Culling? First cull and need some emotional support.

[Pork Pie]

From my experience, emotonal issues decline with increasing number of birds one culls. A quick and as painless as possible death has become my priority and focus these days. Its never a pleasant thing to do but i consider it part of my responsibility as a chicken owner.


Ct

 

[aart]

Here's how I handled it:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/870865/first-harvest-thank-you
Just added pics of harvest work area and leg clamps for plucking station.

Took time mentally and to get a good harvest work set up.
It's never 'easy', but it does get 'easier'.

 

[donrae]

If you do decide to butcher them, feel free to visit our Meat Bird section. You're correct in that folks on this part of the boards aren't always good with discussing butchering or eating our birds, but the Meat Bird section is just for that purpose. Lots of good ideas and support

 

[Molpet]

if they are young hens you would not have to worry about them being eaten if you sell them. Lots of people looking for hens on the FB farm pages in my area.

 

[ScottyTerrier]

thank you everyone for the support and links to the awesome threads! Very kind of you all.

I tried to take the best pics I could w my phone of the culprits. I didn't get very good one of the lighter ones face but I got decent saddle feather pics. Sex ID guesses are appreciated. Also could someone guess what my polish may be? I was leaning toward rooster on both polish but again that's a guess from a noob.

warning!! Pic heavy

 

[Hermit House]

We got 23 chicks when we got our first chickens a couple of years ago. We wanted about a dozen permanent residents, and we knew we'd be culling all but one of the roosters. I read up on methods, and watched videos, and generally agonized about it for way too long. I'd planned to cull in late October. Finally, in February, I got my act together and did the cull. I learned a couple of things:

1) It was actually not a kindness to put off the cull. There were too many males in too little space with too few hens. Poor dears were bald from overbreeding, everyone was stressed, and our poor lawn was bald too!

2) After trying pithing and chopping and cutting and breaking their necks, I wanted a sure fire, foolproof method of execution. I settled on large pair of Fiskars garden loppers. It is the perfect size, is quick and complete and almost impossible to screw up. (http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51PwXfNO1kL._SL1280_.jpg). I think of it as my chicken guillotine and it seems, to me, a very humane way of dispatching them, especially compared to the others. Calm them, place their neck in, close the levers, hold the neck until the body is done realising it's dead. If only the plucking and cleaning went as easily

We've just got a 'humane chicken dispatcher" (

) though the supplier recommends using them to hold the head while you stretch the neck, rather than using it to break the neck with a guillotine motion as shown in the video. We've got a 40 bird cull that's coming up next week, and I'm going to use it then, but the lopper will be right there in reserve.

You must be confident in your actions and secure in your method. You want to dispatch them as humanely as possible and fumbling during execution just sucks (he says with the voice of experience and regret). I do not know how used to it I will ever become. I have a real awareness that I am taking the life of critter with personality and awareness. So I am conscious of that and try to be respectful when I must do the deed. I want them to feel as little stress, fear, and pain as I can manage. I'd want someone to do the same for me. The corollary to that is that culls are a reality of the keeping of chickens. Play nature's game and ya gotta play nature's rules - to a degree.

Hope it goes well for you.

 

[donrae]

I think both your Polish are males, but I'm not positive. Polish aren't one of the breeds I'm really familiar with. they're amazingly adorable, though!

The birds in question are the fluffy grey ones? I'm thinking they're both pullets, but I'm not sure what they are. The white/pink skin and round, fluffy shape make me think Orpington, or at least mostly. they could be someone's project colors, I'm not sure. Have you contacted the seller to see what other birds they have besides the Polish? I don't think they're mixed with Polish at all, the crests are usually partially dominant so a part Polish bird has at least some of a crest. Plus these birds are so rounded and fluffy, not lean like a Polish.

I'd advertise them as brown egg layers and ask somewhere around $15 each for them. I don't know where you are, or what your local market can support. you can always drop the price, or make a deal for both birds for $25, whatever you're comfortable with.

 

[attimus]

I think both your Polish are males, but I'm not positive. Polish aren't one of the breeds I'm really familiar with. they're amazingly adorable, though!

The birds in question are the fluffy grey ones? I'm thinking they're both pullets, but I'm not sure what they are. The white/pink skin and round, fluffy shape make me think Orpington, or at least mostly. they could be someone's project colors, I'm not sure. Have you contacted the seller to see what other birds they have besides the Polish? I don't think they're mixed with Polish at all, the crests are usually partially dominant so a part Polish bird has at least some of a crest. Plus these birds are so rounded and fluffy, not lean like a Polish.

I'd advertise them as brown egg layers and ask somewhere around $15 each for them. I don't know where you are, or what your local market can support. you can always drop the price, or make a deal for both birds for $25, whatever you're comfortable with.

Couldn't have said it better.
Attimus

 

[ScottyTerrier]

Thank you Donrae, Hermit house and aart for the guess on the sex and culling/meat bird information. All great info!

I am happy you agree with me that they are probably pullet!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

the polish appear to be roosters, they have saddle feathers and large Wattles, how old are they. The cochins I'm unsure.