Chickens for meat update

You might want to skip this post if you are vegetarian or squeamish. I did it - slaughtered my very first chicken for meat. I'm not going to go into all the how-to details here - leave a comment if u want to know more, and I'll email you.

The main thing for me has been the emotional journey. Could I really raise a flock of adorably cute chicks, fall in love with them, spend hours watching their antics while tending to them several times a day, and then somehow kill them and still enjoy eating the meat? I desperately wanted the answer to be yes, because it's a way to make sure the animals I eat have the best possible life.

I chose two of the biggest roosters, but not the biggest healthiest one because I'm still hoping there's a chance I can raise my own chicks from eggs. I spared the little 'doomed' chicken that follows me around. I sequestered them in a small cage overnight, so they'd miss dinner and breaky (cleaner to slaughter if their guts and crop are empty). I felt a bit mean, but Paula pointed out that the hunger was the least of their problems.

Roderick came over to show me what to do. I was all business and determination - I refused to allow sentimentality to get in the way. Roderick did the first one, pulling its neck. But when I tried that, mine didn't die. I tried a couple more times but no go. Roderick held him on the chopping block for me, and I cleavered off its head - fast, calm and decisive.

Blood went EVERYWHERE - very gory. But somehow I remained steely-nerved. I stayed detached right through plucking and butchering, both of which were easier than I'd expected. Once the chickens were processed, they looked just like the ones you see in the shops, and weighed 1.1kg (size 11), which is small, but pretty amazing I think, for a chook that was only reared for 6 weeks. Also, with my no waste policy, I kept a bag with giblets and feet, which I'll use in stock. We plucked the feathers into a pot of soapy water - they are now zipped into a pillowcase, ready to be turned into a coat for winter.

Roderick told me the livers would be good fried with herbs. After he left, I was still in such sturdy shape emotionally, that I decided to eat the livers for lunch! Paula fried them for me in butter, garlic, and herbs (all home produced) and they tasted STUNNING. I remembered eating a chicken liver salad in France, which tasted like this, but when I tried to reproduce it at home with liver frpm the market, it tasted awful. Now I know the secret! I've got plenty more chicken liver delights coming up. I wonder if thr meat will be as amazing, too? The chickens are in the freezer now. We'll try one in a week or so.

So, it seems I CAN do it, and I can't tell you how relieved I am. I think it helps that I've been practising killing things. First I watched a rabbit slaughter in Italy, 2 yeas ago. I felt ill afterwards - nauseous and horrified. The next day I watched s chicken slaughter. I was much better prepared, but it still made me feel pretty queasy. Fast forward to this year: I went yabby fishing and cooked up my catch. I couldn't enjoy eating them though - all I could see on my mind as I chewed was the image of them archig away from the boiling water, and clutching my tongs. Yikes. A few months later, I killed 3 fish. It might not sound like a big deal, but to me, fish are as alive as chickens, and I really had to steel myself to do it. But I did, and ate the fish on the same day. I managed to enjoy the meals, and mentally was able to separate the kill from the food. Now, it seems the practise has stood me in good stead.

I did head upstairs for a big lie down after I'd eaten the livers. And at the end of the day, when I was feeding my 12 remaining chickens, there really did seem to be fewer in my flock - I felt a real pang of sadness, and a sense that my babies were incomplete: an urge to go searching for them.

I'm deeply grateful to Roderick for showing me what to do. This journey has been years in the making, as I've worked up to this point. He made it possible, and it feels like a major milestone. I reckon I'm confident now to go it solo next time. Just gotta buy a cleaver and sharpen it by next Thursday.

Comments

[Cristina Pink]

Crikey. You are amazing. I wonder if we could do that too...

[Sabdha]

I am so impressed. I have always thought that I should be prepared to kill what I eat and chickens are the logical first step. I'm inspired by you to take the idea seriously. Maybe when the kids are a bit older. I am sure your chooks will taste amazing!

[Asphyxia]

C & S, I'd be happy to show u what to do. And next time I order birds I could order enough for u guys too if u want. If you aren't sure you have thr stomach for it, you are welcome to come & help me do some of mine - I've still got 12 birds to go. But raising the chicks is a LOT of work, I found, so maybe a good project for when parenting doesn't feel too full on?
Love Fixie xoxo

[Eilis]

I agree with Cristi and Sabdha! (And I have been studying your "how to really grow food in your backyard" page for more tips that I've been trying to put into practice.

[Asphyxia]

Do you have space for a garden, Eilis? Great to hear my food growing tips are being of use! And you r welcome to come round for a slaughter if u want to learn what to do :). Happy food producing! Asphyxia

[Sandy Van Veen]

Hi Asphyxia, I came to your blog via the Grassroots page on Facebook. I'm not a big Facebook user, but I do like the way I can "meet" new people through quasi-community pages like the Grassroots one. I wondered about your name and where in AUS you live, so I clicked on your name, then clicked on your website, and now I realise I have spent a good deal of the day reading about your life, your experiences in sustainable living, how to make cider vinegar, and more and more and more. So much for my plans to dig up the garlic crop today. And I can't believe you're doing all that in Northcote! I've lived in Northcote a few times over the years, but always renting, so now really that feasible for doing what you're doing. Four years ago we moved from the city to South Gippsland, and now have 4 acres. Our vegie gardening is lagging sadly behind yours (but I'm all charged up with your info and feeling optimistic) but (and this somehow sounds bad as well as good) we're well ahead in the killing! I remember the awfulness of the first kill (also a chook) and then we progressed on to ducks (somehow harder) and this weekend it's to be mammals - three rabbits which were due to be killed and chucked out as unwanted, so we agreed to take them instead. Part of the deal was if we took them, they didn't have to kill them. We have some vegetarian friends who come here and when we're showing them around, it does seem to be one big slaughter fest: steers for beef, sheep for wool and meat, chooks for eggs and meat, ducks ditto, geese ditto, guinea fowl for meat. Hmmm. But we would like to be able to produce all our own meat, and we would like to know that those animals have had a good life from start to finish. We've also skinned and eaten the snakes that have decided to live on our veranda (they're welcome to live by the dam or anywhere else farther away from the house, but not where we or our poultry live). I'm finding different ways to preserve the food we make and I'm hopeful that we can become more self sufficient in the long run, maybe totally one day. The three of you are living quite an extraordinary life, and it sounds like so much fun at the same time! Look forward to reading more about it. Cheers, Sandy