How to properly cut goats at home, methods of slaughter and butchering carcasses

How to slaughter your own goat on your own without resorting to the services of a butcher? The easiest way is to stun her first, and then cut her throat so that the blood flows out. You can kill an animal without first stunning it. In this case, the goat must be tied up with ropes, since with a cut throat, in a state of agony, it can move for some time and even run.

Optimal timing

Usually a milking goat is not killed, but kept for 7-9 years. After all, the older the animal, the more milk it gives (from 2 to 7 liters per day). Every year, somewhere in the fall, goats are mated. Pregnancy lasts 5 months. Kids are born in the spring. It is they, however, fattened and grown up, who are sent to slaughter.

It is advisable to castrate young goats at the age of 1-2 months, for example, with the help of an elastic band. Then the meat will not have a specific taste and smell. For the first 3 months, newborn kids are milk-fed. Closer to summer, they are gradually transferred to vegetable feed.

During the whole warm season, animals can graze in the pasture. During this period of the year, the cost of feed is minimal. In the summer, goats eat one grass. Additionally, they can be given finely chopped vegetables (carrots, pumpkins, beets). To gain weight quickly, they are fed small amounts of grain mixtures (barley, oats, wheat, corn). With the arrival of the first frost, animals can be sent for slaughter. By this time, the weight of the goat should be at least 15 kilograms. Pure meat after slaughter will be 2 times less. Usually animals are slaughtered at the age of 6-12 months. It is not recommended to keep goats longer. After all, the older the animal, the tougher the meat.

Slaughter methods

Goat breeders who breed goats for milk rarely decide to inject, that is, kill, their animals on their own. Usually, a specially trained miner is invited for this procedure. This person works in accordance with sanitary rules, that is, he requires a certificate from a veterinarian that the animal is completely healthy.

You can kill a goat yourself. There are two main ways to kill: with and without stun. The animal is stunned with a hammer blow to the forehead (above the eyes). The stunning tool must have a minimum weight of 2.5 kilograms.An animal stunned by a blow is exsanguinated (the pharynx is cut in a state suspended by the hind legs). You can kill a goat without first stunning it by cutting its neck vessels.

The dead animal must be suspended by the hind legs from the crossbar so that all the blood flows out of the carcass.

Common methods of slaughtering goats at home:

1. Stunning on the head with a hammer, followed by cutting of the cervical arteries.
2. Without preliminary stunning, in a horizontal position. The animal is thrown on its side and securely fixed with a rope of the legs. In this position, the arteries in the neck are cut.
3. Without prior stunning, in a standing position. Clamp the animal between the legs. With the left hand they raise their head by the horns or chin, with the right hand they cut the throat.

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Important! If a goat is killed without first being stunned, it needs to be tied tightly with its legs or held tightly in its hands while it will die bleeding for several minutes. In a state of agony, the animal can escape and run around the yard with its throat cut.

Preparation for the process

Before slaughtering a goat, you must carefully prepare for the procedure. In the last month, it is recommended to give the animals better feed, more finely chopped vegetables and grains. By the time of slaughter, the goat should recover a little. It is advisable that the animal that is sent for slaughter is examined by a doctor. The goat must have all vaccinations. Vaccinations are usually given at 3 months of age. Once a quarter, the animals are given antiparasitic drugs. The last treatment for worms is carried out 3 weeks before slaughter.

In recent days, it is forbidden to expose the animal to stress. This spoils the quality of the meat. The day before slaughter, the goats are not fed. They are kept on the same water for a whole day. 3 hours before the slaughter, the animals stop drinking.

Before killing a goat, it is thoroughly washed with a hose. Fresh meat can absorb foreign odors, which can reduce its taste.

It is necessary to carefully prepare the place where the slaughter will be carried out. All tools should be at hand. For bleeding, the carcass is suspended by its hind legs from a crossbar or on a tripod with a winch. Several basins or pots are needed for blood and meat. Carcass cutting is carried out on the table. The place and all objects where the slaughter will be carried out must be thoroughly washed with clean water so that the meat does not absorb the odors of manure or detergents.

