312 POULTRY CULTURE 



that the market demands. When it is to be used by the producer 

 or sold direct to consumers, the method easiest for the poultryman 

 may be used, provided it is not objectionable to consumers. The 

 common methods of killing are wringing the neck, dislocating the 

 neck, cutting offfae head, and sticking (with a knife). 



Wringing the neck. For birds not too large or too tough, and for one who 

 has the strength and nerve to do it, wringing the neck is the easiest way of 

 killing. The head of the bird is grasped firmly in one hand, and the neck is 

 wrung and the head completely severed from the body in an instant by whirl- 

 ing the bird by the head, the hand of the person rapidly describing a few short 

 circles. This is a common method of killing fowls and chickens for immediate 



consumption. When done with skill 

 and on suitable birds, it is as humane as 

 any method. When unskillfully done, 

 or tried on birds with strong frames 

 and tough skin, the usual result is 

 strangulation without proper bleeding. 

 Dislocating the neck. Dislocating 

 the neck is a method popular in Canada 

 but not used in the United States. The 

 legs and primary wing feathers are held 

 in the left hand (as in cutting off the head), 

 this hand being held near the waist. 

 The head of the bird is grasped be- 

 tween the thumb and forefinger of the 

 FIG. 319. Killing fowl by dislocating right ^^ ^ bent back at aright angle 



to the neck, while at the same time, by 



a strong but short pull, the neck is broken close to the skull and the wind- 

 pipe and arteries severed so that the bird will bleed freely. The skin is not 

 broken, and the blood collects in the neck close to the head and clots there. 



Cutting off the head. Cutting off the head is the method of killing most 

 practiced with poultry that is not to be held long after killing, or not sent to 

 markets which want birds with heads on. The bird is held in the left hand 

 by the legs and the primary wing feathers, the wings being drawn back until 

 these feathers can be grasped with the legs in the hand. The head is then 

 laid on a block of wood and severed as close as possible to the juncture of 

 the head and neck with a heavy hatchet or ax ; whichever is used should have 

 a straight, sharp edge. For killing a few birds occasionally, any block will do, 

 but if much killing is done, it is best to have a solid chopping block about 

 two feet high, with a smooth top, the surface of which will not be spoiled 

 by the hatchet in a short time. After the head is severed, the bird should still 

 be held in the hand, the neck over the edge of the block, the body held in 

 this position by the flat side of the hatchet until the bird ceases to struggle, 

 when it may be placed on the ground without danger of bruising itself in its 



