Processing Video.

[TexanConnection]

WOW! Im impressed, very professional. <br /><br /> __________ Sat Jan 18, 2014 8:28 pm __________ <br /><br /> Do you have a bucket of ice water there for the carcase , heart, gall bladder,kidneys and liver? are there buyers for those "extra parts"?

 

[grumpy]

WOW! Im impressed, very professional.

__________ Sat Jan 18, 2014 8:28 pm __________

Do you have a bucket of ice water there for the carcase , heart, gall bladder,kidneys and liver? are there buyers for those "extra parts"?

No ice water, but super cold right out of the spigot. LOL.
The gall gets thrown away. The giblets get sold with the rabbit.
Thanks for the compliment.

grumpy.

 

[Owl]

I appreciate the fact you took your time on the demonstration. Noobies will learn much more from this than if you did it quick fashion in 4 or 5 minutes. I know my uncle can break down a dozen rabbits in about an hour. But when I watch him he goes so fast I have a tough time learning what he is showing. Thanks again!!

 

[skysthelimit]

I make sure there's no internal "matter" from any of the organs that are allowed "outside" the organ itself. This video was produced to allow a processer to write protocols for his facility that meets USDA requirements. Those requirements include no internal organ contents touching and contaminating the meat.

This was a skill that took me some time to get right. At first I didn't care, dogs don't care. But I quickly realized that if I am going to eat the meat, I'd better use the practice dog sessions to get the fur off and organs out as cleanly as possible.

 

[katiebear]

a lot f the dress out videos I.'ve seen are not hanging the carcase , one had it on a dressing table. It is necessary to hang?t :shock:The vied I saw made it look so easy especially the gutting. I think it was AZ bow hunter on this forum. looks like a couple of seconds.he processed on a wire table.....and a whole lot less messy..... please let me know as I am going to process my litter....3.bucks 5does my hubby likes to think he is tough but this is his first bunny litter . by the way we love you grumpy,we have read a lot of your posts and will follow you as long as you are here.

 

[grumpy]

a lot f the dress out videos I.'ve seen are not hanging the carcase , one had it on a dressing table. It is necessary to hang?t :shock:The vied I saw made it look so easy especially the gutting. I think it was AZ bow hunter on this forum. looks like a couple of seconds.he processed on a wire table.....and a whole lot less messy..... please let me know as I am going to process my litter....3.bucks 5does my hubby likes to think he is tough but this is his first bunny litter . by the way we love you grumpy,we have read a lot of your posts and will follow you as long as you are here.

Thank you very much, Katiebear.

I've processed critters all of my life and, with the exception of beaver, all are hung from a gambrel. The hoist allows me to "sit" during the entire procedure as I have a very bad back and cannot stand for extended periods of time. (I was sitting down during most of the video shooting.)

My intent was to allow folks the opportunity to view, what I feel, is an easy way to process what they grow for their families. Plus, allow my processor the chance to write protocols for his operation that would be USDA acceptable. It worked. LOL.

I've got a very dear friend who is a professional photographer that videoed and produced the procedure. He spent about an hour w/me that morning to get it all on camera. Then spent numerous hours putting it into the format you saw. As far as I'm concerned, He did a Great-job. His name is Keith Foster and he also designed all of the covers for my three novels. He's also the creator and webmaster of my website: http://www.ekfelts.com

grumpy.

 

[Dood]

It is necessary to hang?

No, but it makes pulling the fur off in one piece much easier

If i dont want the pelt I nick the hide in the middle of the back, stick in couple fingers from each hand and pull apart. Then the carcass is placed on metal sheet next to a sink. I carefully slit the belly and let the guts spill into the sink. I cut the membrane attaching the stomach to the back and pull out the eosophagus, trachea and stomach. I then use garden sheers to cut the pelvic bone and use the knife to trim the muscles around the tail and anus and scoop out the bladder, colon, anus and tail fur into the sink.

 

[grumpy]

Hanging the rabbit on a gambrel has several positives.

First: Once you find your "comfort-level" on standing, or sitting, it's less fatiguing and stressful. If your gambrel has a small swivel at its apex, you remain stationary. The rabbit can be swiveled to the position you need.

Second: Let 'gravity' work in your favor. Not necessarily against you if the animal is horizontal. Blood, entrails, etc. fall away and leaves less chance for contamination.

