I'm looking for a complete online guide t obutchering chickens with pictures... And then more pictures with what to do afterwards... I've read "Chickens in your backyard" cover to cover several times, including the chapter about butchering "Chickens for meat". But alas, I'm still lost :). It was certainly very nice and discriptive, but there were no pictures. Anyway, does anybody have any ideas?

Thanks in advance.

-- Aubrey (AubreyLovesHorses@TheMail.com), April 05, 2002

Answers

I think this was on this list a while back (in fact, I think it's where I learned about it), but I know I can't always find old threads by their subject headers. Here's a good site, quite descriptive, and some decent step by step pictures:

http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/livestocksystems/componen ts/0701b.html#kill

It actually sounds much more complicated than it actually is. Then again, I had the great fortune of having my farm-raised German grandma to show me how to do it when I was 12. Both the neck breaking way, and the neck cutting way. ---> can't wring a chicken's neck... ack!

Good luck!

-- Andrea Gauland, Big Flats NY (andreagee@aol.com), April 05, 2002.

Might look at: Univ. Nebraska, http://www.ianr.unl.edu/pubs/foods/heg144.htm This NebGuide provides complete step-by-step instructions with pictures for home processing of chickens Also there were a number of other Univ. Sites with information, just plug in processing chickens into google search engine and look for URls that ens in "edu", like the one above.

-- BC (desertdweller44@yahoo.com), April 05, 2002.

I really liked this site:

http://www.ianr.unl.edu/pubs/foods/heg144.htm

-- Anita in NC (anitaholton@mindspring.com), April 05, 2002.

LOL..what hapened to the good ole days when some family member taught the next generation?? Sooo are there any of the "older generation"(not just family members) living close that could/would give a hands on demo?? Surprising what the elders have to teach and just how needed they will feel to do so!! What a wealth of info that is slowly "dieing off"....

-- Bee White (bee@hereintown.net), April 06, 2002.

Gee, I'd cut pluck and gut

-- Jack Childers (injack1@aol.com), April 06, 2002.

Wow! Thanks everyone!! I loved both of the sites mentioned... (one was listed twice; I guess many people like it!) and I can't think of anyone around here that keeps (or once did) chickens for meat... Not that I know of, anyway... I'm from a family that lived in the city and bought everything from the store. The only thing that was agricultural that I can think of was a horse barn. Anyway, thanks again for all the great answers!!

-- Aubrey (AubreyLovesHorses@TheMail.com), April 08, 2002.

http://www.idahofreedom.com/livestock/chicken/chicken1001.html

-- Laura S. (LadybugWrangler@somewhere.com), April 08, 2002.