The road less traveled...back to good health! They have lice, mites, scale mites, worms, anemia, gl

[delisha]

she is a great choice, ambition, need to please and be helpful..a little mini Bee in the making. Perhaps a group project for a few others who have editing knowledge, publishing secrets..anyone ?

 

[Rachel'sFlock]

Bee, I greatly appreciate your frank thoughts on killing your chickens.

I spent a pivotal part of my childhood living at a hatchery. My Father hatched 5,000 eggs at a time, and did not share the old timer view of husbandry. He was a broiler-house, hens in cages kind of guy. I witnessed chicken killing in varying forms, from culling new chicks to processing food. Butchering was part of life, as were all the chores required to keep them all.

I didn't live with chickens again until my 40's. I discovered I truly wanted to have them in my life, and that there were amazing benefits to be had of keeping your own flock for both eggs and meat.
I knew going in that I was going to be doing any butchering that needed doing, and that by creating life (beneath my broody hen) required a lifelong commitment to these birds.
In over 2 years, I have butchered 6 roosters. 5 that I raised from either eggs or day-olds, and one for a neighbor, who can't do it.

Each and every time I have to do it I am filled with dread. It has not yet become ordinary to me to kill these birds. I do not enjoy it, even remotely. I take no pride or joy in it. I merely focus on giving them the same respect in death as I have in their lives. I shake when I cut their throats, and I have to literally "talk myself off the ledge", as they flap around, with the phrase "their head is off, they are dead; their head is off, they are dead" until their bodies stop and I get ahold of myself.

Once they are dead, it is pretty easy. It becomes produce.
But taking their life is still a huge moment to me. I would never allow anyone else to do my birds. However much of a mess I make of the job (and I'm not gonna lie, I have, before. Learning to do it alone is very hard), the responsibilty rests on my shoulders, alone.
I save a wishbone from every bird I have ever killed, as a reminder that food is not free.

I don't judge people who "can't", or as you said, "won't" kill their own food, or mercifully end the life of their friend to end its suffering. But I can't imagine putting myself in their place. It is my job. I accept it for what it is.

 

[Pullet Surprise]

You are probably correct on that one...but I often feel like giving up. That is probably why this book is never written...I get discouraged so often that I lose momentum. But then I start another thread....

At least the threads are getting to the folks who really want to know.

 

[delisha]

Bee, I greatly appreciate your frank thoughts on killing your chickens.

I spent a pivotal part of my childhood living at a hatchery. My Father hatched 5,000 eggs at a time, and did not share the old timer view of husbandry. He was a broiler-house, hens in cages kind of guy. I witnessed chicken killing in varying forms, from culling new chicks to processing food. Butchering was part of life, as were all the chores required to keep them all.

I didn't live with chickens again until my 40's. I discovered I truly wanted to have them in my life, and that there were amazing benefits to be had of keeping your own flock for both eggs and meat.
I knew going in that I was going to be doing any butchering that needed doing, and that by creating life (beneath my broody hen) required a lifelong commitment to these birds.
In over 2 years, I have butchered 6 roosters. 5 that I raised from either eggs or day-olds, and one for a neighbor, who can't do it.

Each and every time I have to do it I am filled with dread. It has not yet become ordinary to me to kill these birds. I do not enjoy it, even remotely. I take no pride or joy in it. I merely focus on giving them the same respect in death as I have in their lives. I shake when I cut their throats, and I have to literally "talk myself off the ledge", as they flap around, with the phrase "their head is off, they are dead; their head is off, they are dead" until their bodies stop and I get ahold of myself.

Once they are dead, it is pretty easy. It becomes produce.
But taking their life is still a huge moment to me. I would never allow anyone else to do my birds. However much of a mess I make of the job (and I'm not gonna lie, I have, before. Learning to do it alone is very hard), the responsibilty rests on my shoulders, alone.
I save a wishbone from every bird I have ever killed, as a reminder that food is not free.

I don't judge people who "can't", or as you said, "won't" kill their own food, or mercifully end the life of their friend to end its suffering. But I can't imagine putting myself in their place. It is my job. I accept it for what it is.

An extremely good post

 

[Beekissed]

Bee, I greatly appreciate your frank thoughts on killing your chickens.

I spent a pivotal part of my childhood living at a hatchery. My Father hatched 5,000 eggs at a time, and did not share the old timer view of husbandry. He was a broiler-house, hens in cages kind of guy. I witnessed chicken killing in varying forms, from culling new chicks to processing food. Butchering was part of life, as were all the chores required to keep them all.

I didn't live with chickens again until my 40's. I discovered I truly wanted to have them in my life, and that there were amazing benefits to be had of keeping your own flock for both eggs and meat.
I knew going in that I was going to be doing any butchering that needed doing, and that by creating life (beneath my broody hen) required a lifelong commitment to these birds.
In over 2 years, I have butchered 6 roosters. 5 that I raised from either eggs or day-olds, and one for a neighbor, who can't do it.

