What do you do with your chickens when they are done laying?

[slim1986]

I know a bunch of people have already answered, but I wanna throw my 2 cents in! Lol! I've been thinking about turning one of my old coops into a retirement village for my girls when they get to that age, just because I feel the same way as a lot of other people I've seen on here, they are more pets than anything else to me. I'll get a few young ones just to keep eggs coming in, then replace my older girls when they pass on. Not looking forward to losing my girls but they just barley started laying so I have a while with them!

 

[al6517]

I only raise pure LF Cornish and I keep a layer flock of birds that just fall a tad short on SQ, now..... they lay only about 100-120 eggs a year and that rate falls 30% every year, so I can't really justify keeping very many of them around if they aren't laying cause they eat so dang much. I do replace several every year and I do process the older hen's because they make such good table fare even at an older age, a benifit of Cornish meat quality you don't get with other varieties. Mt show stock breeders also get rotated into that pen when they start to lay fewer and fewer eggs, and also get the standard oven roasting funeral. all in all it works out just fine and nothing goes to waste and they all live a super nice well cared for exsistance, we are all happy with the arrangement.

My layer flock of Cornish table fare.

 

[happyhens120]

I've been thinking a lot about this lately, myself. I was given 10 three-week-old chicks about 6 weeks ago, and I plan on keeping them as my meat birds. I am going to attempt to process them myself with the help of my mother in law. (or really, it just might be her doing it because I don't know how I'll handle it!) My original 4 though, I don't know if I can cull them... they are my girls. I'm glad they are still young and I don't have to think about that right now. It will be a tough call. The grumpy, not so friendly girls I have... they might meet the pressure canner someday soon.

 

[pinkwindsong]

Quote:
I like seeing your flock of Cornish.. we did the Cornish x this year with 4-h 20 birds. ahhhh wont do that again.. out of the 20 I have 4 left.. they got sick.. all of them and event though these 4 no longer have symptoms the processing plant wouldn't take them .. I understand that.. I guess.. its not like any birds are coming home from the processing plant to spread a sickness..?? hum any way the 4, no longer have any symptoms. the 4-h vet said they are fine for human consumption , but I haven't harvested them yet.
I was able to butcher a wild turkey my son took last spring season and did better than I thought I would do .. but I didnt know that bird and I have a very strict hunting rule.. if you hunt 1- have to be able to drop the animal in one shot ( no tracking a blood trail - no bleed outs. it has to drop without pain) < my son 14 and husband are fantastic shots I think the rule helps them they do practice and skeet shoot between seasons to keep their skills up> 2. if you kill it you eat it.. there is no such thing as hunting for sport.. if it is an animal that cant be eaten Dont kill it.. ( there is an exception ..... Rats..... sick wild animals, ie fox , coons etc.) so I had to ad-hear to my own rule.. it was eatable meat, it was in season, it was a drop kill,, soo i got out the book ( Storeys chicken book) and my mom read the directions as the kids and I cleaned this 23lb tom.. I learned you have to be fast.. plucking feathers once that meat got cold, it was harder and the skin ripped. but did ok.. I did get a good set of knives that mothers day.. and we had a wonderful turkey dinner... hahah.. If we had been filmed would have been a hoot to watch..

anyhooo... i like the idea of meat birds. my girls i have now are laying hens, dual purpose but I got them for eggs.. so when I saw your Cornish really sparked my interest.. do you raise them the same as my dual purpose? and when it comes to butchering time.. How do you... get in the right frame of mind to get down to the processing ... before I felt didn't have a choice.. the meat could not be wasted,, but these guys kind of have a due date dont they or do they live long ... I dont want to have to butcher 20 at a time deal like with the cornish x.. i would rater butcher 5 or so at a time.. roos first. then hens?? but there has to be a distance to them at some level?

)O(
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