We finally finished butchering all nineteen meat birds today. Now we have nineteen whole, skinless birds, and as many necks, hearts, and livers. I also cleaned a few gizzards for my mother, because last time I told her I was butchering, that was her first question: "Did you save the gizzards?"
Just for you, Mom, I did this time ... and they are pretty nasty things to clean, by the way.
But what I really want to have someday is a chicken plucker, a la 'Whiz-bang.' What could make a young and tender bird even tastier? A crispy, delicious skin ... yum! And southern fried chicken just isn't the same without that crunchy, breaded skin. But plucking by hand is a huge chore. It takes forever and if you don't do it right, you can leave bits behind, which will make your dinner guests squeamish.
After the birds were cleaned and put away, we started in on our 100 gallon waterer project. This project uses a bucket, some poultry watering nipples ordered online, some tubing, and a float valve.
The chickens learned pretty quickly that pecking at the nipples causes water to flow, though a few stubborn ones refused to try until we removed the other waterer. This new system will hopefully ensure that the birds have an ample supply of clean drinking water for a long time between refills. Since it is a closed system, the birds can't poop in their water, it won't evaporate as quickly, and debris won't block the flow.
We have no idea how long the 100 gallons will last with this new watering system, but hopefully it will make it easier for humans to keep the coop supplied with clean water.
