Euthanasia
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Fiona Mitchell
May 25, 2012, 7:52:21 AM5/25/12
to Grass-Fed Eggs
I have to put down my chicken - I've tried all the treatments I can
think of, and she's not responding to anything. She's very alert and
eating and drinking but can't move.
What's the most humane way to do this - without involving a vet?
Thanks.
think of, and she's not responding to anything. She's very alert and
eating and drinking but can't move.
What's the most humane way to do this - without involving a vet?
Thanks.
Straight
May 25, 2012, 2:31:19 PM5/25/12
to grass-f...@googlegroups.com
Well, not seeing anybody else, I'm here.
First------you will have to get your head in order and get a bit of
distance.
it's a chicken. IT is a chicken. It is a CHICKEN. It's not your child,
not your husband, not even your dog. There are millions of chickens in the
world, and they normally have a very short lifespan.
An awful lot of chickens get torn up by dogs or racoons or some other
predator, chewed on while still alive, or carried off by a hawk, punctured
by it's claws. This chicken will not go through that, with the accompanying
pain and fear. Or trucked to a processing plant, in open cages, in the
winter. I know, I've followed them down the road and felt sorry for them.
5o mph or more, down the road feathers flying through the snowflakes.
Next-----there are a couple of quick ways. One is to chop off the head.
The other is to slit the throat. Either way is quick, but you need to know
the details to do it right.
Get an apron. Blood does stain. And some Kleenex for yourself.
To chop off head you need 2 things-----a surface (block of wood works well)
and a sharp hatchet or something similar.
Gather up chicken under your left arm, hide her eyes so she is calm. Then
put her head down on the stump. You can "hypnotize" a chicken by using a
string or chalk to make a V. Put her head right on the point of the V,
stretching out the neck some, run your finger down both ways. No, I don't
know why it works, but it does. Divides their seeing somehow.
Gather up your courage and strike----once----hard!!----and don't hit
yourself in the nose on the backswing. A normal chicken will then run
around, unless you tie the legs first. They have a secondary "brain center"
somewhere in their back that sets off the running response to an alarm.
This one probably won't. They stop in a few minutes anyway.
Don't look----turn around, blow nose, give yourself a few minutes respite.
Put sick chicken and head in the trash-----where the dogs can't get it!! If
you have to, go find a big trash bin someplace behind a restaurant or
something. Or you could bag it and stick it in a freezer until trash day
next week.
Label it and make a note in the kitchen!!
Now, if you want to try the other method--------you will need some cord,
like garden twine, not crochet thread, maybe 4 feet or so, and a good sharp
knife with a point. Solid and not very wide. Steak knife.
Remember the apron and the Kleenex.
Make a loop with the cord, find someplace to hang chicken.
Gather up chicken, double the loop around legs, pull one end through the
other. Hang up chicken.
Hold head (the chicken's) with one hand, squeeze the sides a little to open
mouth, stick once, Hard!! to cut the artery in the back of the throat.
Stick a second time----Hard!----straight up through the top of the mouth
into the brain. Do not stick yourself!
Bird will hang, relaxed, blood draining out. As the last of it leaves, and
the heart runs totally out of blood the bird will kick a little. Done.
Turn your back, blow nose, give yourself a few minutes.
Now get rid of the sick chicken.
Paper bag helps. Out of sight, out of mind. It's over. On to the next
problem.
This one probably won't give you any trouble. A new prime rooster about 5
months old can be a real handful. But if they can't see, they stay
quiet-----you can wrap something around their head.
Of course there is a 3rd option----the one I prefer to use. Get my husband
to do it. Sometimes it works.
Best wishes, and a big hug,
You can do it.
Diane S.
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First------you will have to get your head in order and get a bit of
distance.
it's a chicken. IT is a chicken. It is a CHICKEN. It's not your child,
not your husband, not even your dog. There are millions of chickens in the
world, and they normally have a very short lifespan.
An awful lot of chickens get torn up by dogs or racoons or some other
predator, chewed on while still alive, or carried off by a hawk, punctured
by it's claws. This chicken will not go through that, with the accompanying
pain and fear. Or trucked to a processing plant, in open cages, in the
winter. I know, I've followed them down the road and felt sorry for them.
5o mph or more, down the road feathers flying through the snowflakes.
Next-----there are a couple of quick ways. One is to chop off the head.
The other is to slit the throat. Either way is quick, but you need to know
the details to do it right.
Get an apron. Blood does stain. And some Kleenex for yourself.
