# My first processing



## nj2wv (Aug 27, 2013)

Had a barred rock that rarely laid an egg. She was around 8mths old. I decided to cull her. It was my first time so it is not the best looking specimen. I hope to get better with practice. I skinned her because I don't have anything large enough to put her in to pluck her. I had a hard time at the knee joints and wing joints because I am not that strong and couldn't pull the skin over the joints so I ended up with half wings and half legs. I also noticed her organ cavity was an immense blob of fat. She would peck the other hens away so she could eat and gobbled up everything she could.


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## Apyl (Jun 20, 2012)

Just curious what you were feeding her. That looks like a lot of fat. 

You did great. My first time butchering I did it with my husband, he chopped the legs above the joint so they were all splintered. From that point on I butcher on my own lol.


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## nj2wv (Aug 27, 2013)

They mostly eat layer pellets mixed with cracked corn and any leftovers we have. Now they are all on diets lol. I lessened their feed a bit. I have them in chicken tractors because when I had them free ranging they would go into the neighbors yard about a hundred yards away but not stay on our three acres. The neighbor complained so I put them in the tractors and moved them daily. Now that winter is coming and the grass stopped growing I keep them in one area and keep straw in it for them so they can still scratch. When things start to grow again in the spring I will go back to the daily moving onto fresh grass. Maybe that too contributed to the fat.


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## Apyl (Jun 20, 2012)

Your feeding routine sounds like mine. Pellets, scraps,cracked corn ect. I free range for now,but I plan to make a layer pen come Spring. I wonder if the change to being penned caused the fat build up since they are not roaming as much. Or it could possibly just be that your hen was being greedy with the food . I didn't even think about the possibility of my girls getting fatty once penned. Guess we'll find out.


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## nj2wv (Aug 27, 2013)

Yes she sure was greedy when it came to feeding. They were in tractors since July. She was also on the lazy side. What I have observed from my chickens are that the ones who spend all day scratching and digging holes are the best layers and the ones who sun bathe in dirt baths that the other chickens dug are the worst. Not sure if that is for every chicken but it seems mine are that way. I would love to see how you do your pen in the spring.


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## Apyl (Jun 20, 2012)

I found this coop/pen set up on a photo contest page lol but I fell in love with it. what I would like to do is make it 20x16 minimum and since the coop part is raised it leaves 320 sq ft for the pen/run. My daughter is wanting a few bantams for 4-H come spring so I was also thinking doing a bottom coop as well but only half the size as the raised coop, then pen off an area for her couple bantams so she ca focus on raising them on her own. I'm only looking at penning my 10 hens and 1 rooster. All my ducks will stay free range and they will get a different house.


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## nj2wv (Aug 27, 2013)

That does look nice. It looks even light enough that if you put wheels on one side you can move it around for fresh grass and add tarp for winter weather.


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## hildar (Oct 3, 2013)

Its sort of funny because the first rooster I ever culled looked like yours once dressed out. However I looked at that and I told my kids right out right chickens in stores don't look like that lol. Then I realized there is a big difference in what we buy in the stores and what we cull our selves. Sort of like the eggs, the ones in the stores have very pale yolks, yet mine at home are just as bright orange as can be and at first I was scared to use them. The meat also seems to be darker on home grown chickens then the store bought junk.

But the flavor?? Lordy you can sure tell the difference. I think that store bought stuff is full of preservatives, and other junk because the home raised taste so much better.

However I can never get mine to look like a store bought roasting chicken???? How do they make them stay limber like that???


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## nj2wv (Aug 27, 2013)

I agree. The taste of a home raised chicken is extremely superior to a store bought chicken. I think the CX are meatier in the breast. I haven't raised those yet. I may try in the spring but I don't have the freezer space so I may not. I like the dual purpose breeds so I can cull as needed. I also think that maybe the store bought chicken is much more limber than our home raised is that they are probably injected with fluids and the meat rests so long in refrigeration. Mine never seem to last long enough to make it to the freezer. Lol .


