Slaughter by insulin?

[frostbite]

I had meant to say killed not culled.

That's okay. Either way, did we give you enough food for thought, did the answers we gave make sense to you? Did it help?

You don't ever have to kill anything if you don't want to. This is a deeply personal subject.

 

[nakstk]

Well I am just wondering why the OP is wanting to kill them and not eat them and not let anyone else eat them. I get that it is a touchy subject. I am not opposed to killing and eating animals. We just butchered our hog in Oct and we are getting 25 meat chickens in 3 weeks, which we will be chopping the heads off. I just wasn't understanding the reason behind killing perfectly healthy animals and disposing of the carcase. They could be donated or sold if they are not wanted.

 

[Valerie47]

Thank you for some very interesting replies! And the video is the most helpful and clear I have seen (I have seen several).
I have 4 young cockerels as a result of an unplanned hatching of 10 chicks about 8 months ago. I have several female bantams who live wild in my garden; one went missing for several weeks and eventually emerged out of a thicket with her chicks in tow, 4 of whom turned out to be male. If I keep them, in the spring I am worried that a) they will fight and b) they will father more chicks and I shall be inundated.
Besides these 4 young cockerels I have 2 older ones who are now almost 6 years old, Napoleon and Boris Pecker, one of whom was the father. I think that it won't be long before they die naturally. I regard them as pets and shall not kill them unless they fall sick. In the past we have had chicks and our neighbour despatched the males but he is elderly and has not the strength in his hands to break their necks any more. So I think it is about time I took on the task.
I have advertised them, but no-one round here wants males. I could give them away to someone who will slaughter and eat them, but I would prefer to do the deed myself - if I can find the right way I think this would be less stressful for them - and then give them to my neighbour for cooking, or discard them if my neighbour doesn't like the idea of eating an insulin-laden carcass (if I use insulin, that is, not decided yet). That isn't to me the issue - it's the method of slaughter that I am concerned about. I want one that I know I can do well and not botch.
Best wishes from rural France
Valerie

 

[cubalaya]

just get an ax or hatchet.

 

[damselfish]

Valerie, I think you're doing just fine.

I will say that the neck-breaking method requires practice. We were afraid to try it, but when one of our chickens was savaged by a dog and appeared to be dead, my husband tried it figuring it couldn't hurt a dead chicken, and it didn't work. That was traumatic for us and possibly for the chicken, which was either not dead, or else just started reflexively flapping.

Chopping also requires practice and we have found that a kitchen cleaver is more controllable than an axe.

So I think you are very sensible to consider other methods. If you do decide to chop, practice first, have someone else stretch the neck out a bit and then step away while you chop down hard.

Sometimes I think the folks who say "oh, just get an axe" either learned very young or have simply done a lot of them and may not remember how difficult it was the first time. Also, men have more arm strength than women and are generally not afraid to hit something HARD, whereas ladies are often taught to be more peaceful!

No insult intended to men or ladies who are already good at chopping stuff. I just know that when I first met my husband I had a tough time even swinging a hammer hard because no one had ever taught me how to hit things right. Even now my husband is the one that dispatches the chickens, but at this point I have confidence that if need be, I can, with minimum trauma to the chicken.

Anyway, too much philosophy but I think sometimes this is what underlies the chicken-killing questions. Hope it helps with your thought process.

 

[CeeJ]

Did

Valerie, I think you're doing just fine. 

I will say that the neck-breaking method requires practice.  We were afraid to try it, but when one of our chickens was savaged by a dog and appeared to be dead, my husband tried it figuring it couldn't hurt a dead chicken, and it didn't work.  That was traumatic for us and possibly for the chicken, which was either not dead, or else just started reflexively flapping.

Chopping also requires practice and we have found that a kitchen cleaver is more controllable than an axe. 

So I think you are very sensible to consider other methods.  If you do decide to chop, practice first, have someone else stretch the neck out a bit and then step away while you chop down hard. 

