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

[Kassaundra]

True. I do most of that too... I even caught a 1 eyed toad at work and took him outside and put him in the grass at the cow pasture near the parking lot.

I just don't think I could actually kill them. I watched one of the videos on here of a fairly large operation where one guy killed them and let them bleed out as he went to another one, as he got to full cones he pulled them out and someone else put them in the scalder and plucker and on they went, I think I could do any of the further down the line jobs, just not the actual killing....

I had a difficult start killing the chickens, it was actually emotionally traumatic for me, I still cringe when I think about it. I didn't think after the hatchet fiasco I would ever attempt again. But I continued reading the meat thread and continued watching the videos, and decided to try w/ a pellet gun instead of so hands on, it worked for me, I am able to do it now w/o to much trouble, even w/o the wine. (when I first was killing w/ the pellet gun I would have a little wine as I worked to make it easier)

 

[Kassaundra]

I'm not sure of the proper procedure for skinning, I only know the way my dad taught me. I cut the skin down one side of the breast and pull the skin away from the side. Then I push the leg (foot already taken off at the joint) up. So the knee is bent. I work my finger around the leg, at the joint of the leg and thigh. Sometimes I need to use a knife to cut though the clear/whitish membrane. Once I can get my finger all the way around the leg between the meat and skin, I push a couple more fingers in the hole. Then, put one hand on the side of the bird and with the other pull the skin down, towards the end of the leg. It should peel off, inside out. When you get all the skin off until the end of the leg, give one final hard pull and the skin will come off over the end of the joint. That is the best I can describe it. Maybe I'll try to get pictures next time I process a bird.

That is what I was doing and I couldn't pull it off, w/ every bit of strength I had skin in one hand leg in the other. Gary (my husband) did the last few for me (pulling the skin off the leg) b/c my hands were cramping so bad at that point, but even w/ his upperbody strength it was difficult.

 

[fisherlady]

That is what I was doing and I couldn't pull it off, w/ every bit of strength I had skin in one hand leg in the other. Gary (my husband) did the last few for me (pulling the skin off the leg) b/c my hands were cramping so bad at that point, but even w/ his upperbody strength it was difficult.

When I get to the joint and it doesn't 'want to let go'.... I use the point of a very fine/small fillet knife and just touch it to the white membrane as I hold pressure against it and it lets go. You can just work the knife around the leg and cut it off. I also have trouble with arthritis/cramping when skinning and this method works for me.
I guess nearly 30 years of ambulance stretchers is taking it's toll on my hands.

 

[Kassaundra]

When I get to the joint and it doesn't 'want to let go'.... I use the point of a very fine/small fillet knife and just touch it to the white membrane as I hold pressure against it and it lets go. You can just work the knife around the leg and cut it off. I also have trouble with arthritis/cramping when skinning and this method works for me.

I actually considered limb loppers and cutting that whole "ball" cartilage bone end off leaving sharp bone. But didn't think they were clean enough

 

[ChaoSS]

Btw, my first time skinning a chicken was when I got home from work, I dropped my motorcycle on my way home and broke my arm. I got home and went to check on the chickens and one had managed to break his wing. I was completely unprepared to properly process a chicken, no scalding pot or anything, so I killed it and skinned it. Most of what I did was pulling the skin off with my broken arm and cutting with my good arm. I cut off the wings, didn't want to fight with them, but everything else was easy enough with the knife.

That was a CX, probably easier to skin as well as pluck, but the concept is the same.

 

[BullChick]

Quote:
The first cockerel was killed by me after my DH couldn't just do it. I will spare you the details of what he did to the poor thing. I finally snatched him up, and broke his neck (clean off his body!). It was so horrible! Several weeks later a friend came over, and the two of them did the deed while I brought the boys over, and scalded/feathered a couple. I did watch a few being decapitated. I was not pleased that he let them fall, and bounce around (messy, and bruised meat) but I have to say it was pretty funny when one was doing back flips over and over.
The BBW were a cinch though. They were meat from day one. This time we ended up at a friend's house who had a whole set up. He was showing another way to kill. It was a lesson on what we will not do. He cut the throat and they were alive (no, not just death twitches) for about ten minutes. Then they did the twitch. While I didn't agree with his method, DH is comfortable with the whole process now. We will be going to the friend's until we have a good set up, but DH and I will be doing it all ourselves now. No tears from me!

 

[AZChiknGoddess]

He told me from the outset he will have nothing to do w/ killing or processing for food.  He builds whatever I ask including killing station, helped me pick out a gun bought it for me, feeds them daily, goes and gets the sand for the roosting tray, cleans the roost tray.  Helps in anything I need or ask him, except the killing and processing.  It is just not in him to do, and I'm okay w/ that.  I did need help getting the skin off the leg joint, and he helped w/ that, which really surprised me.  These were not our birds, they were a lady's who couldn't bring herself to kill her roos and she was over run and really needing less to have to feed.  I wouldn't have tried to tackle 9 by myself except to help her.



So those that skin, just how to you get the skin off the leg at that last joint, where you cut the leg off at??????   I pulled w/ everything I had, and I am not a weak person and I just couldn't get it.

There is no way my SO would help me kill animals for our food. Even if I did process birds I doubt he would eat it knowing what it looked like alive.

 

[Kassaundra]

When I get to the joint and it doesn't 'want to let go'.... I use the point of a very fine/small fillet knife and just touch it to the white membrane as I hold pressure against it and it lets go. You can just work the knife around the leg and cut it off. I also have trouble with arthritis/cramping when skinning and this method works for me.
I guess nearly 30 years of ambulance stretchers is taking it's toll on my hands.

I do not have arthritis, but my asthma controller med increases muscle cramping to extreme levels, but I guess if you put muscle cramps on one side of a scale and breathing on the other, I would take breathing. lol

 

[AZChiknGoddess]

I fish bees out of the pool, I catch spiders to release them outside, I have caught mice in the house and drove them out to the country, I haven't emptied the kids' pool in months because frogs laid eggs in it... every lost dog in the neighborhood knows to find me.


It's all about mindset. Don't become overly attached to what you plan to eat.


Day old cockerels are tossed out like trash, used as packing peanuts to ship day old pullets... instead I offer them a good life with a moment of "Oh crap!" at the end. I feel good about that. Deer live much, much better lives than your average meat cow. Circle of life and all that jazz.

I so agree with your post. If you are raising animals specifically for meat your job is to keep it healthy, clean it's enclosure and in general make its life happy and it's death as quick and painless as possible. Animals/chickens really live for the moment and a juicy bug or a strawberry makes it a great day! They live as long as they live and do it fully every day. I tell people that animals are not long range planners and they are not planning on retiring to Boca Raton and having the grand kids visit. Killing them today or a year from now is pretty much the same to them. They live without regret or ambition.

 

[AZChiknGoddess]

I actually considered limb loppers and cutting that whole "ball" cartilage bone end off leaving sharp bone.  But didn't think they were clean enough

My ex husband and I used to process a lot of animals. I was the skinner and with rabbits who have similar issues in the leg joints, I would cut feet off and start at the joint and go up the inside of the leg and stop around the hip area. The go back to the top and pull down and everything would just slide off. We always plucked birds so I'm not sure it would peel off the same way but it's worth a try.