Culling the Flock

Last Monday we culled the roosters and drakes. This really should have been done at the start of Autumn, but, hey, we get to it when we can.

Roosters and drakes eat feed, but they do not lay eggs. Therefore they are an economic drain instead of a resource.

We really only need two roosters for the number of hens we have. They do have a function, other than the obvious. They can help protect the flock from predators. Dorky, the dorking rooster used to do a great job of this when he was top dog. He would keep his harem under pretty close watch at all times, and when he saw any danger in the skies he would herd them all under the shademobile. Unfortunately, he is an old rooster now, and has been taken down by the younger roosters. As sometimes happens when roosters get displaced from the top position, they start to look for ways to take it out on the kids.

So into the pot he goes.

The ducks are a different matter. Hens can actually get on just fine by themselves, and in fact, they lay fewer eggs when there is a drake in the flock. So those three had to go too.

Then Adam had a friend coming over to drop off four of their birds that they have not gotten a chance to process.

By the time Ryan and the kids showed up at 9, Adam was already 3 roosters in.

So we let him get on with the chickens, and we concentrated on the ducks.

These plucked much more easily than the Pekin’s last summer. Also about half the size, and a quarter of the fat.

Because we dry plucked them we were able to save some down feathers, in case one of the girls wants to make a duck down pillow later.

The birds Adam’s friend brought over, however, had more fat than any three chickens we’ve ever seen before. As he said, “It’s a good thing we are butchering them, because they are on their way to a heart attack otherwise.”

We left the ducks to chill in the 35 degree air while we ate lunch, then returned to have another go at the pin feathers and downy feathers.

Next time we do a large duck flock, we may try waxing them, or freezing them before we put them in the plucker. This time…

Technology. It stinks, but it got the feathers singed down to brown nubbins in seconds, and then we could just wipe them off with a towel. Hopefully the singed taste doesn’t carry over into the fat when we cook them.

Ellie loves playing with the feet. She is fascinated by how the tendon’s work. She also thinks they make her look fierce when she puts them on her head.