Hammer/club/steel bar experts advise please!

[Julz]

Hi all, I am still deciding methods of slaughter and would like to have some advice and details please re; using the hammer/club or steel bar etc. I was originaly going to buy a wringer but not entirely happy about the types of failings that can happen as I feel quite bad just like people have said that they have felt if it fails even if in practice stage...and dont think id be able to afford one anyway right now
Another option I might consider is a method where the rabbit is hung by its back legs then using your 2 fore fingers to twist the neck toward yourself whilst at the same time pulling the hind legs to kill this was told to me and can be shown to me if I decide its right for me,
In your opinion (hammer expert) can i ask why is your method the one you use? and have you a diagrame of the method please
:bunnyhop:

 

[Zab]

Because it's the only one I legally can use!

:lol: Not an expert, just killed one rabbit this far. But I will tell you about ''the swedish method'' (in lack of better name). It's a clubbing method but not the same as when you hold them by their hindlegs and hit the back of their heads. I do honestly find it to be the best one, judging from descriptions, videos and so forth (as I have no other experience). (I think the regular clubbing and the wringer seems decent enough though)

It will stun the rabbit - it won't feel a thing, takes a second.
The rabbit will be sitting naturally on a hard surface ( like a table), no hanging or being held in strange and possibly stressful ways.
It will be alive (but unconsious, not feeling anything) when it's bled, which I've heard makes it bleed out better.
I could do it first time with just a video, so it can't be that difficult..

The only downside as I see it is that it feels brutal and there will be blood.. but.. there's always blood when you cut a bunny open, right?

Anyway, you put the bunny on a table or the like, on it's feet like it would sit/stand normally. You hold it in the scruf of the neck (or anyhow, just hold it inplace) with your left hand and then hit it in the head - between the eyes and the ears, so on the head, not the neck - with a bar or hammer or anything. This will stun the rabbit and while it's blissfully unconcious you cut the throat and let it bleed out.
It doesn't require a whole lot of force.. I didn't think so at least.. I used a square iron bar/nail, 40-50cm long and quite heavy. About as thick as my thumb.

I figured I'd mention the method because I've noted that it doesn't seem like that many people here heard of it.

 

[Kyle@theWintertime]

I love my pellet gun. It is practically a glorified old BB gun...load a pellet, put rabbit into box, give rabbit Tasty Delicious Treat, and while rabbit eats a little, take aim. Slight "pop" sound, and they will kick reflexively for a few seconds, but they are unconscious instantly. There is bleeding...but less than you might expect.

 

[camanojim]

i am taking that one step further .I have decided on .22 shorts. They will never see it coming and absolute brain destruction. although its ok to shoot guns where i live, it may not be that way for you. pellets will do the job very well.

 

[MaggieJ]

Our last butchering, we had a friend help out with his .22 rifle. We paid for a box of shorts and he came and did the deed. It was a big improvement over a pellet gun, which sometimes requires a second shot. Unfortunately, here in Canada we have to jump through hoops to obtain a firearms acquisition certificate and the process is expensive too. So we will likely rely on our friend to help out... We have an informal help-out relationship that works very nicely.

I am interesting in Zab's Swedish method because it is low cost and low tech and also in GBov's tabletop rabbit dispatcher.
my-new-table-top-rabbit-dispatcher-warning-graphic-t9339.html

The Rabbit Wringer also looks excellent, but it is not cheap and we have only a small rabbitry so it is hard to justify the expense.

 

[Zab]

We need a licence even for a pellet gun, and swedish gunlaws are pretty strict. Otherwise I think they're a good choice too

 

[Shelbers91]

I used a .22 to te back of the head. And people said that they should bleed out through ears and nose so here's what I did be advised its graphic

my-first-butchering-experiance-pic-warning-t7987.html

 

[Happy]

I can purchase a gun from my neighbor in less than half an hour, no background check needed. Now that you're all jealous...

I use a 28 ounce (.79 kilogram) hammer to the base of the skull. Be sure to crush the c1 vertebra. This mangles the brainstem and kills the bunny instantly. That said, it does result in a LOT of jerking and flopping, as the body relieves itself of excess energy that it can no longer regulate.

 

[skysthelimit]

I used to hang it upside down and hit it with a 2x4. Now I just swing it against a post between the head and shoulder. I have a crutch for a wringer as well. Hammer seems a bit messy. Any type of strike method depends on strength and accuracy of aim. I can swing a ten lb rabbit and hit accurately. Blood drips out of the nose in a pretty clean manner. I can't shoot firearms within city limits, but I am not interested in guns regardless.

