Ignoramus7121 wrote:

One of my hens startted eating eggs, and I finally caught one (and
marked her), now I would like to know the proper way to kill a
chicken. Any ideas? Sorry for the OT post.

i

Depends on your situation and how much gore you wish to endure.

Headless chicken races featured large in our baryard at times.

A killing tool that look a lot like a pair of pruning shears with a
spoon in place of the anvil was used when efficiency was required. The
blade was placed in the mouth of the bird, with the spoon on the top of
the head. A quick hard squeeze and it was all over, the chicken or
turkey going limp.

The method that was given in Harrowsmith magazine before they went
yuppie scum was to hold the chicken across your chest, sort of, with the
head between the index and middle fingers of your srong hand, arm
outsterched, while holding the legs with the other hand. A quick stretch
and the neck breaks. Effective and under complete control. Also hard to
remove the head and make a mess.

The last few I despatched I hung upside down on the fence, held the
head and cut the throat and neck. They thrashed a little bit, but the
blood was contained in an appropriate area, and I did not have to chase
after the carcass.

Cannabalism usually has it's cause in either a lack of nutrients or a
lack of space, but sometimes it's just what one chicken does.

Cheers
Trevor Jones