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## TNchick (Jun 26, 2013)

I processed 6 CX in the summer, and they were heavy and fat. My smallest was 8lbs ad the largest was 9.8lbs. They were quite large and had a large amount of fat as well. They were the best chicken we have ever eaten. The breasts were amazingly huge and the drumsticks were too. Much better than anything I have ever bought at the grocery. I am going to order more CX chicks in the spring.


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## nj2wv (Aug 27, 2013)

Maybe I can do that. Just order a few CX and maybe order some Delawares to make up the minimum order difference. I heard they are meaty and mature faster.


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## nj2wv (Aug 27, 2013)

I did another six on Saturday and it took me all day. The killing went quick. The cutting off of the feet wing tips and head was quick also. Even the start of the skinning was quick. I realized what part of the process took so long. It is when I get the skin pulled down to the tail area and when I take out the innards. It takes so long for me. I don't keep any of the inside and I remove the tail. I guess I am too nervous about busting the intestine. I cut the legs off to fry up at a later date and I roast the body for dinner. We ate it tonight. It was delicious and no leftovers


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## TNchick (Jun 26, 2013)

Getting the innards out is the worst part for me as well.


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## Jim (Sep 26, 2012)

I found my spring cornishX were big and meaty, not much fat (they were on Dumar feed). My fall batch took a lot longer to grow out, were leaner and were on a soy free ,non-GMO feed. Not sure if the GMO caused them to grow bigger and faster, or, if the heat slowed down growth. Gonna try another spring batch with the soy free , Non -GMO feed and see if there is a diff.


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## hildar (Oct 3, 2013)

WE culled 2 on Sunday, and my older rooster I was shocked to find out he was very tough even the dog wouldn't eat his meat. His breast was like dark meat not really sure as to why. From now on I will be culling only the younger boys no older ones. If we get rid of older ones they will be killed and buried. It's not worth the time and effort to cull and process the older ones just to throw out the meat. Half wasn't that old either he was a bit less then 2 years old. However his son was only 8 months and he was tender, and normal color.

My roosters both had a small amount of fat, however inside was full of fat. my daughter said that much fat should have killed them anyone else seen hand fulls of fat inside their roosters??

I didn't have to much of a problem with the gutting. I actually made a slit up the breast a bit so I could reach in there better and it did wonders. Made it so much easier.


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## nj2wv (Aug 27, 2013)

Mine had lots of fat but they were all hens


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## Jim (Sep 26, 2012)

hildar said:


> WE culled 2 on Sunday, and my older rooster I was shocked to find out he was very tough even the dog wouldn't eat his meat. His breast was like dark meat not really sure as to why. From now on I will be culling only the younger boys no older ones. If we get rid of older ones they will be killed and buried. It's not worth the time and effort to cull and process the older ones just to throw out the meat. Half wasn't that old either he was a bit less then 2 years old. However his son was only 8 months and he was tender, and normal color.
> 
> My roosters both had a small amount of fat, however inside was full of fat. my daughter said that much fat should have killed them anyone else seen hand fulls of fat inside their roosters??
> 
> I didn't have to much of a problem with the gutting. I actually made a slit up the breast a bit so I could reach in there better and it did wonders. Made it so much easier.


We let ours rest a few days before eating, to let rigor release. Also, older ones, I hear, are best for the slow cooker or stew birds, would even be good to cook up and feed back to the flock....


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## hildar (Oct 3, 2013)

Jim said:


> We let ours rest a few days before eating, to let rigor release. Also, older ones, I hear, are best for the slow cooker or stew birds, would even be good to cook up and feed back to the flock....


I also was thinking that I could cook it up and feed it back to the flock they eat pretty much anything they want lol. Cat food, dog food, even canned cat food and tuna fish. So I think they will eat any old roosters that I have. However next time I will wait a few days before cooking them up and see if its better.


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