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

[Happy Chooks]

fisherlady - is that all of the innards?

 

[fisherlady]

fisherlady - is that all of the innards?

Not in the pics I posted.... but I do use them now, minus the gall bladder and intestine (just never took the time to flush them out for use.

Some livers I keep out for separate use, though I have often boiled up a bag of livers and hearts and put them through the chopper and mixed them in with scrambled eggs or oatmeal for evening treats. Those birds love having chicken for dinner, in any form!

 

[Angelicisi]

How much of their diet does this consist of?
Those ground up carcass balls look yummy
Are they given in moderation like treats or added regularly as a feed supplement?

We raise meaties and I sell plenty of parts for raw diet pet foods to others but the center structure is always left over because, well I thought bones were dangerous. But using it ALL? Love the idea if the nutrition is safe for the chooks. I know it most definitely is for the dogs
Right now I feed back all livers/hearts and kidneys (they don't like the lungs lol) but immediately while processing, never tried to save it for long term diets. Should I be? Like freezing it then using as needed long term?

I can understand them being used this way.... but my only concern is that Mindy would freak out and Dillon would head to the coop thinking he saw more treats out there!!!  

Though I was just eyeing up a bag of CX feet I have in the freezer.  We just boiled and ground up 4 frozen carcass frames and made more chicken mush balls for treating the birds in the evening.  We will give one to the dogs once in a while over their food as a treat, but it obviously isn't recognizable.

 

[fisherlady]

How much of their diet does this consist of?
Those ground up carcass balls look yummy

Are they given in moderation like treats or added regularly as a feed supplement?

We raise meaties and I sell plenty of parts for raw diet pet foods to others but the center structure is always left over because, well I thought bones were dangerous. But using it ALL? Love the idea if the nutrition is safe for the chooks. I know it most definitely is for the dogs

Right now I feed back all livers/hearts and kidneys (they don't like the lungs lol) but immediately while processing, never tried to save it for long term diets. Should I be? Like freezing it then using as needed long term?

We give them as treats during times of stress (molting, injury recovery, cold weather).... we just thaw them and mush them up with other foods and set them in bowls for the birds to have at it. I don't give it as daily supplement, though I see no reason it would be harmful in moderation. An extremely high iron or protein diet probably wouldn't be right for the chickens on a daily basis, it should be balanced out with greens.
I had already frozen some carcasses for use at a later time and decided I didn't need them so I wanted to cook them down and make more chicken balls since they are very easy to store. (just freeze on wax paper, then throw the frozen balls into a zippy bag and put back in freezer, then pull out however many you need at a time)
We have fed them the chicken balls this way for over a year and the only downside we have seen is that the birds get pretty darned aggressive when they see it in a dish! LOL

Bones are great sources of calcium and iron (bone marrow produces new blood cells, so very iron rich)... the only thing is that I make sure it is very well ground so no sharp shards to risk injury to throat or crop.

I wouldn't do this with a sick bird though, unless you know for sure what the illness it. I am not comfortable with the exposure risks unless I could research the illness and how it is transmitted. These birds were all processed as extra roosters or meat birds.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Quote: and thats bones as well? tks u

 

[fisherlady]

If you cook it and process it through a grinders and make the chicken balls out of it you can store it for months in a zippy bag that you can just open as needed. The problems we ran into was we had lots of stuff (too much actually) available for treats at butcher time, but not when it was needed. Cooking and grinding means all parts get used and it is spread out over months, not days...

 

[fisherlady]

and thats bones as well? tks u

Yep, bones and all... if the bones aren't too big for the grinders. I need to find a larger version of this grinder, though... it would be easier.

 

[fisherlady]

I don't include the head, though I'm sure it could be.... I don't want to bother with cleaning all the feathers off of it and honestly, I would have trouble wrapping my brain around adding that to the pot.... I guess even I have a few hang ups...

 

[Tomtommom]

Didn't the whole mad cow thing start with cows eating brains or something....

I wouldn't mess with the heads

 

[Happy Chooks]

I cook the heart/liver/kidney/neck for the dog. But I've never thought about using the rest - I guess I'll have to pay more attention next time I butcher one.