keeping cornish crosses for layers?

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I've used CX pullets from Schlecht's Hatchery, and have F1s from them sired by Ameraucanas laying eggs and going to the incubator right now. With that strain, I had only an occasional double yolk, though the eggs were pretty large. The gals were not great layers, and even on a restricted diet started having heart problems at about one year of age.

Some of their offspring, pictured before 4 months of age.




ETA that I grew the F1s on free choice 22 % grower, and they're still being fed free choice, so far without growth related losses. I did lose some of them when temps hit 105 or 106 while I was away from home; I had left them with ice water but the water was warm and the breeze had stopped when I returned from the doctor's office, and I lost some other birds also. I know other's have ran into heart problems with the crosses off CX at about one year of age, and mine will not be one year old until next April and May.
 
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lux_interior said:
they will probably die of heart or leg problems... They are bred to die early, and that's what they'll do, sorry
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I have 3 hens and 1 rooster all white cornish X that are a year old and I plan to experiment with to see what will happen if I AI them. The hens are laying, but the roo is too big breasted to mate normally. They are strong and very stocky and healthy and run with the rest of my flock right now. I need to pen them up alone, so they do not cross breed, as the hens are breeding with my large mutt roosters right now.
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If I had a Light or Dark Cornish Rooster, Instead of a CornishXrock cross, I would try to mate them naturally, as the cross is bred by crossing the White rock with a White(light)Cornish. If you use another breed, you would likely loose the stocky body type and the big breast that you are buying the Cornish cross for. Cornish is the breed chicken that has a muscular body type and big breast and rocks grow fast and are fat, combining the2 and crossing them back a couple of times they produced the crossed breed. The produce so many, I don't think it can be too complicated. I cannot find light Cornish anywhere in the US, but maybe someone might know it they are available from Cornwall, England where the breed came from. Does anyone out there have dark Cornish chickens? Are they laying? Do you want to take part in this experience? Do you want to sell be some fertile hatching eggs.
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Cedarknob said:
I've used CX pullets from Schlecht's Hatchery, and have F1s from them sired by Ameraucanas laying eggs and going to the incubator right now. With that strain, I had only an occasional double yolk, though the eggs were pretty large. The gals were not great layers, and even on a restricted diet started having heart problems at about one year of age.

Some of their offspring, pictured before 4 months of age.




ETA that I grew the F1s on free choice 22 % grower, and they're still being fed free choice, so far without growth related losses. I did lose some of them when temps hit 105 or 106 while I was away from home; I had left them with ice water but the water was warm and the breeze had stopped when I returned from the doctor's office, and I lost some other birds also. I know other's have ran into heart problems with the crosses off CX at about one year of age, and mine will not be one year old until next April and May.
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I see the puffy cheeks!!! Did you use and easter egger type or a real AMecauna? I have both and they perform differently. One is a larger bird with smaller eggs.
 
I used an over-standard weight blue, and a silver Ameraucana; but the silver, though from a well known breeder, was one I had found that carried a gene for yellow skin and green shanks. Had I had a very good EE male with better size, that I knew was heterozygous for blue eggs, I probably would have gone that direction. [My EEs were great layers of larger eggs, and I'm aiming for a big, meaty, yellow skinned bird that lays a good number of large sized blue/green eggs.] I also used quality [not hatchery sourced] Cornish over an Ameraucanas and a couple of EEs to work into the mix, but like these CX offspring better so far.................... they're bigger, faster growing, and lay larger eggs that are more blue than green.

ETA a picture of a normal sized, day old, pure bred Cornish next to the big, same age, CX crossbred.

 
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Celie said:
If I had a Light or Dark Cornish Rooster, Instead of a CornishXrock cross, I would try to mate them naturally, as the cross is bred by crossing the White rock with a White(light)Cornish. If you use another breed, you would likely loose the stocky body type and the big breast that you are buying the Cornish cross for. Cornish is the breed chicken that has a muscular body type and big breast and rocks grow fast and are fat, combining the2 and crossing them back a couple of times they produced the crossed breed. The produce so many, I don't think it can be too complicated. I cannot find light Cornish anywhere in the US, but maybe someone might know it they are available from Cornwall, England where the breed came from. Does anyone out there have dark Cornish chickens? Are they laying? Do you want to take part in this experience? Do you want to sell be some fertile hatching eggs.
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