Sometimes I think the folks who say "oh, just get an axe" either learned very young or have simply done a lot of them and may not remember how difficult it was the first time.  Also, men have more arm strength than women and are generally not afraid to hit something HARD, whereas ladies are often taught to be more peaceful!

No insult intended to men or ladies who are already good at chopping stuff.  I just know that when I first met my husband I had a tough time even swinging a hammer hard because no one had ever taught me how to hit things right.  Even now my husband is the one that dispatches the chickens, but at this point I have confidence that if need be, I can, with minimum trauma to the chicken.

Anyway, too much philosophy but I think sometimes this is what underlies the chicken-killing questions.  Hope it helps with your thought process.

Did you ever end up trying the insulin? I had the very same thought that it could be more humane for all involved - the chicken and me. Chopping a head off or slitting a throat is simply not possible for me personally. I can make the call it's time, but must rely on another to do the deed. That is not always easy to find. I am determined to find a humane way that I can stomach as well. I really appreciate your sharing.

 

[roostersandhens]

I know this is an old thread but... I have type 1 diabetes (rather then type 2), and I don't think it is humane at all. It is MISERABLE when your blood sugar is low!!! So personally I don't think it's humane. You could just either have found them a home or had them put to sleep?

 

[CeeJ]

I

I know this is an old thread but... I have type 1 diabetes (rather then type 2), and I don't think it is humane at all. It is MISERABLE when your blood sugar is low!!! So personally I don't think it's humane. You could just either have found them a home or had them put to sleep? 

When one is sick you cannot give it away. There are no vets within 3 hours of me that will deal with chickens in any way.

I believe the idea is to give such an overdose that they feel nothing. Thanks for your info. I would not take a chance and cause any more discomfort to the chicken.

 

[SunnySkies]

I'm a vet. And I find this idea one fraught with many potential issues.

First of all. I have treated many animals dying of low blood glucose. And it is about as far from quiet as one can get. They often seizure when blood glucose drops too low, before they slip into a coma. They are obviously miserable. It may take hours to die. I had a client once insist on no treatment, and she called me the next day to tell me her cat lasted all night, then finally had a final seizure and pass. She regretted not taking my suggestion to euthanize the cat.

My FIL once attempted suicide by doing this. It was terrible. And it did not work. He survived, but it caused severe damage to his body and brain.

For humane euthanasia, I use two injections. One is a sedative, the second stops the heart. I have never run into issues doing it this way.

This will sound harsh, but it is far more humane to do cervical dislocation (this is actually the recommended way to euthanize birds). If one can't do it, then perhaps it is time to find a friend or neighbor who can and will ***before**** getting birds. It's not fair to the animals to try DIY with untested and unapproved methods.

The animal shelters might take birds and can euthanize them. The local shelter here will.

 

[roostersandhens]

I'm a vet. And I find this idea one fraught with many potential issues.

First of all. I have treated many animals dying of low blood glucose. And it is about as far from quiet as one can get. They often seizure when blood glucose drops too low, before they slip into a coma. They are obviously miserable. It may take hours to die. I had a client once insist on no treatment, and she called me the next day to tell me her cat lasted all night, then finally had a final seizure and pass. She regretted not taking my suggestion to euthanize the cat.

My FIL once attempted suicide by doing this. It was terrible. And it did not work. He survived, but it caused severe damage to his body and brain.

For humane euthanasia, I use two injections. One is a sedative, the second stops the heart. I have never run into issues doing it this way.

This will sound harsh, but it is far more humane to do cervical dislocation (this is actually the recommended way to euthanize birds). If one can't do it, then perhaps it is time to find a friend or neighbor who can and will ***before**** getting birds. It's not fair to the animals to try DIY with untested and unapproved methods.

The animal shelters might take birds and can euthanize them. The local shelter here will.

X2! and most vets would euthanize ANY animal, if it was needed. My moms a vet to Ya so as SunnySkies said it's not humane!!!!!!!!