This is a safe post to read, no blood, no guts. I’ll warn you when I post that one.
I woke up at 7:30 Saturday morning in a panic that we slept in too late. I drug a very sleepy Clay, Ellen and Seth out of bed and I made pancakes while they prepped for a day of killin’.
Clay and Ellen set up the chopping block. It consists of two old saw horses that were found by our barn, a big board and two giant clamps. Next year we are making killing cones, just because I want to be able to tell someone I made a killing cone…it sounds scary. I also think they would be easier than the chopping block. If you don’t know what a killing cone is for God’s sake don’t google it, unless you want to see a lot of blood.
Remember our clothing dilemma? I mean, check out Clay’s hot jeans and very white knee caps.
Okay, so we’ve got the chopping block, the ax, the chickens are in the pen waiting in the back ground. Let’s get to choppin’!
First, you want to test the blade on something to make sure it’s sharp. Anything will do…like a kid. I’m KIDDING! Get it? Kid ding? Kid….oh never mind. And calm down Mom the blade had a safety guard on it.
The nail is to position the chicken’s head under to hold it in place while you stretch out the neck and then….chop.
Off with their heads!
Am I making you nervous?
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oh, mercy me~~~~~ I am seriously nauseated and nervous about your upcoming posts on your chicken slaughter! Puhleezzz do not even show one snippet of a picture without a warning! I am not looking at it but do love to read your blog!
Hilarious! I bet you made plenty of folk nervous about what happens on that chopping block! Me on the other hand, well Im looking forward to eating chicken for dinner. MMMMMM glorious grilled chicken
did you pluck them by hand or machine? I did this ONCE, many years ago on a friends farm, ick ick ick………
We used a simple railroad tied (just a short piece of it) and two nails. Our dinner’s head stuck between them. Easy. We had a cone, too, which was stuck in an open drain that Dad had rigged up. The blood went directly into the sewer. I guess. Simple. We only had one rule: “If I see another chicken running around without its head, I’ll part your hair with that axe you’re using! You hear me?”
We’re getting ready to butcher 33 chickens on Saturday, so I loved this post—anything to make me feel less crazy. I linked to it, too. Thanks!
sorry…I googled it & can NOT believe this is happening at your house. But you go girl & don’t bring it my way! love ya anyway!!
I read in Carla Emery’s book that before you butcher the chicken you should pick it up by it’s feet and swing it around in circles. It goes into a trance-like state and then you chop off its head. We do this every time we butcher now and the chickens seem to do OK. They are very tender, I think because they are not in distress at the last minute, they relax and the muscles do not tighten.
We used 2 nails also…you could get a good streatch on the neck… btw – if you want to you can send me the jeans for your family that have holes in them and I can patch them purdy quick…. yes, I am serious…
I LOVE TO PATCH JEANS!!!
OMG! We just made it through raising a couple of pigs for FFA…they were sold, thankfully, so we didn’t do the ‘butchering’. Now my son wants CHICKENS…I’m afraid, very afraid!
What is up with this? Castration at PW’s ranch, beheading at Coal Creek! Life for farm and ranch animals can be pretty scary. And so it goes…….
For the attention of the Site owner can I be permitted to quote some of the information from your post if credit for the post is given in a link back to your website?