The slaughter of two-month-old quails is carried out in several ways. Usually, poultry is cut off with its head on a wooden block. This is the simplest and fastest method of killing quail. After cutting off the head, the bird is held by the leg for about a minute to drain the blood. Then they scald, pluck, remove the entrails, cut them up and put them in the freezer for storage.
Selection of quail for slaughter
Quails are relatively small poultry, weighing a maximum of 200-400 grams. They are bred for meat or eggs. Meat breeds (Pharaohs, Texans) reach their maximum weight (350 grams) at 2 months of life. Moreover, quails are heavier than quails. At two months of age, meat birds are slaughtered. The meat yield from the carcass is about 70 percent. Some poultry farmers keep meat quails for up to 4-5 months. Broilers at an older age can weigh almost 500 grams. True, old birds have tough meat.
Egg breeds of quails begin to lay eggs at 2 months of life. They give eggs almost every day. The productivity of quails decreases over time. At 9 months, birds kept for eggs are sent to slaughter. But male egg breeds grow for only 40-60 days before slaughter. The quails that have reached the maximum weight (about 200 grams) are sent for slaughter. After cutting, the carcass can weigh just over 100 grams.
Features and principles of fattening
There are broiler meat quail breeds (Pharaohs, Texans), which are characterized by early maturity, quickly gain weight, and at 3-4 months weigh about half a kilogram. Egg quails receiving the same food gain no more than 200 grams before slaughter.
Birds are fed 3-4 times a day. Quails are given special feed, crushed cereals (corn, wheat, barley, oats). Birds raised for meat are fed bread, wet mash, porridge and boiled potatoes. Be sure to give carrots so that the meat acquires a reddish tint. Quails are fed finely chopped vegetables and grass. Be sure to provide bone and fish meal, meal, crushed chalk, salt, feed yeast, and premixes.
On an industrial scale, quails are kept in cages during the fattening period. Birds are kept in dimly lit rooms.Grain feed is poured into feeders 3-4 times a day. Make sure that the quails eat enough. Throughout the entire fattening period, the quality of feed is monitored. They start with millet, millet, and gradually move on to crushed corn, wheat or mixed feed. To prevent morbidity, quails are given a weak solution of multivitamins and feed “Biomycin” on the third day of life.
Preparing poultry before slaughter
Before slaughtering quails, it is necessary to collect all the necessary tools and materials and prepare the birds. Typically, meat breeds are not fed longer than 3-4 months. Over time, poultry meat loses fat content. Quails are intensively fattened, and before slaughter they are kept on the same water for a day.
Tools, items and materials needed for slaughter:
- sharp knife, pruning shears, scissors or axe;
- dessert spoon or fork for gutting;
- a bucket of boiling water;
- polyethylene film;
- wooden table or cutting board;
- several containers (for waste, drainage of blood, entrails and meat);
- rags, hand wipes.
It is not recommended to delay the slaughter of birds. As quails age, their meat becomes tougher. Only healthy birds are allowed to be slaughtered for meat. Sick individuals are recommended to be disposed of.
Execution technique
Quails are slaughtered in different ways. The main thing is not to cross the boundaries of what is permitted during the slaughter process. Bird cruelty is punishable by law (in some countries). You can entrust the slaughter of quails to specialists (special companies involved in the slaughter of domestic animals).
Manual method
Birds are usually killed with an axe, placing their head on a wooden block and striking them in the neck. You can kill quails using a knife or pruning shears. In this case, the quail is placed on a board and its head is cut off.You need to cut birds with your own hands quickly and vigorously. It is advisable to cut off the head in one go.
You can first make a cone-shaped funnel from a plastic bottle or tin. Such a device is attached in a vertical position to a board or wall. The quail is inserted into the cone upside down and the neck is cut. Immediately after cutting off the head, you need to hold the bird in an upright position for about a minute over the pelvis to allow the blood to drain.
Using semi-automatic technology
Poultry farmers who raise more than 100 quails per season are better off buying a semi-automatic device for slaughtering birds. This technique simplifies and speeds up the slaughter procedure and allows quails to be slaughtered more efficiently. The apparatus consists of cone-shaped funnels into which quails are inserted upside down. The birds' heads are cut off automatically using a blade. The blood flows into a special chute. After killing, the carcass is removed, plucked and gutted by hand.
American way
For slaughter, the quail is hung upside down on loops made of wire and attached to a vertical board. They take the bird's head in their hands and press on the ears. After the quail opens its beak, a sharp knife is inserted into its mouth. The throat is cut on the right side at the place where the skull ends and the neck begins. After this, the brain is pierced through the palatal fissure, and the knife is turned around the axis. After killing, the bird is kept in an upright position for about a minute to drain the blood.
Carcass processing
Immediately after slaughter, the carcass should hang upside down for 1-2 minutes to drain the blood. After bleeding, they begin processing and cutting.
scalding
After slaughter, the headless carcass is held by the legs and lowered into a bucket of boiling water for 30 seconds. If the bird has thin skin, scalding can be done in another way. For example, holding it by the legs, the carcass is dipped into boiling water ten times for exactly one second. Scalding is done so that the pores open and the feathers are easily removed from the skin.
Plucking
Immediately after scalding, it is recommended to pluck the slightly cooled carcass. The quail should be placed on the table on plastic wrap. Feathers are plucked against their growth with quick and energetic movements. Plucking a quail takes no more than 5 minutes. After the feathers are removed, the carcass is treated with a burner to remove fluff.
How to cut a quail
Before cutting, the carcass must be scalded and plucked. Only then can it be gutted and cut up. First, a small incision is made longitudinally on the abdomen. Using a fork or dessert spoon, carefully remove the entrails (intestines, organs). During the process of extracting liver, it is important not to damage the gallbladder, otherwise the taste of the meat may deteriorate.
From the inside you need to pull out the esophagus, goiter, and trachea. To do this, another incision is made, but in the neck area. After gutting, the carcass is cut into parts (hips, legs, wings are separated). After cutting, the meat and cleaned organs (heart, liver) are washed in cool water.
Fast processing
A quail carcass can be processed in a quick way. The bird's head is cut off, the blood is allowed to drain, and it is immediately placed on a cutting board. Cut off the quail's wings and legs.An incision is made on the chest and, like a stocking, the skin and feathers are pulled together. It takes a couple of minutes to process the quail. True, meat left without skin quickly dries out and becomes less juicy.
Cooling and storage
Quails usually hatch chicks in the spring. In the summer, the birds are fattened, and closer to autumn, the entire population is sent for slaughter (if it is not an egg breed). It is not advisable to raise broilers at home for longer than 3-4 months. Meat becomes tougher with age. Old quails eat a lot of food, but do not gain weight.
It is recommended to cool several dozen birds slaughtered in one day and freeze them in the freezer. First, the meat must be washed, kept in cold salted water for one hour and dried. It is recommended to place the dry carcass in a container or plastic bag. This is done to prevent the meat from becoming saturated with the odors of the refrigerator and freezer. First, the carcass is cooled in the refrigerator at a temperature of 0 degrees. The cooled meat is transferred to the freezer. A frozen carcass can be stored in the freezer for up to six months.