Third: The animal touches nothing that may cause cross-contamination when it's hung. Which is a big concern when dealing with USDA certification. Lying a rabbit on any surface is a big no-no when processing for resale.

I've experimented with one additional step prior to the initial cut from one hock to the other. I'm thus far pleased with it. I keep a small spray bottle of sterile water near and when the animal is relaxed and released, I'll mist the hair on the hind legs a little. This seems to keep the "fluff" of cut hair out of the air and off of the exposed meat when the hide is cut and being pulled off.

Hope this helps.

grumpy

 

[Featherhoof]

I will be processing my first litter soon. I'll be watching this video a few more times before I do it because it the best I have seen. Thanks Grumpy!

 

[grumpy]

I will be processing my first litter soon. I'll be watching this video a few more times before I do it because it the best I have seen. Thanks Grumpy!

Glad it helped you, Good luck with your processing.

grumpy.

 

[the reluctant farmer]

I've processed critters all of my life and, with the exception of beaver, all are hung from a gambrel.

grumpy.

Not to get too far off topic, but now I'm curious: why not beaver? My brother trapped them when I was a kid, but I don't remember anything about how he processed them.

The video is great. Really appreciate you being so willing to share. Misting the legs makes sense, too.

 

[grumpy]

I've processed critters all of my life and, with the exception of beaver, all are hung from a gambrel.

grumpy.

Not to get too far off topic, but now I'm curious: why not beaver? My brother trapped them when I was a kid, but I don't remember anything about how he processed them.

The video is great. Really appreciate you being so willing to share. Misting the legs makes sense, too.

All furbearers are "case" skinned, with the exception of beaver. They are "open" skinned. Open skinned means the pelt is opened from the lower lip, down the belly, to the anus in a straight line.
When fleshed and stretched you get the classic "circle" finished pelt.

grumpy.

 

[the reluctant farmer]

Ah! Makes sense. Thanks!

 

[mystang89]

You make that look MUCH easier watching the video than actually doing it. I tried killing a rabbit that way and couldn't get it to work so I whopped it over the head. Then tried skinning it the same way you did and just couldn't get it right. Guess it shows how years and hundreds of rabbits really give you the experience you need!

 

[grumpy]

You make that look MUCH easier watching the video than actually doing it. I tried killing a rabbit that way and couldn't get it to work so I whopped it over the head. Then tried skinning it the same way you did and just couldn't get it right. Guess it shows how years and hundreds of rabbits really give you the experience you need!

As with anything else, it takes practice, practice, practice.

I can recall my being a nervous wreck the first time I processed rabbits.
Amazing!!! That I can recall that time so many years ago.

A couple of minutes of personal instruction, and you'd be able to do it like a pro.
Hoping I'm not too graphic, but "stretch" the animal out. Keep their head
at about a 30-40 degree angle, wrist is rigid, quickly extend the stretch,
and SNAP "your wrist-their head" backwards towards the spine.

You'll note that I use my left-thigh for better leverage as well.

grumpy.

 

[mystang89]

Thanks! I have 3 more to try this with so maybe by the 6th or 7th one I'll have it down

 

[Comet007]

Thank you so much for this! I'm sure DH knows how to do this, since he's done it before and has cleaned many kinds of fish, fowl and wildlife, but I had no idea! I'll be showing it to him anyway, I'm sure he can get some ideas from it anyway since he's only done a few and it's been a long time. Even though he will likely be handling all of the processing, I like knowing how it's done, so that I'm not "hiding" from this aspect of breeding rabbits for meat!

 

[RR MiniSatins]

Thanks Grumpy for a great video. One question though, I saw that after you killed and hung the rabbit, you snapped the neck. Then when you pulled the pelt down, it looked like the head came off with the pelt. Did you have to cut around the neck or through the bone before that to get the head off so cleanly? Thanks.

 

[ramblingrabbit]

Great quality video! Thanks for making and sharing this, Grumpy.

 

[grumpy]

Thanks Grumpy for a great video. One question though, I saw that after you killed and hung the rabbit, you snapped the neck. Then when you pulled the pelt down, it looked like the head came off with the pelt. Did you have to cut around the neck or through the bone before that to get the head off so cleanly? Thanks.

The neck is dislocated at the very first of the video. It's fairly easy
to completely detach it with that "downward-pull" after the neck's
been cut. It stays with the pelt when I pull the hide down.

I don't have to use the knife at all on that segment. Pretty slick.

grumpy.