today a friend and I are going to be butchering a rooster together. This is our first time to do this... I will post my thoughts and results later.
Boil the water first. Hang it upside down by the feet. Cut the throat let it bleed out. Water needs to be 140-160. After dipping a few times check feather looseness not at feet but on wings. The wing feathers should come out easily or you need to dip it a few more times. After removing all the feathers burn off the pin feathers(look like hair). The only thing that I suck at is getting the neck out. There is a good YouTube video on it I just watched the other day. But I still just have my wife do it.
A lot of times I just skin it and get the breast and thigh&leg quarters. Quick and easy no boiling water or feather plucking.
A lot of times I just skin it and get the breast and thigh&leg quarters. Quick and easy no boiling water or feather plucking.
Here's a third for just skinning him, cutting him up in pieces and foodsavering his arse ...
I've butchered more chickens than I care to admit. GC helped me last year (
popped his chicken killing cherry!!). We just skinned them because I didn't think I could butcher, and pluck a whole yard full of birds basically by myself. BTW, I think I scared him. 
He's a lot nicer to me now ... 
Plucking a bird is a whole nuther adventure ...
I've butchered more chickens than I care to admit. GC helped me last year (
popped his chicken killing cherry!!). We just skinned them because I didn't think I could butcher, and pluck a whole yard full of birds basically by myself. BTW, I think I scared him. He's a lot nicer to me now ... Plucking a bird is a whole nuther adventure ...
I know, I know, I know ... Still is a pain in the ass cuz you have to tweezer the pin feathers out ... I really just prefer to do rabbits and keep my chickens for eggs ...
My wife has been on me to build a whiz bang chicken plucker. Pretty much the same thing just inside of a plastic 50gallon drum. Anyone have one or ever used one??? Also we have started raising rabbits too. Started with 3 now have 12. 9 are small about 1-2 months old. I lost a litter of 8 baby's one day when it was 7deg. out and she birthed out of the nest box on the wire. I checked on her at 4pm she was fine. Came back at 5pm 8 dead babies stuck to the frozen wire. My wife broke down. That sucked. Can't wait to eat some rabbits.
Was it her first litter?
