First time raising broilers any advice is appreciated.

My wife and I are about to order some meat chickens and am wondering what to watch out for. We have raised plenty of different types of meat animals, but we are new to broilers. We usually raise buff orp as egg layers and end up eating them when they get older. I have been doing a lot of research and have been seeing how touchy they are. I was going to get 15 Cornish X and 10 red Rangers to try the different types. I am wanting to get to where we constantly have our own chicken in our fridge. I figure once I Butcher the first batch I'll order my next set. Any advice on these birds would be greatly appreciated.

I am not an expert on broilers, what I do know is that depending on how they bred the bird, they can have legs issues. I believe they are genetically bred to grow fast and be consumed at around 4-months, which means their legs are not going to keep up with their weight. So be careful when you buy them on how you provide the food, hopefully you can slow down their weight gaining and end up with pretty healthy and good weight chickens. Have you tried Rhode Island Reds (they grow slow), but in my opinion their meet is really one of the best. I personally don't care much for eating the orpingtons, although a lot of people love them, I also like barred rocks. I guess it has to do with the color of their skin, I like them with yellowish skin, but really Rhode Island Reds are my favorite. I have heard very good things about red rangers ( I think they are kind of like New Hampshire Reds). I had a Cornish X EE hen and as lovely as she was, there was something about the balance of her body that was off. Big breast, small body and small legs. Good luck!

For the money , you can't do any better than raising the CornishX ... BAR NONE ! They will require a little bit more animal husbandry than the run of the mill birds, but they are so worth it. Ask the hatcheries for the proper husbandry protocol of limiting their feed and be aware that they eat a lot of feed and poop a lot in their very short time to their trip to freezer camp. One can butcher them at 35 days of age for a 2lb. +/- Cornsh Game Hen, or at 6 weeks for a 4- 5 lb. ... 8 weeks for 6-8 lb. fryers, or 8-10 weeks of age for a 8-10 lb. roaster. NO other chicken type can come close to the CornishX if converting feed to meat in this time frame. Enjoy the ride !

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Very good advice. Keeping them up and moving is the best way to do it. Chest high food and waterers so they must stand. And keep them separated so they must walk. Friendliest birds ever if you can range them. Only thing is if you do, pen them up the last 2 weeks to tenderize them up.

Thanks for the great advice. For 25 birds how much space do I need in a pen and for a brooder. I am going to be using a tractor in the spring and summer but to get through the winter I need to figure something out. I am ordering from well so I hope everything goes well with the babies. Also what do I need to give them to help their chances as chicks. Any electrolytes or medicated feed. I was wanting to hopefully not use any medicated feed. Thanks for the help