What would you do?

I'll first give you a little backstory to help you understand. I live in pennsylvania so it does get cold at times. I just started raising chickens for extra profit. I would like to start broilers and order 30 chickens every month to replace the old ones as I go to keep a constant income going seeing how most chickens are ready for processing after 3-4 months but also would like to keep a flock to myself for egg laying so I would have my layers and then broilers. At the moment I have
6 khaki cambells (Ducks)
5 Red Productions (Pullets)
5 Black Sex linked (Pullets)
5 Plymouth Rocks (straight run)
5 Red Rangers (Straight run)
5 Rhode Island reds (Straight run)

I'm trying to decide which ones to keep and what should be processed. They are 2 weeks old to this day. I would like to keep layers from this group and then order buff orpingtons as broilers from now on every month. I'd also be willing to order some new layers if needed. I have lots of space and just need some more insight. In other words if you had this flock what would you do with them and how do you think I should run my plan on broilers and layers?

I'm not into meat birds, but you best bet is Cornish cross for fast meat, Orpingtons will take too long to reach a good size.

The rocks and RIR are dual purpose, they are average for both eggs and meat.

Your sex links will lay lots of eggs for a year or two.

Your red rangers are suppose to be good foraging meat birds, so I would use these or the Cornish for my meat birds depending on whether you want them to range or be confined.

Thank you so much for the reply. You answered exactly how i needed. The ducks I'm not sure about though what to do with them. I though it was a good idea till I started talking to people around here and they were not big on duck meat like I am or duck eggs but I will definitely take the cornish cross insight into mind. Thank you for the help.

I agree with OldHenLikesDogs. I would have a 5-8 layers for eggs, now when they get old, you can cull them and make soup.

Then I would have the rest be meat birds, 8 weeks from hatch to butcher. That is efficient money saving production of meat to eat.

The dual purpose birds are ok, (and these are the ones I have) if you want to hatch your own eggs, you then can raise your replacement pullets and grow out a few roosters for the dinner plate, but this is a much slower, less efficient way of running chickens. I putter with my chickens, I wait until I have a broody hen go broody. Not near the production, nor speed of turn over that you are talking about. For that you need meat chicken.

Mrs K

Do you have enough secure housing to keep the layers and the rotating (2-3-4?) groups of meaties separate?
Do you have a butcher and market set up to process and buy the meaties?
I suggest you do some reading in the Meat Birds forum to get a handle on how to be profitable.

I do have PLENTY of space. I could do more then 200 birds and then some if I wanted too but I'm just starting out and didn't wanna go crazy right off the start then crash and burn I wanted to do a couple rotations first and see how it goes then possibly go bigger so i can do a brooder section and a broiler section and a layer sections even a mini hospital section if i want. It's an old dog kennel building Concrete structure with water gas and electric and all the works prob bigger then a 2 bedroom apt atleast. my great grandmother had it on the land with many Pens and private runs for each dog but all the dogs are gone now and I figured I would put it to good use since it's on my land. Also I will be processing and packaging the chickens myself.

Where are you in PA?

I'm in Clarendon. About 3 hours north of Pittsburgh and 45 min. South of erie and jamestown. I live in the Alleghany Mountains

DaFlockinLeader said:

I do have PLENTY of space. I could do more then 200 birds and then some if I wanted too but I'm just starting out and didn't wanna go crazy right off the start then crash and burn I wanted to do a couple rotations first and see how it goes then possibly go bigger so i can do a brooder section and a broiler section and a layer sections even a mini hospital section if i want. It's an old dog kennel building Concrete structure with water gas and electric and all the works prob bigger then a 2 bedroom apt atleast. my great grandmother had it on the land with many Pens and private runs for each dog but all the dogs are gone now and I figured I would put it to good use since it's on my land. Also I will be processing and packaging the chickens myself.

Click to expand...

Sounds like a great building to start in!
Pens inside with attached runs outside?
Dang, that's like perfect.

Would love to see pics

Will post some very soon. Working on a automatic watering system with pvc piping and poultry nipples right now.