Table birds

[KimT]

Does anyone here rear their own birds for the table?

[Glutton4...]

Nope!











Sorry , if I decided to hatch my own I would cull the fellas (mwa haa haaaaa!) for the table, but don't want to go down that road yet. There will be someone along with more info soon, I'm just faffing around on here before I go to bed!

[MaureenHall]

Well I did hear that 1 of Lynda's boys might have ended up as dinner if he didn't stop crowing so loud My boys are "supposed" to be for the table ...................... but they're only 3 and a half weeks old yet so we'll see

[sheena]

I know it probabaly sounds cruel, but I plan to.

Just don't know when yet!

[digthatchick]

Sorry can't hear you - la la la hum hum hum (veggie with chooks )

[Hilary B]

Used to keep chooks, some were for eating, years ago now!

[Flummery]

I think matthew2riches does.

[di]

I know it probabaly sounds cruel, but I plan to.

Just don't know when yet!

Doesn't sound cruel at all....if you eat meat then it's the most assured way of knowing that what you eat has had a good life prior to being on your table!
We haven't done it yet & not sure that we will(DD very anti the idea),but it's something that's been at the back of my mind for quite some time,we just need to try & talk her round to the idea.
Good Luck if you go for it & don't feel bad just because it's not something everyone chooses to do!A lot of people on here keep chooks as pets,which there is nothing wrong with,but if you choose to rear them for their meat then that's equally fine!

[chicken slave]

I do, sorry guys but if I eat meat I am more satisified know where it comes from and what kind of life it's had.

[miss_corerupted]

i think i would. just need to hold my stomach in enough to kill and prepare!!!

[RichmondHens]

Yes - We hatch several clutches a year and all the surplus cocks cannot be kept (or sold), so we fatten them up and dispatch them at about 6 months old. Keeps us in roast chicken for quite a while and at least we know they have had a happy life prior to their end. They are best kept together in the "cock pen" without ladies' company, otherwise they squabble, but well worth doing as the meat is far superior to anything you get in the supermarket.

[KimT]

Quite a mixed bag of responses.

I have my girls in the garden which I love dearly and they are my pets too but I am also involved with other poultry keepers and we started rearing our own table birds last year and we also reared turkeys for Christmas.

I had never done anything like this before in my life but felt strongly about where they came from how the birds are kept what kind of life they have all but short and the quality of the meat.

The first lot of chicks we reared we hired professionals in to do the deed and they kindly taught us how to do it and we haven’t looked back since.

We are very passionate about our project and if anyone is thinking about rearing their own table birds all I can tell you is that it’s the best thing I have done and will carry on as long as I can.

[MaureenHall]

I think that when I've got over the first one, then I'll be fine, not quite so emotional about it ............................... it's doing the first one though isn't it

[chicken slave]

It is Auntie Mo, you feel nervous and have this feeling that if you don't get it right the bird will suffer, but to be honest if you grit your teeth and go for it, it is quick and over before you know it.
Best thing I found is to find out as much as you can about dispatching and get help from someone that has done it before for the first time, then it ends up a not being a thing you fear.

[RichmondHens]

I have to say I did wonder how I'd feel when I first faced doing our own birds but once it's plucked and gutted it looks like any other table chicken. and I found I could easily disassociate myself from the living thing I had been talking to every day. We have even on some occasions labelled up the freezer bags with the names of the birds on - the children have a habit of naming the cocks as well as the hens so we know who we're eating, and we do eat the occasional hen too (the occasional poor layer gets dispatched as I won't breed from them). I know it sounds a bit grisly but it's not really, and we know we are eating happy birds!