We processed our first Roos....*Graphic story, no pictures*

[Realtree4]

I am just warning everyone that this story is graphic!

So as the story goes, we had too many cockerels this year (5 as a matter of fact) and I've been waiting to see which ones would be the keepers. After a few weeks of watching them getting more and more aggressive, both towards the females and myself, I made a very easy decisions that two of them would go to freezer camp this past weekend. They weren't huge, only 15 weeks, but I figured that some meat is better than no meat

So my husband and I got a game plan and went out to do it as this was our very first time. His "job" would be to do the killing part and I would do everything else, since I really didn't want to do the messy part. Well, I caught them, and helped him string them upside down and I had "thought" he was just going to go for the jugular (pun intended) well, being the overachiever that he is, he took off the whole head and on the second one, I looked down at the head and it was blinking his eyes while just staring at me!!! I'm not a squeamish person but that did it....it was straight out of a horror movie! It's an image that will forever be engraved in my head

Maybe that's nothing new to anyone here? But I just had to share with people that may or may not be able to understand The good news is that the processing part went very well and we learned tons!!! Nothing went to waste and we are so proud that we are taking care of our family ourselves!

 

[boyswillbeboys]

it can be a bit shocking the first time, that's for sure, I've only been at this for a year, but have learned I just don't look at the heads when DH chops them off.

I have also learned to do it all myself from start to finish, after I spent an hour finding someone to wield the ax for my first broiler dying of heart failure, and a few weeks later having a pullet attacked by a hawk and not being able to put her out of her misery, because I didn't know how.

I'm glad you were able to follow through, and finish the job, they will taste very good once you get over the shock of everything involved in preparing a chicken for the table, the first time it took me about 3 weeks before I could pull the chicken out of the freezer, and cook it up, now I'm often serving them up the same night, if they are young enough.

 

[Realtree4]

it can be a bit shocking the first time, that's for sure, I've only been at this for a year, but have learned I just don't look at the heads when DH chops them off. 

I have also learned to do it all myself from start to finish, after I spent an hour finding someone to wield the ax for my first broiler dying of heart failure, and a few weeks later having a pullet attacked by a hawk and not being able to put her out of her misery, because I didn't know how. 

I'm glad you were able to follow through, and finish the job, they will taste very good once you get over the shock of everything involved in preparing a chicken for the table, the first time it took me about 3 weeks before I could pull the chicken out of the freezer, and cook it up, now I'm often serving them up the same night, if they are young enough.

I definitely want to work myself up to doing the entire job myself! We hunt together as a family, even our 4 year old We raise pigs for meat, wanting to move on to more animals....this was just our first time butchering at home. Well, other than the deer we have hunted in the woods

 

[rc4u]

as for frying same nite ... we never do anymore as they are just better if they sit in the fridge for 2-3 days to rest out, then freeze or cook them...jeff