New Broiler Chicks

Broiler chicks lined up at the feed dish.

Well, I gave in to some broiler chicks today at the feed store. It's not really because they are cute (although they are). Just because they won't be around the farm for long doesn't make them a guilt free purchase. I just need to push myself to accept this next reality of farmlife...namely, the killing of a chicken.

I have done it a couple of times - wrung a chicken's neck. But I was forced into it as a mercy killing after the chickens were mortally wounded by a short-legged, long-eared mutt named Blue (aka father-in-law's dog). It wasn't hard to do under those circumstances. This will be different.

Sleeping at the food dish...pathetic.

Broiler chicks are really a Cornish Cross chicken that is bred for its ability to grow quickly and grow large. I'm not sure that I'm ok with the whole breed, but we're starting here. I have learned that feeding them 24 hours a day like you do regular chicks will likely bring on heart attacks (they get so fat so fast they cannot handle it) and can make it harder for them to support themselves on thier legs toward the end of their short eight-week long life. So we will take their food away at night and force them to grow a little bit slower.

When the time comes, I will have a dozen chickens to dispatch. I am hoping that a friend will take pity on me and hold my hand through it. I have a few friends who have done it before. My goal is to get to a point where this is an ok part of farm like for me - like taking Kevin to the butcher - and we can add chicken to our list of products. I also know that there will come a time when my older laying hens need to find a heavenly roost and rather than waste them, I would like to be comfortable enough with the process to dispatch them correctly and with as little pain as possible. Only time will tell...and if I don't test my limits, really, who will?