I finished up my first batch of birds last month and the meat is going fast. I am planning on doing another batch of birds to fill the freezer again. I was just curious about how many times everybody else raises meat birds per year. Do you do them all at once or break it up to multiple times per...
I processed all of my cornish x and put them all in the freezer. I saved the organs and feed them to my cats and dogs. My dachshund goes crazy and will devour whatever I put in his bowl in seconds. My pitbull who usually eats everything will not touch the organs. This is very weird to me since...
I got all set up and in the middle of the first bird it started to pour. I stood out there and finished the first bird and I got soaked. I hope it stops raining so I can get more done. I would like to be finished with the last 10 birds tomorrow. I am doing this by myself so it takes a while...
We started butchering our birds this weekend and this was our first time raising the cornish x. We cooked one up that was about 5 pounds and it was a very tasty bird. I just put 3 more in the freezer and have one more in the refrigerator for later in the week. After this weekend we should have...
I have been posting about my first experience raising cornish x and it has been very stressful. In the beginning things seemed to go pretty smooth while they were being raised in my shed. I gave them feed 24/7 up to about 3 weeks old and then switched to 12 on and 12 off with the feed. I think I...
I started out with 26 cornish x and they are about 6 weeks old. I had 5 die up to this point and the rest looked really good. This morning I have another one dead and it looks like it was trampled. There was actually still birds on top of it this morning.
Should I be putting heat in my tractor...
My cornish x are a little over 5 weeks old and everything has been going good so far. I started out with 26 and had a couple die early. I have had the last 24 up until now. I went out this morning to move their tractor and noticed one of the birds was dead and two more were on the way to being...
I have 24 cornish x that will be 8 weeks old on the 27th of this month. I called up the place that I am taking them to get butchered for less than $3 a bird. The first day they can get me in is June 5th! I have had multiple conversations with them and I was under the impression that I could...
Not sure if lame is the word I am looking for but one of my meat birds has had issues walking pretty much since I got them. This one bird still eats but is always laying down and only walks when it has to. The bird is probably only 2.5 to 3 pounds. I am not sure what to do with it. I don't know...
I got my chicken tractor started last night and am now just waiting for the rest of my hardware cloth to arrive on Thursday. After that I will install the rest of the hardware cloth and tarp on one end. The birds should be in there by Friday.
We went out to the coop today to check on the layers and get some eggs. It was a nice day so we opened the door to the pen and everything was good. A couple of hours later my wife brought some food out for them and found one of the Rhode Island reds laying on the floor in the coop. I am not sure...
When you get your meat birds and put them in the brooder do you put paper towels on the floor or do you just put shavings? With guineas I always put paper towels down for the first couple of days but with the new pooping machines I was thinking about just putting shavings in the brooder. What do...
My meat chicks are scheduled to arrive some time next week and I am going to pick up some feed for them. I was thinking that I do not want medicated feed but want to know how everyone else starts out. Do you start out with medicated feed and then switch over to non medicated? I also see that my...
I have meat chickens coming at the end of the month and I am getting everything ready for them now. Last fall I had weed and feed winterizer put down on part of my lawn. Do you think this will be a problem for the birds and my families health? It has been five months since the application and...
I should be getting my 25 meat birds at the end of March so I need to purchase a new freezer to keep them in after they are ready. I was wondering what everybody else is using or what you recommend. Stand up or chest? Which one holds the most stuff. I know I want something energy efficient and...
This will be my first year raising birds for meat. I am in Maine and was wondering where the best place to get birds with the best quality, best price, best shipping price. I am thinking McMurray or Moyer. Moyer is closer but where do you get your birds and how have you liked them? I want...
I have guinea eggs hatching right now and one is trying to get out of the egg and I can hear it chirping. After it gets out of the egg, should I take the keet right out and put it into the brooder? Should I help the little guy get out of the egg or wait and let it get out on its own?
I noticed that one of my RI Red hens is missing all the feathers on her butt. All the other chickens and guineas are fine. Do you think one of the others is pulling her feathers out? She has feathers everywhere except on her behind.
I have 7 chickens who are laying daily. I get 5 to 6 eggs a day. I am feeding layer pellets and also provide oyster shell. The chickens go out into their pen when the weather is nice but we still have like 2 to 3 feet of snow on the ground. My question is about grit. I have never provided grit...
My chickens started laying last week. So we go out daily and collect the eggs. Today there is one hen sitting on 2 or 3 eggs. Does this mean she is broody? We do not have any roosters just hens. There are male guineas in with the chickens but I doubt they made the eggs fertile. So what should I...