How many of you FULLY Free Range your Cornish X Meaties? Tractors do not count.

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Beekissed said:
Maybe do them in the early spring next year? I never lost any to hawks last batch and they were all over this place where the dog could not protect them. It helped to have a murder of crows nesting in the area who were on high alert and the hawks were rousted several times over our place with the whole murder of crows attacking them.
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I never had an issue with them until fall when they were getting ready to leave. Had the same issue last year too. It's always just in the fall. The hawks come down RIGHT when Henry and we are all around. They are fearless! I had a broody whoop one's butt for going after her chicks. It's not a big hawk. Only can carry off chicks, but will kill juveniles and pluck them right there. The broody had a hold of it's tail and the hawk was screaming. It sure made me proud lol.

I will be doing the earliest shipment they have which is late May. I'll only do one batch I think... I like the straight run. I can do the boys all one weekend and wait a 2-3 more weeks to do the girls. Gives me a break.
 
Beekissed said:
Way beyond that.  They take a naturally hungry bird with a high metabolism and follow commercial broiler specifications of feeding and growth schedule and somehow expect the product they have in their back yard will somehow differ from the stench producing, the death producing methods of commercial ag broiler houses.  That this will somehow not happen in their yard even though they are feeding the same rations, on the same schedule, and keeping them too crowded into a small space just like the broiler houses do. 

Then, when they do this and are repulsed by the overly fat, immobile young birds who cannot escape their own feces due to growing too quickly...they will then adamantly state that they will not forage because they are much too lazy and food obsessed to actually work for food.  All the while that full feeder sits next to their obese-ly crippled birds...placed there by them...

Or, you have those who will put 50 young birds in a 10x10 tractor out on grass, provide the continuous feeding, and then observe that the birds just do not seem to actually forage on that 10x10 square of grass each time it is moved to fresh grass.  That they just trample the grass but do not actually scratch for bugs or eat the grass.  Really?  They have a full feeder of easily found feed and you think they should be eating the poop covered grass and finding the bugs in that 10x10 patch of grass?  Do they actually imagine bugs are going to remain where 100 feet are constantly stomping the ground or that the grass is going to remain edible after all the trampling and pooping?  That chickens just eat any and all grass and are not selective about which grasses are more digestible and more nutrient laden?  Or, somehow, do they imagine the birds will scratch the ground looking for food in those conditions when a feeder hangs nearby with all the food they could possibly need...why then search for food? 

Yes, it goes way beyond just that.  When someone can look at a young bird and see it growing into the shape of a volleyball so that it's legs are splayed out and it cannot move and they think that is good flock management, meat bird or not, they have some serious issues.  It's cruel and it's also needless and anyone with a little imagination and with eyes to read can find a better way to raise a meat bird instead of blindly following the advice of commercial agri-biz people.  It's for your own food consumption, for pete's sake!  A sick, feces covered bird that did nothing more than sit by a feeder for its entire young life and produce colorless, mushy, questionably healthy meat is just a no brainer...why then doesn't one just skip all the drama and expense and just buy it from the store?  The standard answer is:  So I can know what was put into the chicken.  What more could a person put into a chicken that makes it any less healthy than a bird whose cardiac, hepatic and renal health has been strained to the max by overfeeding and confined living on excessive fecal matter? 

Yes..it goes way beyond that and ventures into the ridiculous.  Just because they are meat birds does not excuse actually using one's noggin to figure out they have a different metabolism and instead of exploiting it, manage around it to provide them a healthier existence in their time on Earth.  It's easily done and it's a cheaper way of doing it, but many will still insist that it cannot be done...simply because they like being lazy and having an excuse for it. 
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Thanks for the longer explanation. It makes sense to me. I wish we were set up to raise them now but I have to compromise with myself and just be happy to research now instead. Hoping to get it all figured out with a solid plan in mind for when we do move (in the next 1-3 yrs probably). We will be taking over my in-laws 10 acres as they are wanting to downsize in the very near future. I imagine 5 of the 10 will be suitable for free ranging the layers and meat birds we raise for our own consumption.

I LOVE seeing the photos and videos, people, so keep those coming!
 
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Summary of my first experience with Cornish X. Week by week pictures.

One week
I had a rough time with them from day 1 to 14 It was extremely humid and incredibly hot.. we had a run in with Cocci and lost 7 CX and 10 RSL chicks. We did not treat for cocci, but offered electrolytes (Stress Aid) the day after we noticed low movement and puffiness despite the heat. They went quickly. Here you can not get Amprol without a vet's prescription. It took me 48 hours to get my hands on some, and by that time the electrolytes really perked them up. The strong survived. After they were on grass, the birds were golden. No more illness (save one) who I moved back in and gave amprol (the only one that was ever dosed). Chick was fine within 2 days and back out with everyone.


at two weeks (Day 14) I opened the pop door. I continued to offer electrolyte water because of the heat being so stressful on the chicks. I found the first week they really didn't go very far. They could not understand the concept of going BACK INSIDE at night. I had to pick each chick up and place inside the pop door (this includes the red sex link chicks).


