My First Kill

Yes, that is a chicken, fresh.  I have killed chickens, and I did slaughter rabbits once, though I was mostly watching.  But today, I did it all.  From beginning to end.  

There were 13 roosters over at our other chicken coop.  No, they did not come down with Marek's Disease thank goodness.  We order a straight run, but sometimes a rooster or three gets mixed in.  Well this batch had 13!  They had not started to reek havoc on people yet, but they were a little rough with the ladies.  We didn't want it to get worse.  Roosters are not known to be very polite.  I've been attacked by a few.  Though the rooster I grew up with, Mr. Clucky, was always a nice guy.

Anyway, it was a weird experience, but I'm happy that I did it.  I wasn't sure if I could do the killing - the slitting of the jugular.  I knew I could do everything else.  I was determined though to do it.  I didn't give myself time to think.  Because thinking to much only meant I was thinking about myself, and not the rooster.  The faster I did it, the less pain he suffered.  We let them bleed out, then dunked them in hot, hot water.  We had to let it really soak down to the skin so the feathers would be easier to pluck (we were plucking by hand).  Let me tell you, if that water is not hot enough or you don't let the bird soak long enough, it is not fun pulling feathers.  Then off came the feet, head, neck, insides, a good wash to make sure the blood didn't stain the carcass, and in the fridge they went.  We won't be able to really eat these birds, but they'll make good soup.  I'll need to find a good recipe.  Or maybe chicken pot pie.  Yum!

Sorry I don't have a before picture.  I'm not sure if that would be appreciated or not...