Tried PITHING, bad idea

[honeydoll]

I have heard alot about pithing and how easily the bird dies and then plucking is easier. Ok, we tried this. Usually we just cut the head off, this time we tried pithing. Oh man, it didn't work for us. My hubby did it and the roo went instantly limp, in a fraction of a second, we thought great that was easy. I said to him I heard they pluck easy, so i pulled out a feather to see if it would come out easy and the roo jumped and let out a cry. It was horrible. Then he started to move. Oh it was terrible. Withing seconds my hubby lopped his head off, but it was awful. Is pithing really worth it? How come others seem to do it so easily and our experience was AWFUL. That is really bugging me. Does anyone pith successfully and how did you do it? Man, I am from a hunting family but this really bugged me.

Carolyn

 

[Illia]

When you do pithing, all you're doing is shutting down the section of the brain you hit.

You're not actually killing the animal unless you did it extremely accurately, which really, on poultry. . . That's quite the task, so I think it is something one shouldn't do anyway. Often with livestock, people do it in the back of the head/neck, and that's just the worst spot. The most one will do, thinking they finished the animal, is hit the spinal cord and paralyze it. (which is why it goes down, limp as a rug)

Honestly I think just removing the head is the easiest. Whether it be with an axe or what I do, with a pair of tree branch pruners. . . It gets the job done.

 

[Louise's Country Closet]

Oh my gosh that would be awful

Unfortunately, sometimes when you're trying new things stuff like that happens. It's part of the learning process

What's pithing anyway? I've never heard of it. Hmm

 

[Beekissed]

A maneuver where you insert a knife into the roof of the mouth, angled towards the base of the skull and severe the spinal cord.

I tried it and it was even more horrible than the OP's experience. And just to make sure I was getting the right spot, I practically cored and scrambled the brain....the birds just lifted up their heads and stared at me while their brain tissue and blood came pouring out of their mouths.

I'm a nurse and have seen most horrible things. I've been processing animals since I was 10~lots of 'em...I've had birds heads come off in my hand while wringing the necks, have had to chop away at a duck's or turkey's neck like it was firewood until the head finally came off....you name it, I've pretty much done it.

But I've never been more grossed out than when I tried pithing....will never try that again!

 

[SteveH]

Quote:
My first chicken of three worked perfectly , and I thought I would never heat a scald pot again . Second bird was as hard to dry pluck as any , and I ended up skinning it . The third went as yours , Beekissed , and I decided it was a skill I had no desire to develope .

 

[Louise's Country Closet]

And here I was feeling bad when people were saying that chopping the head off caused them pain

 

[ChickieBooBoo]

I cut the throat and then do the pithing

 

[tammyd57]

I've done pithing and had it work real well for me. I don't like it, though. No chickens looking at me or anything, but it just gave me the heebie-jeebies so bad! I usually use a good pair of lopping shears.

 

[honeydoll]

Well thanks all. I am feeling a little better now. Ugh, killing is never the fun part, but I think I am going to give up in pithing. It just seems harder on the animal I guess. I assumed the animal just died, I read if you scramble the brain they die instantly. But I also found out finding that brain isn't the easiest thing either. That did my hubby in, he said from now on it is the chopping block, machete and a killing cone to drain. It really does make you feel bad when an animal doesn't die quickly. My Mom raised us all to thank God for our meat when we get it, appreciate where it came from and respect the animal. It was drilled in us to never never never kill an animal just to shoot for fun. I guess that is why it bothers me so.....I just don't think the easy pluck is worth all the chickens I would have to practice this on to get it right, you know what I mean?...

If I could get it right maybe but I don't know if I can.

 

[blefky]

This summer will be the first time I will be processing any of my own birds. I have a question. If you chop the head off, rather than cutting the throat, do they bleed out as well? I understand that the "bleed out" is a necessary part of the procedure. I have no qualms about processing my own birds, really I'd rather take them from beginning to end myself so that I know that they are handled with care and respect from start to finish, but I would really like to learn which method you all feel is the most humane?