Home on the Free-range

Chilling out in the shade.

This post is about raising our own meat chickens. I tried to be very discrete with these pictures.  Do not worry there are no bloody pictures in this post. We care very much about healthy animals and food. But there are pictures of plucking. It is just part of the process. If you are a vegetarian I am not going to apologize. . .. you have the right to be vegetarian and we have the right to raise good quality meat.

Heritage Red Broilers looking for yummy bugs.

Our family has been raising chickens for eggs since 2008. Since we were trying to be self-sufficient we would keep those chickens just for eggs. Sometime we would butcher one for the table, if they had become injured, too old for laying or if they happened to be the unexpected rooster. 

Throughout history many households raised dual-purpose chicken with an occasional butchering for an event or Sunday dinner. This was how it was done in many households for many years.

It wasn't until 1923 when a women named Mrs. Wilmer Steele from Delaware raised a flock of 500 chicks for the purpose of meat. She was so successful in this business by 1926 she was raising 10,000 meat chickens. 

The idea of chicken actually being meat did not catch on fast because back then many people only considered beef meat. By the 1970's and 1980's the meat chicken industry sky-rocketed and is now the most common meat found on our tables. 

Many people wanting so much chicken at our tables sometimes comes with a price. I am not saying all large meat farms or plants are bad and I will not start preaching in this post. I am just asking you to do some of your own research and know the practices of the place you get your food. 

Whey being given to the meat chickens. 

So, last year we decided to try meat chickens. Dual purpose chickens even though we will eat them are tough and old. They are really only good for a soup. I did some research and decided upon 25 Cornish X. (I know there are debates about this . . . you can comment below if you like or you can wait for a different post.) We raised them for the said 6 weeks and processed them and into the freezer they went. They were great. Tender, juicy and free-ranged by us! But 25 was not enough for our family of 6 to get us through the year. 

They love whey. It gives them protein.

We decided to get 50 of the kind we knew we liked and tried the other kind as a type of homestead trial. Would the heritage broiler be better? And besides the Cornish only needed 6 - 8 weeks while the other types needed longer to grow. It would space out our processing sessions. 

Chickens awaiting their final destination.

It was so awesome when they first arrived. We had set up the brooder. And the cute little chicks running around were fun to watch. I was sure to order some pretty little egg-layers. "You can name those ones . . . Don't name any of these." I would over hear the kids saying to their friends "These are the egg-layers, those are meat ones. They are cute, but we're trying not to get attached."

Kolbe gently holding and
wrapping the chicken to be processed.

By week 4, I just plain starting hating all the meat chickens. Why? Because they are messy, always hungry and always thirsty. These crazy creatures consume more than 20 gallons of water a day and about 50 pounds of feed each week plus kitchen scrapes and other treats. Beside the fact that they have their own field, they sneak into the boy goats' field and steal goat food and water. They also somehow found there way to the back deck and roosted. Chickens on the back deck means chicken poop. Poop on deck = bad words from dear hubby. 

Hot water bath to loosen feathers.

But then comes that glorious and dreaded time for processing. We gather between 10-15 chickens the night before. They are easier to catch when they are sleeping and it keeps things out of their stomach so they are easier to process. 

Rob does the hard part . . . .

We use a hold technique. Other veteran homesteaders you may be thinking "why don't you just use a metal cone." We just think it keeps us a little more like a home and less like a factory. It is just what we do. 

 . . . . I do the easy part . . .

After the head is removed and the chicken bled out, it is dunked in 150 - 160 degree water. We do this so the feathers are easier to removed. It is plucked and then either gutted or cut into parts. It is washed, wrapped and then put into one of our freezers. By the time we finish this we are tired and worn-out. Some of you may be asking "Why not just buy it at the store?" And sometimes we ask ourselves that same question. 

Will we do this again? Yes. They are cheaper, they are healthier, the short lives they had with us were at least happy. They were able to run, scratch around, eat many bugs and lay around in the tall grass. For them their life was good and we are happier because we know where our food came from. Besides all that  . . . . BBQ . . . need I say more?

Our fresh free range chicken on the BBQ. Yum.

Some sites about meat chicken history

www.nationalchickencouncil.org
www.foodtimeline.org

All these photos belong to Sanctae Familiae Villa. Please do not steal them. If you feel you need to use them please just give us credit and post this blog where ever you used it. Thanks