What tools are needed

For slaughter, you will need the following tools:

• a sharp knife 25 cm long for cutting the cervical vessels;
• a well-sharpened 15 cm long knife for skinning;
• oilcloth or plastic wrap for bedding;
• ropes for secure fixation of the animal;
• bar or tripod for hanging carcasses;
• basins, plates and pans for blood, meat and entrails;
• rags and napkins for hands;
• clean water for intestinal lavage.

How to slaughter a goat

You can kill a goat or a goat in any convenient way: with stunning or immediately cutting the cervical blood vessels. You can slaughter yourself. True, for the first time, before cutting a goat, it is advisable to call another person for help.

The easiest way is to slaughter an animal in this way:

• throw a rope around your neck;
• tie a goat to a tree;
• hit the back of the head with a hammer;
• remove the rope from the neck;
• to cut the cervical arteries so that blood begins to flow;
• while the heart is working, hang the animal by its hind legs from the crossbar;
• cut off the head so that the blood can drain better;
• put a bowl below, about 2 liters should flow out;
• after 2 hours, when the blood is completely drained, remove the skin from the carcass.

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The skin is removed from the carcass in this order:

• wrap the neck with rope and cling film so that the skin does not get stained with blood;
• make incisions on the hind legs around the hock joints;
• cut the skin on the inner line of the thighs through the anus;
• trim the skin around the tail;
• tighten the skin, trimming meat, fat and bundles with a knife;
• after flaying, the canvas is cut on the stomach and left flat on the table.

Important! After removing the skin, they immediately start cutting the carcass. This procedure is carried out while the goat is hanging from the bar. It usually takes one hour to cut.

Carcass cutting

You can butcher the carcass in this order:

• gently make a small incision in the abdomen along the white line so as not to puncture the stomach;
• carefully pull out the bladder, genitals;
• the rectum with the stomach is separated from the spine and all organs of the gastrointestinal tract are pulled out;
• the intestines are put in one dish, and the liver in another;
• remove the liver, carefully separating bile from it;
• in the last turn, the heart, trachea, the remains of the esophagus and lungs are removed;
• allow the meat to cool;
• from the hanging carcass, the front legs with shoulder blades are cut off separately, then the sides with ribs;
• the spine is separated from the hind legs;
• at the end, the thighs with the legs are cut off, leaving the hooves.

Pieces of meat are placed in a saucepan. Then it is cut on the table on the board. The meat is left for 24 hours in a cool room (4-5 degrees Celsius) for fermentation. Fully chilled is used for cooking or sent to the freezer. The intestines are cleaned and rinsed with water if they are to be used for sausage. The stomach is also cleaned, and then soaked for a long time in a saline solution.

Important! The carcass is not washed during cutting. The blood is wiped off with rags or napkins. The health of the goat is judged by the state of the internal organs. The meat usually has a pleasant pale pink color. Healthy organs should not have neoplasms, white spots, mucus.

How to deal with the skin

The goat has a large and beautiful skin, from which you can make a rug on the floor. Immediately after flaying, it is laid out on the table with the wool down. The skin is cleaned with a knife from the remains of meat, fat, blood. Then leave for 2 hours to cool. Sprinkle salt on the cooled skin. One kilogram is enough for one skin. In this state, it is left for 5-7 days. Then the salt is shaken off, and the skin is dried in a straightened form. Dry it in a cool room for 2 weeks.

After drying, soften in an aqueous solution of salt, soda, formalin. This operation is called rewinding. Then fleshing is carried out, that is, the softened subcutaneous layer is removed with a knife. Then the skin is washed in water with powder. Then pickling is done, that is, the skin is soaked in a solution of salt and vinegar.

After this step, it is washed in clean water. The tanning process with the use of special preparations gives the leather softness. Before drying it is softened with fat. You can simply salt the skin and hand it over to specialists for dressing.