Recent content by danschicks

I will volunteer my services. I want to learn how to slaughter a hog first hand. Anywhere in VA, MD, NC is an option. Looking for the next month or two. If you could use a hand let me know. Thanks

I just raised 5 BBW in a 8X10X3 pasture pen. They dressed out at 31, 29, 28, 24, and 20 pounds at 19 weeks. The pen was plenty big, and made with with wood strapping. The 31 pounder was juicy :and flavorful. We ate him today!

I used 3 pieces of scrap wood, 4 bolts, a few screws, and 2 sets of old training wheel tires. The little car can be put under any of the four sides of the pen. It lifts the side just high enough to clear the grass and keep chickens and turkeys in. This pen is 8X10X3. I have heavy ropes...

Bump

How long can a shrink bag preserve freshness when the turkey is kept in the fridge and not frozen, with no preservatives? I generally freeze all my meat birds after they have rested a few days. I am trying not to freeze the one that is destined for Thanksgiving dinner. It looks like...

My whiz bang can handle four 5 pound birds. I assume it can handle a 15-20 pound turkey. You can always hold the bird and move it around manually over the spinning feather plate, keeping the bulk of the weight off. I will be doing turkeys in October and plan to use my tub plucker. I don't...

I use the "Sportsman" knife from the Ronco knife set. (yes the one on the info-mercials). Never needs sharpening and makes quick work of processing. I bought the set of like 25 knives from Wal-mart.

I fed them from sun up to sun down. Prevents the feeding frenzies. They spent a lot of their day laying around and eating the pasture. Their pasture pen was moved 1-2 times a day. More ofter now as they soil the area pretty quickly. Not sure of their weights yet but they look normal for what...

I'm processing 50 of their birds Saturday. Ordered all Roos, only got 1 hen. Very good size. They will be about 7 1/2 weeks. I'll order from them again.

I built an outdoor brooder early this Spring. I will never use the garage again!

I just finished my Whizbang about an hour ago. Its maiden voyage is Saturday with 50 birds. It was easier than I thought it would be.

could you please explain the deep litter method to me? I have a meatie pen that's 10'x10'x2', which gets pretty muddy in the spring time. I was thinking about adding sand to the floor, but then I read your deep litter idea, but I do not know what it means You can search this site and find a...

Jaku, There are 2 possible reasons why I decided to go with a no-floor outdoor brooder... I am not sure which one played more into the decision. 1.) I tried this concept after reading a lot about the deep litter method, natural composting, drainage, potential versatility, etc. I wanted to see...

Here are some pics of an outdoor brooder I made. It is made entirely out of scraps. The next time I build one I would make some adjustments. At least this will give others some ideas. The brooder is 8'X8' and about 44" high. It has a small-holed hog-wire skirt inside and out to prevent...

Make your own lung scrapers. I used the end off an old set of jumper cables. Cut the hinge in half to separate the two pieces that make up the clamp. Cut the wire out of the end of the metal clamp pieces. A 3/8 inch wooden dowel, 12" long can then be attached to the 1/2 piece of clamp and...