Post by Shelley (whistlingtrain) on Sept 22, 2007 8:27:30 GMT -5
I didn't think I'd be happy to have the old girls stop laying, but my three-year-old hens have quit for the year. I am so proud to have 160 non-laying old girls, and all the market customers who come every week and ask me for eggs is getting tiresome. I've even had some get angry with me. We've decided to take "eggs" off of our market sign next year. We have a new flock of 75 or so, all old egg breeds (Rhode Islands, Barred Rocks, Australorps, plus a handful of Cochins just because I like them, and a few Auracanas for color) that I am very happy about. A lot more colorful than those old sex-links, for sure. We're just going to sell eggs at the farm and to our CSA folks.
Anyway, the time has come to butcher the hens, so I put up a sign for Stewing Hens at the market. I started with 15 on Thursday. Selling them for $12 each, dressed. I have a plucker and an electric scalder that I bought last year. My hubby helped me set up under a 10x10 tent, with a rack of traffic cones on one side for killing them, the scalder and plucker on the second side, a clean table on the third side for gutting and dressing, and the "chill tank" on the fourth side. Maybe I should take pictures next week. I'm a little rusty since it's been a year, but I didn't have help and got 15 done in three hours, working through three at a time. I think I could speed it up a bit next week now that everything's in place. My first 15 are all spoken for, and I'm working on orders for next week already. I gave my hispanic babysitter a sample bird and she came back yesterday afternoon with a list of women who want them too. She thought they should be $15. But really, the girls are not that big. Like 3 pounds dressed.
Of the 15 only one was a "working girl" complete with egg yolks inside her. I don't feel too guilty yet. :-) I'm just not looking forward to feeding that big flock all winter without much possibility of eggs in the spring.
All the hen money is going toward the hay bill--5 tons coming this week of fine, green orchard grass--close to $1500. I'm saving it for after December, when I expect the hay to be REALLY outrageous.
Shelley
Anyway, the time has come to butcher the hens, so I put up a sign for Stewing Hens at the market. I started with 15 on Thursday. Selling them for $12 each, dressed. I have a plucker and an electric scalder that I bought last year. My hubby helped me set up under a 10x10 tent, with a rack of traffic cones on one side for killing them, the scalder and plucker on the second side, a clean table on the third side for gutting and dressing, and the "chill tank" on the fourth side. Maybe I should take pictures next week. I'm a little rusty since it's been a year, but I didn't have help and got 15 done in three hours, working through three at a time. I think I could speed it up a bit next week now that everything's in place. My first 15 are all spoken for, and I'm working on orders for next week already. I gave my hispanic babysitter a sample bird and she came back yesterday afternoon with a list of women who want them too. She thought they should be $15. But really, the girls are not that big. Like 3 pounds dressed.
Of the 15 only one was a "working girl" complete with egg yolks inside her. I don't feel too guilty yet. :-) I'm just not looking forward to feeding that big flock all winter without much possibility of eggs in the spring.
All the hen money is going toward the hay bill--5 tons coming this week of fine, green orchard grass--close to $1500. I'm saving it for after December, when I expect the hay to be REALLY outrageous.
Shelley