The Cock and the Balls

So for whatever reason the term Capon has been popping up a lot recently. Erin and I discussed it briefly while recording ACP I don’t think that discussion made it to a blooper reel, IIRC it just wasn’t concise enough for an outtake.

Still to sum it up, Castrating livestock is an old tradition, but with mammalian chattel it’s easy as the testicles are outside the body for all to see, and removal is quite a simple task.

But birds are a horse of a different color, they keep their sex organs inside, and unless (like chickens) they are sexually dimorphic it’s near impossible to visually sex a bird.

And by dictionary definition to remove the testicles of a bird, it is major surgery! And this technique has been around for CENTURIES, as in way before Aseptic Technique was known!

Thank god for youtube, I watched several videos, this was the most educational and professional.

And this probably gives a better feel on how it’s REALLY done in the day-to-day.

So first up, AMAZING! Just the idea that somebody raising chickens in the Roman Empire in 100 BC could both know that those little glands inside the chicken are in fact Bird Nuts, and came up with a way to take those suckers out without killing the bird.

I will say that somebody in the comment section took offense to the fact that the surgery was done without anesthesia. It probably SHOULD be, and the drugs will keep the animal from moving which will make EVERYTHING easier.

Still my mind is blown, and what isn’t discussed it that Roosters in chicken farming is a major problem. You only need a small number of roosters for breeding a flock of hens, and they are generally aggressive crowing assholes. This means that in egg farming, the male chicks are generally destroyed, and Roosters aren’t of much value outside of being sperm donors as they produce what is considered inferior meat.

So the idea of doing this quick surgery (I included the second video just to show how fast its done when you aren’t showing the internet what you’re doing) even if it is painful seems like a wise move over just sending the chicks through a grinder.

Now I want to eat one! Don’t see them at my local store, and online prices are OUTRAGEOUS, so we’ll see if that ever happens.

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4 Responses to The Cock and the Balls

  1. Sean D Sorrentino says:

    The Wife informs me that most meat chickens, both male and female, are 6-8 weeks old. You would not be able to tell the difference at that age between the male and the female birds because the hormones haven’t kicked in yet.

    • Weerd Beard says:

      According to my reading that’s the age they caponize at, so there must be a way to tell. Also I know egg farms cull males at only a few days so they must be able to tell then too.

      Either way if you harvest a bird at those ages they aren’t sexually mature so the difference in body composition should be minimal.

      **EDIT** look what I found.
      https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chick_sexing

      Maybe I should get chickens….

  2. AuricTech says:

    As the capons go rolling along…

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