D-day minus 5

[chicken slave]

My hubby can't bring himself to do it and I am only small so I use a broom handle to dislocate the neck, It is quick quiet and the birds are used to me so not stressed at all, and I have to admit to the meat being fabulous. I don't think I could go back to shop bought chicken or eggs ever.

Good Luck and if you have any feelings afterwards pop the meat in the freezer until the feeling has passed it will still taste great.

[Nicos]

OH has come home from work saying he has to work now on Sat morning..

I think I'll still ask our friend to 'do' them both....OH can observe/join her with the next batch in 4 months time.

At what age do other peeps cull the lads???

[frias]

OH has come home from work saying he has to work now on Sat morning..

Did he volunteer to work by any chance? Can't say I blame him 'cos I couldn't do it.

[Nicos]

Did he volunteer to work by any chance? Can't say I blame him 'cos I couldn't do it.

Nah- he had to swap a weekend so we can go back to the UK next month and the other guy had just been invited to a wedding on Saturday

( well that's what he says anyway)

[Hilary B]

OH has come home from work saying he has to work now on Sat morning..

I think I'll still ask our friend to 'do' them both....OH can observe/join her with the next batch in 4 months time.

At what age do other peeps cull the lads???

I would recommend about the same age you expect their sisters to start laying. Once 'puberty' kicks in, they won't grow much, just get tough!
I always used the broomstick method, just in case I wasn't able to get the right grip....

[Nicos]

I always used the broomstick method, just in case I wasn't able to get the right grip....

What is the broomstick method???

Ah- I've just Googled it!

[RichmondHens]

We do ours at about 6 months, but some breeds mature faster than others.

[Polly Fouracre]

OH has come home from work saying he has to work now on Sat morning..

I think I'll still ask our friend to 'do' them both....OH can observe/join her with the next batch in 4 months time.

At what age do other peeps cull the lads???

I do ours at twelve to fourteen weeks. Some breeds are not so big at this age but the meat is tender and delicious. (just think! Broiler birds are killed at six weeks!!)

[Polly Fouracre]

Wouldn't want to chop the head off - very messy! Neck dislocation is the best way. As Hilary says they flap about for up to a minute. My husband does the deed and I have to admit to not liking watching. I do sometimes walk away and leave him to it. After a few minutes we hang it up to start plucking.

If you can't trust to the strength of your hands or to your own commitment to do the job properly then chopping off the head is quick(as long as your cleaver/axe is good and sharp) and certain. A sturdy wooden block is essential.

[Nicos]

Apparently my friend has a gadget to do the trick. she said she'll bring all the equipment with her and I just need to have a large pan of boiling water to hand.

( I thought you did that when delivering a baby- not culling chooks!)

Hmmm- I expect it's to do with removing the feathers??

They are only small bantams so I expect they'll make a good stock with the bones- and a small amount of sweet , flavoursome meat.
Perhaps I should weigh them- short leg length - just out of interest.

[RichmondHens]

I've read that a "gadget" crushes the vertebrae instead of separating them (essentially what happens when you "break" the neck by hand). This is apparently not as efficient and is frowned upon in some poultry circles. We've not tried it so cannot comment first hand but there was an article in Practical Poultry quite a while back on these type of things and comments were along the lines of them being inhumane.

Don't know what the boiling water is for. If you pluck a chicken "warm", ie freshly killed, the feathers come out easily. It's only when they are left to cool that it becomes more difficult.

[Nicos]

Will be interesting to find out about the water too...maybe it's just to keep me out of the way!

I had thought it would be a dislocation of the neck too so OH could copy. Animal welfare is 'interesting' in France
Lets hope the culling turns out to be instant in her expert hands

The broomstick method sounds interesting.

[Hilary B]

Will be interesting to find out about the water too...maybe it's just to keep me out of the way!

I had thought it would be a dislocation of the neck too so OH could copy. Animal welfare is 'interesting' in France
Lets hope the culling turns out to be instant in her expert hands

The broomstick method sounds interesting.

I would always opt for the broomstick if uncertain about the traditional version. I don't trust those gadgets (although I gather there are a variety of types).

[Nicos]

Turned out to be a knife job- arteries and windpipe etc all in one go

Didn't stay to watch- just heard a few secs of flapping and they were gone.

Hot water was amazing- I plucked one of them in less than a minute- they literally dropped out!

Their weights were roughly 870g for the 22 week old and 780 for the 20 week old.
We gave the larger one to our friend.
Didn't eat ours ( the smaller one) as it's been too hot to have the oven on so it's now in the freezer-but I am certainly looking forward to tasting it!

[Hilary B]

Turned out to be a knife job- arteries and windpipe etc all in one go

Didn't stay to watch- just heard a few secs of flapping and they were gone.

Hot water was amazing- I plucked one of them in less than a minute- they literally dropped out!

Their weights were roughly 870g for the 22 week old and 780 for the 20 week old.
We gave the larger one to our friend.
Didn't eat ours ( the smaller one) as it's been too hot to have the oven on so it's now in the freezer-but I am certainly looking forward to tasting it!

Well that method certainly works, but nearly as messy as chopping the head off!