welp I did it. I culled my beautiful roosters.

[theblackridge16]

Good job I have alotof respect for you. I don't think I could do that, not yet anyway's. Looks like some good meat!

 

[Mrs. K]

It is a good feeling to know that you can do something that you had to do. I did it for the first time this year too, and I was really ridiculously proud of myself. Pioneer woman, here I come!

Your flock will settle down in a few days.

You did it! good job! mrsK

 

[Beekissed]

It's harder to do it when they are especially pretty. Congrats on your first!

 

[BlackBrookPoultry]

I am so lucky to have someone close by that processes chickens. For $3 a bird they butcher and package them. I could never do it myself. My husband did about a dozen one year and never wants to do it again. He didn't pluck them either, just skinned them. I have 6 black orpington roos that are going in Feb. A couple of them are very pretty, but I have 9 roos and 9 hens and that just isn't going to work in the spring.

 

[elizabethbinary]

Look how yellow that fat is!!!

 

[Sunny Side Up]

You could be sad to have had to dispatch those handsome birds, or you could be glad that your meat came in such an attractive package!

Yay for you, for doing a tough job that had to be done. Know that your birds had a good life, healthy eating, and more careful handling at the end than most chickens eaten in the world. And you can be confident in the high quality of the meat you will soon be enjoying.

You may want to let them "rest" in the refrigerator for a few days, to make the meat more tender. Let us know how well they finish! There's lots worse things that could happen to a chicken than to provide nourishment for their grateful human family.

 

[NYRIR]

Wow, Congrats! We have to do it as well to at least 4 roos...

 

[pawprint2104]

Yup. It's not easy, but it is the way it is. I like SunnySideUp's perspective, "You could be sad to have had to dispatch those handsome birds, or you could be glad that your meat came in such an attractive package!"

Good job and good food for you and your family.

 

[Chick Charm]

Homegrown is the best! Way to go. And they did like good bird before. Skinning is certainly one effective way.

 

[mcostas]

They hadn't started crowing yet, I actually don't think my neighbors would be bothered, they love my chickens almost as much as I do. They started in on the hens, 3 roos and two hens aren't good numbers. One of them is a little banty hen.

After it was done my dark brahma hen stayed in the coop for a long time. The little banty went to the area, picked up a feather, carried it around the yard, tossed it aside and wiped her beak off.

I got some scratch and through it in the coop and buffy, the DB hen came out and ate it. I was hoping the two hens would keep each other company when the roosters were gone, that's how I ended up with the banty. Buffy just picks on her though. I'm not even making zoey go in the coop anymore, she sleeps in the tree.

I'm getting some sexed biddies as soon as I can so I can have my flock of 5 (zoey the banty doesn't count). If buffy and the new ones don't get along I know some people wanting laying hens.

When I first got my chickens buffy was the oldest and largest and seemed to have teh most personality. When the roosters got bigger their personality really blossomed and buffy became more aloof. Maybe it just seemed like that cause the roos were so outgoing.

The main reason I did not get rid of my roos or let someone else "do" it is because I thought I would do it quicker and better, and I'm glad I did. I didn't tie their feet up, they didn't hang upside down, they hardly struggled at all. They were so trusting it was heartbreaking.


Sometimes you just have to put your big girl panties on though.