So when I was a kid, we raised standard meat monsters. Flash forward a few decades, I am a single mom who decided to get beilefelders as a friendly dual purpose breed for my kids. Plus, as they are sexable as chicks, I figured I could cover some of my costs by selling on female chicks and keep the cockerels for meat. So far I just adore these birds! I keep them in large tractors, 5 hens to one roo. They are just marvelous birds, great for my climate, lay eggs with no light in the winter no trouble. So this spring I am thinking of putting ye old incubator to use and hatching some birds.
So question, at what age should I dispatch? As I don't want a bunch of screaming roosters bothering the neighbours (my current two are collared, I check them DAILY and they do well) but I can't do that with a whack of birds. Is 20 weeks too early?
Next mom and dad always did the processing part... I plucked a few feathers and caught the birds... thats about it. So as it is just me (and I work a good 65 hours a week) and two littles.. I am thinking 10 birds my first year is plenty to tackle? Is that even crazy? Should I just do them all by hand or is it worth investing in a kill cone and a drill pluck attachment? Do they work? Worth the hastle? No way I can afford a $1000 drum and there is no rental around here I can find. IF I completely wimp out, there is an abbatoir here who would process a small batch but then it makes for zero cost efficiency. I do quail fine, but I skin them and I do one in about 3 minutes. But they aren't a chicken! And I don't see the point of eating a skinned chicken. Sorry to all the cholesterol avoiding set in advance.
An old timer said skip the beils and just get cornish cross from the feed lot-either way I have time stress. One set drops dead of heart attacks, the other starts crowing and fighting.
So, if I want to get my feet wet, what should I do? The more research I do the more I can't make up my mind. How many birds, what age, what breed, what equipment, what set up for say a full 8 hour day as a beginner? TIA!
So question, at what age should I dispatch? As I don't want a bunch of screaming roosters bothering the neighbours (my current two are collared, I check them DAILY and they do well) but I can't do that with a whack of birds. Is 20 weeks too early?
Next mom and dad always did the processing part... I plucked a few feathers and caught the birds... thats about it. So as it is just me (and I work a good 65 hours a week) and two littles.. I am thinking 10 birds my first year is plenty to tackle? Is that even crazy? Should I just do them all by hand or is it worth investing in a kill cone and a drill pluck attachment? Do they work? Worth the hastle? No way I can afford a $1000 drum and there is no rental around here I can find. IF I completely wimp out, there is an abbatoir here who would process a small batch but then it makes for zero cost efficiency. I do quail fine, but I skin them and I do one in about 3 minutes. But they aren't a chicken! And I don't see the point of eating a skinned chicken. Sorry to all the cholesterol avoiding set in advance.
An old timer said skip the beils and just get cornish cross from the feed lot-either way I have time stress. One set drops dead of heart attacks, the other starts crowing and fighting.
So, if I want to get my feet wet, what should I do? The more research I do the more I can't make up my mind. How many birds, what age, what breed, what equipment, what set up for say a full 8 hour day as a beginner? TIA!