Stunning before slaughtering

[birdmandan]

My dad has always butchered the birds for me. Recently, i have moved out and have taken the birds with me.

Now, i have had a bad experience when i first killed a quail. I attempted a neck dislocation. It was successful. But, when the bird flapped with spasms, I panicked and pulled again. This time, the head popped off and it ran about 50 paces, spraying blood in all directions before falling over.

After that, i have not killed a single bird.

I saw an article where a woman swings a chicken over her head (like bowling a cricket ball) and smacks it down on a piece of solid wood.

The impact incapacitates the bird before going in the cone for the jugular to be cut.

She feels this method is more humane as the bird is unconscious before the knife comes out.

I am considering this method but have some reservations due to the size of the quail.

Would this work on such a small bird? Might take a few swings to get a good hit due to the size/weight of a quail vs a chicken.

If unsuccessful, it would be even more suffering for the poor bird.

I prefer not to decapitate due to my bad experience so jugular slicing is my preferred method.

Has anyone tried stunning a quail before butchering?

Yes, i am a softy. I'm sure there are many seasoned butchers out there who can slaughter 100 chickens in a day without losing a wink of sleep, but i am yet to cross the first hurdle...

 

[feedman77]

I don't stun but even stunned the nervous system will still make the birds flap twitch and possibly run when head gets cut off.

I use a pair of sharp scissors and or game shears to decapitate the birds. I just hold them in my hand and hold them over a bucket til they quit twitching and any blood that comes out I can direct in to the bucket.

 

[Granny Hatchet]

I have chickens and feel your pain. I am told they dont feel any of that because the nerve was severed. I live on a hill. Once I had to go chasing this headless chicken for a good 100 ft. or more. I agree with using the snips to decapitate but not holding it while it does all that. Maybe cut, drop in a bucket and wait. Its hard to cull especially the first few times but it get easier and they dont all do that. They all will twitch but not get up and go. Thats pretty traumatic. Try to keep in mind the reason you are raising them. Or, invite dad for dinner ? LOL

 

[HUGHES555]

Its easy with a good pair of sharp scissors. It is best to hold them until they stop jerking around it doesn't last long. Cut the head off and hold it over the bucket then the blood will go into the bucket. If you drop it in the bucket then blood will shoot everywhere. The easiest way to do it is cut off the head and hold it upside down over the bucket. Have a tv or something off to the side that you can look at. While it is finishing with the jerks you pay attention to the tv or what ever you choose. After you do a few it does get easier. Make sure you hold the wings good while you do it or it will get messy.

 

[birdmandan]

Good advice all. Thank you for your replies. I am considering putting them in a cone and slicing. I understand this gets all the blood out and results in the least struggling. Will blast Total Eclipse of the Heart on max volume to distract me.

 

[Cock A Doodle Doo]

As kids, our dad did the dirty work. As adults, we still aren't over that hurdle. We used an ax, but that is now totally out of the question. Once we discovered cones, we won't go back to any other method. The bird is (mostly) calm through the whole procedure and just fades away.

 

[DanielleInUro]

I had to cull a baby chick who came out all messed up--used a pair of scissors, and the first "snip" didn't take the head off, so I had to cut a lot of times and very quickly, so it would be over for the poor little guy quickly. I'm sure that first snip did dislocate the neck, but it was upsetting. Then I tried a sharper pair of scissors for a quail who was kind enough to slaughter itself in my field of vision ("bonk", installed a net afterwards and everyone's been fine since) and give me a chance to practice butchering without having to kill anyone to do it. It STILL took several snips. Then I processed a single male at around six weeks just because I wanted to get it right before I had to do eight or nine at once--I tried the "pull and twist" method I saw in a youtube video (you hold the back of his head gently, then a very sharp pull with a twist. The head comes right off and it's over for the little guy pretty instantly. I liked that one a lot because I don't feel like he ever saw it coming, and because I felt like I had more control, physically. Also, my fingers are kind of over his eyes (since the tips of my fingers are behind his head), so I didn't see his face during the process. I never wanted to see the eyes of a creature I'm taking from this world to the next, so it was easier, emotionally.

 

[BaJa]

the throwing works really good. not that I slaughter my birds, but house sparrows and starlings, which are a real pest around here and I catch in traps, I throw down on the concrete and they're dead the moment they hit the ground. a quail is about the size of a starling, so it should work

 

[birdmandan]

Yeah but you don't eat the sparrows. Throwing may bruise or damage the meat.

 

[yallapilko]

Sounds like an awful experience. I had a similar thing happen one time. If you're still unsure there is an e-book called How to Cull Quail Humanely , on Amazon by Karen J Puddephatt, who is also author of Urban Quail Keeping.