Struggling with killing a chicken

[User635240]

Hi all, I killed a rooster today. He was aggressive but I had to let him out of the dog crate to put the dog in. He immediately started fighting with the other roosters. I swatted him with a 1x1" wood pole to get him to back off, but apparently it was just too hard and just on his eye. He struggled and died a minute later. It was awful. All the barn animals were watching. I eat commercially processed chicken every day, and raise chickens for this purpose, but am not sure how to proceed with killing animals. How do you reconcile?

 

[Tonyroo]

Some people can't reconcile, this is based on individual backgrounds or beliefs. So they don't engage there flock that way.

But all things have a purpose, so trying to rationalize the situation for the purpose, helps. For your own mental health and the reason your killing them.

 

[Kiki]

I don't understand what you're asking or saying.

Are you saying you hit your rooster with a stick in the eye and it killed him?

You didn't mean to kill him by hitting him like that or you did?

 

[Adolph Otto]

It seems to me there would be no benefit in doing that. Even if he lived, nothing would be learned. He'd just be afraid of you.

 

[raingarden]

If you eat him it will turn an accident into an accomplishment.

 

[3KillerBs]

While it would, of course, have been better to cull a problem cockerel/rooster in a planned and intentional fashion, it sounds like this fellow was asking for trouble and ended up getting it.

The need to deal with excess and/or aggressive males is one of the downsides of raising chickens.

As one of our respected members frequently advises, if you can't bear to eat him then plant a rosebush on top of him.

 

[SmiYa0126]

I'm so sorry I had an incident where I caused a hen to aspirate and she died. The pain lessens with time. Your consolation is that it was fast

 

[BelovedBirds]

Hi all, I killed a rooster today. He was aggressive but I had to let him out of the dog crate to put the dog in. He immediately started fighting with the other roosters. I swatted him with a 1x1" wood pole to get him to back off, but apparently it was just too hard and just on his eye. He struggled and died a minute later. It was awful. All the barn animals were watching. I eat commercially processed chicken every day, and raise chickens for this purpose, but am not sure how to proceed with killing animals. How do you reconcile?

So he was fighting other roosters... And you smacked him with a pole, in the head, as punishment, and he struggled and died?

I can see why you feel guilty. Never act in anger towards an animal. What even was the situation? How many roosters, to how many hens? Were they introduced properly? Was he injuring them, drawing blood?

I'm sure you were trying to protect your other roosters. But this wasnt handled correctly.
I'm sorry he died

 

[1cock2hens]

First time I accidentally killed a chicken was about 23 years ago, I hardly remember it, in time you will hardly remember this. We all do foolish things and react in ways we aren't proud of, just use this as a learning experience. Next time you have a problem rooster you should probably just cull it when you see the problem instead of letting things escalate and get out of hand. You will feel better

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

As one of our respected members frequently advises, if you can't bear to eat him then plant a rosebush on top of him

This is what I needed to read today! I have 13 barely laying (not laying at all right now) chickens and I need to thin the flock so I can add more in the spring. I do not eat meat.

The 3 oldest will be 6 in the spring and they have retirement plans so I need to figure out who goes. The mean one is first.

Edited to add: looks like the bobcat made the first two decisions for me, I am down to 11. I have seen it on the cameras at night but it did not worry me, apparently it came back for a daytime feast.