Some chickens grow up faster than others. One of our chicks started crowing at about 7 weeks old. Life on a farm can be a bit harsh at times, and sometimes a farmer has got to do what a farmer has got to do. I went out one morning to really find out which one of our chicks was crowing. I already tagged the chicks with colored leg bands so I could differentiate them from one another, and it was one of our Barred Rock chicks named "Pinky" (as he had a pink leg band on). This was my cue to get our slaughtering station going.
I created a
chicken cone out of a gallon milk jug, by cutting out the entire bottom and making a larger opening on the top, and hung it upside down from my wood shed. Chicken cones are used so that a chicken itself doesn't damage it's meat during slaughter. Everything else was pretty simple, a garbage can, a bucket, a sharp knife, a rag and I hung some string over the garbage can so I could hang the carcass for skinning and gutting. There are plenty of instructional videos and web sites online that take you through what it takes to slaughter a chicken as you see fit. There is no one way to do it, there are great tricks to make your slaughter go smoothly and humanely. Just do some research and see if you are up to the task, and pick a method that works for you.
After performing the slaughter, I decided I wanted to skin my chickens, as I really don't want to go through the hassles of plucking the bird. Pinky was roasted in the oven with lemon pepper and garlic salt. The meat was very tasty, but was a bit tough, but it did not stop us from eating our young bird. At eight weeks old, it was more like an appetizer, but it made for a great late night BBQ sandwich. I think our next meat bird will go into the crock pot for a slower cooking time. This should make the meat more tender. I will be sure to post something about it as soon as the rooster crows. Until next time.
I created a chicken cone out of a gallon milk jug, by cutting out the entire bottom and making a larger opening on the top, and hung it upside down from my wood shed. Chicken cones are used so that a chicken itself doesn't damage it's meat during slaughter. Everything else was pretty simple, a garbage can, a bucket, a sharp knife, a rag and I hung some string over the garbage can so I could hang the carcass for skinning and gutting. There are plenty of instructional videos and web sites online that take you through what it takes to slaughter a chicken as you see fit. There is no one way to do it, there are great tricks to make your slaughter go smoothly and humanely. Just do some research and see if you are up to the task, and pick a method that works for you.
After performing the slaughter, I decided I wanted to skin my chickens, as I really don't want to go through the hassles of plucking the bird. Pinky was roasted in the oven with lemon pepper and garlic salt. The meat was very tasty, but was a bit tough, but it did not stop us from eating our young bird. At eight weeks old, it was more like an appetizer, but it made for a great late night BBQ sandwich. I think our next meat bird will go into the crock pot for a slower cooking time. This should make the meat more tender. I will be sure to post something about it as soon as the rooster crows. Until next time.
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