some barely at all others quite a bit, but just flopping, at least from what I've seen as I am walking away and the splatter I've noticed on returning.

 

[Beekissed]

This video is about making the humans feel comfortable, not the chicken.

It is and that is why it seems so popular with people...they just LOVE that video. Of course they do...it teaches them to be selfish about the whole process and concentrate only on how they feel and not the how the chicken is dealing with it.

That's a great post, Beekissed!


That video was the first how-to videos I watched, and I was more than a bit upset by it. The sqeaky-voiced little girl ripping off the chicken head with her bare hands at the end was just too much.

You are so correct about them not wanting to be handled and restrained, but I'm not sure restraining them is as stressful as you do.

Thank you! I was expecting to get shredded on that post but it's what I've been observing on these forums for the past 5 years and it seems to be the root of the problem. I am so very pleased you are getting your head around this processing...it's like anything else, the more you practice detachment on processing day, the easier it gets each time. It becomes a job then and less of a drama.

I've been handling a lot of chickens over quite a few years and killed more than most folks here, I figure, I can assure you that restraining them is every bit as stressful as it looks. It can calm some birds some of the time, but they have to have their heads covered and even then they struggle~I know because I use a towel over their heads when I work on them and wrap them in it..and I still need another person to restrain them. Struggling, as you saw in the video of this swaddled bird, is a sign of panic, fight or flight reaction and it's natural when the chicken is restrained.

Hanging them upside down until they stop flapping and calm down works well, so placing them in a cone works for both things..that's why they rest so comfortably in a cone, not because they are restrained, but because they are upside down. The cone merely makes for good gravitational positioning, while freeing one's hands for the job and keeping the movements of the bird to a minimum. They actually bleed out quicker when they move more, but they also make a great big mess, so the cones make things neat and orderly which is great for processing. One bird can be hanging and bleeding out while you eviscerate another. It's just good sense to use the cones...can't really be gutting one bird, with another bird on your lap bleeding out into a bucket.

I kill them as quickly as possible, with as little handling as possible - because frankly - that is the very worst part for them.. the handling.

I catch them, put them in a kennel and drive them up to the kill cone with the tractor (too heavy in the kennels - I do four per kennel and do two kennels at a time in our tractor's trailer). I take one out at a time, quickly put them in the cone (this is when they relax - once you aren't touching them any longer). I stretch their neck through the hole, cut the jugular and hold their head back as they bleed out. I don't NEED to hold their head, but I find it keeps the blood flowing smoothly and they die quickly. I do not tap on them. They go to sleep pretty much.. followed by the death throws. Once they have finished their throws, off with the head and on with the processing.

This is how I do it as well and I agree...they calm right down when placed in the cone. That's why I make it a quick trip from holding place to cone, all the while holding the bird upside down so they can calm down on the way to the cone. If I sat down and wrapped them in an apron to do the processing, it would take me approximately all day to do a few birds...and ain't nobody got time for that, as Sweet Brown says.

 

[aoxa]

It is and that is why it seems so popular with people...they just LOVE that video. Of course they do...it teaches them to be selfish about the whole process and concentrate only on how they feel and not the how the chicken is dealing with it.


Thank you! I was expecting to get shredded on that post but it's what I've been observing on these forums for the past 5 years and it seems to be the root of the problem. I am so very pleased you are getting your head around this processing...it's like anything else, the more you practice detachment on processing day, the easier it gets each time. It becomes a job then and less of a drama.

I've been handling a lot of chickens over quite a few years and killed more than most folks here, I figure, I can assure you that restraining them is every bit as stressful as it looks. It can calm some birds some of the time, but they have to have their heads covered and even then they struggle~I know because I use a towel over their heads when I work on them and wrap them in it..and I still need another person to restrain them. Struggling, as you saw in the video of this swaddled bird, is a sign of panic, fight or flight reaction and it's natural when the chicken is restrained.

Hanging them upside down until they stop flapping and calm down works well, so placing them in a cone works for both things..that's why they rest so comfortably in a cone, not because they are restrained, but because they are upside down. The cone merely makes for good gravitational positioning, while freeing one's hands for the job and keeping the movements of the bird to a minimum. They actually bleed out quicker when they move more, but they also make a great big mess, so the cones make things neat and orderly which is great for processing. One bird can be hanging and bleeding out while you eviscerate another. It's just good sense to use the cones...can't really be gutting one bird, with another bird on your lap bleeding out into a bucket.


This is how I do it as well and I agree...they calm right down when placed in the cone. That's why I make it a quick trip from holding place to cone, all the while holding the bird upside down so they can calm down on the way to the cone. If I sat down and wrapped them in an apron to do the processing, it would take me approximately all day to do a few birds...and ain't nobody got time for that, as Sweet Brown says.

I seriously named a duck after Sweet Brown. Because 'ery body got time for that!

 

[Beekissed]

Got any named Antoine? Love that name, Sweet Brown...she's a sweety, a real character and it amuses me how it all took off for her because she was just being herself. Gotta love that.

 

[gypsychicken]

Hello Beekissed,

I wanted to reply to your post to me, but can't seem to find it now.

I'll take the positive from your reply to me and use it: That these chickens purpose is to provide eggs and meat, and they are fulfilling their purpose when I raise, process and cook delicious meals with them. I appreciate that comment. That has been my intention from the start.

I also chuckled and appreciated "Get your head on straight". That IS just what I needed to do. That was helpful to me and humorous as if I was being spoken to by an experienced but very cranky Auntie.

pvc

edited by staff

 

[bachbach1]

When I was a kid I got initiated to cleaning and processing chickens very young. I was about 7 and my dad came hone with a burlap bad moving around with chicken sounds coming out of the bag. Mysteriously a few hours later after that we had chicken to eat, and chicken for a few weeks. I never thought much about it, but this day was different, my dad said come here, I need some help. He just said we are going to clean some chickens, I need you to help me kill them. I was a little shocked, and wondering what is next, my job was to hold them stretched out on a wood block, and he whacked their head off with a cleaver. After a few minutes of talking about what we were about to do, mainly what to do to be safe, it was on. I had hunted and fished a lot, and had seen blood, and animals being cleaned before, dad knew this. A few minutes later we had 8 dead chickens, and he said I will take it from here.

I walked away thinking wow, that was strange, I didn't like it but even though I was a kid I felt like I had manned up and done something ugly that helped my family. I knew where my meat came from before, but not so up close and personal. Since I have hunted, harvested animals regularly, and dont have problems with it. That being said to be perfectly honest I have never gotten truly comfortable with the killing part, yet it is part of the ugly that will be done by someone for me, if I dont man up and do it, so I do it. I think if you like it you are touched in the head, so know full well you will never truly be able to causally kill without any feeling. That is what separates us from Charles Manson, and others how have serious problems. All the hype about killing kindly is garbage made to make humans feel better, just be humane, do it, and get it over with. You dont need to pet or calm the animals, dont be cruel, and take care of business.

It has been going on since the beginning of time, embrace it as a chore. It isn't supposed to be easy, but you shouldn't feel any guilt. That resistance is what makes you a good person, and normal. To desensitize yourself to things like this you would truly have to do it very often, otherwise your normal resistance is a gift, embrace it, and get it done.

 

[gypsychicken]

Yup, AND,
Fact is...
I LOVE my fried chicken!