The Next Time You Eat Chicken

Energize · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:18

In a lot of countries you can find families of chickens wandering around all over the place, countryside, citys wherever.

Yamahahahahaha · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:21

I don't see any suffering at any point in those videos.
Should I care?

Providing the animals aren't abused or reared in horrendous conditions (Which I would happily agree battery farming is) then I don't have a problem. Watching that bespectacled muppet raise those chickens on channel 4 highlighted the fact that raising a chicken for less than £2 takes some pretty inhumane tactics.

The chickens that were free range loved being outdoors quite frankly, they ran around, scratched in the dirt and had a relatively stress-free life.

Compare that to getting sores on your feet from standing in excrement or your immature bones breaking because your genetics made you too big, too quick.

Free range costs a few quid more and it tastes better.
1 chicken between 4 people (or 2, depending on how greedy you are) is still good value for money.

I felt bad when they threw the chicks into the shoot. But it was mildly funny in some way

Weeeeeeeee!

Russinating · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:24

So sad. My parents own chickens and I know my mum would cry over that.

Most people think chickens are pretty brainless, but once you've had them as a pet you soon realise differently. Makes my mum seem a bit crazy, but they come when she calls them, they eat food from her hand, let you pick them up and they jump up on her shoulders when she hits down. The cockerel's hilarious also, keeps the ladies in order and does his best to protect them!

We actually hatched some of our own chicks as we've got 1 cockerel and 4 hens. Unbelievably cute, small and cuddly, can't believe they grab 'em by the legs and throw them down a chute!

Me with a chick in hand and our 2 chicks with their mums:

KNiVES · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:27

rghjones said:
So sad. My parents own chickens and I know my mum would cry over that.

Most people think chickens are pretty brainless, but once you've had them as a pet you soon realise differently. Makes my mum seem a bit crazy, but they come when she calls them, they eat food from her hand, let you pick them up and they jump up on her shoulders when she hits down. The cockerel's hilarious also, keeps the ladies in order and does his best to protect them!

We actually hatched some of our own chicks as we've got 1 cockerel and 4 hens. Unbelievably cute, small and cuddly, can't believe they grab 'em by the legs and throw them down a chute!

Me with a chick in hand and our 2 chicks with their mums:

They look incredibly tasty. Don't keep to yourself so much man!

Yamahahahahaha · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:30

The one on the left is called Lunch, the one on the right is called Dinner.

Tefal · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:30

Energize said:
In a lot of countries you can find families of chickens wandering around all over the place, countryside, citys wherever.

That would be kindda cool.

(free chicken

)

Mik3 · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:31

KNiVES said:
They look incredibly tasty. Don't keep to yourself so much man!

I was thinking the same.

I bet he gets some beautiful eggs of those.

Russinating · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:34

Mik3 said:
I was thinking the same. I bet he gets some beautiful eggs of those.

Yup! You need about 2 to get the same amount of as a normal egg though as ours are Bantams (dwarf chickens), and the eggs are about 4/5cm tall.

Mik3 · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:41

rghjones said:
Yup! You need about 2 to get the same amount of as a normal egg though as ours are Bantams (dwarf chickens), and the eggs are about 4/5cm tall.

Do you get fresh eggs every morning? Do they taste similar to normal Chicken eggs?

acccc · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:43

looks like fuN!

Russinating · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:46

Mik3 said:
Do you get fresh eggs every morning? Do they taste similar to normal Chicken eggs?

Pretty much, they go through phases (whether they're broody or not) but we've got 5 now so there's usually a constant supply. Parents usually have too many in a basket anyway so we're usually throwing some away every day too (we write the date they were hatched on the egg with pencil and then just eat oldest first etc).

And they taste way better than supermarket eggs. The yolks are much richer and lovely. You can probably change what the eggs taste like quite significantly by what you feed the chickens as well. Ours eat a lot of porridge and sweetcorn so I don't know what effect that has!

Mik3 · 25 Oct 2008 at 15:54

You should sell the extra produce, you should let your neighbours know, no doubt they would buy them, better than throwing them away.

Russinating · 25 Oct 2008 at 16:00

They occasionally give some away to the neighbours if all 5 have laid say 2 in a day or something, but otherwise it's just a bit too much hassle. They're throwing them away because they've gone off anyway, and if they were to give a load away before they go off my Dad'll probably decide he wants a massive omelette the next day..

Dazzy_G · 25 Oct 2008 at 16:03

Her voice is annoying as hell. Tony Hurst should be the only person allowed to do voice overs for how its made.

brummie · 25 Oct 2008 at 16:05

I had chicken today and didnt think about where it came from once. just where it was going

Cosimo · 25 Oct 2008 at 16:06

rghjones said:
So sad. My parents own chickens and I know my mum would cry over that.

Most people think chickens are pretty brainless, but once you've had them as a pet you soon realise differently. Makes my mum seem a bit crazy, but they come when she calls them, they eat food from her hand, let you pick them up and they jump up on her shoulders when she hits down. The cockerel's hilarious also, keeps the ladies in order and does his best to protect them!

We actually hatched some of our own chicks as we've got 1 cockerel and 4 hens. Unbelievably cute, small and cuddly, can't believe they grab 'em by the legs and throw them down a chute!

Who is going to do the business when it comes to slaughter them? On their smallholding my aunt would hold one and my granny would chop its head off with an axe.

Tefal · 25 Oct 2008 at 16:07

simulatorman said:
Who is going to do the business when it comes to slaughter them? On their smallholding my aunt would hold one and my granny would chop its head off with an axe.

wouldn;t it have been simpler (and safer) to just break it's neck?

Mik3 · 25 Oct 2008 at 16:07

rghjones said:
They occasionally give some away to the neighbours if all 5 have laid say 2 in a day or something,

They earn their keep then. I would love to try it myself but I don't have the space, I grow my own potatoes, but that's all I have room for.

Russinating · 25 Oct 2008 at 16:11

simulatorman said:
Who is going to do the business when it comes to slaughter them? On their smallholding my aunt would hold one and my granny would chop its head off with an axe.

Probably not going to eat them - they're there for eggs and as semi-pets for my mum. I wouldn't mind, I used to go hunting and skin rabbits/pheasants etc but I don't think my mum'd let us seeing as they've all got names.

Mik3 said:
They earn their keep then. I would love to try it myself but I don't have the space, I grow my own potatoes, but that's all I have room for.

Definitely. They only cost £10 each and live for about 3/4 years. The run was hand made so that didn't cost anything either. I know you can buy these fairly small plastic shelter + run combos, can't remember the brand name, but they look like a really good idea if you want to keep chickens but don't have the room.

Bantams are very convenient too, obviously they're smaller in size which helps but they're generally quieter as well.

Russinating · 25 Oct 2008 at 16:13

Found! http://www.omlet.co.uk/products_services/products_services.php?view=Eglu Cube

edit: Also realised they're pretty expensive. Just copy the design and knock something up yourself - a bit of 2x4 and chicken wire won't cost much.