Mom used to tell me to never give chicken bones to cats because they can splinter and be dangerous. Is that just an old Mom’s tale?
I’ve been told by a vet tech that he sees a lot of cats with splintered poultry bones in them. Sometimes your mom knows a thing or two.
The cats don’t get chicken (or turkey, or duck) bones, they just get the meat. Sometimes they get the organs, if my husband isn’t here…if my husband is at home, though, he wants the liver and gizzard and heart. He’s half Cajun.
I once played this as a team game. My brother and I were on one side, and my sister and aunt were on the other. My brother and I came up with a special strategy. When it came time to pull, we’d crouch down. Apparently my sister and aunt had the same strategy.
That must have looked pretty funny.
The OED has citations for merrythought (=wishbone) going back to 1598. Interestingly, the citations include two explanations for why this bone is so-called:
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From around 1697: “'Tis called the merrythought, because when the fowle is opened, dissected, or carv’d, it resembles the pudenda of a woman.”
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From 1708: “For what Reason is the Bone next the Breast of a Fowl, &c. Called the Merry-thought‥? The Original of that Name was doubtless from the Pleasant Fancies, that commonly arise upon the Breaking of that Bone.”
The “pleasant fancies” referred to in 1708 could refer either to the sexual connotations suggested in the earlier quote, or the wish-making custom already discussed in this thread.
Wishbone doesn’t turn up until 1860, and the OED suggests that it was American in origin.
Wild speculation here, but it could be that merrythought functioned to some extent as a double entrendre, and the univocal wishbone was coined and adopted in a fit of Victorian-era bowdlerisation.
Or it could reflect the hypocritical puritanism of a neopaternalistic society.
Heh heh, “bone”. 
Presumably it’s the same unspecified higher power who grants the wishes you make before blowing out the candles on your birthday cake?
I’m guessing this happened around the time theeuphemisms “dark meat” and “white meat” came into favor?
Anglophone Canadian. This is a familiar custom.
One time when I “won” a wishbone pull, I wished for a spot on the internet to tie together all the answers to all the questions in the Universe. I called it “The Straight Rope”.
*The next time I won, I asked for flying bars. So…ya know…
-D/a
If you want to have some fun, confiscate the next wishbone and place in a jar filled with vinegar. Cap the jar tightly, and set aside for several weeks.
The bone will be turned to a rubbery state, and you can then tie a knot in the wishbone!
~VOW
Or the one that hangs around fountains and wells full of coins.
There’s a short story in that, I reckon.
I believe (IANAVet) that raw bones are okay, cooked bones are not. Better safe than sorry, I reckon.
Then put in a jar with a solution of baking soda and water, and you can harden it back up again.
Another Canadian chiming in: Did it as kids, but only turkeys. We were unduly excited with anticipation waiting for the thing to dry out on the windowsill until that magical day.
But we have not passed this on to our kids. Not sure why - just an omission.
You wish!
I’ve never heard it called “merrythought”. Maybe that’s a British thing?
It may have been in the past, but not any more, I don’t think. I’ve never heard “merrythought” either. But wishing on the wishbone after drying it out on the kitchen windowsill was part of my childhood.
It was against the rules to put your thumb on the top (union?) of the wishbone during the pull. And we always put it on our kitchen windowsill too. 