 

[Happy]

I've never even had a bleed with a hammer, FYI. I wouldn't go with a hammer any heavier than I use though.

 

[camanojim]

Just remember,the objective is a quick and humane kill. The events leading up to the kill in my opinion are critical. limit the amount of fear the creature will experience. Even if it is a few seconds, that would be too much for my taste. Clubbing or whacking it against a post :x seems just wrong to me. A well place shot while the animal is naturaly sitting and eating would bring an instant and free of fear death. Anything less than that is cruelty in my book. I am sorry for the rant but we must remember we owe these critters a little more than being hung upside down and whacked with a 2x4

 

[Happy]

I treat them like a beloved cat to set them at ease. IDK if you would consider that humane or not.

 

[Zab]

camanojim: While I agree with you in the overall post, I really don't see what's wrong with clubbing (''the swedish way'' that is, I'm not too fond of rabbits held by their hindlegs but I realize there are worse methods). The rabbit is placed on a table and just held like it would be if you groomed it or whatever. There's no stress, even the very not-tamed rabbit I got to try my first kill on was fairly calm. No holding necessary, just had my hand on his back/neck to make sure he wouldn't move. I doubt he even saw the bar coming (he was sniffing the ground).

There's also less risk of missing with that method than if you use a slaughter-gun (which has a retractable bolt instead of pellet). There's been discussions on that here, you must use the bolt-gun if you'll sell the meat. But the people working with it say it's a bad method since it's easy to miss the brain and then the rabbit won't be unconcious and you'll have to club it either way. I don't know how that risk is with a pellet gun, but I imagine the pellet gun is safer, even if the rabbit could move suddenly.

 

[Happy]

If were going to shoot it I wouldn't use a pellet gun, unless it was one bad pellet gun. A .22 would be my choice.

 

[camanojim]

I treat them like a beloved cat to set them at ease. IDK if you would consider that humane or not.

Yes and I dont mean to disrespect to anyone. I just have the opinion that the final seconds count in the overall treatment. If you feel that you got it down to where the animal isn't in fear then you are doing it right.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Just remember,the objective is a quick and humane kill. The events leading up to the kill in my opinion are critical. limit the amount of fear the creature will experience. Even if it is a few seconds, that would be too much for my taste. Clubbing or whacking it against a post :x seems just wrong to me. A well place shot while the animal is naturaly sitting and eating would bring an instant and free of fear death. Anything less than that is cruelty in my book. I am sorry for the rant but we must remember we owe these critters a little more than being hung upside down and whacked with a 2x4

I believe that it is everyone's objective to make a quick and humane kill, which is why the topic of dispatching rabbits comes up with such frequency. None of us want our beloved rabbits to suffer, and I doubt any of us look forward to freezer camp day with happy anticipation.

I have used three different methods so far.

We started by using a pellet gun with a .22 as backup in case of a misplaced shot. The rabbits flipped around too much for my liking, and we could not use the head as food for the dogs unless we were willing to find and remove the pellet, which I was NOT. Even with the pellet removed there would still be some lead contamination, albeit minimal, unless a non lead round was used.

Next we used Bowbuild's method of suspending the rabbit by the hind legs and striking the back of the head with a metal pipe. We made sure to pet the rabbits and invert them slowly while well supported. Some accepted this and hung calmly, while others struggled somewhat. Depending on the aim and force used, sometimes we had to strike them more than once, and rarely did we get the good bleed out that Bowbuild does. There was sometimes bruising of the neck, but I simply fed that portion to the dogs. Overall I think it is a good method.

We have tried the "Swedish method" twice now. We processed about nine each time. The rabbits sit calmly on the table and don't seem to see the club coming. Hubs did the whacking the first day, and had a couple of screamers. I did the kills the second time, and also had a couple that screamed. I believe the important thing is to strike very hard, and then quickly slit the neck. Most of them were senior rabbits- the juniors are easier to stun effectively.

I felt terrible about the ones that screamed, and hope to never have that happen again. With more experience I am certain that it will rarely ever occur. Unfortunately there isn't any way to become more proficient than to keep dispatching and hope that your learning curve is a shallow one.

 

[UK-backyardbunnies]

Zab - could you post a link to the video you saw at all please?

 

[Zab]

Afraid not, I'm not allowed to spread it in forums

 

[MamaSheepdog]

I plan on making a video of it at some point.

 

[Kyle@theWintertime]

That is why I offer a tasty treat...they seem quite happy to be in the Treat Box.