[Clansman]

With the broomstick method the neck of the bird is most definitely NOT dislocated by pulling its legs!!! 
It's not about pulling the bird, it's about the second step on the stick - the (gentle!) pulling is merely to stretch the  spine before you make the second step (the latter is what dislocates the neck).

Disagree Eve,

I've been killing larger cockerels and ducks etc using this method for many years but I use the brush handle to hold the head in place then dislocate the neck by pulling up on the feet.

Just standing on the brush can result in the neck being crushed rather than dislocated and is therefore not considered a humane method.

[JulieWall]

We bought a wall mounted dispatcher for the ducks and weren't very impressed with it either. The finish was rough and scabby to say the least and it was far too expensive for what it was. There was no instruction sheet on best setting for size of bird and it would be easy to get it wrong and be inaccurate/inhumane. I think a swift meat cleaver and a tree stump would be more efficient to be honest ..... as long as it wasn't me aiming the meat cleaver, I'm the worlds worst shot.

[Clansman]

I wouldn't like to be the one holding the neck outstretched for your cleaver shot then Julie! 

A lot of these mechanical dispatchers can also actually crush rather than dislocate and they are not recommended for humane despatch either under the poultry slaughter regulations.

I'm not a fan of messy cutting and decapitation methods, I prefer hand dislocation, brush handle, killing cone for larger stuff.

Saying that, they still recommend electrical stunning before and of the above methods too for a humane kill. 

I have seen CO2 used successfully once on a small farm.

a pub gas bottle of CO2 piped into a small airtight container which held around 6 chickens , 2 feet square and 3 feet high with a cover over the top.

The chickens were placed into the container and lasted only a few seconds before being overcome by the CO2, they basically got back to their feet, had a look around and then dropped.

They were left in there for 2 minutes before being removed to ensure they were dead then the necks were also dislocated before they were plucked etc

That was a VERY calm and stress free method and something I may try myself one day, especially with larger stuff like turkeys etc.

The main thing I noticed with the CO2 was that there was no flapping and kicking like you normally see with other killing methods.

I also experienced large scale CO2 killing on commercial farms diagnosed with Salmonella just after Mrs. Currie's 1988 scaremongering campaign.

We used tipper lorries with their tarpaulins fitted over the top and gas piped in at the four corners.

The birds were then caught and carried outside by hand 4 at a time and dropped into the lorry (I was the dropper) and was tied up with a rope in case I fell in too.

A sorry sight but again it was an eerily silent and very calm method.

[JulieWall]

I trust Gordon, he has a strong and sure shot with these things being a Blacksmith, but I don't think he would want to just decapitate something, it was him who insisted on the wall mounted gadget before he would neck the drake.
I also think CO2 is a very humane method, it's just like going to sleep. I wonder about the lack of spinal reflex from a practical viewpoint though. It can be helpful with the bleeding out as it keeps the blood pumping and is useful when we do sheep.
Bear in mind, any opinion I may have about slaughtering ducks and other large poultry is purely theoretical, we only ever killed one drake for the table so far, using that damned gadget.

[CameronS]

I do mine at night - remove the bird from the shed, place it on the ground - it's dopey/tired and pellet to the head.

[lord flynn]

for those of you that shoot-what do you use and whats involved in costs/getting/keeping/training for one please?

[Clansman]

Everyone I know that shoots them just use air rifles

[MikeM]

yup, .22 air rifle.

[CameronS]

22! anything larger and you run the risk of having no bird left!

[Clansman]

most people i know just shoot them in the back of the head so that shouldn't be a problem.

i don't know if i'd like to lie a big turkey on the ground and put a .303 in the back of its ear! 

[lord flynn]

well, I don't know anything about air rifles :p

I was just wondering-I use the broomstick method but I hate it, have to psyche myself up for it unless the bird is ill. I am also not that tall so when it comes to big roos etc, its seems a bit awkward. Once I move I was playing with the idea of ducks and a friend has warned me that ducks are more difficult to neck plus will be upping the poultry breeding anyway so will have more to do. I don't like the idea of cutting or using a humane dispatcher so just considering alternatives

[Clansman]

Yeah I'm no fan of blood and guts methods myself! 

A killing cone is probably your best bet.

Not to be confused with the killing cones which just hold the bird while its neck is cut to bleed it.

This type actually dislocate the neck and are normally used for larger stuff like turkeys, ducks, geese but there are chicken models available.

You can buy them although they can be expensive but are fairly easy to make if you are handy or have a friendly DIY'er

This stops the bird from flapping around and damaging itself whilst making the actual killing process much easier with a lot less effort, you're just using your bodyweight to push down or lean on it (pivots and fulcrums etc)

The long bar under the turkeys head in this picture is bolted onto the frame at the right side but can move up and down.

The other bar connected to the first bar and also can move up and down.

The birds head is placed between the two bars as in the pic (a bit like curling tongs) then the bar is pushed slowly downwards until the neck is dislocated.

The bars don't come together therefore this prevents the neck being crushed rather than dislocated.

This is a commercially made one but they are pretty easy to make up.

I've seen smaller ones made out of traffic cones etc which work ok

[lord flynn]

ok, thanks for that-will put thinking cap on as I reckon I might be able to build one.

[Carl f k]

Could use a .177 air rifle or even a pistol prob easier with a pistol with the bird in a cone,pistol to the head kills  it and bleeds it at the same time

[lord flynn]

 a colleague of OHs mentioned a ratbuster? had a quick google-would a .22 ratbuster pistol do the job on chickens, homebred rabbits and possibly turkeys?