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

[BantyChooks]

As hard as it is, I can't say that I miss those extra roos once their gone.

No sirree.

 

[fisherlady]

Thanks. This is what's happening right now. They're trying to kill each other.. and beat up my favourite hens. The rabble-rousing Dominique overthrew the lead cock and now chaos has broken loose among the cockerels.
View attachment 1285142

I was going to do it last week but lost my nerve.

Smaller feed bill, banty, smaller feed bill... think how nice that would be.

Yes, time for them to go... as was said, gather your supplies, including a large pot of cold water to hold the carcasses in until you are ready to take them apart.
You can do this!

 

[Molpet]

they are tasty .. that is my motivation

but yeah I have to be in the mood... have to talk myself about it for a couple of days when I see a good day coming up.

 

[BantyChooks]

Yes, time for them to go... as was said, gather your supplies, including a large pot of cold water to hold the carcasses in until you are ready to take them apart.
You can do this!

I think I might have to use warm water instead to keep them from freezing. LOL.

 

[BantyChooks]

they are tasty .. that is my motivation

but yeah I have to be in the mood... have to talk myself about it for a couple of days when I see a good day coming up.

Very true, they're delicious. It's the turning them edible I hate. Ugh...

 

[fisherlady]

LOL,

Honestly , I have a small bucket of warm water for rinsing off my hands when doing multiple birds, especially in cold weather...and we put some canning salt in the cold water pot for the carcasses.

 

[BantyChooks]

LOL,

Honestly , I have a small bucket of warm water for rinsing off my hands when doing multiple birds, especially in cold weather...and we put some canning salt in the cold water pot for the carcasses.

I am hoping I can wait for a day that's warm enough to drag the hose out. Last time I used hauled water---that wasn't fun. At all.

 

[rebrascora]

Good luck. Not sure if you have a green house or poly tunnel but I find they make the job a little less unpleasant in cold weather. I hang the bird from the frame to pluck with a big bag below to catch the feathers and set up the workstation on the staging. It's warmer in there out of the wind but not too warm. Beats working outside and it is nice and light to see what you are doing. Having the right tools and making sure knives are nice and sharp really helps. Since I can work in the poly tunnel I choose a rainy day when I can't get on with other things. I catch the birds on the roost overnight and put them in a cardboard box in a shed so there is no problem chasing them down the next day. I use the broomstick method and find it best for me. I give a double tug just to make extra sure I did the job and then I have a cone made out of a bit of carpet offcut (lino would be ideal) and lined with a feed bad that I put them into to contain any flapping and cut their head off with a sharp knife at the broken point in the neck and let them bleed out. I have a dish below to catch the blood and I mix it with layer pellets or fermented feed as reward/compensation to the ladies who have had to put up with their nonsense for so long!
Good luck. I know exactly how hard it is to drum up that motivation but you feel so much better once it is done.

 

[BantyChooks]

Good luck. Not sure if you have a green house or poly tunnel but I find they make the job a little less unpleasant in cold weather. I hang the bird from the frame to pluck with a big bag below to catch the feathers and set up the workstation on the staging. It's warmer in there out of the wind but not too warm. Beats working outside and it is nice and light to see what you are doing. Having the right tools and making sure knives are nice and sharp really helps. Since I can work in the poly tunnel I choose a rainy day when I can't get on with other things. I catch the birds on the roost overnight and put them in a cardboard box in a shed so there is no problem chasing them down the next day. I use the broomstick method and find it best for me. I give a double tug just to make extra sure I did the job and then I have a cone made out of a bit of carpet offcut (lino would be ideal) and lined with a feed bad that I put them into to contain any flapping and cut their head off with a sharp knife at the broken point in the neck and let them bleed out. I have a dish below to catch the blood and I mix it with layer pellets or fermented feed as reward/compensation to the ladies who have had to put up with their nonsense for so long!
Good luck. I know exactly how hard it is to drum up that motivation but you feel so much better once it is done.

Thank you! No, no greenhouse or similar. Does it 'feel' like manual cervical dislocation in terms of the pop/stretch feel when the joint lets go?

Carpet.... interesting. I'm going to need a cone this time so maybe I'll try that. Last time I hung the bird with baling twine and that was, uh, exciting.

 

[rebrascora]

I've never done manual dislocation. I've always been worried that I didn't have the strength in my hands and 6 month cockerels are pretty tough. I don't always feel the stretch the first time which is why I now do a double pull just to be sure and you can definitely feel the elastic stretch on the second pull.... I think the first pull I'm just too keen to give a good hard quick tug rather than "feeling" for it. There is barely half a second between 1st and 2nd pulls, so they are not really two distinct efforts.
You could probably also use roofing felt to make a cone.... anything that has a bit of rigidity to it perhaps even cardboard. I use Duct tape to secure it in the cone shape and screw it to a piece of plywood that I can hang up. I much prefer to be able to drop them into the cone once I've dislocated, then cut off their head and walk away and take a few deep breaths and chill before I return to deal with the carcass. The killing is by far the hardest part for me, so having that walk away period to compose myself whilst it spasms makes it a little easier.