A friend came to the Potter County Farmers Market this Friday and we talked about butchering chickens.
Our experience has been that the best time to get your fast growing chicks is as late in the summer as possible. That way, there's (hopefully) been one killing frost (here in north central Pennsylvania) when it comes time to butcher them in late September or early October and the flies are dead. I personally find it quite disgusting to be butchering chickens and have flies land on them. Blecch.
The very best chicken butchering tutorial that I have found:
Survival Skills With Russ
“I want there to be no peasant in my kingdom so poor that he cannot have a chicken in his pot every Sunday”
- Henry IV
Our weather is a bit different than yours, but basically try for the same thing. We butcher about the middle of November.
ReplyDeleteHaving never butchered my own chickens, I would have never thought about waiting for the cooler weather! Thanks for the link too! :)
ReplyDeleteWe learned our lesson the first year we did it!
DeleteWe are getting some chickens this week for butchering. It is our first time and I thought we were getting them late in the season. Good to know I'm not behind, but right on time! Wish us luck!
ReplyDeleteI apologize to anyone who clicked on the Homestead Revival Barn Hop expecting to see baby bunnies. You can find THAT blog here:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.fitzgeraldsfamilyfarm.blogspot.com/2012/12/baby-angora-bunnies-are-born.html