So Proud!

[jewels621]

I processed my first ever meat birds this past Saturday with the help of my son, Spike. We did 14 CX that were 55 days old. It took us 6 hours....we hand-plucked because my EZPlucker hasn't arrived, yet. What an experience! I was so thrilled that Spike wanted to help, otherwise I'd have been on my own. We learned along the way, but had no real glitches to speak of. Got them bagged and in the freezer today...average weight was 5.03 lbs dressed. Can't wait to try one! We'll make an event of it this weekend. I can't thank everyone on this site enough for all of the hands-on experience you've shared. I feel like a REAL chicken-raiser now!

 

[Elke Beck]

You should be proud! Those are some great looking birds, and I bet they taste even better. Let us know how they are once you have cooked one.

 

[jewels621]

You should be proud!  Those are some great looking birds, and I bet they taste even better.  Let us know how they are once you have cooked one. 

Thank you so much, Elke! That means a lot coming from you. I follow so much of your advice on here. We will toast you with drumsticks when I cook the first one!

 

[Mr MKK FARMS]

Good job!

 

[Elke Beck]

Thank you so much, Elke! That means a lot coming from you. I follow so much of your advice on here. We will toast you with drumsticks when I cook the first one!

I am glad I could help!

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

That is a great looking finished product. YOu have earned the right to be very proud.

 

[BCMaraniac]

I processed my first ever meat birds this past Saturday with the help of my son, Spike. We did 14 CX that were 55 days old. It took us 6 hours....we hand-plucked because my EZPlucker hasn't arrived, yet. What an experience! I was so thrilled that Spike wanted to help, otherwise I'd have been on my own. We learned along the way, but had no real glitches to speak of. Got them bagged and in the freezer today...average weight was 5.03 lbs dressed. Can't wait to try one! We'll make an event of it this weekend. I can't thank everyone on this site enough for all of the hands-on experience you've shared. I feel like a REAL chicken-raiser now!

Great looking birds.....congratulations!! The taste is well worth the effort!!

 

[TofuKat]

Those are some neat looking labels. Where did you get the bags and the labels? I'd love to have something like that in the future as a way to give a bird away as a gift. It looks very professional!

 

[jewels621]

Those are some neat looking labels. Where did you get the bags and the labels? I'd love to have something like that in the future as a way to give a bird away as a gift. It looks very professional!

I ordered the shrink bags from www.cornerstone-farm.com and the labels I had made at www.vistaprint.com. I ordered the bags in the 9"x16" and 10"x16" sizes. Anything under 5 lbs fit in the smaller bags and and anything over 5 lbs went in the bigger bags. I also ordered the metal rings and the pliers for the metal rings from Cornerstone, but zip-ties would work well, too. I just used a stock pot to heat the water to shrink the bags. I was really pleased with how easy it was, and with the overall look of the final product. They take up less room in the freezer when packaged this way.

And thank you all for the compliments! It's such a good feeling to have them processed and in the freezer. I'll do another batch in the fall to get us through winter. Now I can't wait for my egg layers to start earning their keep. It won't be until August, but this is soooo satisfying! I love chickens!