Poultry Raised and Butchered in 2001

Last year we raised "pastured poultry" for the first time.  The broilers turned out to be honestly the best tasting chicken we've ever had!

Click on a thumbnail sketch to see the larger picture.  Pictures may take a while to download, depending on your connection.  WARNING!  Some of the later pictures are not for the squeamish!  

	Here are some of the broiler chicks at two days old.
	Here's our Gold Link egg layers at two days old.
	These are the makeshift brooder boxes we  put in the back porch for the first week.
	Bel is watering the broilers in our home-made pastured poultry pen.  This pen was moved every morning, to allow the birds to graze on fresh grass.
	This is the morning of butchering day.  They have been in this moveable pastured pen for four weeks (after four earlier weeks in the brooder house).  They certainly look plump for 8 weeks old!
	This is our processing area.  Most of the equipment that we made, purchased or borrowed is visible in this picture
	This is the "killing machine" that Dave made.
	Here are some of the broilers awaiting their fate.
	Here are some of the broilers who just met their fate.
	This is the mechanical picker in action.  This machine was made by a neighbor, who graciously offered to lend it to us.
	Bel is showing Dave the fine art of mechanical plucking.
	Bel is a very good eviscerater.  Here she is in action.
	Here are some of the final product.  This is a great use of our old bath tub.
	Here are some more finished chickens.
	One of our friends, Maureen Johnson, who came up to buy some chickens, lends a hand.  That's Bel's sister, Luz, who was visiting from the Philippines, standing in the background.
	Here's Luz, helping out.

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