We did it basically the same way....used #10 tin cans, cut out a hole in the bottom after nailing to a shed. Cut their heads off and let them bleed, dip in boiling water and then pick the feathers off, gut them and they are “good to go” as they say today. I can remember my Grandma wringing their heads off and us kids chasing the headless chicken around. We were dirt poor and you got your fun where you could find it.....
When I gave on to my newly wed daughter, she called me up freaking wanting to know what that long thing was on one end of the chicken. She had me stumped until I realized the neck was left on the chicken and she had only seen them inside the chicken with the giblets.
If I gave her another one, she said I had to cut off the neck before giving it to her....she was a born and bred city girl..I started farming after 40...
I'd bet you had a better childhood than many middle class kids do today...and more fun....didn't need a helmet to ride a bike, didn't need seatbelts (if you get caught you owe the government money) Could stay out after dark, wander around the countryside, catch polliwogs, horny toads etc.
I loved catching bee's with my hands and putting them in a jar..(I was a city girl and that was about as close to wildlife as I could get.
But my parents let me spend week-ends with their friend that lived on 5 acres surrounded by empty land and we would go for tramps in the woods...I was under 5 the first time and still remember them and loved them dearly....:O)