"stewing hen" When to butcher?

[smilingcat]

I have several hens who are ready to be "retired" One has not laid an egg in over three month and back to molting in less than six month. She has been a poor producer.

Does molting have effect on the taste and the quality of the meat? The hen is only 2 yo so should be good for another few month but we are not too happy with her eating the feed, no egg and has turned into eating other eggs. Last one sort of broke the camels back with us. Can't have her destroying eggs. So we are trying to decide if we should wait till she finishes molting or should we just go ahead and butcher her.

Has anyone butchered a molting bird? Is there anything different except lack of feathers here and there? Is the skin going to be thinner/weaker and break easily or will the bird be lacking in meat because of molting.

Just curious. The bird is going to the dog and cats.

We are also ?? puzzled over why she is molting twice in such short period. None of the other birds are doing it. Breed in question is a standard Brahama.

 

[Erica]

Hi smilingcat,
if her diet is high enough in protein, she shouldn't be having a second moult so soon. But sometimes stress or being low on the pecking order (Brahmas in my experience are very gentle) can bring on a moult. Brahmas aren't renowned for being top layers, so that would also explain the lack of eggs.

With the question of moulting and butchering, you may see a lot more feather stubs (pin feathers). If you skin the carcass you won't have to pull them all out, but if the meat is going to feed other animals it doesn't hurt to leave the pin feathers there. People are fussy; cats and dogs generally not.

I agree with you about not keeping an egg eater... They can be retrained but will lapse, and the habit spreads fast.
best wishes
Erica

 

[smilingcat]

Thanks Erica,

The bird in question is just a slow producer even for a Brahma. Pretty big and that may be part of her problem. Other Brahmas are laying eggs one every other day or one every three days. Being an older hen, we expect that. but 0 eggs in three month? Well molting doesn't help it either. And of the Brahma's she is fairly high on the pecking order so not so sure about stress, no sign of disease. The sick one we had recently was the dominant Ameraucana. She has recovered.

I think this bird just a slow producer. come to think of it, she WAS the first in this flock to start molting early in the season and took forever to finish. Whereas the others started their molt till much later October Nov time frame and literally finished with their molt in like a week or two.