The heavy pressure on the chicken flock was relieved on Monday when we butchered eleven roosters. Six were the twelve week old mystery chicks that turned out to be some sort of meat bird crosses and two were the “exotic” chick McMurry sends you “free”, one four months and one a year old and the remaining three were old tough roosters, probably over five years old. My friends Adam and Stella came to help and learn the butchering process. We threw in a four month old jake to see if it was any different butchering a turkey. We should have some good chicken (rooster?) soups this winter.
Archive for August, 2008
Monday rooster butchering
August 27, 2008The new buck house
August 19, 2008
I am having separate quarters built for the bucks. I need to have more controlled breeding now that I have two different kinds of bucks.
Summer kidding over
August 3, 2008I pulled two premature dead bucklings from Elizabeth early this morning. She failed to fully dilate and the kids were hard to pull. I think they died during her labor last night. They were full size, 11 and 13 pounds, but their teeth and hooves appeared underdeveloped. Elizabeth has thick yellow syrup instead of yellow milky colostrum.
This is the second time this has happened with Elizabeth so I will not breed her again. Her milk came in last December. If it comes in now, I’ll keep her around as a milker. If it does not, I will try to find her a home as someone’s pet.
Stella, and later Adam, came to help me clean up, treat Elizabeth and do morning chores. I was glad to have their company because I was feeling very sad.
