What do you do with your dead (chickens, ducks, quail, etc...)

[room onthebroom]

I'm curious what everybody does with their sick or crippled birds? There are no judgements here, so if you don't like what someone says, please keep it to yourself. I'm just wondering, if you have a bird that dies of illness, or sudden death, or an attack, or other unexpected loss, do you;

*Still send it to freezer camp?
*Send it to the lab?
*Throw them in the trash?
*Make dog food?
*Bury them?
*Burn them?
*Compost them?
*Throw them over the hedge into the neighbors yard?
*Other?

I've been known to bury mine, but I'm always interested to hear what other peoples practices are. ​

 

[kwhites634]

Considering that I'm not certain what killed it, there's no way I'm feeding it to me or my chickens. I generally just toss them in the woods.

 

[BantyChooks]

I don't eat birds that died for any reason but a sharp blade to the neck. Not worth the risk. Animal kills have too much debris in the wounds.
Sometimes I'll do a home necropsy if it was a weird death. Other times I chalk it up to laying issues and dispose of them whole. I toss dead birds over a ridge on my property; I used to bury them but I got sick of hacking at rocks for half an hour just to make a shallow grave. I'd like one of those pits with a hatch at the top that you see designs for in old poultry books; maybe I'll try to make one some fall day when I don't have anything else to do. I don't have a lot of birds bite the dust, I sell my old layers which are the most die-happy population you'll find anywhere.

 

[Wfhill]

Good question....I always wrapped them in a plastic bag then threw it in the dumpster. not good, I know, and the waste management guys probably hate me, lol.

 

[Rlmp817]

I would only eat ones that I kill (or roadkill that is still wiggly) but if I don’t know how it died, not gonna risk it.
I put them in a garbage bag & toss them in the trash.
If we had a little more space I would dig a pit, but it will attract animals & I don’t want that close to my house/flock.

 

[Shorty22366]

My husband wraps them in a towel and buried them. He puts them in a towel so he doesn't throw dirt in their face. I am a softie but he is just as big of one.

 

[igorsMistress]

It depends. Animal attack or heat related death, it goes in the trash. If there's a mysterious reason I'd have it tested. Either way, I wouldn't eat it.

 

[Legbar Lover]

I walk them way out to feed to wildlife. Doesn’t happen very often for me, thank goodness. Lost a couple of chicks during hatch and I bagged those and threw away. A friend said my chickens would love them and it is free protein but I couldn’t do it.

 

[Alaskan]

Fresh animal kill... sometimes we eat it... depends how fresh, and how many.

Odd death we necropsy.

Injury death...and fresh... we eat.

Anything we dont eat we take to the dump.

 

[room onthebroom]

Thanks everybody for chiming in.