Each and every time I have to do it I am filled with dread. It has not yet become ordinary to me to kill these birds. I do not enjoy it, even remotely. I take no pride or joy in it. I merely focus on giving them the same respect in death as I have in their lives. I shake when I cut their throats, and I have to literally "talk myself off the ledge", as they flap around, with the phrase "their head is off, they are dead; their head is off, they are dead" until their bodies stop and I get ahold of myself.

Once they are dead, it is pretty easy. It becomes produce.
But taking their life is still a huge moment to me. I would never allow anyone else to do my birds. However much of a mess I make of the job (and I'm not gonna lie, I have, before. Learning to do it alone is very hard), the responsibilty rests on my shoulders, alone.
I save a wishbone from every bird I have ever killed, as a reminder that food is not free.

I don't judge people who "can't", or as you said, "won't" kill their own food, or mercifully end the life of their friend to end its suffering. But I can't imagine putting myself in their place. It is my job. I accept it for what it is.

I'll tell you a little something...I also dread the act of killing. I put it off, make excuses, reason that it doesn't have to be done right now.... I have never grown used to it and maybe that's a woman thing. I don't think it comes natural to women, who are born to nurture and comfort, not necessarily to kill the food. I grit my teeth when I do it..though I don't consciously do that...I just find myself doing it afterwards and have to sometimes think about stopping that locking of the jaw.

It is hard. It is not natural to kill another creature. This I understand and I do know it and I feel much like you all when I do it or think about the killing of the chickens.

But I do it anyway.

It's hard but no one promised that life would be easy, did they? I have to tell myself that fact quite often. I'm not all that different than folks who will not kill a chicken but I've had different experiences in my life. My whole life has been somewhat difficult and so I am used to overcoming difficult, hard things. I have found that it is always better to get it over with instead of thinking about it too much. I've found it's better to get good at doing hard things than to have to do them anyway but without finesse. I've found that facing hard things makes one stronger and able to face them again without so much internal strife the next time they come about.

I've found that, if you have a hard job to do, get it done early in the morning because it gets more difficult if you put it off as the day progresses. I've found out to get my tools ready the night before, catch the chicken the night before, get up, get my clothes and shoes on and just get it done. No one will do it for me.

That's how I do it. Never easy. Never really want to. Always knowing that it is necessary and life is hard sometimes. So be it.

 

[maryhysong]

Yes many are in a quandry over killing animals for food. I blame it on how far away the average person is from their food supply. I taught myself to butcher rabbits from reading a book. Luckily the first one was quick and clean. I have occasionally had an animal death that wasn't as quick and clean as I'd like and I always regret those. As I hold a rabbit or bird and quiet them just before I break their necks I thank them for being, for living with me and for giving themselves up to be my food.

Even my son has asked how can I raise an animal from a baby and then kill and eat it. In the past I really didn't have an answer but Bee you have given me one. Because that is that animals purpose and my purpose so we are fulfilling our destiny. ;=) I think part of his wondering comes from the fact that I talk to them so much, in much the same voice I use on human babies....that soothing nonsense singsong that tells the animals that you are coming, that you are there, so they are not surprised or startled when you open the gate, that you are there, you have brought the food or if you are doctoring one, that you are trying to help and things will get better.

I have always wanted a self sufficient life but for the most part have had to teach myself, first with many books, now with the internet and of course my own experience in doing things (which is why I learned to butcher rabbits from a book). My mother talks about my grandparents raising chickens for eggs and meat and trading their fryers for dressed rabbits from friends down the street, but that was long gone by the time I came along.

 

[Miss Lydia]

An extremely good post

Yes it is.

 

[delisha]

I hate the queasiness of the first. I am always so grateful when it goes right and it is all done..... no... killing is never easy even when you know it is right.

 

[Beekissed]

My first experience killing our meat rabbits was not a good one.....I won't describe that here but it was not as successfully quick as I had wanted. But...I persevered and got it done. I never really got used to killing the rabbits. Not because they were pets or that they had names, but I think it had something to do with their fur.

 

[Rachel'sFlock]

I've found that, if you have a hard job to do, get it done early in the morning because it gets more difficult if you put it off as the day progresses. I've found out to get my tools ready the night before, catch the chicken the night before, get up, get my clothes and shoes on and just get it done. No one will do it for me.

That's how I do it. Never easy. Never really want to. Always knowing that it is necessary and life is hard sometimes. So be it.

I hate mornings, but I always wake early to process. Just as you do, I catch him the night before, lay out my tools and area, and set the water pot on the stove. The better prepared I am, the less frantic it feels. I am able to focus on the task at hand so much better and be a little more "in control" of how I feel.
Good advice!