Whats the most humane way to kill a chicken?

[blklangshandude]

I'm older and was not set up for culling.

What does this mean?

 

[LindaB220]

What does this mean?

Culling means different things. Most of all I don't need them. I could process them and put in the freezer but I'm not set up yet with some utility knives. So I gave them away. Which is another way of culling as well as selling them. Easy peasy. It was a learning experience for me raising them so I don't regret the feed spent on feeding them. I enjoyed them and learned a lot. I kept two of the seven pullets so I will get some blue eggs.

 

[deputychicken21]

Hello

I keep chickens as pets and for eggs and have been real lucky not to have to cull to many. I recently tried to rehabilitate a chick that was having problems, I decided the chick would not be able to have a productive life so it was time to cull it, unfortunately I had become real attached to it after hand feeding it every day. I researched the Carbon dioxide chamber and decided to try it. I built a simple chamber out of a 5 gallon bucket and used vinegar and baking soda. I made the chamber so I could watch the process and decide if this method would be an acceptable method. I slowly added the gas and the chick went to sleep just like it normally did without any obvious signs of stress then I increased the level of gas. After a few minutes I checked the chick and it was gone. In my limited experience this seemed like a painless humane way to go.

I am in no way against other methods like neck wringing or decapitation. I remember my Grandmother grabbing a bird for dinner and wringing its neck like it was nothing and we ate good a few hours later. I see enough blood and death at work almost everyday so I try to avoid it as much as possible at home. Thats my sanctuary and the chickens bring me joy.

Maybe this will help some of the other "sissy" chickens keepers such as myself. I hope you have the same luck that I did.

 

[gruffy]

I was hoping it would never have to come to this but our sweet blue hen Munchkin seems to be going down hill I think she may have internal tumors or egg binding and started an infection on top of the lung infection that never responded to treatment from the vet. So here I am with my sweet blue girl wondering how to end her suffering. She's definitely fallen behind her friends. I've given her some asprin in the hopes of keeping her out of pain until and when it comes. I'm still trying to hold on to the hope that she'll recover but I know she may be a few hours or days from dying. I've heard helium is the best since they simply "go to sleep" and pretty cheap. The co2 chamber does sound nice. She loves to roam though and I'd rather let her fall asleep in the yard with her friends for comfort I was also wondering about alcohol along with painkillers? I cannot force myself to kill her by chopping her head off I'm just hoping for something peaceful and no vet stress or bills

 

[cassimcclurg]

Quote: This really helped me. I had read through several threads and watched some YouTube videos but method described in this link is what I ended up going with when I killed my first chicken tonight. I planned to use the broomstick method but once I had him in my arms, it felt more humane and respectful to do the job with my own hands so I could feel what I was doing and know that I was doing it right. And I could keep him calmer hanging upside down in my arms than I could by trying to lay him down on the ground. I was surprised by how long it took him to completely stop twitching though. It was hard but I'm glad it's done and feel good about knowing that I can do it. I have several more cockerels in my flock that are going to need to be culled in the next several weeks

.

Thanks for all the great info on here!

 

[Spartagon]

I JUST HAD MY ROOSTERS HUMAINELY SLAUGHTERED. We are proud of the harvest.

 

[Spartagon]

I'm too lazy to look and see if I spelled *humainly, correct.

 

[icemanabk]

Upside down traffic cone. The blood will rush to the head and theyll pass out from the blood pressure. May take a few minutes. Then a quick slit and theyll bleed out very fast. There will be death throws which is the chicken just jerking a bit which is just reactions. It wont feel anything.

 

[NDgoatgirlNV]

I have about 10 Bantam cross roos and a muscovy drake that are almost 5 months old.....I'm sure I won't get much meat out of them, but I've been procrastinating too long....thank you everyone for your helpful posts!

 

[autm88]

After attending a seminar given by the featherman folks in N.C last year, I am venturing into growing organic, clean meat chickens this year. I've done a lot of research on the best and most painless methods to kill them. Thank you everyone for your wonderful suggestions. They really helped. What I've learned is the fact that there really is no easy way for me to kill a chicken that will ease my conscience that I didn't cause some sort of pain or discomfort......... and that's ok. It shouldn't be easy to kill anything. It shouldn't be taken lightly, and that having empathy for animal is a good thing. For me, when I participate in the act of killing something I'm going to eat, I have more respect for what I'm eating........ I eat more slowly, and never waste any part of the animal, which can be easy to do when you're buying your meat from a grocery store. So I've resigned myself to the fact that by trying my best to not cause pain, be grateful to the animal for providing my family a good, clean meal, and becoming proficient at doing the best job possible, is as good as it's going to get for me. Hopefully, that's good enough.