Does anyone else butcher their own meat?

[Poka_Doodle]

We butcher all meat we kill. This includes turning our shop ing to a butcher room after each sugcessful Elk or Deer hunt. We also do our chickens, and it takes all night. I manage to escape every time from killing and chicken butcher. But I oddly love helping the guys butcher Elk or what ever they get. Cutting meat takes a decent bit of time and I have been know to also cut myself when not wearing latex gloves, but it is still so much fun. I only escape chicken butchering because I have a close connection with the species.
If anyone else does or is interested in it please post about it. This thread is also on BYH.

 

[Beekissed]

We butcher all our own meats here...deer, wild turkey, rabbits, squirrel and my chickens...in the past we've also done beef and lambs. Been doing it like that for 40 yrs now. I like to do my own chickens more than anything else...they are what I spent time, money and effort on so they mean a little more to me. And...yes...they've usually all have names and that doesn't change how I view them or how the meat tastes. They trust me for a good life and a good death, so I won't be letting the control of that out of my hands...I took steps to manage that they were hatched and I want to see that through and finish the the job.

I also like the idea that I am growing my own foods from the chick to the jar and it's pure, clean, free ranged meat~no meds..ever~ and I get to actually see that the raising, feeding and care is done properly. Also the butchering...I'm not real trusting about people who get paid minimum wage to butcher a faceless hunk of meat and how careful they might not be about hygiene.

 

[Beekissed]

Yep...cooler weather and hunting season signals a lot of handling of raw meat here. I'll be inheriting my sister's flock of chickens this month and I only have coop space and winter wants for about 6-7 of those, so the other 19 will go into jars shortly after they arrive, as will my 14 juveniles when they hit a good weight, probably in November.

My brother is coming out to hunt this weekend and, if he sees a likely deer, we'll have one to process as well. Same with my sons...all excellent hunters so when they go out to bow hunt, we have work to do. I don't mind it at all, as its age old heritage here to grow or hunt, then butcher, our own meat.

All of that means a wealth of meat protein for the chickens and dogs, as well as good and healthy meat for our winter consumption. All a HUGE blessing from God each year.

 

[goatgurl]

i understand your concern about sending things for someone else to butcher. i am fortunate that my friends own and operate the place i take my animals so i know they are kind to the stock that goes there and that their place is spotless. since it is just me now and no husband or extended family to help there comes a time when you do what you have to do. i also think it is extremely important to know what my meat has eaten and or been given. i can't tell you how long it has been since i have purchased meat at a grocery store. just the thought of it turns my stomach.

 

[sumi]

We unfortunately learned the hard way that not everyone who claims they know how to butcher an animal can actually do it properly. And turning your back can end up costing you dearly too. We've lost a good few pounds of meat that somehow made it to the off-cuts piles. Like the pigs' necks that suddenly got very short! I'd say if you have to send an animal off to butcher, make sure you can trust the people, make sure they are experienced and will do the job properly, especially the killing part.

 

[Poka_Doodle]

Yay, this is the featured thread, and my first time with a featured thread.
Anyways over thanksgiving we went to see some friends in Wyoming and they have a butcher shop on their land. Thanksgiving morning, butchering while watching the parade.

 

[k15n1]

Chickens aren't my favorite. More and more of our meat is rabbit these days. I can dress out a rabbit in less than 20 min. I should be able to do it faster but there are several things that slow me down... the joints are hard to break down and i feel like an idiot the whole time. Also, the butt. I finally figured out how to do it---no videos really show you what to do. Anyway, if I were to make a rabbit wringer and some foot hooks, I think I could do it in 10 min.

 

[baymule]

My dogs won't touch bird intestines. Dunno why, but they'll gobble up just about everything else. They especially love testicles Chicken or quail...they scarf 'em up like candy.

I with hold feed the day before, and the intestines and crop are empty. But let's face it, I have sh*t eating dogs!

@baymule do you know what the percentage of finished weight to live weight is for lambs? I remember thinking it was pretty low.

My 3 year old daughter was studying our butchering reference book, complete with pictures. Asking what each picture was of. Lol

I wound up with about 40% meat (hanging weight) from live weight. That does not include heart, liver or soup bones. I think if I had done my own butchering, I would have had more useable organ meats and bones that got thrown away at the slaughter house.

 

[baymule]

I have butchered deer. I used to hunt and can field dress, then cut and wrap. I made my own stuffed smoked sausage. I used to raise rabbits and killed and dressed them. You know the scene in Forest Gump where Bubba is telling Forest all the ways to cook shrimp? Well, I was like that in cooking rabbit. Rabbit enchiladas, rabbit chili, bunny burgers, rabbit casserole, rabbit tacos, rabbit sausage, fried rabbit, rabbit and dumplings.....

Now I butcher old hens and roosters from a straight run. I raised 20 ducks a couple of years ago and butchered them. We are raising pigs right now, I will have ours butchered, cut and wrapped.

 

[Poka_Doodle]

So in about a week and I half my dad will be butchering 19 of my meat birds.
I was wondering if anyone else was at the spot in the summer where you will be butchering your meat animal? If so let us know.