To chop off head you need 2 things-----a surface (block of wood works well)
and a sharp hatchet or something similar.
Gather up chicken under your left arm, hide her eyes so she is calm. Then
put her head down on the stump. You can "hypnotize" a chicken by using a
string or chalk to make a V. Put her head right on the point of the V,
stretching out the neck some, run your finger down both ways. No, I don't
know why it works, but it does. Divides their seeing somehow.
Gather up your courage and strike----once----hard!!----and don't hit
yourself in the nose on the backswing. A normal chicken will then run
around, unless you tie the legs first. They have a secondary "brain center"
somewhere in their back that sets off the running response to an alarm.
This one probably won't. They stop in a few minutes anyway.
Don't look----turn around, blow nose, give yourself a few minutes respite.
Put sick chicken and head in the trash-----where the dogs can't get it!! If
you have to, go find a big trash bin someplace behind a restaurant or
something. Or you could bag it and stick it in a freezer until trash day
next week.
Label it and make a note in the kitchen!!
Now, if you want to try the other method--------you will need some cord,
like garden twine, not crochet thread, maybe 4 feet or so, and a good sharp
knife with a point. Solid and not very wide. Steak knife.
Remember the apron and the Kleenex.
Make a loop with the cord, find someplace to hang chicken.
Gather up chicken, double the loop around legs, pull one end through the
other. Hang up chicken.
Hold head (the chicken's) with one hand, squeeze the sides a little to open
mouth, stick once, Hard!! to cut the artery in the back of the throat.
Stick a second time----Hard!----straight up through the top of the mouth
into the brain. Do not stick yourself!
Bird will hang, relaxed, blood draining out. As the last of it leaves, and
the heart runs totally out of blood the bird will kick a little. Done.
Turn your back, blow nose, give yourself a few minutes.
Now get rid of the sick chicken.
Paper bag helps. Out of sight, out of mind. It's over. On to the next
problem.
This one probably won't give you any trouble. A new prime rooster about 5
months old can be a real handful. But if they can't see, they stay
quiet-----you can wrap something around their head.
Of course there is a 3rd option----the one I prefer to use. Get my husband
to do it. Sometimes it works.
Best wishes, and a big hug,
You can do it.
Diane S.
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> Visit the Grass-Fed Eggs Web site at http://www.grass-fed-eggs.com
Trae Dever
May 25, 2012, 3:09:57 PM5/25/12
to grass-f...@googlegroups.com
Personally I prefer a quick break of the neck. No blood & no flapping.
Sincerely,
Lowell (Trae) E. Dever III
(985) 718-0879 ofc.
(985) 960-3399 cell
(866) 872-4033 fax
Sincerely,
Lowell (Trae) E. Dever III
(985) 718-0879 ofc.
(985) 960-3399 cell
(866) 872-4033 fax
Fiona Mitchell
May 25, 2012, 3:42:31 PM5/25/12
to grass-f...@googlegroups.com
Wow - Diane - that's a pretty thorough description! Thanks (Your third option is not an option though - husband is not compliant in this case!!
Trae - I like your very simple approach - but how? Literally just snap?
To: "Grass-Fed Eggs" <grass-fed-eggs@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Friday, May 25, 2012 7:52 AM
Subject: [Grass-Fed-Eggs] Euthanasia
I have to put down my chicken - I've tried all the treatments I can
think of, and she's not responding to anything. She's very alert and
eating and drinking but can't move.
What's the most humane way to do this - without involving a vet?
Thanks.
--
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Visit the Grass-Fed Eggs Web site at http://www.grass-fed-eggs.com
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Visit this discussion group at
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Visit the Grass-Fed Eggs Web site at http://www.grass-fed-eggs.com
--
Fiona Mitchell
Straight
May 25, 2012, 4:47:27 PM5/25/12
to grass-f...@googlegroups.com
Some people just wring their neck. Fast and hard. Breaks the
neck, the bones, cuts the nerves. Just like people. Would work for
this one since you're not going to eat a sick chicken, don't need to drain the
blood.
I've known people who slung them around their head in a circle, hard, just
like a towel, to break the chicken's neck too. Didn't work for me,
all I got was a mad chicken.
Well, I thought that if you are going to have to do it, you'd want to be
able to do a good job, quick and clean. Merciful.
It's fun to practice trying to hypnotize a chicken! All you need is a
flat surface. Use a white string, or chalk, or something, make a big V,
starting from yourself out, oh maybe a foot long or so.
