CrabHawk

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The time honored way to kill a chicken is to lay its head on a chopping block and chop it off. This method is quick and practical for the small flock owner.

Other good methods are as follows.

When butchering in larger numbers, chickens are usually hung by their feet, and a small, strong knife is used to cut the neck arteries. To accomplish this the chicken's head is held in one hand, and the knife is pushed into its mouth till the point reaches the juncture of head and neck, cutting through the arteries there. Another method, often included with this one, involves piercing the chicken's brain with the knife in one thrust, causing a muscular contraction that loosens the feathers. But the surgical accuracy required is beyond most people's capabilities.

Another practical, though uncommon, way to kill chickens is to dislocate or break their necks. This method is quick, easy, and foolproof -- good for those who have a poor aim with a hatchet. Stand on firm level ground. Hold the chicken by its feet with its head on the ground. Lay a broom-handle sized stick over its neck and stand on the stick to hold it down firmly. Pull up on the chicken's feet till the neck dislocates; this will be clearly felt. It is also possible to take off a young chicken's head with a hard pull. This may be disconcerting, but there will be no doubt that the chicken is dead. After dislocation, hold the chicken until it stops flapping, or lay it down where it will not bang into any thing. The movement quickly subsides and is not nearly as bizarre as a chicken running around after its head has been cut off. Ducks and other small poultry can also be killed by this method.

The chicken will be bled properly by dislocating the neck, because when the neck is dislocated the blood collects in the neck area and does not stay in the meat. There is no mess and the clot of blood in the neck can be added to other scraps for animal feed.

If blood is wanted for cooking, cut the head off immediately after it is dislocated. To collect the chicken's blood, immediately place the decapitated chicken neck down in a large funnel set in a container to catch the blood.