well it's done ... bit graphic if you're squeamish

[lynda66]

awwww sue thats a shame .... thats exactly how i felt too, worried about hurting them rather than killing them outright, but then when it came down to it i had no alternative, tis such a shame that you didnt get to eat them .... if you ever decide to hatch any more, i would suggest that going to a local farm which has chickens would be a good way to go, they will have no problems with showing you .... or even going to a vet to show you how would have been cheaper and you'd still have the meat .... it is actually very quick and surprisingly easy if you can get past the fact that you'r gonna kill something.

i got round it by them only being called roast and crispy ... and knowing they were only here for dinner, i hadn't formed an attachment to them and saw them only as walking meat .... once they are dead .... they are not the creatures you cared for, but just something that needs plucking and gutting ... sorry you had such a crappy time ... hugggsssssssss Lynda xxx

[Nicos]

I couldn't watch the act of killing- but once mine were dead I had no probs with preparing them.
They'd been dunked in boiling water prior to plucking so their faces looked totally different - I think that made it easier.
Next time Sue offer one to a farmer in exchange for doing the deed for you. No one in their right mind would turn down a lovely bit of meat in exchange for something they do regularly anyway

[Hilary B]

Lynda, the answer to down is the hot-damp treatment (I used to use a hot iron over a wet tea-towel). It makes the down loose enough to rub off the skin.
Have to admit that the ducks we had were never Aylesburys. The dual purpose breeds (big enough to be meaty but still lay a decent number of eggs) would always be my preference. Runners don't put on much of anything, Khaki Campbells tend to be better, but the Welsh Harlequin and similar sized breeds are probably the best bet for smallholders.
Because they ALL put on quite a bit of fat (it's for insulation, whales have blubber to keep them warm) a duck will always eat a lot more food to get a similar amount of meat to a chicken. Geese even more so, but geese eat a lot of grass, which helps.....
If you buy a 10lb goose from the butcher, it won't go nearly as far as a 10lb turkey, in fact less than half the servings, if you give the same size portions.

[lynda66]

well it just about fed two of us ... and i hoped it to feed 4 so lucky that the other 2 didn't make it .... so for the amount of food it has eaten ... would definitely say not worth it .... although it was bloody yummy .... gonna let the other one live a bit longer i think ... and get it on the treadmill .... see what another month or 2 does for the meat content ... we aint gonna eat it till crimbo anyway, yeah hilary i read about heat after i tried plucking it like a chicken which wasnt overly successful lol (dont own an iron so will try hot water next time)

[Hilary B]

well it just about fed two of us ... and i hoped it to feed 4 so lucky that the other 2 didn't make it .... so for the amount of food it has eaten ... would definitely say not worth it .... although it was bloody yummy .... gonna let the other one live a bit longer i think ... and get it on the treadmill .... see what another month or 2 does for the meat content ... we aint gonna eat it till crimbo anyway, yeah hilary i read about heat after i tried plucking it like a chicken which wasnt overly successful lol (dont own an iron so will try hot water next time)

If you keep it a bit longer, I would hang it for a few days before preparing it for the oven (before plucking if you intend to wet-pluck).
Even 4 month old cockerels are tastier (and more tender) for 48 hours hanging 'in the feather', and ducks, more so.
If you want more meat-to-fat, you need higher protein content in the feed (applies to just about any meat-animal).