Butcherd my first rabbits sunday

oldchickenman · #1 12/05/11, 10:16 PM

We butcherd 6 of my rabbits yseterday these will be the first rabbits we raised to eat. It went pretty well my buddy helped me he showed me how to shin them and clean them. I did the kiliing part, i hung them by there hind legs and pulled the head out i hit them at the base of the head seem to break there neck and then i bleed them out worked good was quick too. My grandsons watched they want help next time they are 11 and 12 they also noticed that the heart keep beating even after they bleed out, it even kept beating after we reomoved it anybody else ever notice that. well all in all it went well we put them on ice and water over night and cut them up in put them in the freezer tonight.

Oxankle · #2 12/06/11, 09:23 AM

Somewhere I read long ago that the Aztecs found the same reaction when they cut open their sacrificial victims and pulled out the human heart. It kept beating for a while.

Just yesterday I read that Pozole was made with the flesh of those sacrificial victims until the Spanish came and put an end to that. One of the old priests with the Spaniards wrote that when this was forbidden the Aztecs substituted pork "because it tastes much the same".

Wonder if you can make pozole with rabbit?

WhyNot · #3 12/07/11, 07:49 AM

Don't mean to hijack the thread but I haven't noticed this mentioned and would like to know. Is there some sort of impact device a person can use to hit the rabbit with? I haven't yet harvested a rabbit and plan on having them on my homestead but I am afraid that with my hands and arms the way they are that I will not be able to hit them hard enough and I haven't found anyone yet that is harvesting so I can go out and try.

I know there are those devices that are spring loaded (I think) that you can load and then when you touch, say, a car window it will go off and hits the window so hard it shatters.

Is there some sort of impact device like that that could be used for rabbits? Well..that won't like crush their skull or make a huge mess. I'm really concerned with me not hitting them hard enough in the right spot and basically making it torture for the rabbit.

MaggieJ · #4 12/07/11, 08:02 AM

WhyNot, there are several other choices for killing rabbits besides "bopping". There is a method known as "broomsticking" that many people use. There is a rather expensive ($50) device called a Rabbit Wringer that is on the market. My personal preference is to shoot the rabbit at point blank range with a pellet gun. I place the barrel against the back of the neck, just below the skull. All these methods have been discussed in exhaustive detail on this forum and you can use the search feature to get more details. There are also YouTube videos on some of these.

Twist86 · #5 12/07/11, 09:50 AM

I tried a few of the methods and I found a piece of 3FT rebar and broomstick method to be the best.

Old School Hand Method

Let me tell you this is harder than she makes it look. Make sure you use a LOT of downward force or it wont kill. I tried it on a carcass and it took 3 attempts to break it.

Broomstick (my method)

This I found best for me,I usually hang them upside down for 10 seconds till they stop kicking for a more manageable rabbit. Sadly my first set of rabbits didn't want to be social so by the time their feet hit the ground the rebar was in place. I have big plans for my first set of kits (7 days and counting!)

Wrangler, I liked the idea of it but the use and the price made me say no. I made a metal and rebar version and it worked but it didn't suit me.

Then like Maggie said BB gun method.....I don't like all the kicking from it, broomstick solved it for me.

I don't like the idea of hitting them and breaking their neck, I have seen people break their neck and live so it makes me cautious to do to a animal.

scpankow · #6 12/07/11, 11:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WhyNot

Don't mean to hijack the thread but I haven't noticed this mentioned and would like to know. Is there some sort of impact device a person can use to hit the rabbit with? I haven't yet harvested a rabbit and plan on having them on my homestead but I am afraid that with my hands and arms the way they are that I will not be able to hit them hard enough and I haven't found anyone yet that is harvesting so I can go out and try.

I know there are those devices that are spring loaded (I think) that you can load and then when you touch, say, a car window it will go off and hits the window so hard it shatters.

Is there some sort of impact device like that that could be used for rabbits? Well..that won't like crush their skull or make a huge mess. I'm really concerned with me not hitting them hard enough in the right spot and basically making it torture for the rabbit.

The guy that makes the Wringer also makes the Rabbit Zinger captive bolt gun...

http://rabbitwringer.com/html/trz001.html

I purchased the Wringer, but have yet to use it. I don't have any ready to dispatch at the moment.

oldchickenman · #7 12/07/11, 01:06 PM

I would hit at the abse of the head close to the neck seem to knock them out then i cut for the bleed out seem to take no more then seconds. I think we did ok i wanted to kill them humanely as possible i rasied these rabbits played with them too but i allways keep in mind they were for meat and the grandkids know this too.

craftyfarmgirl · #8 12/07/11, 11:19 PM

do the pellet guns really work quick? I had to kill a hen because she was very lame from an injury and it actually took 6 shots, I am no marksmen but I shot her point blank in the skull,.IT WAS TRAUMATIZING for us both. When I cull I want to do it as quick as possible. We processed roaster hens and we just chopped the heads, would never do that again either.

MaggieJ · #9 12/08/11, 08:15 AM

Craftyfarmgirl, it depends on the pellet gun. Some are a lot better than others. You want one that has a muzzle velocity of at least 500 fps. I usually use two shots. If you get the right spot, one will do it but I like to be sure. There can be slip-ups if the rabbit moves at the last second.

scpankow · #10 12/08/11, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaggieJ

Craftyfarmgirl, it depends on the pellet gun. Some are a lot better than others. You want one that has a muzzle velocity of at least 500 fps. I usually use two shots. If you get the right spot, one will do it but I like to be sure. There can be slip-ups if the rabbit moves at the last second.

+1 on what Maggie said...when done right, it is almost an instant "lights out". We use a break barrel .22 pellet rifle with 1200fps and Predator pellets.

brandkelz · #11 12/08/11, 09:27 PM

I we took a peice of angle iron and welded a peice of rebar to it at an angle......does it look like the $50 wringer.....maybe.......did I purposely copy his idea......nnnoooo...

It works pretty well for us. I havent used it on a stew size rabbit yet but for 9-12 week old fryers works for us great!