Naked Neck Chicken

hipetail,

The naked necks at S & G are the same as Cackle just different colors. I had an ordered placed from there but their location to the USPS made it tough and I had to cancel my order because of heat restrictions and forcing them to ship Expedited which added $100+ to shipping.

My order from them was to be 75 naked necks and 75 rangers. Instead I ordered 150 rangers from JM Hatchery.

Also, S & G is a more expensive as well.

As for weights. Well I processed at 15 weeks. My largest bird was 4.2 lbs and smallest was 3.2 lbs. Avg weight was 3.6 lbs. Much lower than what I was expecting. But it was hot here. Avg Temp while they were alive was 93.4 degrees and 60%+ humidity. So they hardly came out to range during the day and they barely made is through a ton of food in that time frame.

The 25 birds I just did which I started 7 weeks later avg 4.8 lbs dressed. Much cooler 85 degrees but the humidity dropped in half if not more. So felt much cooler and they were out in the pasture much more and active.

And as a side note: I loved raising them and watching them. They are so ugly that they are cute. I am looking for the same experience with the rangers. Hopefully next year I will raise them side by side and for the same time frame.

Quote:
I thought the ones from S & G were a hybrid NN... are the ones at Cackle a hybrid too maybe.
So were you able to get any birds from S & G? I'm wondering if both of these weights from your 2 different batches were both from the Cackle NN's? Oh and are these live or dressed weights? Sorry to have soooo many questions - eek! I'm really wanting to get as much information as I can before I take the plunge .
I agree, I think they are so ugly they are cute. We have 3 bantam naked neck hens - they are very active and great little foragers too. Have you eaten any of them yet? If so, how were they - I've heard that the skin crisps up really nicely

I was never able to get any from S & G. The increase in shipping moved me to purchase rangers from JM Hatchery this time. From what I was reading this year everyone was suffering really low weights in the first half of the year because of the heat. I may try next year to order from S & G to see what their birds are like. I wanted to keep a couple roos from their stock

2 Rangers and 2 NN. So for now I will keep one roo from the rangers I have now and see if it will stay alive. I plan on raising them 12-14 weeks so I am planning on having some good sizes and flavor with them.

Good luck getting them from S & G and feel free to PM me with your results. The people that got them loved them and raved about the flavor. And weights I listed were dressed weights.

I placed an order with S&G for the end of September. I will let you know how they do... we are very excited to try them. I sincerely appreciate you sharing your experiences.

I know this is an old thread but I am interested in raising NN for meat. What specific type is used for "Poulet Rouge" and is it just the method or is it a hybrid?

How do they compare to heritage breeds like bresse, sulmtaler or any similar specialty breeds?

Does anyone have opinions about these birds regarding flavor or meat production.

Thanks!