I learned it from my mother. You can even draw lines on a
sheet of paper. Put their head right down with their beak pretty much
right at the point, maybe run your finger down the lines to direct their
gaze. The chicken will lay right there not moving for quite a
while, you can even walk away!
After a few minutes she'll get up, shake herself a few times, and just walk
off. And inevitably you will go get another one and try it again, just to
see if it really did work. And it does!!
Laughing,-------yes, I enjoy my chickens, they can be funny!
DollLady
May 26, 2012, 8:12:14 AM5/26/12
to Grass-Fed Eggs
I have not actually tried this, but have read about it. Another option
to break a chicken's neck, if you feel you aren't strong enough, is to
lay the chicken down on the floor with a broom handle across its neck,
and step on either side. This might work well for you since your
chicken can't move. Best of luck, let us know what you did.
to break a chicken's neck, if you feel you aren't strong enough, is to
lay the chicken down on the floor with a broom handle across its neck,
and step on either side. This might work well for you since your
chicken can't move. Best of luck, let us know what you did.
Fiona MItchell
May 26, 2012, 9:02:54 AM5/26/12
to grass-f...@googlegroups.com
Thank you all. The deed is done. In fact, my 21-year-old son stepped up to the challenge (bless him) and broke the neck. I had fortified myself with a couple of glasses of wine in preparation, but just got to enjoy the wine!!
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martin gutzmer
May 26, 2012, 3:52:22 PM5/26/12
to Grass-Fed Eggs
I had to lay three hens to rest today - predators got them!
One hen was still living - having part of her side eaten.
We talked quietly, then I put her down - with a 12 gauge to the head
at very close range - she did not suffer.
Hope this helps.
God Bless,
Martin
One hen was still living - having part of her side eaten.
We talked quietly, then I put her down - with a 12 gauge to the head
at very close range - she did not suffer.
Hope this helps.
God Bless,
Martin
martin gutzmer
May 26, 2012, 3:52:34 PM5/26/12
to Grass-Fed Eggs
I had to lay three hens to rest today - predators got them!
One hen was still living - having part of her side eaten.
We talked quietly, then I put her down - with a 12 gauge to the head
at very close range - she did not suffer.
Hope this helps.
God Bless,
Martin
On May 25, 6:52 am, Fiona Mitchell <fmitchell2...@gmail.com> wrote:
One hen was still living - having part of her side eaten.
We talked quietly, then I put her down - with a 12 gauge to the head
at very close range - she did not suffer.
Hope this helps.
God Bless,
Martin
On May 25, 6:52 am, Fiona Mitchell <fmitchell2...@gmail.com> wrote:
Trae Dever
May 25, 2012, 3:53:30 PM5/25/12
to grass-f...@googlegroups.com
I hold the bird by the feet, with the head on the ground, facing
forward. Then I place a broomstick, or something similar, across the
back of the neck, up close to the head. I put a foot on each end of
the broomstick, and quickly pull up on the birds feet. You will hear
and feel the neck crack. It takes a few birds to get it just right.
If you pull too hard, the head comes off. Don't pull hard enough,
and the chicken gets cranky. Big males require a harder pull then
females.
There are other ways to do the same thing. My great grandmother grabbed the bird by the head, yanked it up, and gave a twist. It worked every time. However, she grew up doing that her whole life. Every Sunday was fried chicken.
There are other ways to do the same thing. My great grandmother grabbed the bird by the head, yanked it up, and gave a twist. It worked every time. However, she grew up doing that her whole life. Every Sunday was fried chicken.
On 5/25/2012 2:42 PM, Fiona Mitchell wrote:
Wow - Diane - that's a pretty thorough description! Thanks (Your third option is not an option though - husband is not compliant in this case!!Trae - I like your very simple approach - but how? Literally just snap?
On Fri, May 25, 2012 at 3:09 PM, Trae Dever <tr...@dever.us> wrote:
Personally I prefer a quick break of the neck. No blood & no flapping.
To: "Grass-Fed Eggs" <grass-f...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Friday, May 25, 2012 7:52 AM
Subject: [Grass-Fed-Eggs] Euthanasia
I have to put down my chicken - I've tried all the treatments I can
think of, and she's not responding to anything. She's very alert and
eating and drinking but can't move.
What's the most humane way to do this - without involving a vet?
Thanks.
--
To post to Grass-Fed-Eggs, send email to grass-f...@googlegroups.com
Change your subscription options at http://groups.google.com/group/grass-fed-eggs/subscribe (Google account required)
To unsubscribe, send email to
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Visit this discussion group at
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--
Fiona Mitchell
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