BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[NanaKat]

A few of the 50 Columbian Wyandotte and Cochin juvies with the three hens who are raising them.

The one atop Mama's back brings a smile to my face. So precious! Love all the beautiful fluffies!

The White Wyandotte and the Chocolate Barred Orp both brooded some of the chicks. The older Columbian Wyandotte hen was being chased by a young cockerel, so I picked her up and put her in the brood room. She immediately started calling chicks to her and tries to cover about 15 juvies each evening. She is a great foster mom.

 

[BantyChooks]

A few of the 50 Columbian Wyandotte and Cochin juvies with the three hens who are raising them.

Adorable.

 

[FaerieChicken]

Cornish Cross question/help

We have a few more Cornish cross to butcher over the next week or 2, but I am now on my second chick that is not able to or is refusing to move about! Eating and drinking fine, and great actually, poo is looking normal and other than a few hot days this week, nothing out of the ordinary!

Is this just the ligament issue they get as they grow? The last batch, raised the same way and fed the same, had no issues. Perhaps it is just this younger batch?

 

[lpatelski]

Cornish Cross question/help

We have a few more Cornish cross to butcher over the next week or 2, but I am now on my second chick that is not able to or is refusing to move about! Eating and drinking fine, and great actually, poo is looking normal and other than a few hot days this week, nothing out of the ordinary!

Is this just the ligament issue they get as they grow? The last batch, raised the same way and fed the same, had no issues. Perhaps it is just this younger batch?

This is normal. If they are growing fast, like CX do, their heart muscle is just barely keeping up with the growth rate. This makes them inactive, and winded during exercise. Make sure you do not frighten them. It does not take much more than running the lawn mower to explode a heart ready to pop an aorta. If they start to pant, it's time to butcher.

 

[FaerieChicken]

This is normal. If they are growing fast, like CX do, their heart muscle is just barely keeping up with the growth rate. This makes them inactive, and winded during exercise. Make sure you do not frighten them. It does not take much more than running the lawn mower to explode a heart ready to pop an aorta. If they start to pant, it's time to butcher.

They aren't quite up to weight yet, I butchered the first one and it dressed at only 3 lb 4 oz! No panting yet, just flops around, using wings for balance and not able to stand...

Edited to add....
The last batch butchered dressed about 4 1/2 lb to just a lil over 5 lb some of them!

 

[Beer can]

They aren't quite up to weight yet, I butchered the first one and it dressed at only 3 lb 4 oz! No panting yet, just flops around, using wings for balance and not able to stand...

Edited to add....
The last batch butchered dressed about 4 1/2 lb to just a lil over 5 lb some of them!

Why some of us do not like CX they might be your biggest bang for the buck, but, you have to be willing to witness them looking like they are about ready to die, especially in warmer weather, panting, dragging themselves on the ground, losing feathers.
IMHO if I had to go economical I'd raise broad breasted white turkeys, at least they live and play fine, no health problems and get around just fine.

 

[DesertChic]

It hit 105* here today. The chickens were NOT happy...and neither was their "Mother Clucker". It's a bit early in the year to be suffering from heat stroke.

 

[lpatelski]

RB1 "Harambe" cockerel 5/8CX 3/8 Dark Cornish

DOH 4/20/2017 egg weight: 67g

Weight update
Hatch weight: N/A sorry
4/30/17: 10 day - 260g
5/04/17: 14 day - 370g
5/06/17: 16 day - 445g
Estimated rate of gain 445g-60g(est hatch weight)/16days = 24g/day





4/30/17 5/6/17

 

[Kassaundra]

I have a new batch of cx I am going to keep the females to add size to the scaleless genes. I have raised both batches (last year and this year) just like regular chickens and w/ regular chickens. Mine have had no mobility problems. They live w/ scaleless so I don't give them a high roost at all, but they still regularly get up and down on 3 foot high stuff in the run. ( processed the two boys pretty early, but both adult girls lived well into adulthood w/o problems, one had a sudden death, but the other is still going, I plan on processing her before the heat sets in she would just be to miserable in Okie summer as a full adult). They are the most "puppy" like chickens I have ever raised.

 

[Kassaundra]

I cooked a full adult male yesterday, was concerned about chewiness or toughness since he was 2+ years at harvest. Anyway I decided to cook him in the pressure canner. I had read some about how when canning some seasonings can change or get bitter so I didn't add any (but all my birds are brined after harvest). Anyway I just put the bird in whole, filled water to the first line threw in some whole potatoes and cooked for 20 minutes at 15 lbs pressure. (5 minutes heat time, 5 minutes cool time for 30 total) and it came out so tender and moist, and tasty even though there were no seasonings. (he did have some but not a lot of fm). And I still have plenty of broth for a soup.