Wanting to raise meat birds in Orlando, but need to find a processor.

[vandanaz]

See, I can raise the chickens... but I can't butcher them. I'm OK eating an animal I knew, I just don't have the time, expertise, or stomach to convert them into food. I know, this is a sissy type of problem, but there it is.

Does anyone know a place nearby Orlando that I can take the chickens to be processed and packaged?

Your help is greatly appreciated.

Dana

 

[cassie]

I can't help you with finding a processor, but I am just about the biggest wuss there is and I learned how to process chickens. I did my first one because there was a nice fat meat chicken that couldn't walk and I was home alone. The chicken wasn't going to survive until my brother and hubby came home from their trip, so the choice was to process the chicken myself or let it die and put it in the dumpster. I opted for the first. I found instructions on the meat birds section, printed them out and then just went down the list step by step. After the first it gets easier. If I can stomach processing chickens anyone can. The key is not to think about it but just do it.

 

[cassie]

I forgot to mention that you don't have to do them all at once. I do mine two or three at a time every day until they are finished.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

R. Lee Ermy just popped in my head, "Maybe we should just chug on over to Mamby Pamby land!"

Small scale processors are almost non-existent anymore. Do you have any friends that hunt that might want to help you dress birds?
You could check Craigslist or your local farmers market for people selling dressed poultry. Those folks may be able to point you in the right direction or even do it for you.

 

[sanchoman]

What kind of birds are you raising Dana?

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Small-scale processors are thin on the ground, but at least here's a place to start.

Custom Exempt Red Meat and/or Poultry Slaughter Facilities in Florida
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/an248

 

[vandanaz]

Actually, it's not really me that has the issue with the butchering so much, except I am too lazy to deal with the dressing. My boyfriend is the tender one. He names them all. It would be easier on me to 'send them off to camp' and come back food.

And yeah, I'm still living in Namby Pamby land... where's my blankey!?! LOL I'm getting there. I HAVE been known to dispatch sick cats via the double bucket method rather than take them to the vet, and I can do most animal doctoring myself. It's a process.

Since last night, I have contacted someone not far away from me that may be able to help me... and since I cure and smoke a pretty mean slab of bacon, I'm pretty sure we would be able to make a nice trade of goods and services out of the deal.

I haven't decided WHICH meat breed to raise yet. Are there better meat breeds for Florida than others? I've been getting farm raised chicken from a place in Sarasota, but the drive is tiresome. Since I have the ability to raise my own, I'd like to try.

Thanks for the links, too. I don't want to get started and have no place to take them. I like having options.

Dana

 

[sanchoman]

I just finished processing my first bird... it was MUCH easier than I worked it up to be.

Someone gave me a rooster that was causing problems in their flock... I housed it for 2 days and figured I'd give it a try.

 

[bja105]

Do you know where the nearest Amish settlement is? I'm sure someone there will do it for a small fee. Our neighbor does it here, and I see flyers posted at the Amish feed mill and at the harness shop.

Or, you could challenge your husband's manhood. He can do it, so can you. The first one is the hardest, it it isn't that hard.

 

[elizabethbinary]

If naught for the internet, I think I'd make a good Amish lash sometimes!

A knife makes a good processor.

haha sorry I can't help. Good luck! Homeraised chicken tastes miles different than shop bought and is totally worth the efforts and even the raw dead fresh chicken smell. D:

I even did my first duck yesterday! (slightly harder because of waterproof feathers, fuzz, fatty sticky organs and fatty thick skin to cut and not get that stupid tract!)