Slaughter and Dressing of Sheep and Goats

SLAUGHTER AND DRESSING OF SHEEP AND GOATS

  • The animal is weighed on a platform scale.

Equipment

Stunning

  • Mechanical or electro narcosis.

Sticking

  • The animal is elevated off the floor on a box or sheep cradle. (In federally inspected plant in USA, sheep are dressed on the rail).
  • Sheep is t held with back towards the sticker and head to the left.
  • The neck is stretched with the left hand and with the knife in the right hand the jugular vein is to be cut. Then pierced through the pelt at the base of the ear or at the angle formed by the jawbone and the neck vertebrae and then is cut out.
  • Bleeding out is allowed completely.

Skinning

  • Sheep or goat is laid on its back on a platform or cradle.

Fore legs

  • The pelt is opened down the front stripped from knee to coronet of hoof and removed by holding the knife flat in order to avoid cutting through the pelt. Pelt from the knee to the point of the brisket is opened. The shank is skinned out and hoof at the break joint (The flat articulation at distal end of shank, or meta-carpal) is removed (in the case of lamb). One leg is done first and then the other.
  • The pelt is opened from point of brisket to head and the neck and head are skinned out.

Hind legs

  • The pelt is opened down the rear of the hind leg from the bung (Caution - the knife should be held flat and the point elevated in order to avoid cutting through the pelt).
  • Foot at the round joint is removed immediately above the heel (First phalangeal bone). This will leave the tendons intact. The other leg is done in the same manner.

Fisting

  • The triangular flap of pelt over the brisket is pulled up and by using the fist, burrowed or fisted a channel down the midline and over the udder or cod (in case of a wether or ram detoured around each side of the penis). Begun at rectum the channel starting from anterior end is met. When fisting the hands should be clean. A pail of lukewarm water with soap and towel should be available. Care to be taken to avoid breaking the while fisting.
  • The carcass is hung on a hook (or hooks) by the tendons of the rear legs or by tying the hind legs together and hung on a hook.
  • With a knife the fisted channel from posterior to anterior end is opened.
  • Beginning at the midpoint, the pelt is fisted free. Fisted from the navel towards the back and then upward. It is sure to fist over the flank from the rear, then upwards over the leg. One side is fisted and then the other side is done. From the midpoint, fisted down and out over the fore flank and pulled from the fore shank.
  • When pelt is fisted free, knife is used to remove the pelt from the tail. Then the pelt is pulled free to the neck. Fisted down the back of the neck and the pelt is pulled off. The pelt is weighed later.
  • The head at the atlas is removed. Tongue, cheek meat, and brain from the head are then removed.
  • The outside of the carcass is washed.
  • The trachea and the esophagus are loosened.
  • The bung is cut around, pulled out about 6 inches to be sure that it is free and tied with a string.
  • The penis is loosened.
  • Underline form point of the cod or udder to the brisket is opened, and then the brisket or breastbone is split.
  • The caul fat is removed
  • The large intestines are pulled down (Carefully the kidney and kidney fats are left in the carcass). The intestines and stomach are lifted out. The liver and gall bladder from the liver are removed. The liver is washed and weighed. Then the intestine and stomach are weighed.
  • The membrane of the diaphragm is cut away and the pluck pulled out (Thoracic entrails). The heart is removed, washed and weighed.
  • The carcass is washed thoroughly then inspected carefully and weighed. Fore shanks are pinned up and locked.
  • The carcass is tagged showing animal number, date and dressed weight and rolled into the chill room.
  • Liver is inspected for "Spots" and parasites; also the intestines examined for nodules and the fourth stomach for stomach worms.
  • Sheep entrails make an excellent specimen for examinations of the compound stomach, large and small intestines and mesentery colon.
  • During the season of long wool, it will prove advisable and economical to shear sheep before slaughter. The shorn wool is usually of much greater value than the woolen pelt, and dressing will be much easier.
Last modified: Wednesday, 15 September 2010, 9:31 AM