Killing a Chicken - How to Kill a Chicken
by
'Muntjac'
If you keep chickens for meat or
if you need to cull a chicken you obviously want to do it in the
most humane way possible. There are sites offering advice that
I think are, quite frankly, rubbish so this is how I handle killing
a chicken.
I was ten years old when I killed my first bird and this is how I do mine.
To do this task properly you have to be settled
in your mind that you are able to carry it out, safe in the knowledge
that how you apply the task is the proper and quickest way
First take the bird quietly in the dark with a red lamp so as not to
alarm the rest. Tuck the bird quietly under your arm as you are talking
to the rest and close the door quietly. This calmness must be continued
all the way through so it's best that you do this with no audience at all
. Go into the coop quietly whistling softly or even talking this way the
birds know its you and don't all scream about flapping and upsetting everything.
Take the bird by the legs from the perch and pull it into your side by placing
a hand around its body and cup its head in your hand. Walk out quietly and
away from the coop up to the house so as not to cause any more disturbance
to the rest of the birds and the household
Take your right hand and slide it under the birds butt and grasp its legs
with the hand closed take the legs with the thumb pointing away from the body
as this is a stronger grip
Placing the fingers and thumb of the left had over the chickens neck just
above the head. The first 2 fingers ie index and second fingers, close over
the head with the neck in between like a V. The thumb then comes over the
head closing it into the palm taking a half twist as it closes
Now bring the bird into your chest holding its legs tight into the body
and taking a firm but gentle grip on its neck extend and put the weight of
the top part of the body onto the neck forcing the head down in one clean movement
The head will part from the body as the neck is broken and your hand will
follow on down and away from the bird. As the pressure you applied is released
the bird will start to flap uncontrollably at this point the chicken is dead.
T his action is only nervous reaction and it will stop in about 30 seconds.
Allow the bird to flap as much as it wants as this action forces any blood
to go down to the neck and coagulate there.
You can hang it for a day or two if you so wish, or you can carry straight
onto the plucking.
Hanging the Chicken
Take your bird and hang it by the feet in a cool place for a day. The
blood will pool in the neck end so draining is unnecessary.
Plucking the Chicken
Get a bucket of hot water (too hot for your hand) dip the bird in and
count to sixty, then take it out start taking the wing feathers out. Next
pluck the legs and then the breast. These feathers will all come out easily
as the hot water melts the fat that is around the pen of the feather so
it nearly falls out. I can pluck a chicken in 5 minutes or so, but I have
been doing this for a lot of years.
Once the bird has been plucked that there are a few fine hairs left on
the bird, just ignore them.
See Also: Dressing a Home Killed Chicken for Table
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