Rabbit Season

[Lemur]

So one of my neighbors has been raising rabbits for meat. They're locked in too-small sheds in his garage, since raising livestock inside the town line is technically verboten. Anyway, he killed one last winter, and sent some of the meat our way, and it was fantastic. Great stuff. However, the process of killing the rabbit was a bit too much for him, and now he can't deal with them.

I've always felt that there is no moral difference between eating a burger and killing a cow, and that anyone who enjoys meat should be okay with the way it is harvested. So I've offered to help kill the rabbits. My reasons are threefold:

1. If I'm willing to eat it, I should be okay with killing it.
2. Better a quick, clean death than a lifetime in a too-small cage.
3. Rabbit is frickin' tasty.

Only problem is that I have never killed a rabbit before. My neighbor attempted the neck-jerk maneuver, which is apparently quite difficult for a newbie. I was thinking along the lines of some blunt force trauma to the back of the skull.

So, do any Orgahs have experience with offing rabbits? Techniques, advice, reference material to offer? One way or another my hands are going to be stained with rabbit blood, and I'd rather make it as quick and painless as possible. And no, I do not have the carpentry skills to build a miniature guillotine, so scratch that off the list.

[Fragony]

They make a truly horrible sound. Can't help ya I'm a happy hypocrite. Already feel bad when kill a wasp. Bunnies are cute. And tasty indeed, try a normal coque au vain but with rabbit instead it's delicious.

[Andres]

My grandfather hung them upside down. Then he quickly snapped the head down and back to break the neck after which he used a knife to slice the throat. He had a trick to take of the skin, but I don't remember how he did it. IIRC, the rabbit needs to hang for at least a day before you consume (never eat it the same day it was killed, has something to do with taste, I think).

My father tied the rabbit up. He had a friend who used a big knife to cut off the head in one blow, but I guess you need to practice a bit to be able to finish it with one clean blow (so yeah, your first few times will be a bit messy). After the head is off, you hang it upside down (put a bucket under it) for a day.

[Lemur]

Yah, Andres, my neighbor attempted the head-down-and-back-jerk technique, and it didn't work for him at all. Apparently it's one of those maneuvers where you either get it just right or it's a complete waste of time. I was hoping to do something a bit more assured, like decapitation or blunt force trauma.

[Vuk]

I am not sure about whether or not this would be an option where you live, but you could just put the head down, place a .22 caliber pistol to the base of the skull (where it meets the spinal column), and shoot toward the nose. That would be a fairly instant death. I have not slaughtered rabbits that way, but I have done it to sheep, turkeys, and some other small animals.
Yeah, I agree with your neighbor. :P I have no problem butchering animals, but I cannot do it to animals that I raise. Every time I have tried, I ended up giving the meat away, because I felt so sick eating it. :P If you spend months raising an animal, you start to feel attached to it. :P That said though, I slaughter and butcher animals for my neighbors (for a share of the meat of course ), and I have no qualms about doing that. :P

[drone]

If you don't have a spear and some form of enchanted helm, I think you are stuck trying to get the neck-breaking technique correct. Unless you want to put a .22 to the back of it's skull.

[Gregoshi]

Some of the Backroom patrons are experts at splitting hares with the forum rules. Post this there and ask about the technique.

[Banquo's Ghost]

If you are unsure about breaking the neck the best approach is to use a truncheon. A fisherman's priest is fine.

Hold the rabbit by the rear legs, head down, and a hard, sharp blow to the back of the skull will kill it. Be sure and be firm, and strike through the skull, not at it.

Shooting a captive rabbit is not only unsporting, it's really not a good idea to be letting off firearms near the house (it's unlikely you're going to transport the rabbit to a far field just to blow its brains out). Also, don't feed the rabbit for at least twelve hours (give it water) to reduce the dressing challenges.

Rabbit is an excellent meat - try it with caramelised pears or poached in cider.

[Cyclops]

...If I'm willing to eat it, I should be okay with killing it....

Mate I applaud the moral way you have thought this through.

I try to do so with little choices in consumption (non-slave chocolate other tree-hugging nonsense). What can one person do? Will it make a difference? Only to you, and maybe the people around you.

Found this grisly but practical demo, hope it helps:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErmiaawHVAI