Breeding Cornish X Rocks

[kfacres]

No, simple misunderstandings do not resort in such strong words being spoken.

I agree, this thread is now useless, and comprised.

 

[chisandchicks]

I bought 2 the other day not realizing what I had ---- oops.... But, I am going to see what happens with them and my other chickens! Why not, eh? I have some banty-x's that just might be able to get some eggs/live chicks out of them. My hubby refuses to eat our chickens. (We'll see what happens after the doo-doo hits the fan in this country..... he'll be changing his mind then.)
** I got a cantaloupe and a cucumber -x -- what I named a "cuke-aloupe" -- last season -- and it was sooooo tasty! So, why not try this to - lol!
At least they have a relatively safe home since we aren't eating any of them now.........

 

[taxidermist]

im curious what kind of results you would get if you bred a red broiler to a dark broiler.
red rooster to black hen and red hen to black rooster. then took the second generation and bred it them together. then take the third generation and breed them to a cornish X. should produce something worth eating.

 

[kfacres]

or most likely a ton of infertile eggs.

 

[cassie]

The eggs will probably be fertile. The chicks may not be what you are hoping for though.

 

[Whoopsie daisy]

Hi, another newbie with a question here. I do not believe this thread is useless or compromised as it is interesting reading people's different opinions and making up one's own mind. I came across this thread from a Google search, as I have 50 Cornish X broiler chicks arriving next week, and was thinking about raising half of them on a restricted diet so that they don't gain weight as fast and then keeping the hens and put a Barred rock or Light Sussex rooster over them? In other words Cornish x hens with a BR or LS rooster. Some may regard this as a waste of time, but I'll try anyway
It's fun playing around with breeds and at the end of the day, as a previous poster already said, they will all still taste like chicken. Even if we'll be eating a lot of scrawny chickens and soup, we'll still have raised our own happy chickens that had the chance to run around in the sun a bit.

 

[Baybrio]

im curious what kind of results you would get if you bred a red broiler to a dark broiler.
red rooster to black hen and red hen to black rooster. then took the second generation and bred it them together. then take the third generation and breed them to a cornish X. should produce something worth eating.

I think the cross will be mostly black chickens, they will definitely taste like chicken and be worth eating.
You can do about a 1000 hours worth of research on similar projects here in the meat bird forum. There have been several awesome projects. I don't remember anyone having tremendous continuing success crossing a cornish x on anything. But that is just from what I've read - I have a day job and have only read a tiny minority of what is written here.

From what I've read you might be better using your red and dark broilers and selecting your best birds from those crosses without adding the extreme characteristics of the Cornish X.

Here is a clear explanation from http://www.thepoultryconsultancy.com/ of what you get in a Cornish X chick:
Modern broilers are typically a third generation offspring (an F2 hybrid). The broiler's four grandparents come from four different strains, two of which produce the male parent line and two of which provide the female parent line, which are in turn mated to provide the broilers. The double cross protects the developer's unique genetics as strains cannot be reproduced from the broiler offspring.
Additionally, the male lines and female lines are not bred for the same traits; for example the female line needs to be able to lay as many eggs as possible, since the number of eggs laid per hen influences the cost of broiler eggs and hence broiler chicks. Egg-laying ability is less important in the male line, while rooster fertility is very important.

If you decide to give your plan a try please let us know how it goes. I love reading people's work. It's great to read when it goes well and equally informative to read what doesn't work!

 

[Hiltonizer]

Does anyone have results to share of Dark Cornish Males crossed with White Plymouth females?

 

[ChickenJerk]

Just remember that the "breeders" of large production type chickens of days gone by (Rocks, Reds, etc) ate not at all concerned with production qualities. They breed to the SOP to win shows.

 

[Hiltonizer]

Just remember that the "breeders" of large production type chickens of days gone by (Rocks, Reds, etc) ate not at all concerned with production qualities. They breed to the SOP to win shows.

This is part of my concern, and I am interested in results that are easily replicable due to accessible stock. I started my own thread, and have purchased White Rocks hens and a few Red Laced Cornish Roo's due for mid-april delivery from Welp. Hope to have some initial findings published in the fall.