Well, we found out that nomatter how much you study a subject it doesn't make putting it into practical use easy.   And this is how we found that to be true. 

   We have too many roosters.  So we (the kids and I) decided we would be "real" farmers. We would fix one up for dinner and surprise Daddy with how we had studied and learned!

    And my how we studied.  It sounded so easy on paper!  Well we did as it said and isolated the rooster for 12 hours, very easy.  The next day we once again followed directions and got the rooster by the feet hanging upside down.   So easy!  We had a pot of hot water boiling to dunk him for easy feather plucking.  We were all set!  He had his little eyes closed...was he dead already?  We got a little closer. Yep, he must be dead already we decided, boy this was easy! 

    As I got ready to cut his neck he opened his eyes and crowed!!!  We all ran like the wind for differant parts of the yard! 

    Needless to say he is still running around by the barn with the other roosters!

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Posted by ComfyDenim

Honey - you're even braver than I for attempting to cook that rooster. And your kids were willing to try, too. My Daughter would have been in tears!
That's a funny story - and in my house - that rooster would now be a pet with a name. What did you have for dinner?

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Posted by OHFarmwife

Oh, this was so funny! I can just imagine everyone scattering when he crowed! :-)

Sorry it has taken me a few days to respond. I've been trying to get some things done around the house before school starts "officially" for us. I can't believe it's already September!

To collect eggs from free range chickens you have to first train them to lay in the coop. This is fairly easy to do by locking them in the coop until noon or so after they have laid their eggs. You may have to do this for quite some time, but they will eventually learn. Ours will start clucking and running to the coop when they have to lay. It's pretty funny. We are now training our new little gals to do the same.

Butchering chickens is just something that has to be perfected by doing it. The first few times will be hard until you learn what you are doing. The first one we did we let bleed out too long and it got really yucky so we turned it into a science experiment and basically dissected it. The kids still remember that lesson! :-)

Pigs are stinky. Someone told me they weren't that bad, but we found out that yes, they are. But, they are very loveable and have great personalities. We raise ours for meat, usually in the fall.

No, we don't raise cows for meat. Yet! But, we do buy our meat from some friends of ours and it's delicious. You'll notice a difference using your own meat vs. meat from the store. From what I've read, cows raised on pasture are way better for you because that's how God designed them to eat. Cows raised for the store are often in small plots with hundreds of other cows who are all fed grain. A cows stomach isn't designed to handle the grain well, so their meat is affected. Plus, you'll get the satisfaction of knowing you raised your own food.

I hope this has answered your questions. Please write again and ask any other questions you may have. I'll do my best to answer them.

Have a great day!
~Karen

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Posted by timbuck2mom

Yikes!! Wow, I am completely impressed. I would like to be a 'real' farmer and butcher some of our chickens but I just don't think I could do it.

What a shocking experience! Poor you! But I loved reading about it. LOL

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Posted by Bethany

That is a hilarious story!

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Posted by ThreeLittleLadies

I imagine by now that you've done the deed from your other post. A couple of years ago my dh raised about 90 chickens for meat. I helped with the processing, but I didn't slit the throats - I left that job to him. They kick and struggle a while upsidedown - even after their heads are gone! One little boy (a neighbor's child) stood on our playground yelling at us "You murderers! You are killers! As we processed the chicken. Poor boy was traumatized. I'm not sure where he thinks chicken nuggets come from!

Carol

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