Three weeks - Day 21 - day 28: Finally the CX are spreading out and returning to the pen at night on their own. Real feathers coming in. They are a good 3 times the size of their hatch mates (the red sex link layers).


Four weeks: Really good at foraging now. They run as soon as they hear the back screen door slam shut. They want treats. They are getting closer and closer to my neighbour's property line.


Five weeks

Almost 100% feathered out. They are passing our property lines and ranging two acres now. I do not like to watch them eat. They inhale food. I do love watching them forage, and they are very active. As soon as the pop door is open they are off..


Six weeks: Not much change since week five for experience. They have grown some. They are ranging exceptionally well. No leg injuries save one I jammed in the sliding door of the barn. She will be the first processed. Haven't lost a single one since cocci outbreak.

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CX birds free ranging @ 6 weeks. Some run like Phoebe on Friends
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Seven weeks: I processed the girl with the injured leg. She was limping, but still got around. I didn't want it to get any worse so she was processed along with three others. They were too small at this age. Roughly 3 pounds. We were going to do ten, but after seeing the first four gutted and weighed, we decided against it.


Eight weeks - This is when most would start processing the CX. I figured they are still getting around very well, so I'll give them a little longer.. May do the boys at 9 weeks..


They were hogging all the food at feeding time from EVERYONE, so we processed the largest 10 boys at 9 weeks old. Averaged out about 4.5 pounds. Largest was 5 pounds, smallest was just under 4. Much more breast meat seen than at 7 weeks.


almost 11 weeks - I have 28 left to process. Four are boys, 24 girls. Two of the girls look very small. I think I may keep them to laying age. A strict feeding regime is important to do this.. I want to see what they will give out when bred to a Heritage Plymouth Rock. I know they don't breed true.

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At 12 weeks we processed 26 chickens. 22 pullets and 4 cockerels. You can see them in this video at that age. They were still extremely active and a good size. After they were processed (neck, feet and wing tips off) they averaged 5.5 pounds each. Smallest over 5 pounds, largest over 6. One chicken can feed 8 no problem (unless you are feeding teenage boys) ;)

All in all I loved my experience with the CX. They are not the monsters you read about all through the meat bird forum. They are active, intelligent chickens who just happen to be extremely food motivated. If they are not allowed freely fed grain at all hours of the day, they will go search high and low for the food that nature has to offer them. They are amongst the best foragers I have ever witnessed. They are food aggressive, so ample feeder space is required. I ended up feeding on the ground because they took up so much space at feeding time. Still they ate about 80% of the grain I offered, and I have a lot of heritage birds growing out.
 
Monsters? I didn't realize people looked at Cornish that way. That's a shame. I raised Cornish years ago and I loved them. Someone gave them to me "by accident" and I didn't have the heart to process them years ago. They lived a good life.
 
My mother and I were sitting out at our picnic table one day, just chatting and watching the CX ranging about, when one little guy walks up, hops up between us and settles his little butt down on the seat. We looked at each other with amazement and I reached down to pet him. He just sat there and let me pet him. I've been raising chickens for the better part of my life but have never had a chicken just walk up, hop up and sit down for a petting~I just don't do the whole pet chicken thing and though I have had hens who want to be with me, none were comfortable enough to sit down and let me pet them without there having been food in the picture, either in the past or the present. This friendly little bird just wanted to chat and relax with us.

I guess someone who pens them and feeds them tons of food wouldn't get the opportunity to have them actually walk up to them in the yard to have a little petting, but monster is not the first thing that comes to mind when I am around these chickens.
 
I have two Cornish X roos that are totally free ranged. They crow like freight trains. One is at 16lbs the other is at 14lbs. We discussed putting one one the table at Thanksgiving and it was decided that we would keep them around. They service my hens and they have been seen chasing dogs out of the yard. Other than being greedy when treats or feed is thrown out, they are great. I have eggs in the incubator now, It will be interesting to see how the chicks turn out. Complete barnyard mutts for sure!
 
I have raised Cornish cross with broodies for a few year. I feed only once a day and they are kept with the rest of the flock. They will range farther out than any of my other chickens when young, I think this is because they are always so hungry. I have also kept a few hens to laying age and hatched eggs from them crossed with heritage breed. A couple of the hens will actually jump up to the roost, which is three tiered but they like to be on the top one.
 

Thought I'd give you all an update. My two keeper hens are laying. Here is Big Bertha being serviced by a terribly ugly molting frizzle rooster. HA!

Not hatching until I can ensure her eggs are sired by my Heritage Barred Rock Jagger

 
aoxa said:

Thought I'd give you all an update. My two keeper hens are laying. Here is Big Bertha being serviced by a terribly ugly molting frizzle rooster. HA!

Not hatching until I can ensure her eggs are sired by my Heritage Barred Rock Jagger

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Your Barred Rock is Gorgeuos!!!
 

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